Thunder tempers expectations

      Fran Blinebury, a long-time sportswriter in Houston who now works for NBA.com, wrote Kevin Durant and his Thunder teammates realize there’s national hype about them being a team on the rise but their primary focus is to improve on a daily basis.

      Writing a story after the Thunder’s loss Monday night to the Rockets, Blinebury quoted Durant:

       ”It’s not a question of us not believing in ourselves,” Durant said. “We’re gaining confidence as we gain experience. It’s not a question of how far this team could someday go because the sky is the limit.

        “But the only thing that’s going to get us from here to there is to keep our heads down, keep coming to work and getting better one step at a time. Hey, that’s how we got from there to here.”

        Brooks said one thing Durant learned in the off-season was star players don’t always have to take the key shot, that sometimes it’s making a good play to set up a teammate, something Durant observed in last year’s playoffs.

        The NBA.com article reiterates what coach Scott Brooks, general manager Sam Presti and players have been saying throughout training camp — hard work is their primary focus. If they do that they feel the wins and losses will take care of themself.