Tonight's game is against the Orlando Magic. Surprisingly, or perhaps not so surprisingly, this ticket was not part of my half-season package. I'm a big Nikola Vucevic fan ever since last season's encounter, and it being an East team, I had to go to this game. Oh, and to welcome back Mr. Serge Ibaka too, I suppose. A few general comments, this was the first time I saw Enes Kanter come out for the shootaround. Usually you see your usual suspects (Morrow, Singler, Roberson, Collison), but this was a surprise because Kanter doesn't usually come out/stay out this late. I would have gone over to the other side where he was, but I just couldn't give up my position. Jeremy's wife came back and said that signed, but he used a dying black Sharpie and wouldn't switch markers. Oh well! Maybe some day I will get him. In other news, the seat I had wasn't all that great because I was sandwiched between possibly the two biggest guys in the arena. I need elbow space too, yo! And the dad on my right was a little annoying. I've never met Adam M. before, but I feel like he would be that kind of dad. Cheesy. Annoying. Doesn't realize he's old now and not cool anymore, but I digress. The game itself started off horribly, got a little better, and then got bad again. We're in a funk, we need to play better defense, and we need to WIN. First up for the visiting Magic was Jodie Meeks. He was incredibly nice! No other player I've ever met has said anything to me first until today. Mr. Meeks said something to me first (maybe what's up?), but I'm not 100% sure what it was since it caught me off guard. Players usually DON'T initiate conversation with me (I don't tend to stand out) but I recovered quickly and asked him how he was doing. He said good. What a nice guy! It makes me wish I had printed an actual photo for him instead of offering my logo photo. Maybe next time! Every time I saw D.J. Augustin as a Thunder player, he would skip me. For the longest time, I couldn't be sure if he just didn't like the photo I brought or that my camera was always out. He signed it but it smeared a little -- I think that was me though, because I was trying to hold my camera and film it at the same time. Oh well, at least I finally got him! I honestly don't know if Aaron Gordon signed for anyone. I just know when he came around the corner, he brushed us off with a smile on his face and ran back to the locker room. I expected as much from him, which is unfortunate. I always hope I'm wrong about that sort of thing. I ended up getting a pretty good video of Jeff Green signing and Gordon running off just seconds before. It's hard when two players come off at about the same time. Fortunately I always carry around two foam boards, so I was ready to go if the two players overlapped in their signing. One thing of note, Jeff signed a better (fuller) signature this time around compared to the last game I got him (vs. LA Clippers). Bismack Biyombo and Evan Fournier were next. Nothing stands out about either player's signing habits. They came off at different times, but both signed one for everyone waiting. I don't usually present more than one item to get signed because I know most players are 1-per (but will possibly do multiples if they are small and all laid out), but if ever there was an opportunity, it's with my boy Nikola Vucevic. Last season I got my picture taken with him. He signed for me last season as well. I presented him that photo and a new one as well (the selfie being the second one shown to him). He signed the first photo, no questions asked, then looked at the second photo, up at me, signed that one as well, and said, "Here you go." I said, "Thanks man!" Vooch doesn't usually talk, as far as I can tell. If you watch his facial expressions during a game, he's like Kristen Stewart (the actress from those horrible Twilight movies) -- one expression to rule them all. Even when he's just scored the game-winning basket: blank face (see YouTube video). So it surprised me that he said anything. I still like this guy and I'm a fan for sure. Next time, I'll bring a swingman jersey. And you guys know how I feel about swingman jerseys. Damjan Rudez signed a few then after he heard the 45-second warning to get back to the locker room, he ran off. A second later, and he may have signed for me. A whole bunch of players came off once that warning came out, including Stephen Zimmerman, C.J. Wilcox, and C.J. Watson. The C.J.s signed for a few, but I'm not sure I would have wanted the rush-job sig. C.J. Watson's autograph made my worst autograph list last season for good reason, and that wasn't a rushed scribble. Mario Hezonja knew he had to go but he was nice enough to sign for those of us who were still waiting. He played decently last season when the Magic came to visit, but he didn't get any playing time so there's no way for me to tell if he's gotten better or not. Augustin 1/1 Biyombo 1/1 Fournier 1/1 Gordon 0/1 Green 1/1 Hezonja 1/1 Meeks 1/1 Rudez 0/1 Vucevic 2/2 Watson 0/1 Wilcox 0/1 Zimmerman 0/1 This was a good game autograph-wise and I don't regret going, even if my seat was sub-par. The next game on the docket is Wednesday's game against the Houston Rockets. Like everyone else, I'm looking for a James Harden, but realistically, I'm prepared if it doesn't happen. Until next time, J.R.
