There鈥檚 always a McCoys vs. Hatfields flavor whenever these neighboring states hook up in sports. The stakes (i.e. bragging rights) are highest in football, especially in the traditional Red River Rivalry, the annual shootout between the teams of the University of Texas and the University of Oklahoma. But things have been heating up collegiately in basketball in recent years, and with the Thunder鈥檚 arrival in Oklahoma City in 2008, the NBA represents a new front for competition between the states.
Ironically, three of Oklahoma City鈥檚 players, including its biggest star, Kevin Durant, are Texas products 鈥� Durant and Royal Ivey played for the University of Texas, while center Kendrick Perkins entered the NBA directly from Clifton J. Ozzen High School in Beaumont, Texas. The Spurs, meanwhile, have only one Texan on their roster (Cory Joseph) and no Oklahomans.
