Forumsregeln » ors on July 4. When they meet on the flo

It was sometime after 10 p.m. local time on May 30, and Kevin Durant was still lingering on the floor of Oracle Arena. Confetti was splashed all over the floor, the Golden State Warriors were celebrating and Durant stood near the visitors tunnel, jersey untucked, just sort of ... lingering.Durant had scored 27 points for the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 7, including seven straight to cut the Golden State Warriors lead to four with 1:40 left. He was spent, both physically and emotionally. A 3-1 series lead had slipped through his hands, and the Thunder had fallen short of the Finals. His team already back in the locker room, Durant stood alone for a few seconds, before ducking through the tunnel and off the floor.The Thunder make their return to Oracle for the first time since that fateful Game 7 on Thursday and not just without Durant, but to play against him. The floor Durant walked off crestfallen in May is now his home for the foreseeable future.For the Thunder, it will be a jarring experience. Some within the organization have said they arent sure how theyll react to seeing Durant on the other bench. Some have said theyve moved on and wont be fazed. Among the latter is Russell Westbrook, who is pragmatic -- Durant is an opponent, and Westbrook doesnt like opponents. In some ways, Westbrook is ambivalent, claiming his team has his only attention. He didnt watch Durants first game with the Warriors, instead playing poker with friends and finding out about the score only when his wife told him the next morning.Westbrook and Durant spent eight seasons together, but their supposedly unbreakable bond was severed when Durant announced he was joining the Warriors on July 4. When they meet on the floor Thursday, it will be the first time theyve spoken since (assuming they speak). All eyes will be on their handshake before tipoff, but Westbrook doesnt do that before games with opponents. He sprints under the opposing basket, stares into the crowd, pumps his arms and gets ready to play. The only people he daps up are the ones wearing the same jersey as him. He says he only has one friend during a game: the ball.The Thunder have started 4-0, the lone unbeaten left in the West, and have taken on a part of Westbrooks personality as their identity. They play hard, theyre not always pretty, they mess up plenty, but they dont let up. Theres so much attention on Westbrook and Durant, its been overlooked this will be an uncomfortable night for Nick Collison, for Steven Adams, for Anthony Morrow, for Enes Kanter and for Andre Roberson. They all believed Durant was coming back, too. Everyone is fascinated by how Westbrook might play -- will he try to dunk so hard a vortex is created in downtown Oakland and Durant is swallowed whole by it? -- but its going to be worth watching Westbrooks teammates.We all played with Kevin, we all were disappointed he left, Collison said. So its not like its just Russ. Its something that were all going to deal with, seeing one of our guys playing somewhere else. Itll be a big game and everyones going to play hard for sure but theres a lot of reasons thats going to happen.Durant, by nature, is a pretty non-confrontational person. Hes easy going, easy to get along with and adaptable to any group of people. He wants the idea that theres a beef with Westbrook to evaporate. Westbrook, though, is guarded, skeptical and values loyalty. He doesnt mind butting heads with anyone, whether its a teammate, a coach or a reporter. It sets a strange scenario on Thursday, one where theres genuine unknown of what may happen.Theyre gonna play basketball, Anthony Morrow said. Thats it.The Thunder return to Oracle six months later in a different world. When they left on May 30, they thought theyd be coming back better and stronger than ever, the likely favorite to win it all. Instead, theyre a franchise that was pushed to the brink of unraveling, and building a new identity behind Westbrook. While most expected them to fall back, Westbrook only pushes forward. Asked on Wednesday after their 85-83 win against the Clippers if hes surprised at the way the Thunder have begun the season, Westbrook flashed his trademark disdain.Who said that? Westbrook snapped. A lot of folks, a reporter responded. Westbrook cut his eyes over and defiantly grinned. Thats where they went wrong. Cheap Womens Nike Shox .Y. - Nelson Mandela will be honoured by the New York Yankees with a plaque in Monument Park. Wholesale Nike Shox Womens . -- Five former Kansas City Chiefs players who were on the team between 1987 and 1993 filed a lawsuit Tuesday claiming the team hid and even lied about the risks of head injuries during that time period when there was no collective bargaining agreement in place in the NFL. http://www.clearancenikeshoxcheap.com/mens-vapormax-cheap.html . Both players have lower body injuries that will keep them out of the lineup until at least January 31, which is the first game they can be activated from IR. Vapormax Plus Cheap . The (11-11-4) Jets are seventh in the Central Division with 26 points. Fifth place Dallas and sixth-seeded Nashville also have 26 points, but the Stars have three games in hand on Winnipeg while Nashville has two. Womens Vapormax 2019 . Down by seven with 90 seconds left in regulation, thats where they looked comfortable. ESPN senior writer Mike Sando asks league insiders to pick winners in selected games each week. Three personnel evaluators took the challenge in Week 7. The games on the docket:?Giants-Rams, Redskins-Lions, Vikings-Eagles, Cardinals-Seahawks and Texans-Broncos.New York Giants at Los Angeles RamsSunday:?9:30 p.m. ET, NFL |?Point spread: NYG by 3Two of three insiders took the Rams while acknowledging that Los Angeles, diminished by top corner Trumaine Johnsons ankle injury, might have no answer for Odell Beckham Jr. The thinking was that Robert Quinns return to the Rams defensive line could be enough.I feel like Eli [Manning] has been totally afraid of the rush.dddddddddddd. It is almost like he is ducking as he tries to get the ball off, one insider said. Maybe that win last week ignites them, but it has been a struggle for him.The other insider picking the Rams wavered, but he liked their chances if Quinn and fellow defensive lineman Michael Brockers were available. He took the Rams by a field goal. It wasnt yet clear how much Quinn or Brockers might play, or how effective they could be. ' ' '