As the Truth sees it…

College GameDay will be in Dallas for the Oklahoma-Texas game Saturday. This is the second time this year it has been on site for an OU game. The first was against Florida State.

Earlier this week, Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops turned a bye week press conference into national news. With talk about super conferences, realignment and the Big 12 tearing apart, Stoops sent a message out to anyone who thought the Sooners were just going to follow Texas as they did last year.
“A lot of things change,” Stoops said. “All of a sudden we aren’t playing Nebraska every year and now they’re gone and we’re still here. Life goes on and people find other rivalries, you find other fun places to go and enjoy the game and enjoy the experience. I think it’s obvious we’ll always have a great product that will always be exciting to follow and we always have great TV audiences. Whatever happens, we’ll adjust to it.”
This statement was aimed at not just the Longhorns, but also any other program thinking of getting in OU’s way. But he wasn’t there. When talk of possibly losing the Red River Rivalry came up, he was quick with an answer.
“I don’t think it’s necessary,” Stoops said. “I know no one wants to hear that, but life changes and you’ve got to change with it, to whatever degree. If it works, great. I love the game, but if it doesn’t, it doesn’t. Sometimes that’s the way it goes.”
As of right now, no one outside of possibly David Boren, Joe Castiglione and Stoops knows for sure what Oklahoma will do next year. Will they try and hold the Big 12 together or move on to other pastures in the PAC-12, SEC or maybe even Big 10?
Regardless what the decision is, Oklahoma has finally put themselves in a position to control their own destiny. Not dependent on any other school or conference to determine how much success or revenue they can generate.
That’s a good spot to be in these days.

Former Sooner and NFL Hall of Famer, Lee Roy Selmon, died this afternoon, two days after suffering a massive stroke. He was 56.
“I don’t know what to say,” said former Bucs quarterback Doug Williams. “Nobody expects something like this to happen, but you don’t control it. I’m 56, just like Lee Roy. There’s not a whole lot to say.”

It all comes down to today for the Thunder. At least, that is how they have to approach this afternoon’s Game 7 against the Memphis Grizzlies at Oklahoma City Arena.
“Once the ball goes up, it’s just a game,” Oklahoma City coach Scott Brooks said. “It’s a game that you have to win to move on. It’s an exciting time. I’m sure both teams will be ready with a lot of energy. We are looking forward to it.”
If the Thunder win, they will move on to play the Dallas Mavericks Tuesday in the Western Conference Finals. If they lose, for an entire offseason they will have to remember the games they let get away. They include Game 3 in Memphis, Game 6 in Memphis and Game 1 in Oklahoma City. All three were winnable contests that if they had snared would have prevented today’s win or go home matchup.
But, if you listen to NBA analyst, Oklahoma City is just paying its dues and learning how to win. Along with losing to L.A. last year, these are the steps they have to go through in order to be NBA champions several years down the road.
All of that may be true. But the question the Thunder players and coaches need to be asking themselves is “why not now?”  Why can’t OKC go from the worst team in the league to championship in a mere four seasons?
There is no guarantee Oklahoma City will get this chance again. Yes, they have a superstar in Kevin Durant, a budding star in Russell Westbrook and a diverse and talented supporting cast. But that doesn’t guarantee anything.
Just ask the Phoenix Suns, the Portland Trailblazers and the Sacramento Kings. Over the past decade each of them were on the doorstep of making it to the NBA finals before losing in close Game 7s. They all thought they would have another shot the next year or the one after that. They didn’t.
The Thunder have to take advantage of the opportunity placed in front of them today.
This is where the greats of the NBA made their name. From Magic Johnson to Bill Russell to Shaq and Kobe. This is what makes Game 7s so special. We will find out what Durant and the rest of the Thunder are made of and if they truly believe they are ready to be champions.
“I expect a better player,” Brooks said of Durant. “Hopefully he comes out better. He didn’t play well. The thing I love about Kevin is that he owns up to it. He doesn’t shy away. Doesn’t run form it. He’s an incredible kid who is very competitive. He wants to play at a high level every night and when he doesn’t he usually bounces back very well.”

