Rumors

You played with and against some of the very best to ever play the sport, and it’s cool to hear stories about them. But I’m also keen to hear about some of the guys like Nick Collison, who barely averaged double figures his whole career, and yet OKC retired his number. What does it mean to be a player like that? What can you tell us about Nick?” Steven Adams: “Nick’s just an amazing human. He helped me out tremendously, especially with the X’s and O’s, the basketball side of it, but also the approach on how to think about the game. He kind of organized my thinking, just to be a bit more realistic and not too emotional. It’s an emotional game, but you have to be rational through it, and he was a very rational player. He helped me a lot with that stuff. He’s been consistent throughout his whole career, and his impact was crazy. The team would just do well when he was on the floor. Good things happened when Nick was on the floor. That’s basically how it works. Even though he’s not scoring or doing this and that, there are all these things where a breakdown will happen, and he’s always in the right position to help out. That’s what I’ve always admired about him. He’s always ready for the worst. It might happen once out of a hundred times, but he won’t let that fall. He’s the one who patches it.”

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Steven Adams: “I think it speaks more to the Thunder, what they value. Retiring Nick Collison’s jersey, as you said, a lot of it is like, ‘Oh, they scored this much,’ or whatnot. But really, the Thunder highlighting Nick as a retired jersey speaks more to that they value a player who’s going to come in and really do what impacts winning the most. Not about if you score a lot, nothing about this. Do you impact winning? Are you helping your teammates? Are you helping the organization? When you’re outside of the court, are you making sure the organization that you’re representing, are you representing them well? I think he encompassed all of that. That’s what I think he set the standard for every other Thunder player. Especially when they did that, they immortalized those values.”

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Brandon Rahbar: Sam Presti "When Wiggins recognized Nick the other night, what a sign of maturity and emotional EQ.. That moved me."

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Kendrick Perkins: I called Troy Weaver, who was the assistant general manager to Sam Presti at the time, and I said, “Who was the leader on that team?” He said, “You and Nick." Everybody knows it. Don’t try to f*ck up my credibility with no lies. You know who came in there and changed the culture.

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What do you think about people criticizing the game today? Saying there are too many threes or that it’s out of balance? James Harden: I never want to feel like the old guy complaining, but there aren’t a lot of vets on teams anymore. Young guys don’t have that experience. When I came into the league, I had real vets—Nazr Mohammed, Kevin Ollie, Nick Collison. They showed me how to be a professional, how to work, how to handle everything that comes with being in the NBA. Now? It’s a lot of young guys trying to figure it out on their own. I get it—teams want to take chances on young players. But they don’t know how to be professionals, how to work, how to build a long career. That’s why you see guys in the NBA for just a couple of years, and then they disappear. And that’s what the NBA wanted, I guess, or what people wanted. I don’t know. But back when threes were falling and the excitement was there, nobody had a problem with it.

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Rylan Stiles: Friday and Saturday, the Oklahoma City Thunder hosted its third annual Legacy Weekend, inviting former Thunder players back to enjoy a game, connect with each other and the community. Friday, 16 former players including Thabo Sefolosha (2009-14), Nick Collison (2008-18), Johan Petro (2008-09), Nenad Krstić (2008-11), Kyle Singler (2015-18), Nazr Mohammed (2011-12), Eric Maynor (2009-13), DJ White (2008-11), Steven Hill (2008-09), Daequan Cook (2010-12), Kyle Weaver (2008-10), Morris Peterson (2010-11), Mike Wilks (2008-09), Lazar Hayward (2011-12), Damien Wilkins (2008-09), and Desmond Mason (2008-09) attended the Thunder vs Wizards game and were recognized in-game. Saturday, several former players along with current players Jaylin Williams and Cason Wallace visited the Northeast Health and Wellness Center to lead a basketball clinic for seniors. From the Thunder: pic.twitter.com/eoI2jAxiId

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Nick Collison had the magic touch last year, and soon we’ll see if his luck repeats. Collison will represent the Thunder at the NBA Draft Lottery at 7 p.m. Tuesday in Chicago, per a Thunder spokesman. Collison also represented the Thunder at the 2022 lottery, when the Thunder got the No. 2 pick, which it used to select Chet Holmgren.

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NBA Communications: The 2023 NBA Draft Lottery presented by State Farm will be held tomorrow night in Chicago. Below is the list of team representatives who will be on stage ⬇️

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Joe Mussatto: Chet Holmgren getting in work with Olivier Sarr and Jared Butler. And getting coached up by inaugural Thunders DJ White and Nick Collison. Kind of a cool parallel.

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Joe Mussatto: It sounds like Nick Collison is going to be involved in Chet Holmgren's recovery process, especially from a mental standpoint. Collison missed his entire first season with shoulder injuries.

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NBA Communications: The 2022 NBA Draft Lottery presented by State Farm will be held tomorrow night in Chicago. Here is the list of team representatives who will be on stage

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Andrew Schlecht: Sam Presti said that Nick Collison was the only player on the Seattle team “that didn’t ask me for a trade”

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Joe Mussatto: Thabo Sefolosha is here tonight. Chatting pregame with Nazr Mohammed and Nick Collison.

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The documentary includes behind the scenes footage with Westbrook and his family, as well as “rare footage and extensive interviews” with the point guard and former teammates, including Kevin Love and Nick Collison. “The film reveals a caring and loyal family man who shares the entirety of his deeply rooted personal life, allowing viewers a chance to redefine who they think he is.”

deadline.com