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I have wanted to see the Toronto Raptors play for a long time. Okay, maybe just since last season. I like Jonas Valanciunas, okay? As a player only, just so we're clear. I thought about buying tickets for this game when I found out it wasn't part of my half-season package, but in the end I didn't end up pulling the metaphorical trigger. No reason, the tickets weren't expensive but I wanted to sell off the ones I had before I bought more. Props to my boss for giving away the tickets and my co-worker for sharing the extra ticket with me! Patrick Patterson came off the court first, and althoguh I recognized who he was, I had nothing more for him other than a logo photo. He was polite and signed for everyone waiting. Delon Wright commented on my logo photo; he said that he liked it. Dude, I totally agree! They don't make them like they used to! The current Raptors logo is three claw slashes across a ball, and doesn't look intimidating at all. Speaking of Raptors, the announcer at the 'Peake kept over-emphasizing the second syllable of "Raptors." As in, "Rap-torrs." Uhh...why? I recognized Cory Joseph from his Spurs days and he was way nicer than I thought he would be. He posed for pictures with everyone who asked and signed two items for a few people as well. It makes me wish I had printed an individual photo for him. With Norman Powell, I pulled a n00b move and didn't bother with player flashcards for this game. One, this ticket was offered to me sort of last minute (and I don't use local photo shops to print my photos) so I did not have any photos prepared other than a team logo one and ones for Jonas Valanciunas and DeMar DeRozan. If you go by the base definition of rack, I almost did it because I went home with only one photo that wasn't signed. Anyone I didn't have a photo for went on the logo photo. Somewhere in the middle of it all, maybe here at this point between Powell and Valanciunas, Fred Van Vleet walked by. If you're asking who? Then you're just like most of us who were standing there waiting. He signed for a few people bold enough to ask him because they recognized him when he came ONTO the court, but skipped most of us when he was done practicing. I kind of got the vibe that he was a little offended there at the end. Sorry that we didn't all jump at the opportunity to get your autograph? Some of us just don't have items for you to sign. Sorry? Maybe I was the only one who got excited when Jonas Valanciunas came by. Excited on the inside only, just so we're clear. I wanted to ask him for a selfie and I was determined to do it as the Asian couple next to me asked all the other players that came by before Jonas, but when they didn't ask him, I lost my courage when he came by. Well hey, everyone gets star-struck sometimes, right? And even though this is the Rap-torrs' only trip to town this season, I'll be ready for him next time, darnit! I was actually pretty surprised that I hadn't printed out an individual shot for Kyle Lowry. I thought maybe I had alphabetized my stack wrong, but after several combthroughs coming up empty, I resigned myself to a silver Lowry on the logo. No shame in that -- the final result actually turned out pretty nice. DeMar DeRozan was the last guy off the court, and I was afraid he'd pull a Novak and just run off based on lack of time. But to my surprise, he signed for just about everyone. The end product was a little sloppy (I think it's just "DD"), but no complaints here. When you get the league's leader in scoring, you don't complain about what you get. Thanks DeMar! In all of the 4-5 major professional sports leagues (aside from hockey), there are very few Canadian teams. I've never heard a real Canadian anthem before. Being a die-hard hockey fan, yes, I know some of the words (English) but no, I've never actually heard it sung in person. Live. So naturally, I recorded it. You'll have to excuse the disrespectful schmucks in the background who would NOT SHUT UP during the national anthem. OK, I get you're not Canadian, but SHOW SOME RESPECT, MAN! DeRozan 1/1 Joseph 1/1 Lowry 1/1 Patterson 1/1 Powell 1/1 Valanciunas 1/1 Van Vleet 0/1 Wright 1/1 All in all, this was not a bad outing. I got more than my average number of autographs (based on last season's totals), and I got the players I wanted. I didn't get a selfie with Valanciunas, but I'll probably try next season. We didn't win the game, but this was a team that did pretty well last season and almost beat out the eventual Champion Cleveland Cavaliers. Hopefully we'll get off the schneid soon; losing so many games in a row kind of sucks. The next game I'll be attending is against the Orlando Magic on Sunday. Hopefully my boy Vooch will be in the starting lineup. I printed out the selfie I got with him last season and I hope he'll sign it! Until next time, J.R. Hello everyone! The 2016-2017 NBA season is already well under way, but