We're not last!

ESPN.com's Marc Stein put out his first NBA power rankings of the year. And he has the Thunder coming in at a solid No. 25.

And the Milwaukee Bucks are in at No. 24. Oooh, a top 25 matchup in game one at the Thunderdome. Exciting.

Here's what Stein had to say:

"Kevin Durant's super young Sonics-turned-Thunder figure to make less of a first-season splash than the Hornets did in Oklahoma City. But the team that broke the hearts of Sonics diehards everywhere -- including several at the home office in Bristol -- can take a bit of encouragement from the fact that OKC and its loud crowds were very, very good to the Hornets, rankings-wise, as you'll find by clicking here."

Well, that's ok, right? Maybe the Thunder can surprise people. I'd be very stoked if they can be at least .500 at home. That would be a good start. And Stein's point about the Hornets' climb in OKC is not to be taken lightly. They were preseason No. 29. And with the OKC bump - something very similar to the Colbert Bump - who knows what the Thunder can achieve?

(Also, can we get official word from team management if Thunder is supposed to be plural or singular? Because it's really throwing wannabe writers like me way off. I'm all over the place with my subject/verb/pronoun agreement. Is it, "The Thunder are going to play like they want to win" or "The Thunder is going to play like it wants to win." I'm so confused. I found this sentence in a column from the Miami Herald that may give some aid: "As is, the Heat is set to open training camp in perilous shape at point guard... yada, yada, yada."

So the Herald refers to the Heat as singular. I guess we should do the same. I was really pulling for plural though.)