By Eduardo Maisonet, III / @edthesportsfan

For FOX Deportes

Adversity is a noun that’s thrown around all the time when it comes to describing our favorite athletes in overcoming hardship, misfortune, and downright calamity.

Overcoming adversity can come in many forms. While many associate it with the struggle of financial hardship, or the lacking of a family structure, or even dealing with issues of abuse, be it mental, physical or of the substance variety. These are the narratives that have been beat in the ground by writers and bloggers like myself since I can remember. Of course, the adversity that is relevant in my mind for this article is different.

Its the adversity of someone of whom you want their confirmation, their support, their belief in your personal ability to be accepted and appreciated.

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By Eduardo Maisonet, III / @edthesportsfan

For FOX Deportes

Well, we’re not actually moving to Miami. Unless I can talk to our editor about sending us on a field trip. (Rob, what up?) Let’s see how this goes…unless I don’t have a job here anymore. You know what, let’s just roll into my five points.

1. Someone please get Oklahoma City a 5-hour energy drink: I don’t want to beat this point into the ground, but the Oklahoma City Thunder simply can’t afford to keep digging holes to try and climb out of later in the game. Those moments of comeback are special, and the Thunder are well-equipped to do it. However, just because you can do it doesn’t mean you should have to all the time. Miami’s too good to allow them to be frontrunners, they were built to play that way.

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By Eduardo Maisonet, III / @edthesportsfan

I almost fell asleep during the game.

Traveling from Cincinnati to San Francisco is a long haul, and dealing with the three-hour time zone change left your favorite writer a tad winded when I was finally able to relax in my hotel room. (Don’t feel bad for me, I’m out here trying to pay the bills. We’re good.) All I wanted to do is order room service, get out of my suit, and watch game one of the NBA Finals between the Miami Heat and the Oklahoma City Thunder.

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By Eduardo Maisonet, III / @edthesportsfan

For FOX Deportes

If you wanted your NBA finale to showcase the entity that is “Good vs. Evil” then you got it.

The Miami Heat are everything that’s wrong with the NBA. LeBron’s decision. The Big Three coming together. Everything that is Erik Spolestra’s coaching existence. The jealousy from others for not living in Miami. The beyond fashionably late-ness of the Miami Heat fan base. The Teflon Don-like qualities of Dwyane Wade. The many awkward faces of Chris Bosh. LeBron’s double-sown headband. LeBron’s hairline. LeBron’s $250 shoes. Pat Riley’s hair. Oh, did I mention LeBron’sdecision.

Compare that to the Oklahoma City Thunder. Kevin Durant’s tweet. A team that was organically built through the draft. The Opie Taylor-like quality of Scott Brooks. The appreciation of an NBA superpower spawning in the heartland of America. The greatest fan base maybe in all of American professional sports. James Harden’s beard. Kevin Durant being a mama’s boy. Durant’s jump shot. Durant’s price-sensitive shoes. Russell Westbrook’s emotions. Durant’s humbleness. 

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By Eduardo Maisonet III / @edthesportsfan

For FOX Deportes

Oklahoma City Thunder power forward Serge Ibaka had the playoff game of his life in game 4 of the Western Conference Finals versus the San Antonio Spurs. Ibaka went a perfect 11-for-11 from the field, and was also perfect from the free throw line by making all four of his attempts to give him a career playoff high of 26 points. The Thunder defeated the Spurs 109-103 on Saturday night to tie the series 2-2.

This performance by Ibaka ended up being the second best shooting performance in playoff history, as only Larry McNeill of the Kansas City-Omaha Kings back in 1975 shot the ball better. McNeill’s 12-12 shooting performance trumps Ibaka, but Ibaka joins McNeill and a pair of former Celtics as the only four players to shoot perfect from the field in a playoff game while shooting 10+ shots. Scott Wegman shot 11-11 versus the Los Angeles Lakers in 1985, and Don Nelson shot 10-10 versus the Buffalo Braves in 1974.

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By Eduardo Maisonet III / @edthesportsfan

For FOX Deportes

Let me get these things out of the way real quick.

1. I’m from Oklahoma.

2. I’m a die-hard Oklahoma City Thunder fan.

3. I’m the unofficial president of the Russell G. Westbrook fan club.

(A few points on No. 3. One, I don’t know if the G. initial is his actual middle initial. I have a weird fascination with athlete’s middle names since I found out that Brett Favre’s was “Lorenzo” and LeBron James’ was “Raymone.” But I digress. Two, the G. stands for Geronimo in my mind. Three, my favorite player in the league is Kevin Durant, but I “Stan” (ref. Eminem) the most because so many of you despise the man.)

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By Eduardo Maisonet, III / @edthesportsfan

For FOX Deportes

1. Russell Westbrook’s third quarter outburst won game five and the series for the Thunder. When you get some free time, go onto Twitter and check out the hashtag I created called #0appreciation, which might go down as one of the greatest things I’ve ever invented. Sad life, I know.

If you read me long enough you’ll quickly realize that my fandom to the Thunder is overboard. Its my hometown team, so can you blame me?

Yet, while many can find Westbrook’s style a maddening one to follow: quick jumpers, quick tempered, quick to gamble, to name a few. Its something to truly appreciate once you step back and realize the following.

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