Mailbag: The Oklahoma City Thunder edition

2:32 PM EDT on June 22, 2012

Usually we try to have a diverse range of topics in our Friday Mailbag. By diverse, I really mean questions about Mary Fallin, Jim Traber and James Harden's beard. This week, we're going to mix things up and only focus on emails that only have to do with the Oklahoma City Thunder...and James Harden's beard.

Also, don't forget that you need to vote for your favorite email. Whoever sends us the best one will win a $25 Gift Certificate to Flint. It's that new eatery located at the bottom of the Colcord. I've heard it's pretty good. Plus, apparently Fabio ate their when he was in town last week. There's no word on if they serve "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter."

Anyway, to this week's questions. For fun, I'm going to include a classic sad movie scene with each question to cheer you up:

Jordan writes:

Ok, as the Finals continued on & James Harden kept getting worse I started to think he was cursed from the get go with all the "Beard" puns & contests before the finals. It really was a overkill by the local media, especially KFOR w/ the stupid fake beard pic contest. Then add on the guy who put the fake beard on the building & worse that stupid "Beard Like Harden" parody song I really think it cursed Harden at the worst possible time. It really made him into a bigger figure than what he really is. So am I crazy or do I have a legit theory? I mean personally anytime you can blame the "Beard Like Harden" people for anything you should do it

I'm not sure it was a curse, but who would have thought that the only people to "Fear the Beard" in the NBA Finals would be Thunder fans. Seriously, James Harden laid a Pterodactyl egg in the that series, and he's a big reason why the Thunder lost in five games as opposed to six or seven. In fact, the only positive thing about Harden's performance is that it will possibly quell some of the "Fear the Beard" mania. That stuff was cute at first, but got old pretty damn quick.

Brian asks:

Scott Brooks: Idiot or moron?

Neither.

I actually think Scott Brooks is a pretty good coach. Sure, he may be a tad conservative and slow to adapt at times, but he's level-headed, patient and seems to manage the players and their egos quite well. For the last three years, he's been the perfect coach for this team.

However, I'm not sure if he's the perfect coach for the future. Can the Thunder win a championship with Brooks? Sure, but I think a lot of coaches could win with the Thunder's current collection of talent. To win several titles, which should be the goal of this organization, they need a coach who gives them an advantage on the bench. I'm not 100% sure he's that guy.

Also, with Brooks and the Thunder apparently being far apart on an extension, and some pretty good semi-retired coaches being available (Jackson & Sloan), I wouldn't blame or fault the Thunder if they went a different direction...although I doubt it will happen.

Rhett asks:

What are we going to do for the next two months until football season starts?

I would suggest stockpiling on alcohol and getting mentally prepared for a really bad football season. My gut feeling is that both state teams are going to struggle to meet expectations next year. OSU lost arguably two of the five best players in the program's history. There's no way they'll be close to being at the same level. And OU is bringing back Landry Jones, the worst good quarterback in college football. Expect him to have three or four spectacular 400-yard, 5 touchdown games, and one or two "Haha! Can you believe they pegged me as a Heisman candidate?!?" type performances.

Miranda writes:

I think The Daily Oklahoman sent every single one of its reporters to cover the NBA Finals. With the season now over, what are they going to do with everyone?

This is probably a good time to go ahead and give some props to our friend Royce at DailyThunder.com. He works his ass off on that website and has created the best resource for Thunder news, information and analysis. Plus, through his affiliation with CBS Sports and ESPN, he has sources and contacts that the rest of the local media simply doesn't have.

Anyway, I bring that up because DailyThunder.com has almost single-handedly made the Oklahoman's Thunder coverage irrelevant. Because of Royce, you don't have to suffer through John Rohde columns or Jenni Carlson chats to get your Thunder fix. If there's something worth reading online about the Thunder, odds are that Royce will link to it in his Thunder bolts.

And to answer your question, I would imagine the Oklahoman will find a way to keep their sports department busy. College football media days will be here before you know it, and soon after the Thunder will begin their quest for a second trip to the NBA Finals. I already can't wait for the next Jenni Carlson chat.

Nick asks:

Can the Thunder bring some of the Heat Dancers with them on the flight back to Oklahoma City? Nothing against our Thunder Girls, but they look like backwoods hill folk compared to the Heat girls.

Yeah, the Heat Dancers know what they are doing. I think the flagship Thunder Girl — the tall red-head that the Fox Sports Oklahoma crew obsesses over— would probably struggle to make the The Heat Dancers B Team.

Vote!

Patrick @okcpatrick

Patrick is the founder, editor and publisher of The Lost Ogle.