Smack This

Reggie Evans on Pau Gasol refering to an exchange of elbows and words during the game this weekend:

"I don't know what's wrong with that girl."

¿Cómo usted ahora tienen gusto de mí, Pau?

The True Test, version 8

"It's early."

There should be a way to bet on when it is officially okay to stop saying that.

Each time the Sonics win, everyone has to revise their "True Test" criteria ("The True Test of this team's character will be apparent when they...")

Witness the team's past performance in previous True Tests:

• ...Play a team they should beat at home. Pass: Win 106-85 vs. ATL
• ...Play the San Antonio Spurs. Pass: Win 113-94
• ...Play the Sacramento Kings. Pass: Win 108-78
• ...Play on the road. Pass: Win 108-88 @ DEN. Double bonus points for winning in the second of a back-to-back!
  
• ...Have a close/poor shooting game. Pass: Win 88-87
• ...Get down big/early. Pass: Win 118-113 vs. MEM

and so on...

Tomorrow's True Test: Go On The Long-Ass East Coast Road Trip. SURELY this six-games-in-10-days stretch will expose the Sonics as pretenders, eh, doubters? Everyone's got their "I told you so's" in their back pockets, ready to whip out when the Sonics streak ends in Philly or Toronto.

And if by some miracle the Sonics pass this test, we've got these Future True Tests ready to go:

• Do the Texas Three-Step
• Hit the January Dog Days
• Lose a star to injury
• Get their team bus bombarded by radioactive meteors
• Are featured on a Sports Illustrated cover (won't happen)
  

The beauty of the True Test is you can just keep coming up with more and no one, our Supersonicsoulselves included, ever, ever has to go on record saying the Sonics are any good and risk having to retract some ludicrous statement like...

"Seattle SuperSonics: NBA Champs 2004-2005!"

I bet Pistons fans would have been pegged as crazy if they said anything like that about their team this time last year. Just sayin'...

Glory Days

Am I the only one out there who’s wondering what the heck is going on in Seattle? How in the world can a 37-win team have the 2nd-best record in the league? Have they sold their souls?

Let’s look at the numbers.

From last season to this, the Sonics are amazingly consistent in almost all statistical categories. Much has been made about the improved rebounding, but in actual fact the Sonics are only averaging one more board this season than they did last year. Passing? Nope, Seattle’s getting three fewer assists in 04-05. Steals? Blocks? No to both of those. How about fouls, surely the Sonics are being smarter with the refs? Um, no, the Supes are hacking the other team an extra five times a game.

Ah, shooting, that must be it, right? Well, the Sonics are shooting 46.5% this year as opposed to 44.6% last year, which is a significant improvement, but since they’re attempting three fewer shots a game, it’s pretty much a wash. The same goes for treys, where Seattle is averaging .5 fewer threes made per game.

Despite all that, the Sonics are averaging 6 ppg more this season.

Well, jeez, man, what are the Sonics doing better? Believe it or not, only three areas.

Free throws made, opposition rebounds, and opposition FT percentage.

The Sonics are making an extra six FTs every game over last season. There are four main benefactors: Fortson (+4.8 from last season’s 0), Lewis (+1.8), Daniels (+1.5), and Frodo (+1.5). The remainder of the team is only slightly off their results from last year, meaning these four guys have made the difference.

The second area, rebounds, is even more extreme. Last year, Sonic opponents averaged 42 boards a game. This year? 32, a difference of 10 rebounds every game. It means the Sonics are averaging eight more rebounds than their opponents each night.

Thirdly is opposition FT percentage. Last year, opponents shot 77% at the line, making 19.1 per game. This year, it’s at 70%, making 18.4 per game. That’s costing opponents almost two points per game, a significant number.

Can the Sonics keep it up? Well, the FTs are something the Sonics should continue to do well. The rebounds, though, are doubtful. Being that the Pistons, certainly one of the top rebounders in the league, only averaged two more boards than their foes last season, it is unlikely the Supes could keep up a pace of four times that for the rest of the season. And, of course, it is very unlikely that Sonic opponents will continue their Reggie Evans impersonations at the foul line, unless Coach McMillan has telekinetic powers that he has – up till now – decided to keep under wraps.

To paraphrase Robert Plant, “Sonics, your time is gonna come.”

Sonics stop the Grizz, 118-113

The Supes won their sixth in a row last night, coming back from 21 down late in the third to win 118-113 over the Grizz:

``It's a 48-minute game and we've talked about that,'' coach Nate McMillan said after watching his team outscore the Grizzlies 34-13 in the final period. ``We just wanted to get slowly back into the game, get a stop and score, get a stop and score. That's exactly what we did.''

from Yahoo!

With DaFort on DaBench (serving a one game suspension for a flying elbow drop to Chris Bosh's melon last Friday), the Sonics had to rely on their small guys, and they delivered. Ray Allen had 34, and Nussbaum's boy, Antonio Daniels, had 28. Oh, and how did Frodo do?

"Ridnour -- or whatever the hell his name is -- he knocked down a lot of shots, too," Grizzlies center Lorenzen Wright said. "I think we got a little relaxed when we were up 20."

from the Seattle PI

(Just for the record, "whatever the hell his name is" scored 17 and had eight assists.)

