The entertainment industry is full of extreme transformations.

In just a matter of years, Will Smith transformed from a goofy kid into an intense, bad-a action hero.

Kings of Leon went from a garage-rock band with a small, passionate following to a pop-rock band known worldwide. And, in what seemed like a few brief moments, Britney Spears went from being the ultimate-sex symbol to the ultimate-abstinence symbol, an insane mother of two.

A transformation even more radical, however, can be seen starting this Saturday in Norman when the men’s basketball team plays its first regular season game of the year.

For the past two years, the identity of the Sooner basketball team revolved around one player: Blake Griffin. In Griffin’s two seasons at OU, he was so dominant that an offensive series in which he did not touch the ball seemed illogical.

But as soon as Griffin announced his intentions to leave for the NBA draft in April, the identity of this OU team shifted greatly.

The undisputed leader of this year’s team is sophomore guard Willie Warren, who was easily the Sooners’ second-best scoring option last season. After an impressive freshman year, Warren is some experts’ pre-season choice for national player of the year.

Warren can score in a variety of ways, with a consistent outside stroke and the athleticism to get to the rim.

However, the shift of offensive focus from Griffin to Warren is not the only reason the 2009-2010 team will look different.

The players around Warren are, for the most part, jump shooters. This season’s Sooner team is young, talented and guard-heavy.

The Sooners’ starting lineup in their exhibition game on Tuesday included two freshman, a sophomore and two seniors, one who transferred to OU is in his second and last year of eligibility at OU.

And despite the addition of one of the best high school post players in the country in Tiny Gallon, OU likely will not have a dominant force down low this year. Most of the scoring will have to come from the outside.

Last season, OU shot an average of 19 three-pointers per game and hit 35 percent of those shots.

Against British Columbia on Tuesday, the Sooners took 23 three-point shots and hit 57 percent of those shots (including 4-6 shooting from two freshman guards Tommy Mason-Griffin and Steven Pledger).

But the drastic change in this team is not based solely on the three-point shot.

The most glaring difference between Tuesday’s game and one with Griffin in the lineup was the lack of dunks against British Columbia. Without Griffin, this team will have to score with jump shots, whether they come from behind the arc or not.

With this personnel group, this shift in identity is inevitable. The key is how well the Sooners handle this shift. Identity change is not always easy.

If every clumsy, cheese-loving nerd could enter a machine and become Stefan Urquelle, there would be no nerds in this world.

So the key for OU this season is to embrace the change. They have a chance to make another tournament run this season, but it depends on how quickly they can forget Griffin. Games this year will not be won by dumping the ball down low.

To win, OU must hit open shots, get to the basket if possible and play tight defense.

It’s a drastic change, but if the fresh prince can kill aliens (twice), robots and diseased, zombie-like humans, OU should have a shot at success this season.