Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt has chosen Alan Armstrong, an oil and gas executive, to finish out the remainder of Sen. Markwayne Mullin’s term, three sources told NOTUS.

The two men are expected to meet with President Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago on Sunday to iron out the details of the appointment and discuss it further, two of the sources said.

The sources cautioned that the pick could change following that meeting.

In March 2021, Armstrong gave $5,800 to former Rep. Adam Kinzinger, who voted to impeach Trump, according to FEC records. Sources said the donations are likely to be a topic of conversation at Mar-a-Lago.

Armstrong, who chairs the board of directors for the energy company Williams, was one of three main names Stitt presented in meetings he had in Washington, D.C., earlier this month. While multiple names were floated, Stitt was focused on three people: his senior advisor Dustin Hilliary, oil baron Harold Hamm and Armstrong.

Stitt is expected to announce the appointment shortly after Mullin is officially confirmed by the Senate as secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, as early as Sunday.

Representatives for Armstrong and Stitt did not return a request for comment. The White House did not respond to a request for comment.

In accordance with Oklahoma law, Armstrong will be required to sign a sworn affidavit saying he will not seek election to a full six-year Senate term and instead will only serve out the remainder of Mullin’s current term.

Rep. Kevin Hern has already essentially cleared the field in the race for the Senate seat.

This article has been updated with additional information.

The Seattle SuperSonics haven’t touched the floor in almost 20 years since the beloved team was taken to Oklahoma City to become the Thunder in 2008.

It’s been two decades since one of the most painful relocations in the history of professional sports. That year, Oklahoma investor Clay Bennett moved the Sonics to Oklahoma City after purchasing the franchise from Starbucks chairman Howard Schultz two years prior.

Seattle fans still haven’t gotten over the move all these years later, and who could really blame them after the way their team was ripped out of their city. However, Sonics fans are closer than ever to getting the Sonics back after the NBA went public with its hopes to expand to 32 teams by placing teams in Seattle and Las Vegas.

Advertisement

You would think this would be a story that would be celebrated across the universe. And since Oklahoma City just won a championship with the Thunder and are the favorites to win another NBA title this year, you would think that Seattle getting back their Sonics would be the least of their concerns. They won and they continue to win. Seattle getting the Sonics name, history, and colors back from the Thunder already has precedent with the re-christening of the Charlotte Hornets and the complicated web between Charlotte and New Orleans franchises. So what’s the big deal, right?

Well, USA Today’s OKC Thunder wire reporter Clemente Almanza doesn’t quite see it that way.

In a column entitled, “If Sonics want history back, Seattle owes OKC Thunder an apology,” Almanza makes the case that aggrieved Sonics fans should say sorry after actively rooting against the Thunder for so many years.

If the Sonics are brought back, how do the Thunder address the giant elephant in the room? Of course, I’m talking about Seattle’s NBA history from 1967 to 2007. Does OKC gift it back to Seattle, when it technically doesn’t have to, when you look at the nitty-gritty of the original contract details?

The Thunder give the Sonics back their history, it’s not that hard. They’re not going to take the 2025 NBA Finals trophy with them! And it’s not even like the Thunder are using Sonics-inspired throwback jerseys with the famous green and gold color combos like the Tennessee Titans do with the history of the Houston Oilers.

Yeah. Sure. Might as well. Not like the Thunder acknowledges the Sonics’ history even though they technically own it.

Ok good, now everyone is on the same page and we should be able to move forward together.

Advertisement

But under one caveat — an apology.

* insert blinking guy gif here *

Sonics fans in Seattle owe Oklahoma City and Thunder fans an apology? After going without a basketball team for 20 years and seeing the franchise that was taken away from them build the best young team in the league that looks like they are turning into a dynasty before their eyes? What about other fans that have had to suffer from losing their teams? Should Oakland A’s fans just thank John Fisher for the memories and wish them well in Sacramento and Las Vegas and wherever else they actually play?

For 18 years, Thunder fans have dealt with Sonics fans’ bitter behavior. When an inconvenience happens to OKC, Seattleites are the first to celebrate with online parties. Angered over a dramatic divorce, that group of people is directing their emotions at the wrong group.

Sonics fans should really be mad at Howard Schultz and the previous group. After all, they’re the ones who sold the NBA franchise to Bennett. Once that move was made, the writing was on the wall with an eventual relocation — especially since Seattle didn’t want to pony up for a new NBA arena.

Professional sports fans are beginning to warm up to the idea that billion dollar local government bailouts for billionaire owners aren’t exactly the best use of public funds. There were even serious questions about the renovation of KeyArena (now Climate Pledge Arena) when it happened in 2018 and that was without a guarantee that the Sonics would ever return. Now Seattle has an NHL team and perhaps an NBA team on the way. But it has certainly come at a significant cost.

And for that matter, are Thunder fans really watching over their shoulder worried about what people in a city almost 2,000 miles away think about their basketball teams? It’s not like Seattle fans are conducting operations in the streets of Oklahoma City to deface Thunder billboards or anything. Where are the Thunder fans who are so agonized that Seattle didn’t enjoy their title as much as they did in Oklahoma City?!?

Advertisement

They weren’t the ones who refused to accommodate an NBA team. They weren’t the ones who sold the team to an out-of-state ownership group when local groups were interested. They weren’t the ones who were gullible enough to believe an out-of-state ownership group had a real interest in staying put.

I digress. Feels like that should be water under the bridge soon. Seattle should get an NBA team by the end of the decade. But if they want their Sonics’ history back, an apology is in order. That’s what happens when you have nearly two decades of misguided anger.

Telling Sonics fans not to be angry at Clay Bennett for moving the Sonics to Oklahoma City is like asking Cleveland Browns fans not to be angry at Art Modell. It’s never going to happen in a million years. Seattle basketball fans got to see Kevin Durant’s rookie season and then he left. That’s one of the biggest teases in sports history. Let alone multiple eras of sustained success in Oklahoma City. You can understand there might be some bitterness! And it’s totally natural and understandable. As are the replies on social media that aren’t exactly in agreement with Almanza’s column.

Trying to hold the Sonics history hostage for a mythical apology is a hot take that not even ChatGPT could conjure up if you asked it to create the most scorching opinion about the entire situation. The column may get some cheers locally, and maybe that’s all it’s meant to do. But the only thing it will really accomplish is making the bad blood in Seattle boil even more after being told what to do by someone representing who they believe truly wronged them. That first visit of the Thunder to Seattle will only be matched by LeBron James’ first game back in Cleveland after joining the Miami Heat. And it’ll be must-see TV for basketball fans everywhere.

Oklahoma County Commissioner Myles Davidson is resigning.

Commissioner Brian Maughan released a statement to Fox 25 Friday night regarding Davidson’s resignation saying it “allows us to focus on solving the problems with our budget this year and the construction of the new jail.”

News of his resignation comes just over a week after a Cleveland County judge granted a final order of protection against Davidson. Court records show the order is effective until March 11, 2029.

There have previously been calls for him to resign after allegations of sexual assault came to light in September.

Fox 25 is working to obtain more information about Davidson’s decision to resign.

This is a developing story.