Sund

I’ve had the Utah Jazz on my mind this season.

No, I’m not developing an aversion to carbonated beverages or a predilection to getting a couple more wives. I’m just curious as to why the Jazz have succeeded while the Sonics have floundered.

In 2004-05, the Sonics were the kings of the Northwest Division while Utah sputtered to a 26-56 mark, their worst season since the days of Adrian Dantley. Darrell Griffith, and Rickey Green.

Since then, though, it’s a complete reversal of fortune. The Jazz went 41-41 last year and are on pace to finish 56-26 this year, an amazing turnaround from two years ago. The Sonics, meanwhile, have plummeted from first to worst, seeing their win totals go from 52 to 35 to maybe 33 or 34 this year.

So what gives? What the hell happened that made the Jazz so good and the Sonics so, well, not so good?

Well, maybe it’s a good idea to compare the moves made by Kevin O’Connor and Rick Sund in the last two years, just so we can see what went wrong in Seattle and right in SLC.

Summer, 2005
Jazz:
1. Trade #6 (Martell Webster) and #27 (Linas Kleiza) pick to the Blazers for the #3 pick (Deron Williams). Jazz draft CJ Miles and Robert Whaley in the 2nd round.
2. Trade Raul Lopez to Memphis, Curtis Borchardt to Boston, and Kirk Snyder to New Orleans for Greg Ostertag.
3. Re-signed Keith McLeod.
4. Re-signed Jerry Sloan

Sonics:
1. Hire Bob Weiss
2. Draft Johan Petro, Mickael Gelabale and Lawrence Roberts (later traded to Memphis for cash)
3. Re-sign Ray Allen to long-term deal.
4. Sign Rick Brunson, Vitaly Potapenko, Damien Wilkins, Mikki Moore, Vlad Radmanovic, Flip Murray, and Mateen Cleaves to one-year deals.
5. Extend Nick Collison and Luke Ridnour through 06-07.

In-Season, 2005-06
Jazz:
1. Trade Kris Humphries and Robert Whaley for Rafael Araujo.

Sonics:
1. Fire Bob Weiss; hire Bob Hill
2. Waive Mateen Cleaves, re-sign Cleaves, waive Cleaves, etc.
3. Trade Radmanovic for Chris Wilcox
3. Trade Evans and Potapenko for Earl Watson, Bryon Russell, ’08 2nd-round pick, and cash.
4. Trade Flip Murray for Mike Wilks
5. Waive Brunson; sign Marcus Fizer, waive Fizer; sign Noel Felix, waive Felix.
6. Extend Bob Hill’s deal through 07-08.

Summer, 2006
Jazz:
1. Draft Ronnie Brewer, Paul Milsap, and Dee Brown.
2. Extend Keith McLeod’s deal.
3. Trade Andre Owens, McLeod, and Devin Brown for Derek Fisher
4. Re-sign Matt Harpring
5. Re-sign Jarron Collins

Sonics:
1. Re-sign Chris Wilcox
2. Draft Mohamed Sene, Denham Brown, and Yotam Halperin
3. Trade Mikki Moore for a 2nd-round pick in 09 (NJ)
4. Sign Ridnour and Collison to contract extensions

In-Season, 2006-07
Jazz:
1. Swap 2nd-round picks with Philly in exchange for Alan Henderson’s contract and cash.
2. Waive Alan Henderson.

Sonics:
1. Sign Andre Brown

It’s a lot to digest, especially on the Sonics’ side of things. Does anyone know if Rick Sund’s being paid on a per-transaction basis?

I’ll be honest, wasn’t as down on Sund as most folks coming into the season. His draft record – while abysmal the last couple of years – has been solid taken as a whole. Still, O’Connor has eaten his lunch the past two years, and you can’t blame it all on the new ownership putting a hold on everything.

Just look at the acquisitions: O’Connor looked at his team, saw he needed a point guard and some veteran depth and acquired Deron Williams (17 ppg) and Derek Fisher (10 ppg). Sund looked at his team, saw he needed a veteran back up big man, a backup shooting guard, and a older player to spell Ridnour ... and he picked up a 19-year-old Senegalese center, a 20-year-old French center, and Earl Watson. In other words, he took a lousy situation and made it infinitely worse. When faced with a decision on what coach to hire, he bailed on the decision and asked his players. When he needed to fix his mistake, he hired yet another Sonic assistant (Hill) as a band-aid solution ... then punted on making a serious decision by just renewing Hill’s contract and forcing the team to play for this season, even though the smarter thing would have been to play for next year.

