The Oklahoma City Thunder

It's quite a complicated history for the Oklahoma City Thunder NBA franchise, and it begins with an unlikely scenario following a catastrophic natural event. The New Orleans Hornets were forced to temporarily relocate after 2005's Hurricane Katrina. OKC stepped up and exceeded everyone's expectations by fervently supporting the young team during their two year stay. A powerful message was sent. Oklahoma City was ready for the big leagues.

The Hornets would return to rebuilding New Orleans, of course, and the metro would be placed in "wait and see" mode, hoping for an NBA opportunity to surface at some point.

That point came when a group of OKC-based investors purchased the Seattle SuperSonics from Starbucks mogul Howard Schultz in 2007. After the city of Seattle failed to come to terms on a new arena funding plan, the team was approved for relocation to Oklahoma City.

Only hours before a judge would decide the lease issue in Seattle, the owners came to a settlement agreement, ensuring the team would be in Oklahoma City for the 2008 season.

Get a more detailed account on the path of the NBA to OKC here on About.com Oklahoma City.

2009-2010 will be the team's second season in Oklahoma City. Preseason games begin Oct. 7th. There will only be two preseason games in OKC, Oct. 12th against Phoenix and Oct. 22nd against Sacramento. The team will play at the BOK Center in Tulsa against the Miami Heat on Oct. 14th.

Among the home schedule highlights for the regular season are the Oct. 28th opener against Sacramento, a Nov. 3rd visit from the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers and the return of Chris Paul and the New Orleans Hornets on both January 6th and March 10th. See the full schedule.

The Thunder will play games at the Ford Center.

Built in 2002, the Ford Center is state of the art and hosts a number of amateur sports franchises. The 586,000 square foot arena seats nearly 20,000 and features over 3000 club seats, 7 party suites and 49 private suites.

Extensive renovations including expanded amenities and suites are set to begin in 2008.

Get a full Ford Center profile with history, map and directions, seating layout and more.

Single game tickets are available for as little as $10 in the terrace level. Terrace level seats nearer mid-court are $30 and $50 while club level seats are priced from $45 to $125 and lower level range from $40 to $250. See seat pricing map for more details.

Other buying options will likely include multi-game packages. Stay tuned for more information. Fans can put their names on the season ticket request list by calling (888) 618-HOOP.

The Thunder signed an exclusive radio agreement with Citadel Broadcasting. All games will be broadcast on WWLS 640 AM and WWLS-FM 98.1 FM, known locally as "The Sports Animal."

Games can be found on television's new "Fox Sports Oklahoma" network. Previously known as "Fox Sports Southwest" in Oklahoma, the regional network will carry 65 OKC games and reach more than 1 million homes in the state. More than half will be broadcast in HD. In addition, over-the-air network KSBI will have 17 Thunder games.

Veteran play-by-play announcer Brian Davis and former NBA player Grant Long make up the television broadcast team.

The Oklahoma City Thunder finished the inaugural 2008-2009 season with a record of 23-59, a slight improvement from the final season in Seattle but still one of the worst in the NBA. The Thunder is still a very young team, though, and many expect great turnarounds in the coming season behind stars Kevin Durant, Jeff Green and Russell Westbrook as well as the 3rd overall pick in the 2009 draft, James Harden.

4 Nick Collison F 6-10
35 Kevin Durant F 6-9
22 Jeff Green F 6-9
13 James Harden G 6-5
9 Serge Ibaka F 6-10
12 Nenad Krstic C 7-0
14 Shaun Livingston G 6-7
34 Desmond Mason F 6-5
23 Byron Mullens C 7-0
0 Kevin Ollie G 6-2
9 Malik Rose F 6-7
2 Thabo Sefolosha G 6-7
31 Robert Swift C 7-1
0 Etan Thomas C 6-10
30 Robert Vaden G 6-5
5 Kyle Weaver G 6-6
0 Russell Westbrook G 6-3
3 D.J. White F 6-9

Also, get a full roster breakdown with detailed player profiles.

Scott Brooks
Notes: Took over on interim basis for fired P.J. Carlesimo after serving as Assistant Coach with organization since 2007, then hired full-time in 2009.
Experience: 1st full year
Career Regular Season Record: 22-47

Thunder Girls

Oklahoma City hosts Dance Team auditions each summer. Any woman 18 or older is able to audition. The team named the "Thunder Girls" after final auditions held at Toby Keith's. Get a list of Thunder Girls online.

Traveling to Oklahoma City for a Thunder game at the Ford Center. Here are some hotel options nearby:

• Courtyard Downtown
  2 West Reno
  Within walking distance to the Ford Center
  Check Rates
  
  
• Renaissance Hotel
  Ten North Broadway
  Within walking distance to the Ford Center
  Check Rates
  
  
• Sheraton Hotel
  One North Broadway
  Within walking distance to the Ford Center
  Check Rates
  
  
• The Skirvin Hotel
  One Park Avenue
  Less than 1 mile from the Ford Center
  Check Rates
  
  
• Hampton Inn & Suites
  300 East Sheridan
  Less than 1 mile from the Ford Center
  Check Rates
  
  
• Residence Inn
  400 East Reno Avenue
  Less than 1 mile from the Ford Center
  Check Rates