tonight's matchup against the Miami Heat is my first game of the season. After spending entirely way too much money last season, somebody from the Thunder noticed and I now have half-season tickets! I couldn't go to the pre-season game against the Denver Nuggets as I had to work, and I am notorious for getting off to a slow start with any sports season. As a result, I wasn't feeling the Los Angeles Lakers game this past Sunday even though I really could have (and should have) gone. With no Kobe, I think my laziness was justified. Before each game, I pull out photos for everyone on the team and set them aside in my portfolio binder. For some reason, I didn't have very many photos for this team (Babbitt, Waiters, and Williams was the extent of it), so the logo photo got pretty loaded up as expected. The first guy that came out was Josh Richardson, but I didn't recognize him. As I said before, I only had a few photos, so anyone I didn't know got the logo photo. His signature is kind of neat, although a little loopy, but he signed one for everyone waiting. Udonis Haslem is a guy who's been in the league for a while, and while I did recognize him, I didn't print out a photo for him for whatever reason. He carried around his two bottles of soda or water and picked them up and set them down as he moved through the crowd. I believe mine was the last one he signed because he actually had those bottles in his hand and I was afraid he'd just skip me and keep going. Instead, he stopped to sign for me. It's not much to look at, but I'm glad I got it. Tyler Johnson was nice. Some kids were calling out to him to sign as he came on to the court, but he said he would sign after. True to his word, he did. His signature is pretty small -- that's usually something that shy people do. He didn't seem shy to me, but he also didn't appear overly outgoing, either. I'm not sure where he's from or where he's been, but he kept saying "No doubt, no doubt" whenever a fan asked him a question or said thank you. James Johnson was next, and he was nice. I just found it mildly amusing that he signed right next to Tyler Johnson on my logo photo. Two Johnsons. Right next to each other. Ha. I don't know what to say about Derrick Williams. He signed for a few people and then just sort of gave up and walked off in the middle of it all. He had plenty of time to sign for us, and there weren't even all that many of us there. Who knows. And for some reason, I printed out two Derrick Williams photos that are exactly the same.They are both still unsigned. Luke Babbitt came off not long after and signed one for everyone. Juwan Howard was next. I don't think anyone else was as excited as I was to meet Juwan Howard. I remember watching this guy play when I was a kid. Mr. Howard, if you're somehow reading this, sorry! I don't mean to make you feel old. I asked him if I could get a picture with him, and while he politely declined, citing shyness and that he preferred to just sign autographs, he was very cool about it. This is how you should let fans down -- just be nice about it. I want to try to bring a real photo for him next time. Great guy. Dion Waiters was a guy who, as far as I know, never came out for shootaround when he played for the Thunder. I mean, I only went to about half of all the home games, and I never saw him come out. He was out tonight, which was great. But would he stop to sign? To make a short story even shorter -- yes. He signed one for everyone and even chatted with a few people. See, now THIS is how you leave a team. Stay classy and don't go throwin' shade! Justise Winslow was last off the court (presumably so he wouldn't have to sign many, if any at all). The fangirl behind me was freaking out, saying things like, "I must get Justise Winslow!" and "I'll even settle for a high five!" Meanwhile, I couldn't get past the fact she was wearing Miami Heat pajama pants. In public. Pajama pants. I didn't get him and I think most of us walked away empty-handed. Sorry fangirl. Babbitt 1/1 Haslem 1/1 Howard 1/1 J. Johnson 1/1 T. Johnson 1/1 Richardson 1/1 Waiters 1/1 Williams 0/1 Winslow 0/1 This was not a bad outing. I didn't have high expectations so I'm not at all disappointed. My average number of autographs per outing was roughly four per, so getting 7 is not bad. The next game on the docket is Wednesday versus the Toronto Raptors, thanks to my boss for giving them away and my co-worker for sharing the extra ticket with me. I haven't seen this team play before, so I'm excited! Until next time, J.R.
