A: P.J. is Peter John. My father was Peter, and my grandfather on my mother's side was John. Other than an occasional teacher along the way, no one ever calls me anything but P.J. Well, I shouldn't say that. Some players and some writers call me some other stuff. (Laughs). But it's usually just P.J.
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Q: What is your opinion of the nickname Thunder?A: I like it. When I first heard I said yeah, fine. I heard others that I wasn't as high on. I like Thunder. It's different. The Oklahoma City Thunder sounds good. It's clearly different and unique. Something different is good, particularly in our league. So if that's the way it turns out, I'll be happy.
Q: What are your thoughts on the acquisition of Desmond Mason and Joe Smith?A: I like them both because they're professionals, and our young guys need that. We've got some good young professionals on the team right now, but we needed more. Joe Smith and Desmond bring that. But like I told them both when I talked to them, I don't need assistant coaches. The thing I need from them more than anything is to play the way they're capable of playing, because their example is the best thing we can ask for.
Q: With all the changes to the roster, have you started thinking about potential lineups?A: A little bit, but the big challenge is the challenge we had last year, just figuring out what's going to be the best way to bring along the young players. We're not going to start five first- and second-year players I don't think on a regular basis. But the players will determine that. The good news for us is we're going to have really healthy competition at a lot of positions.
By Darnell Mayberry
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