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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 18h

Would be a very small sample size, but would love to see what it looks like for a short stint at some point in the regular season

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 18h

3 Thunder Highlighters in its preseason finale ⬇️ 🏀 First glimpse of a Mara-Hartenstein lineup 🏀 Shai off-ball activity, ➡️ giving Jalen Williams & Ajay Mitchell primary reps 🏀 Chet Holmgren’s defensive impact can't be UNDERSTATED

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 19h

OKC this preseason has exercised utilizing SGA primarily off-ball Here, Caruso sets a pin-down for SGA, slips it for a backdoor cut, resulting in an AND-1 The attention + gravity SGA garners will create more opportunities to run such actions It will be interesting to see if SGA’s usage decreases

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 19h

Favorite non-recorded NBA stat: the “GORTAT SCREEN” Jalen Williams grabs the rebound ➡️ Outlets to SGA ➡️ SGA pushes the pace ⬇️ SGA passes to a trailing J-Dub, where Isaiah Hartenstein clears the paint by setting a screen GORTAT SCREEN Results in an easy layup for J-Dub

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 19h

No team does as good a job at keeping situations secretive as the Thunder Should have updates over the weekend

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 20h

Looks like these players for OKC won’t be AVAILABLE for its preseason finale against Houston ⬇️ Chet Holmgren Cason Wallace Jaylin Williams Nikola Topic Thomas Sorber Otega Oweh + No preseason reps for ⬇️ Chet Holmgren Jaylin Williams Nikola Topic Thomas Sorber

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 14/10/2026

Update SGA Efficiency in the Preseason ⬇️ 10/11 FG - 90.91% FG 6/7 2P - 85.71% 2P 4/4 3P- 100% 3O 109.1% EFG 107.0% TS% 11 assists to 1 total turnover in 41 minutes

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 14/10/2026

Without question, it's been Aday Mara's most complete defensive game in the preseason He's been excellent in drop, timing on his rotations, deterring, and communicating as the backline of the defense Thunder have been a +12 with him on the floor

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 14/10/2026

SGA preseason stats (5 quarters) ⬇️ 32 points in 41 minutes 10/11 shooting 4/4 from 3 10 assists (1 turnover) +20

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Reposted by @therealmaine.bsky.social

Thunder Film Room @thunderfilmroom.bsky.social · 14/10/2026

OKC utilizes this "Gator" action (pass to someone who passes to the roller). Shai does a nice job of using eye deception to hit an open McCain for 3 in the corner. Feels like Shai has been very active tonight as a screener, specifically off-ball.

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 14/10/2026

GREAT to see Tyrese Haliburton back in action has played five minutes and has scored/assisted on 14 of Indiana’s 20 points — 4-for-4 from the floor & 3-for-3 from 3 Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, looking in mid-season form, has played five minutes and has scored/assisted on 10 of OKC’s 12 points

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 13/10/2026

Bennett Stirtz in the preseason (3 games) is averaging 20.3 PPG, shooting 59% from 3 on 7.3 attempts per game Been in total control & efficient — off the catch, off the dribble, and as a decision-maker, setting up teammates Will be a fun piece to implement in OKC’s guard rotation

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 13/10/2026

The lone preseason con for the OKC Thunder is that so much developmental time is being missed by Nikola Topic and Thomas Sorber

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 13/10/2026

Through 2 games & 3 quarters in preseason, Aday Mara is 11-for-14 (78%) from the free-throw line — and is 7-for-10 against Atlanta He shot 59% in college Such a stark difference from SL to Preseason Been one of the most impactful players on the floor — 11 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists, 5 blocks

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 13/10/2026

It's been a combination of playing both the 1 & 2. Don't have a definitive answer as of right now, but Micah Nori is experimenting with different combinations between their four guards (having 2 of them on the floor at a time)

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 13/10/2026

An area that won't show up in the stat sheet is Aday Mara’s DETERMINATION & ABILITY to push the tempo by pushing the ball up the court off his inbounds His split-second out-of-bounds pass-in here creates a transition opportunity off of a made shot

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 13/10/2026

The experimentation with the different types of guard combinations + Donovan Clingan & Rob Williams are going to benefit so much from all these playmakers on the roster (Morant, Henderson, Avdija, Holiday) Clingan had multiple lobs today & showed his catch-in-traffic ability Dark horse top-6 seed