Seriously, we've won three playoff games against the Warriors? One of which was at The Oracle? Somebody pinch me, I must be dreaming. Nope, this is reality! When I first arrived, I didn't pay attention to whether or not Kevin Durant or Serge Ibaka were out. I did notice later on that Kyle Singler didn't stop to sign for anyone, but he did high-five a few people. Guess the Thunder still aren't signing. This would be tricky if the Thunder and Cavs happened to meet in the Finals, although to be honest, neither side will probably sign. I'm just not sure which side I'd take a chance on. If it weren't the Finals, I'd probably not even bother to attend, but hey-- it's the Finals. Ya' gotta. I arrived at about the same time as I did for the last game and was first in line both times, but this time I wasn't able to secure a spot in the front row. That's okay-- I managed to make do on The Rails. I know Curry signed for The Rails last time, so maybe my chances were slightly better to get him. While I was here, I had a great spot to both graph and watch the goings-on of the TNT booth. I actually saw Charles Barkley this time! He didn't sign as far as I could tell, but he had work to do. Because the booth was there, a lot of fans were trying to get selfies with Shaquille O'Neal or Barkley, which made the autograph queue a bit easier to work with. I also met a mid-thirties mom from Salt Lake City, who I got to chat with a bit. For the record, she did NOT look old enough to have teenage children. Just saying. She told me she had just flown in that evening and based her timing on her experiences with Jazz games (no line beforehand, save maybe four or five people). She was surprised the line was so long before tipoff, and even commented that Jazz games were nothing like Thunder games (the energy and crowd are vastly different). Welcome to Loud City, and I hope you enjoyed the game! Shaun Livingston came off first and blew past everyone, but that was okay with me. I have since heard he is a hard one to get, but his autograph wasn't my primary objective tonight. No one made an effort to stop him or complained when he didn't stop. Stephen Curry was next and although the crowd wasn't nearly as large as the February game, you could definitely feel the urgency and tension in the air when he made his way to the locker room. The older African-American gentleman behind me offered to let me go ahead of him (citing the grapher code of honor - let the kids go first) and was nice enough to check/ask me if I had enough room to hold my jersey out. This is what it's all about, guys! Whoever you are, thanks man. Sorry Curry didn't sign the balls for your grandsons. He will sign, you just have to be patient and be in the right place at the right time. You win some, you lose some. I struck out last game, but it was an epic win for me when he signed my jersey on the number this time! I'm not sure how it happened, but Andrew Bogut slipped out while Curry was signing for us. Nice strategy, although it's not the first time I've seen it done (see Chandler Parsons-Dirk Nowitzki, Game 2 of Round 1). I'm still not sure if that was Festus Ezeli or Ian Clark. Heck, that could have even been Leandro Barbosa with hair! Or Kevon Looney! Either way, whoever he was didn't sign again and no one seemed to care. Klay Thompson came around and actually signed for a few people but stopped a few people short of me. So close! Who knows when or if that'll ever happen again? I assume he had already signed for Ty from 101, either moments before or at the hotel, because Mr. Thompson made it obvious when he blew off Ty's request for a signed jersey. Just a reminder, guys, when there is a large crowd, only present one item for the player to sign so that all of us can get at least one. Some of us didn't get any! Brandon Rush came over and signed one for everyone, and I was planning to ask him for a photo op but it just didn't happen. He moved too fast and didn't really make eye contact with anyone -- much like Curry. He was nice though; maybe next time. Marreese Speights came off last again and I only had the logo photo for him, which he signed. It wasn't quite as nice as what he gave me last game, but something is better than nothing and I'll take it. Bogut 0/1 Clark/Ezeli/Barbosa? 0/1 Curry 1/1 Iguodala 0/1 Livingston 0/1 Rush 0/0 Speights 1/1 Thompson 0/1 If the Warriors win at home on Thursday, we'll get a game 6 at home on Saturday. I kind of hope they don't, because I need a break. I don't always sleep well coming home after a game and I usually work early the next day. We'll see though. Go Thunder! Let's wrap this one up! Until next time, J.R. Fair warning, I got the title for this blog entry from a tweet I saw on a billboard tonight. Every night after a Thunder playoff game, I drive by this billboard that always has a tweet from someone about the game. This was too good not to share, and if it's yours, let me know so I can give you proper credit! Maybe you'll consider giving my blog a plug? And now back to your regularly scheduled blog entry. While I was in line, I collected some intel when I talked with the family standing to the left of me in line. They had come down from St. Louis, and the dad of the group started it all when he noticed my Curry jersey and thought it was a good idea that I had it rubber-banded on a board and pulled taut so that whenever Curry came by, it would be ready to go. One of the ladies later told me that the other lady in their group had seen Draymond Green (BOOOOO!!!!!) at the hotel (but instead of saying "the hotel," she revealed to me specifically which hotel they were staying at). She knew I was a 'grapher and said, "Don't worry, nobody was signing." Well, that's