Saturday, December 2

Sonics (Phew) Win!

Luke Ridnour #8 of the Seattle SuperSonics hits the winning basket in the game against the Indiana Pacers at the Key Arena December 1, 2006 in Seattle, Washington. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2006 NBAE (Photo by Terrence Vaccaro/NBAE via Getty Images)
Was I the only one who sensed a somewhat frenzied, close-to-playoff atmosphere in the 4th quarter last night? Living in Vancouver, I was lucky enough to catch the 4th on tv last night (on Fox Sports Indiana, "Your Home for Pacers basketball and not much else!"), and the back and forth, every possession is crucial style was very exciting.

Of course, I live in Canada, and anything non-hockey related kind of gets my motor started, so who knows.

Anyways, Luke's clutch 3 and even clutcher (?) runner in the lane sealed the deal. And, his 2 non-clutch missed FTs with seconds remaining almost sealed it in the other direction. Regardless, I came away with the following from the game:

1. Mickael Gelabale DEFINITELY needs more playing time. The hair is good enough, but when you add in his energy, it's a no-brainer. See ya, Damien.

2. Earl Watson is becoming as important to the Sonics as the price of whiskey in Salt Lake City. Even in the 4th, it seemed he had nothing to do with the offense.

3. Seattle ran the clock down to zero way too many times in the 4th, resulting in craptacular heaves to beat the buzzer.

4. Fantastic offensive rebounding performance down the stretch. I can't count how many times Seattle kept possessions alive with clutch boards.

5. Rashard Lewis needs to take it stronger to the hole. I noticed two instances (one Clark Kellogg noticed as well) where Lewis went for the fey, avoiding contact move, rather than going up against Jermaine O'Neal and drawing a foul/dunking.

Well, enough of that rambling. What were the thoughts out there on the game last night?

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

From last night's Game Flow:

Luke Ridnour: +15

Earl Watson: -13

I'm just sayin'.

Anonymous said...

Anybody else notice that Al Harrington has a mohawk? How long has that been going on? Why doesn't David Stern step in and put an end to it?

I agree, Gelabale was great last night. It seems like he's playing at a slightly faster speed than everyone else; I just can't wait until he's comfortable in the offense/defense and knows where to be on the court all the time. He's really capable of being a special player - much moreso than Wilkins.

Trade Damien and Earl!