OKC Thunder?

With names like Outlaws, Thundercats and Marshalls being rumored as possible nicknames for the former Seattle Super Sonics, KOCO-TV is reporting that the team will adopt "Thunder" as its nickname. I was pulling for Thundercats, but it looks like they went for a shorter version of that (they probably didn't want to get permission to use the likely trademarked Thundercats).

The Thunder join the Orlando Magic, Miami Heat, Utah Jazz and a host of WNBA teams as having singular team nicknames.

Now the more important aspect of the moniker will be the release of the logo and color scheme for the team. Part of the relocation agreement with Seattle was that the team would leave the green and yellow color combination and name Sonics in the Pacific Northwest.

It will be interesting to see what direction the Thunder go with their colors. Obvious choices would be black, dark blue and/or purple but there are already a lot of teams in the league using variations of these colors. OKC could also borrow from already passionate fans of local universities and take the colors of Oklahoma or Oklahoma State.

It's a shame that the Sonics had to leave in the first place. OKC will support them, as they showed tremendous support for the New Orleans Hornets in their two years there. It's a cutthroat world and professional sports is no exception. I hate to see franchises move, but I was happy about the Hornets moving to Louisiana a few years ago, so I understand how OKC feels right now. They just want a team. New Orleans also knows how it feels to lose a team when the Jazz moved to Utah, so hopefully, something can be worked out in the future to revive NBA basketball in Seattle.