somewhat of a relief. I knew the visiting teams had recently changed hotels, but I never knew where they had moved to. Nobody on 101 will tell you what players stay at which hotel, and you're considered a dud if you ask or if you accidentally or purposefully give it away. Don't worry, you guys aren't duds, and thank you for the information. For the rest of you, if you want to know the hotel that the players stay at, you'll have to get to know me or find me at the arena. No Thunder players have signed since their last loss to San Antonio, at least as far as I can tell, so this seems to be something they're doing until further notice. Knowing that the Thunder are probably not going to sign, and with a two-time, back-to-back MVP winner in town, the decision to graph the Warriors was a no-brainer. Once in my section, I overheard someone behind me say that KD wasn't out (and he knew because he'd gone over there when the doors opened). I noticed Kyle Singler didn't sign, so that pretty much confirmed their game plan to "stay focused." Anderson Varejao was the first one off the court, but he ran past everybody. Someone around me commented that he would fit in well with the Lakers. I would say more like the Cavaliers -- the Lakers might be a little better about signing now that Kobe's not around to attract gigantic crowds. Remember, Lou Williams, Jordan Clarkson, and Anthony Brown are still pretty much "gimmes" in LA. Most of the Warriors opted not to sign which was not a surprise given their behavior the last time they came to town. The guys I saw that didn't sign included: Draymond Green (BOOOO!!!!!), Shaun Livingston, Andre Iguodala (hoodie and all), Andrew Bogut, Klay Thompson, and Festus Ezeli/Ian Clark, who I must confess I wasn't sure who he was. Someone said it was Ezeli, but it didn't really look like him. He looked a bit too short to be someone (Ezeli) whose listed height is 6'11", which is why I thought he was Ian Clark. No one said anything else and I wasn't about to announce my presence as a "dud grapher" and ask who that was. I have my pride. Also, whoever he was, didn't bother to sign anyway so any potential embarrassment was saved for another day. Between Draymond Green (BOOOOOO!!!!!) and Shaun Livingston walking off the court, we saw Shaquille (Shaq) O'Neal walk over and for a moment, it looked like he would stop to sign for the usuals calling out to him, but he decided to just keep going -- it looked like his handlers were pushing him to go. The TNT booth was right above the autographing section of the stands. but they were facing towards the crowd. Looking up, I could see Shaq and Kenny Smith, but no one else. It seemed like there were more people interested in getting pictures with Shaq than getting autographs (and I can understand that to a degree). Oh well, that means more standing room for the rest of us! It wasn't anywhere near as crowded downstairs as the February game vs. the Warriors, but when Stephen Curry came out, I definitely felt the crowd push me forward a bit when I was standing on the front row. There was a massive crowd of cameras following him and I thought, maybe I'll find myself on Getty Images later tonight (nope -- I looked). He signed for the section across from me, and we were told he would double back, but when he did, he started at The Turn and went forward from there. I was on the front row and subsequently missed him. That could have been pretty disappointing, but I did get him back in February on a white Swingman so I'm not too terribly bummed. I will be trying again next game as well, so it's not like I don't have options. The next two guys to come off the court were the only other guys who signed at the February game (Brandon Rush and Marreese Speights). I only had one photo for Rush and he signed it back in February, so my only other item for him to sign was the team logo. He signed that and moved on. If I see him next game (and I probably will), I'll ask him for a photo op/selfie. When Speights came to me, it looked like he was going to scribble across his face, but he hesitated, looked at it, and then signed a neatly-placed "MSpts" across his shoulder. For a Speights signature, that was a pretty neat one and it was certainly a lot nicer than the one he signed for me in February. Nice guy; I wish the other guys were like him. Bogut 0/1 Curry 0/1 Ezeli/Clark? 0/1 Green 0/1 Iguodala 0/1 Livingston 0/1 O'Neal 0/1 Rush 1/1 Speights 1/1 Thompson 0/1 Varejao 0/1 The Thunder blew out the Dubs tonight and I'll be seeing them again for Game 4 at home. I'm hoping Curry will sign my jersey this time; I paid full price for it and even though I don't plan to return it if it stays unsigned, I'd really like to see that "SCy" on it (hopefully on the number this time)! Until next time, J.R. Before you have me committed to a nut house for the title of this post, allow me to explain.
