Associated Press
OKLAHOMA CITY ó Thunder can be heard from miles away, an early warning that a storm is about to arrive. So, perhaps itís only fitting that the name of Oklahoma Cityís NBA team didnít sneak up on anyone.
Six weeks after the name first surfaced, team officials officially announced Wednesday that the team formerly known as the Seattle SuperSonics would be known as the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Even the logo and colors leaked out over the weekend. Then, prior to the 5 p.m. announcement, Thunder merchandise started showing up on the NBAís online store.
To unveil the logo, six children joined players Desmond Mason and Damien Wilkins to pull down a curtain as the AC/DC song iThunderstruckî blared over the loudspeaker. What was revealed was a large blue banner with the logo in the middle, and splashes of yellow at the top and reddish-orange at the bottom.
MORE NBA
RYE BROOK, N.Y. ó Former Kansas stars Mario Chalmers and Darrell Arthur were sent home Wednesday from the NBAís mandatory rookie transition program for violating unspecified league rules.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. ó Christian Ponder will start at quarterback for Florida State in its season opener against Western Carolina.
Offensive coordinator Jimbo Fisher selected Ponder over senior Drew Weatherford, who has started 33 games for the Seminoles, and sophomore DíVontrey Richardson.
* BATON ROUGE, La. ó LSU postponed its football game against Troy after Hurricane Gustav damaged Tiger Stadium and battered Louisianaís capital city far worse than anticipated.
GOLF
CHEROKEE VILLAGE, Ark. ó Tommy Bolt, the 1958 U.S. Open champion who had one of golfís sweetest swings and most explosive tempers, has died. He was 92.
NFL
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. ó New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick said Wednesday he expects Tom Brady to be ready Sunday for the season opener against Kansas City after the NFLís reigning MVP missed all four exhibition games.