Michael Kinney

Today, the White House released the ‘long form’ of President Barack Obama’s birth certificate amid the furor Birther’s have raised over his legitimacy. It caught almost everyone by surprise when he held a special news conference to try and put this issue to bed once and for all.
But the fact that he felt he had to do this is what upsets me. There are more important things going on in this world than this. Tornados are all across the south, destroying homes and taking lives, but we have so-called ‘important’ people asking about birth certificates and how Obama got into college. We spent more time talking about where he was born than we did talking about why we went looking for “weapons of mass destruction.”
“We can’t solve our problems if we make stuff up and pretend that facts aren’t facts and get distracted by sideshows and carnival barkers,” Obama said Wednesday morning.
I wish he hadn’t released it at all. Every time you give in to foolish people, you pave the way for more foolish people to go after you. But a poll came out that said a small percentage of Americans don’t believe he’s an American citizen. And us in the media keep allowing Donald Trump and others to stir the pot so, so I can see how he felt he had to do it.
“I am really honored to play such a big role in hopefully, hopefully getting rid of this issue,” Trump said. “Today I’m very proud of myself, because I’ve accomplished something that no one else has been able to accomplish.”
Trump has turned himself into a even more of sideshow fool than he already was. The sad part is that there are many people who feel as he does.
If anyone thinks the release of this birth certificate will get these ignorant people to accept the truth, you are only fooling yourself.
“We don’t have time for this silliness,” Obama said.
Michael Kinney

The Denver Nuggets appear to have a problem.
By tonight’s 7 p.m. tip, they must find a way to corral Oklahoma City forward and two-time NBA leading scorer Kevin Durant.
The league has hardly been able to slow down Durant, but that’s the issue the Nuggets face. It’s made harder by the fact Durant does not stand still, but continues to get better.
“One of the things that he did throughout this year is play through contact,” Oklahoma City coach Scott Brooks said. “And he has played through physical play and he’s preparing himself to be a better player on the offensive end. Not rely on his talent, but rely on his strengths and his experience that he is gaining every day.”
In the series opener Sunday, Danilo Gallinari, Kenyon Martin, Al Harrington, Wilson Chandler and Raymond Felton took turns guarding Durant. Each left with the same result.
“We have to be more aggressive on Kevin Durant in order to make him take some awful shots,” Gallinari said. “He’s probably the best scorer in the NBA and he was hitting a lot of shots, so we probably have to play even more aggressive on him. But other than that, I thought we did a really good job.”
A good job?
The Thunder might take another good job like that.
Michael Kinney

I don’t know how the Riverwind Casino does it, but it continually attract some of the best concerts in the state. In the past Boyz II Men and Keith Sweat have all played the Norman venue.
The list will increase Saturday with The Men of Love Tour. It features Joe with K-Ci & Jo Jo. While I am not crazy about the name of the concert, it’s not meant for me. It’s meant for the single and married women who will in the audience.
Regardless, I am looking forward to covering it. Both Joe and K-Ci & Jo Jo have songs on their catalogs that will bring back memories. They include Joe’s “Don’t Want to Be A Player”, “I Wanna Know”, “Still Not a Player” and “All The Things Your Man Won’t Do.” K-Ci & Jo Jo’s will have “Tell Me It’s Real,” “Life” and “If You Think You’re Lonely Now. ”
Like I said, It’s a concert meant for the ladies. But anyone who grew up in the 90s should enjoy the walk down memory lane.

Oklahoma City Thunder coach Scott Brooks explained why Kendrick Perkins might be the last real enforcer left in the NBA.
“You could hit guys pretty hard or fight guys and not have to really pay a lot of money to do that,” Perkins said. “But now you have to pay a lot of money to do that. That’s why you never see it happen anymore. It’s better. It was crazy back then.”

The University of Oklahoma looks to name UNLV head coach Lon Kruger to the same position with the Sooners. If he accepts the job, Kruger is expected to make more than $2 million per year.
Kruger has a long coaching resume with stops at Texas-Pan American, Kansas State, Florida, Illinois and in the NBA with Atlanta Hawks.
Kruger has not accepted the job yet. OU officials are meeting with him to discuss the offer.
Michael Kinney

Heading into tonight’s contest with Portland, the Thunder are one victory away from clinching a spot in the postseason. While it’s a forgone conclusion that it will happen at some point, it’s a big difference from last season when they were the No. 8 seed and the last to clinch.
Yet, OKC coach Scott Brooks is planning on doing any cartwheels any time soon.
“Last year we didn’t know how we would respond,” Brooks said. “I like the way the guys responded. I won’t respond any differently. I think we will go with it as good job, good win. Let’s move on toward tomorrow’s practice.”
Tonight’s game is also important because it could be a first round preview.
The Thunder are 47-24 and sit in the No. 4 spot in the Western Conference. Portland is 42-30 and fighting for the fifth spot with Denver.