For reasons that I discussed in the last blog entry, I decided to try for the Thunder again tonight. I'm hoping Kevin Durant will be out and signing on the Thunder side this time. I'll save you all the time, not a single player on the Thunder signed. The only people who walked by that could have signed were Kyle Singler, Randy Foye, and assistant coach Maurice Cheeks (who signed for a few on the opposite side). I guess they were wanting to stay focused on winning the game (which they did), but hopefully the non-signing thing doesn't become a more permanent thing -- I love my Thunder graphs. Getting denied by everyone was eerily familiar to the Cavaliers and Lakers. Is OKC the new Cleveland? I did learn one thing from tonight, and that's that the other side is the side to be on if you want to reduce your chances of getting skipped. You don't want to be too high up, though, so if that's the case, you're better off on the side behind the net. The opposite side is parallel to the side I graph the visiting team now. On the Thunder side of the court, a lot of kids stand on the opposite side and the players do sort of make eye contact in that direction when heading back to the locker room. I may try standing over there next time, whenever that may be. Cheeks 0/1 Foye 0/1 Singler 0/1 I'm cautiously optimistic on how the rest of this series will go. If the Spurs win the series, this is quite possibly the last game of the season for me. Until next time, J.R. For tonight's game against the San Antonio Spurs, I've decided to go back to my roots and graph the Thunder. Most of the Spurs don't like signing autographs -- you're lucky if you get Tony Parker and extremely blessed if you get Tim Duncan or Kawhi Leonard. I decided to take a chance and pass on the Spurs this time. I haven't reloaded on Spurs stuff since the last game, and honestly, we can't call ourselves the ThunderGraphs blog without getting some Thunder 'graphs, right? Right. With my luck, this would be the one time Tim Duncan comes out and racks. Oh well, go big or go home! You have to take some chances when you graph. It's the nature of the beast. When I first arrived, it was like a buffet. KD was out, Serge was out, and Leonard was out. I know Leonard doesn't like signing, so I had no realistic expectations for him. I have seen Thunder players sign on the visiting team's side, but I've never seen a visiting player sign for the home team's side (if you've seen it, let me know)! Serge Ibaka came out first, and I was ready for him this time. I already pulled out the photo I wanted him to sign way before I ever left my house. N00b tip? Know the players' habits and use them to your advantage. If a player is the type that leaves the court as the fans are entering the arena, have your stuff out and ready to go before you get to the designated signing area. Your chances of getting the autograph are a lot better if you're not fumbling with your items! He signed my 8x10 for me, and as he was doing so I asked him if I could get a picture with him, but he said no pictures before the game. I already had my camera out, primed and ready to go, so all he had to do was look up right then and smile. He moved down the line but reflexively, I pressed the shutter button. So I'm looking at the camera, he is showing off his profile. You can still tell it's him, but it wasn't a great shot. Oh well. I don't know if that's his rule all the time or if it was just for tonight's game. Either way, it'll be a long time before I ask again. Kevin Durant was next to finish his warmups and he signed for the fans waiting on the Spurs' side of the court and never came back. Some fans waiting on the Thunder side ran over to the other side and presumably got him, but they gave up their spots in the process. I didn't want to run over there because I didn't have anything much for the Spurs since I didn't bother reloading after the last game. I noticed the Thunder players were all warming up on this side of the court (next to their tunnel), and they do this occasionally, but I haven't figured out the pattern yet (whether it is based on their opponent or something else, I don't know). If you know and want to share, please let me know! This blog has probably helped out a few fans this season -- please return the favor if you can! Randy Foye signed one for everyone, and I think he gave me a nicer one than ones he gave on programs (See my shootaround question post) and even added his number 6. Speaking of programs, I have noticed the fans presenting these are getting lazy -- a lot of them aren't even bothering to turn to the player's page, instead opting for the front or back cover. Seriously, the back cover? That's a Midfirst Bank ad. Who knows what happens to these programs when they leave the arena? Anyway, I digress. Mr. Foye may not be the best player on the court, but I'll give him credit for a nice signature. It's legible and it was my first one from him -- but hopefully not my last! Anthony Morrow and Nick Collison signed for the Spurs' side only, but this didn't surprise me as much as KD going over there. How many times have I been over there with my KD swingman ready to go, only to watch him sign for the home crowd? Countless, I'm sure. I wasn't as surprised to see Morrow and Collison signing on the other side, because I saw them there at the last Spurs game I attended, as well as the