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 13/10/2026

Biggest takeaway from the Portland TrailBlazers today is the growth & development of Scoot Henderson's jumper — looks cleaner & more fluid Henderson: 4-for-5 from three & a +29 in 16 minutes

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Aday Mara through two preseason games: ⬇️ 34 PTS on 15-for-15 FG 15 REB 5 AST 4 BLKS +30 in 43 minutes Bennett Stirtz through two preseason games: ⬇️ 35 PTS in 53 minutes 10 REB 8 AST 12-for-20 (60%) FG% 7-for-13 (54%) 3PT%

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

The evolution of having all “FIVE” players being able to — pass, dribble, and shoot, and the pressure it presents to defenses 25 assists on 31 FGM (80.6% AST RATE) The Thunder’s “ball movement” has been on FULL DISPLAY in the preseason Favorite offensive sequence of the game

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Preseason but Shai hasn't missed a beat 15 points in 12 minutes on 5-for-5 shooting, 3-for-3 from 3 (all three off catch-and-shoots), and 4 assists (0 turnovers) Has bended Milwaukee’s defense with his scoring & passing. Flawless first half so far OKC has 21 assists on 26 FGM

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Internal improvement on their interior & vertical passing as a unit will be an underrated storyline of the season The possibilities that Mara could provide as a vertical spacer. Could certainly help the Thunder leap offensively

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

A wrinkle in what utilizing Aday Mara in the hub provides for the Thunder’s offense Threads the needle to a cutting Jalen Williams, which collapses the defense, kicks it out to Alex Caruso for the open 3 Ends in a miss but adds another layer to OKC’s offense, especially in half-court actions

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

NO Chet Holmgren (quad contusion), Isaiah Hartenstein (ankle soreness), and Jaylin Williams (heel soreness), along with Thomas Sorber and Nikola Topic (injury recovery) TONIGHT Preseason debuts for ⬇️ SGA J-Dub Cason Wallace Alex Caruso Will be fun to see Mara & Stritz minutes with SGA & J-Dub

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

Couldn't agree more! The foundation + culture, to go along with the draft capital OKC still possesses. Puts them in a much better position to pull off the “two timelines” Ultimately, this will be an exciting case study to follow!

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

Agreed. Improving his strength and conditioning has been his primary point of emphasis over the summer Last thing I'll mention is the fact that OKC doesn't need him to play extended minutes because of the frontcourt depth, which allows him to go 100% in short stints Will be fun to follow!

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

Tonight was a perfect case of play-finishers/rim protectors benefiting from having structure + a ton of talent around them Allows him to maximize his condensed role offensively & defensively But his movement & fluidity from Summer League to now is what stands out the most

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

OKC “young guys” have looked good Aday Mara has made his presence felt on both ends. 12 points on 5-for-5 shooting, 9 rebounds, 3 assists, and 3 blocks in 18 minutes. Looking more fluid Bennett Stirtz making the right reads & moving well off-ball. Capitalizing on the catch-and-shoot 3s (3-for-4)

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

Great defensive possession from OKC as all 5 defenders are on the same accord Finishing the sequence with a McCain paint touch. Collapsing & shifting the defense — leading to a swing assist to a Kenrich made 3 Impressive offensive first half from the Thunder. Free-flowing on FULL DISPLAY

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

Aday Mara is playing with force + has made an impact as a rim protector — contesting & disrupting multiple misses in the paint Blocked the shot, igniting the fast break + flashed as a rim-runner in transition

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

Jared McCain (3 3PM) & Bennett Stirtz (3 3PM) combined are 6-of-6 from 3 Fluid ball movement & offensive action + generating constant paint touches from the Thunder 10 assists on 11 FGM + 8-of-10 from 3

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

It will be important for Jared McCain to raise his volume from 3 this season Quick release + no hesitation as McCain starts the 2026 preseason 3-of-3 from 3

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

No hesitation from McCain to open this game — 9 points on 3-of-3 shooting from 3 in the first 4 minutes

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

Agreed, with the primary focus being on Stritz and Mara. Mainly to see how they process on offense & defense + handle the tempo

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

First preseason game tonight for OKC against New Orleans but will be without: ⬇️ Shai Gilgeous-Alexander J-Dub Chet Holmgren Isaiah Hartenstein Cason Wallace Alex Caruso Nikola Topic Thomas Sorber Intrigued by the reps of: ⬇️ Ajay Mitchell Jared McCain Bennett Stritz K-Rich J-Will Aday Mara

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

That's a good point. Which I’m sure will be brought up in future meetings!

