1. CSPORTSTHURSDAY, JUNE 13, 2013 THE OKLAHOMAN | NEWSOK.COM
NBA
Kidd hired
to coach Nets
The recently retired Jason
Kidd will be the Brooklyn
Nets’ next coach, replacing
P.J. Carlesimo.
NBA NOTEBOOK, PAGE 5C
TORNADO RECOVERY
Cowboys
help out
Oklahoma State football
players, including
Davidell Collins, left, and
Calvin Barnett, were part
of a group that helped
clean up Wednesday in
Bethel Acres.
PAGE 1A
MLB DRAFT
OU’S GRAY
SIGNS
WITH
ROCKIES
The Colorado
Rockies have signed
pitcher Jonathan
Gray, selected third
overall in the draft
last week out of
Oklahoma.
Baseball America
reported that Gray
received a $4.8 mil-
lion signing bonus,
below the assigned
slot value of about
$5.6 million but still
a record for the
Rockies.
The 21-year-old
Gray arrived in Den-
ver on Tuesday and
the sides completed
the deal Wednesday.
He will join the Rock-
ies’ rookie league
team in Grand Junc-
tion.
BY THE ASSOCIATED
PRESS
PHOTO BY BRYAN TERRY,
THE OKLAHOMAN
GOLF
WEATHER
LEAVES
COURSE AN
UNKNOWN
Six inches of rainfall
and more possibly
on the way should
make for soft, soggy
conditions when the
U.S. Open begins
Thursday at Merion
Golf Club.
PAGE 2C
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The Oklahoman
Sports Department
P.O. Box 25125
Oklahoma City, OK
73125
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Mike
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Sports
Editor
(405) 475-3164
msherman@
opubco.com
Gorgui Dieng spoke four languages when he
arrived in America four years ago. Unfortu-
nately for him, English wasn’t one of them.
Born in Senegal,
Dieng was a 6-
foot-11, 180-pound,
multilingual math
wiz who spoke
Spanish, French,
Italian and his na-
tive Wolof.
“It was very hard
for me,” Dieng said. “The first week I would
just stay in my room. I couldn’t speak to any-
Louisville center Gorgui Dieng has come a
long way. He didn’t start playing basketball
until he was 17, and now at 23 is considered
a potential NBA Draft lottery pick. AP PHOTO
NBA DRAFT PROSPECTS
Dieng learned on
the job at Louisville
EDMOND — When Dennis
Millican was a senior quarter-
back at Putnam City West in
1973, he watched a tall, gawky
sophomore learning the steps
of the triple-option wishbone
offense that coach Mike Little
was teaching at the time.
“He was about 6-3 or so,
big and muscular. He looked
like he ought to be a lineman,”
Millican said. “Being the cool
stud senior that I was, looking
down at an underclassman, I
didn’t know what to think of
him.”
As it turned out, quarter-
back was exactly what Scott
Burger was supposed to be.
And 40 years after he was
Millican’s backup as a high
school sophomore, Burger is
ready to find out if head
coaching holds the same des-
tiny.
Burger, 55, was named the
new coach at Edmond North
last month, the culmination
of a long — really long — jour-
ney to the head coaching
ranks.
Starting in the fall of 1973,
Burger spent three years as a
quarterback at PC West, two
at Wichita State and two at
the Edmond college now
known as Central Oklahoma,
where he was an All-Ameri-
can for the Bronchos.
He jumped right into
coaching, and spent the next
32seasonsasahighschoolas-
sistant — the last 29 at Put-
nam City North.
But this past spring, he de-
cided the timing was right to
pursue the head coaching va-
cancy at Edmond North.
“I’ve put in my time, and
this is something I wanted to
Time was right for Burger
Edmond North coach Scott Burger instructs players during
a skills camp in Edmond on Wednesday. Burger spent 32
seasons as a high school assistant before taking the Husk-
ies’ job. PHOTO BY STEVE GOOCH, THE OKLAHOMAN
K
evin Durant is on a
quest for world dom-
ination.
What else are we to
think after the news that he
plans to partner with music
mogul Jay-Z and his newly
formed Roc Nation Sports?
Durant recently parted ways
with agent Rob Pelinka, who
he’d only been with a little
over a year. While it’s not clear
whether Durant wants to be
represented by Roc Nation
Sports — the Thunder super-
star is under contract through
2015-16, so there’s no immedi-
ate need for an agent — he
absolutely wants to tap into
the marketing opportunities
that Jay-Z and Co. could pro-
vide him.
This from a guy who is
already a pitchman for Nike,
Gatorade, Sprint and Degree.
Durant is on so many com-
mercials these days that had
the Thunder made the NBA
Finals, people might actually
be getting sick of him.
What more does he want?
We’re about to find out.
“There’s a sense of what he
could do (endorsement-wise),
as long as his game stays
strong, is kind of on autopi-
lot,” ESPN sports business
reporter Darren Rovell said.
“Companies will come to him,
and they know who he is. I
don’t feel like he has anything
to lose.
“The question is, how much
does he have to gain?”
Durant is already something
of an unorthodox figure in the
marketing world. Even though
his game is dynamic, his per-
sonality is not.
You know, the whole KD is
not nice thing.
But the truth is, he really is
a nice guy. Shakes hands with
strangers. Makes eye contact
with people. Knows the arena
workers between the locker
room and court.
A decade ago, that person-
ality might not have appealed
to companies, but nowadays,
it works.
“There’s so much fake in
the world that he turns out to
be refreshing,” Rovell said.
But now Durant is reported-
ly going to join forces with
Jay-Z, a man who’s all about
buzz and hype, splash and
flash. He does everything
bigger and bolder.
Honestly, though, the big-
gest thing to happen to Jay-Z
since starting Roc Nation
Sports is Durant. The agency
only has a small base of cli-
ents. New York Yankees sec-
ond baseman Robinson Cano
is at the top of the heap. New
York Giants receiver Victor
Cruz, New York Jets quarter-
back Geno Smith and WNBA
ROCING THE WORLD?
The Thunder’s Kevin Durant, left, is reportedly joining forces with Jay-Z, the rap superstar turned business mogul
who recently started Roc Nation Sports, an agency with a small but growing base of clients.
PHOTOS FROM THE OKLAHOMAN AND AP ARCHIVES; PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY HAYLEY RIGGS MCGHEE, THE OKLAHOMAN
THE BUSINESS OF SPORTS | WHAT DOES KEVIN DURANT HAVE TO GAIN BY PARTNERING
WITH JAY-Z’S ROC NATION SPORTS? MARKETING OPPORTUNITIES? WORLD DOMINATION?
IT LOOKS LIKE WE’RE ABOUT TO FIND OUT.
Jenni
Carlson
COMMENTARY
jcarlson@
opubco.com
SEE CARLSON, PAGE 5C
John
Rohde
jrohde@
opubco.com
THUNDER | NBA
SEE DIENG, PAGE 5C
Scott
Wright
swright@
opubco.com
HIGH SCHOOLS
Scott Burger quarterbacked
the Bronchos in the late
1970s. PHOTO PROVIDED
FOOTBALL | LONGTIME ASSISTANT MAKES JUMP TO HEAD COACHING ROLE
SEE BURGER , PAGE 3C