Grizzlies game. That might be a pattern, but I can't see any real reason for it as the Thunder side didn't have a very big crowd. Other than wanting to break patterns and breaking out of a rut/funk, I have no other explanations. Kyle Singler came out after the Morrow observation and I was thinking about asking him for a selfie, but the Spurs fan behind me started talking to him about his (Kyle's) recent birthday, so I let him pass even though he was there a fairly long time. Andre Roberson is a really nice guy who truly loves his fans, but in his effort to get to everyone, he rushes his signature so sometimes all you get is a sloppy mess that only sort of resembles his initials. I didn't get a #21 from him as I usually do, but points to Mr. Roberson for coming back and signing for the fans he inadvertently missed! This was my first attempt at getting an autograph from Nazr Mohammed, but I never saw him come by. He disappeared, and I'm not even sure he went down the Spurs' side. He sure didn't do that when I was graphing the Spurs last game. It's entirely possible he went down a mysterious third tunnel like Andrew Wiggins did at the Cavaliers game. With surprise appearances by Sam Presti and Maurice "Mo" Cheeks, there were lots of opportunities to graph big names tonight. After the game, I heard posts from the guys in 101 (Ty) that none of the Spurs players had signed, and that the only player they got was KD. I saw some of the autographs he was handing out, and some of them were nice (Ty's photo) and some were just plain ugly (Ty's jersey). In retrospect, I have no regrets with my decision tonight. Every Thunder player that came by, I got -- nobody skipped around. Foye 1/1 Ibaka 1/1 no selfie, sort of Roberson 1/1 Singler 1/1 I won't comment on the game itself, we were behind by nine points throughout most of it except for a brief moment in the fourth when we actually took the lead, only to squander it like we typically do. There's also more bad news for this series; even if the Thunder win a second game and force a game 6, I won't be able to attend as that game is pending for Thursday and I have to work. Oh, the joys of being an adult! In all seriousness, I don't mind, I love what I do, and it helps me pay for Thunder tickets which aren't cheap. I'm not sure if I mentioned this, but I've finally made the big commitment and joined the True Blue club in an effort to get season tickets. You may have already thought I had season tickets, considering the ridiculous amount of games I go to, but getting season tickets just makes sense and I actually did the math -- I will actually end up saving money this way. I'm not sure how long I will be on the list though -- I've heard it may be years-long, but I'm only looking for a single seat so I wouldn't think it would be that long, right? Anyone out there who's been a member of the club and come off the waiting list, let me know how long the wait was. Let's keep it real. Until next time, J.R. On April 3, 2016, I wrote a letter of request, picked out two 8x10 photos, and prepared a SASE and two fiberboards for a TTM request to my NBA hero, Dirk Nowitzki. I mailed the envelopes the next business day. All of this was before the playoff teams had been announced and I thought that I wouldn't have another chance at seeing Dirk in person until next season. I wrote to him describing my experience from the November 2015 game and how much he meant to me as a player and how disappointed I was when I didn't get to meet him after the shootaround.
I had put Delivery Confirmation (tracking number) on the return envelope just so I could follow it if it ever came back to me, and I had been checking USPS.com semi-religiously to see if anything ever popped up. As far as I could tell, nothing happened. The success rate is pretty good (100% according to SportsCardForum), but there are always requests that slip through the cracks for whatever reason and I hoped I wouldn't be one of them. To my surprise, the envelope came back today, and it was sandwiched in between my Priority Mail boxes that I order for work. Had I not rifled through them to inspect for "quality control purposes," I would have inadvertently carried my envelope to work and not known for a very long time! Looking at the tracking number now, it has magically updated. The letter went out in the mail on April 28, 2016, and the postage was not canceled out by the post office (good because I put a crap-ton of stamps on it -- fiberboards are heavy). The back of the envelope has a single strip of slightly wrinkled packing tape on it to seal it -- it may have Nowitzki DNA on it! Hmm... Of the two 8x10s I sent, there was one I wanted more so I put that one on top. He chose to sign the other one instead, but sent both photos back and I'm very happy with this return! All of the reports I have read indicate Dirk is a one-per kind of guy, and that's definitely true. From my experience, his one-per means one autograph or one selfie per person. The autograph itself is a very nice, full signature, signed boldly in blue Sharpie and placed perfectly in the center. He even added his jersey