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

If the W decides to expand the series. I believe the format should be 2-2-1, but we’ll see what transpires

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

WNBA NEEDS to change this 3-game series moving forward The adaptation should be ⬇️ First round: 5 games Semifinals: 5 games Finals: 7 games Thoughts 🤔

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Notable Oklahoma City Thunder’s training camp roster notes: ⬇️ Chet: +2 pounds J-Dub: +5 pounds J-Will: +7 pounds I-Hart: -7 pounds Ajay: +5 pounds Sorber: -10 pounds Wallace: +1 pound Kenrich: +3 pounds Caruso: -1 pound Barnhizer: +1 inch growth Thoughts? 🤔

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

My All-Defensive First & Second Team: ⬇️ 1st Team ▪️Rhyne Howard ▪️Gabby Williams ▪️Angel Reese (DPOY) ▪️A’ja Wilson ▪️Shakira Austin 2nd Team ▪️Veronica Burton ▪️Sonia Citron ▪️Breanna Stewart ▪️Natasha Howard ▪️Kiah Stokes (Honorable Mentions) ▪️Aayliah Boston ▪️Azzi Fudd

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

All-WNBA First Team ▪️Olivia Miles ▪️Kelsey Mitchell ▪️Paige Bueckers ▪️Breanna Stewart ▪️A’ja Wilson All-WNBA Second Team ▪️Caitlin Clark ▪️Jackie Young ▪️Angel Reese ▪️Aaliyah Boston ▪️Shakira Austin

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

My WNBA Awards: ⬇️ ▪️MVP: A’ja Wilson ▪️DPOY: Angel Reese ▪️ROY: Olivia Miles ▪️6POY: Janelle Salaün ▪️MIP: Shakira Austin ▪️COY: Natalie Nakase

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

WNBA All-Rookie Team ▪️Olivia Miles (Unanimous ROY) ▪️Azzi Fudd ▪️Flau’Jae Johnson ▪️Sydney Taylor ▪️Kiki Rice (Honorable Mention) ▪️Pauline Astier ▪️Awa Fam

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

Fitting and encouraging ending to the season as the trio of Dominique Malonga, Awa Fam, and Flaujae Johnson + this upcoming high draft pick are the future of the Seattle Storm

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

Despite the Seattle Storm's *36th* loss of the season (most in franchise history) First time the young trio all scored 20+ points Dominique Malonga finished with 29 points and 8 rebounds Awa Fam added 22 points & 7 rebounds Flau'jae Johnson had 21 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 23/08/2026

Paige Bueckers being in complete control & SHOTMAKING on full display PB in the first quarter vs. the Storm: • 18 points (most in franchise history) • 2 assists • 7/8 FG (87.5%) • 4/4 3PT (100%) Seattle Storm in the first quarter • 17 points • 2 assists (3 TOs) • 6/19 FG (31.6%) • 3/9 3PT (33.3%)

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 13/08/2026

3. Longest Road Trip Opponents are against (Portland 2x, LA Clippers, and Sacramento) — from 11/10/26 to 11/15/26 4. Longest Homestand Opponents are against (Indiana, New York, Portland, San Antonio, Philadelphia, Orlando, and Boston) — from 2/5/27 to 2/17/27

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 13/08/2026

1. (5th most) National TV Games. Only behind the Lakers, Knicks, Spurs, and Sixers, who have (34) each 2. Thunder opponents on the second night of a back-to-back are against the Suns, Wizards, Trail Blazers, Pacers, Pelicans, Kings, Wizards, Mavericks, Bulls, Pacers, Mavericks, Suns, and Warriors)

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therealmaine.bsky.social @therealmaine.bsky.social · 13/08/2026

Full Thunder Schedule Includes: ⬇️ • 30 National TV Games • 13 Back-to-Backs • Longest Road Trip (4 games) • Longest Homestand (7 games)

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