Thursday Bolts - 11.20.08

• Lisa Dillman of the LA Times on last night: "Last-place love, apparently, is in the eye of the beholder. The warm civic bear hug applied to the Oklahoma City Thunder, formerly of Seattle, has continued unabashed through a most-miserable start with only one win in 12 games, and now, a nine-game losing streak."

• The LA Times takes a look at hometown kid Russell Westbrook: "It's hard to make the Clippers' Mike Taylor look slow -- or maybe less fast -- but fellow rookie Russell Westbrook of the Oklahoma City Thunder pulled it off early in the second quarter Wednesday night. His fastbreak, with Taylor in pursuit, culminated with a spectacular dunk to give Oklahoma City an eight-point lead."

• Empty the Bench counts down the five worst teams in the Western Conference: "On any given night this season the Oklahoma City Thunder may well be the worst squad in the Western Conference. But they are not the worst franchise out West because of two things: hope and potential. The Thunder have compiled a nice young core of perimeter talent that has legitimate star potential in Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and Jeff Green. While the Clippers may win more games this season (then again, maybe not) the Thunder are a better franchise because they seem to actually have a plan for future success - that, and their owner isn’t named Donald Sterling."

• A first for Oklahoma City - boo-birds: "Upon his arrival in Oklahoma City, Carlesimo was told of the city’s boo-free zone. Carlesimo said he hoped the trend continued but would understand if Thunder fans booed when his team’s play warranted it. Against the Clippers, it was warranted."

• Joe on last night: After shooting 50% for the first quarter, the Thunder shot 42% in the second, 31% in the third, and 33% in the fourth. The Clipps shot 40% in the first, 41.3% in the second, 63% in the third, and 46% in the fourth.

• Clips Nation on last night: "For one night - for a little over one half, to be precise - the Clippers were not the worst team in basketball. In fact, as they were dismantling the actual worst team in basketball, the Clippers looked like a pretty good team. Maybe it was just by comparison, but still. They had to fall behind by 15 before that good team showed up, but better late than never."

• Kevin of ClipperBlog: "Fans — particularly those jonesing for a win — are often inclined to overvalue a W against an inferior opponent. But sometimes there’s a counter-tendency among cynics to discount the victory because it’s a cheap win. Yes, OKC is a sloppy team, but Clips make some real strides tonight. And every little bit counts."