From Deseret News archives:

Former Sonics get fresh start in Oklahoma City

Published: Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2008 12:10 a.m. MDT
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OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — After spending most of his NBA career in Seattle, Earl Watson thinks he's learned a lot about Oklahoma City in only two weeks in his new team's home.

When he hasn't been playing pickup games with his Thunder teammates, he's had a chance to get out and explore — even if that's not exactly what he had planned.

"I got lost so many times in Oklahoma City. I didn't know a street changes name, or one freeway doesn't run through the whole city, so I got a chance to meet pretty much the whole city," said Watson, a point guard who's spent four of his eight NBA seasons with the SuperSonics.

Watson's aren't the only mishaps in the team's transition from Seattle to Oklahoma City over the past three months since owner Clay Bennett reached a settlement to move the team out of the Pacific Northwest after more than four decades.

For example, forward Chris Wilcox got his box springs delivered from Seattle, but it would have been nice to have his mattress come in at the same time.

But those are the kind of things that the Thunder must deal with. While the 29 other NBA teams can focus on Xs and Os, they're finding new homes, new places to eat and — as Watson learned — which roads lead where.

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"Moving, no matter what, is a pain," said forward Nick Collison, who had been one of the more vocal opponents of moving from Seattle. "We're still in boxes and stuff like that, but we've done a good job in a short time of getting acclimated to the place and figuring out how to get around, and we feel pretty good about it."

Players were eased into the transition with voluntary workouts over the past couple of weeks, preceding the start of training camp on Tuesday. The first preseason game is a week after that, so the focus will have to be on basketball from here on out.

Even if it doesn't quite feel like home yet, the Thunder players are doing their best to get settled.

Kevin Durant, the reigning Rookie of the Year took in Oklahoma's football game against TCU on Saturday, and the former Texas start said he wrote "Hook 'Em Horns" on every autograph he signed and flashed the Longhorns' hand signal when fans wanted to take a picture with him. He didn't shy away from predicting a win for his alma mater against the top-ranked Sooners in two weeks either.

Desmond Mason has been a de facto tour guide because he went to Oklahoma State and spent two seasons in Oklahoma City with the temporarily relocated New Orleans Hornets. The most common questions he gets are just for places to eat, and he tells his teammates to stick with barbecue and steaks.

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Nate Billings, The Oklahoman

Kevin Durant answers question during the media day for the Oklahoma City Thunder NBA basketball team at a hotel in Oklahoma City.

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