number! It's a lot better than the autographed photo I got in person (sloppy), and slightly better than my jersey (no # and signed in black). He didn't write anything back but did enclose one of the pieces of cardboard to protect the photo from getting bent. Sent 4/4/16 via USPS First Class Mail - 2 photos Received 4/30/16 via USPS First Class Mail - received both photos back but only one signed Turnaround time was roughly 26 days. That's pretty amazing for an NBA star! In case you were wondering, none of this is FS/FT, I PC Dirk Nowitzki. Thank you for signing my photo Mr. Nowitzki!!! Until next time, J.R. Having already had one go-round with Dallas the other day, I decided not to be "that guy" getting multiple autographs in a series and opted to get selfies with players I had already gotten instead. I made an exception for Dirk because I kind of wanted both, or at least one or the other, so as to not walk away empty handed like I did with Nick Collison at the Spurs game. The roadie usuals weren't out when I first arrived in the section (I later learned they had gotten Durant), so I got the spot right at the turn where Jeremy (Pocky) usually stands. It's a pretty good spot but it can also work against you because players can just move right past you without making eye contact if they notice someone directly behind you first. Grace and her P3 friend were there. P3 was a Dirk fan and I showed her my shirt. Rawkfist! We both wanted selfies with Dirk and I really hoped we'd both walk away happy campers. Charlie Villanueva was the first one off the court and since he didn't sign my photo last time, I decided to forego the selfie and only asked him to sign. He did and it was very nicely done in gold Sharpie. I want to like this guy but after his antics with the Thunder's pre-game dance routine, I'm just not sure. His signature is nice, though. Zaza Pachulia was next and I was wondering how he'd react when I asked him for another selfie because the one at the last game didn't take. Surprisingly, there was no reaction, he understood my request and gladly obliged. It turned out nicely. I didn't bother asking him for another autograph because I didn't want to push my luck. Salah Mejri came by next and I don't know, I just feel awkward around him, so I just let him go without asking for a selfie. He'd already signed my logo photo so the selfie was my only option and I left it on the table. Still, no regrets. When Dwight Powell came by, Grace and her friend got excited. I guess they thought he was attractive? I don't know. I got my selfie and he moved on. Dirk Nowitzki and Chandler Parsons both came off at the same time, and it was a madhouse! Parsons managed to sneak off like a bandit and I suspect that was strategy on his part, but when Dirk came around, I had him sign my one photo and afterwards I tried asking him for a picture, but he either didn't hear me or he did hear me and chose to ignore my second request. From my limited experiences, I think Dirk is a 1-per kind of guy, 1-per meaning you either get an autograph or a selfie, but not both. I seriously think J.J. Barea does the same thing, because as he was signing for me, I leaned in to ask and he just kept doing his thing. I don't know how that AutographJunkie girl does it. JaVale McGee was nice again and he signed a photo and agreed to take a picture with me. He didn't smile, but that's okay. I'll have him sign that picture next go-round. Did you know that Raymond Felton is a nice guy? Sure, his gameplay made fools of the Thunder in Game 2, but Mr. Felton is actually a nice guy. He signed for me and as he was doing so, I asked him for a picture and I don't remember what he said, but it was something like, "I'll do it when I come back [from signing for the other side]." And even though I had everything out, I had some timing difficulties but Mr. Felton was nice enough to wait the extra seconds to pose and smile. Wesley Matthews was the last guy off the court again, but he did manage to sign some on his way out. I asked him for a picture also, but he said he had to go. I understand, no worries! I like it when players are polite about it and don't make weird excuses. Just be honest about it and I'll let you go. Catch you next time, maybe! Barea 1/1 + failed selfie attempt Felton 1/1 + selfie Matthews 1/1, declined selfie due to lack of time McGee 1/1 + selfie Mejri 0/0 I let him pass Nowitzki 1/1 + failed selfie attempt Pachulia 0/0 + selfie Parsons 0/1 Powell 0/0 + selfie Villanueva 1/1 This was an entertaining game to watch, and even though I failed in my primary objective, I got more pictures than I expected so I'm satisfied. I likely won't be attending Game 5 at home because my out-of-town best friend from grade school is back in town that week, so I'm selfishly hoping we'll get a Game 7 so I can have one more shot at a selfie with Dirk. If the Thunder make it out of the first round, we'll likely face off against the Spurs so I'd more than likely be graphing the Thunder and getting selfies. At least, that's the plan. Fingers crossed. Until next time, J.R. |
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