Is it too early to get excited? Probably. Is that stopping me? Nope.

R.I.P. O.D.B.

From Reuters:

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Rapper Ol' Dirty Bastard, whose criminal lifestyle and strange behavior overshadowed his work as one of the founding members of rap collective Wu-Tang Clan, collapsed and died in New York on Saturday, his record label said.

The artist, whose real name was Russell Jones, was found in a recording studio complaining of chest pains, a source told Reuters. Paramedics were called but were unable to save him. A spokeswoman said the cause of death was unknown.

"Russell inspired all of us with his spirit, wit, and tremendous heart," said a statement from Roc-A-Fella Records, the label founded by rapper Jay-Z. "The world has lost a great talent, but we mourn the loss of our friend."

In the hip-hop genre, where many performers attract the attention of the law and most spare no expense flaunting their extravagant lifestyles, Jones was in a class of his own.

Jones, who was in his mid-30s, fathered 13 children, according to Blender magazine. His other stage names included Dirt McGirt and Big Baby Jesus, the latter moniker inspired by his belief that "I always been Jesus."

Sonics edge Raptors, 88-87

Whew!

SEATTLE(AP) -- Antonio Daniels' driving 8-foot shot with 7.2 seconds left gave the Seattle SuperSonics an 88-87 victory over the Toronto Raptors on Friday night.

Vince Carter of the Raptors missed a driving reverse layup as time expired.

The Sonics (5-1) won their fifth consecutive game after a 30-point, season-opening road loss to the Los Angeles Clippers.

Ray Allen, who fouled out with 5:20 to go and the Sonics trailing 76-75, led his team with 29 points, including five 3-pointers.

Read the rest at Yahoo!

At the half: Sonics lead 48-34

In the first half, Ray Allen: 19 points, Vince Carter: 3. Supes up by 14.

Ray-Ray vs. Vinsanity!

After tonight's game, be sure to vote in our new poll:
Ray vs. Vince: THERE CAN ONLY BE ONE!

Sonics Clobber Kings, 108-78

"Mommy, the mean man took away my ball!"

Spank, crush, clobber... if the Sonics keep playing like this, I'm going to run out of adjectives!

SEATTLE (AP) -- Even Ray Allen is surprised at what the Seattle SuperSonics are doing.

Allen scored 20 points and Rashard Lewis added 18, leading the Sonics to their fourth consecutive victory, 108-78 over the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday night.

Allen, a four-time All-Star, knows Seattle's roster isn't the best in the NBA, but he and his teammates are outworking the opposition.

``Every year you talk about who's going to win the championship and who's going to come in last place, but that's based on talent,'' Allen said. ``It's not who works the hardest, and who works the hardest is going to win a game every night.''

The Sonics, who won only 37 games last season and missed the playoffs for the second straight year, got 16 points and 13 rebounds from reserve power forward Danny Fortson. His inside presence has been a key to Seattle's 4-1 start.

Read the rest at Yahoo!

The Sonics started fast the last couple years, but it was mostly due to streaky shooting. This year, however, The Supes are winning because of (gasp!) defense and hustle. You know the Sonics are playing tough D when that big pussy Brad Miller starts bitching about Reggie Evans playing "dirty".

At the half: Sonics 53, Kings 39

The Kings are shooting .268 in the first half. Reggie Evans has 10 boards. Frodo has five assists and is 2-2 from three-point land. Life is good.

Sonics crush Nuggets, 108-88

Danny "The Fortress" Fortson puts the clamps on Kenyon.

The Sonics Smackdown Express just keeps on a-rolling:

DENVER -- There was a team that didn't play much defense here last night.

A team that looked out of touch with its coach, resembled little more than a speed bump as its opponent raced to 100 points and was incapable of matching up with a strong breeze beneath the basket.

Sounds like the Sonics a week ago, right?

Not anymore. They have won three in a row after giving the Denver Nuggets the business end of the stick in a 108-88 skewering at the Pepsi Center last night.

Ray Allen scored 30 points, Rashard Lewis had 27, and the Sonics (3-1) led by double figures the final 17 minutes to win their third game in a row by 19 or more.

Read the rest at the Seattle PI

So, is this team for real, or are they just another early-season mirage for desperate Sonics fans like me?

Sonics Spank Spurs, 113-94

"Damn right I got the ball, bitch!"

Wow.

The Sonics cruised by the Spurs 113-94 last night. Yes, this is the same Sonics team that was picked by almost everyone to finish near the bottom of the NBA this season, that had their worst pre-season record in 20 years, and got waxed by the Clippers last week by 30 points.

Yes, those same Sonics shut down the perennial powerhouse Spurs by 19. The Supes looked good on both ends of the floor, shooting near 50 percent for the second game in a row, while holding Tim Duncan to 4-16 from the floor.

Danny Fortson had his best game as a Sonic, getting his first double-double of the year (15 points, 13 boards), and setting some bone-crushing picks on anyone dumb enough to get in his way.

Fortson wasn't the only Sonic on the hustle board. Jerome James got four blocks for the second game in a row, and I swear to god, I saw Ray Allen diving for a loose ball late in the fourth quarter with his team up by twenty.

I know it's early in the season, but... wow.