In reviewing both of the GM’s records the past couple of years, you can’t help but come to the conclusion that Sund seems to be constantly putting out fires without really getting to the bottom of why there’s a fire in the first place. Not sure of what to do with all your free agents? Just sign them all to one year deals! Not sure which coach to hire? Promote an assistant!

Can you believe the Sonics have not gone outside the organization for a head coach since Paul Westphal? First Nate, then Weiss, now Hill – all assistants who got promoted because they happened to be in the building.

It’s utterly frustrating, especially when you look at how desperately the Sonics needed someone like Dale Davis to help the young big men, but instead we get Andreas Glyniadakis. The team cries out for someone to come off the bench to spell Ray Allen, but instead we get two SG/SFs who either can’t shoot 3’s or won’t.

The essence of the difference between the two boils down to how the Jazz went after Deron Williams two years ago. O’Connor knew that the #6 and 27 picks weren’t going to make his team a contender, so he dumped them and got the best or second-best young point guard in the league. The Sonics, rather than looking at moving up and getting someone who can help now, have settled on projects in the draft; first Swift, then Petro, then Sene. That’s great if you’re the 1994 Bulls, but the Sonics are a team that needs help now, not 5 years from now.

Not surprisingly, Sund is polishing his resume now, and it’s inconceivable to me that Clay Bennett won’t can him this summer.

Quite frankly, he’d be crazy not to.

Goodbye, Basement

Ah, the sweet, sweet smell of fourth place. Eat our dust, Portland, we're moving on up.

Okay, it's really not that big of deal, but still, in a season that has been one step out of the depths of hell, passing our hated rivals from the Beaver State is about all Sonics fans have to enjoy.

Crazy win last night; the Sonics made more 3's than free throws, Watson and Marbury combined to hit 14 of 19 from 3-point range, and Johan Petro Hendersoned Chris Wilcox (and we can all agree, Coach K was not to blame this time).

In fact, with a Sonic win tonight and a Golden State loss to the Nuggets (both unlikely, but, hey, it's possible), the Sonics would climb to within a couple of percentage points of the Warriors.

One problem in that scenario is the Sixers, who haven't played since Sunday and are riding a four-game win streak. And before you start making snide remarks about quality of opponents, note that included in those four wins are games against Phoenix, Sacto, and the Nets. Andre Iguodala has been huge for Philly, posting McGrady-like numbers in '07, and Lewis is going to have to work hard to shut him down. With Joe Smith and Kyle Korver coming off the bench, the Sonics won't be in for an easy evening tonight.

Even factoring in the high of Tuesday's win, I'd still expect the Sixers to win tonight. Call it 101-89, Philly.

Gay Marriage and the Sonics

It’s been beat to death on the internet in the past couple of weeks (seriously, no matter what side you’re on, can anyone read LZ Granderson’s column and come away thinking anything but: Shut up?), so I’m curious as to what people who visit this site think about the Sonics being owned by two men who rather not see two other men walking down the aisle.

I’ll put my opinion out there first. Personally, it doesn’t bother me that the Sonics would be owned by people opposed to gay marriage. Honestly, I don’t think the government should be involved in anybody’s marriage; it’s a matter between two individuals, and nobody else ought to be messing with it. I guess I look at it that it’s their money and they can do what they want.

But that’s me. Most folks in Seattle are much more left-leaning, I’d say, although it’s possible sports fans are slightly more conservative than the bran-eating Volvo drivers who are more likely to watch PBS than ESPN.

All that said, do you care if Tom Ward and Aubrey McClendon gave $1 million of their own cash to pay for an initiative that would ban gay marriage? Is this truly worth talking about, or is it merely a ploy of anti-stadium activists looking to cause trouble? On the one hand, it’s their money. On the other, if the Sonics turn a profit (and you know they will, at least in the long run), your ticket money will – at least partially – be funding these types of initiatives.

Let us know your thoughts. And, please, try to keep the rhetoric to a minimum. If you think gay people are the devil, fine, but we’re not interested. Go phone Rush Limbaugh, or somebody who cares. We’re only interested in getting a feeling as to whether this story even is a story.

Allen Guts It Out

Despite what must be terrific pain in his left ankle, Ray Allen gutted it out and led the Sonics to a win on Sunday night against Charlotte, the Sonics' fifth straight win at home. In fact, according to numerous reports, Allen has decided to postpone surgery until after the season, barring any change in his level of pain.

And while my initial reaction to this news was, "Why?," after reading about bone spurs, it becomes obvious that having the surgery this summer won't impinge on the Sonics' success in the upcoming season. Recovery time - and this is a general rule - is typically 6 to 8 weeks. Assuming the Sonics don't make it to the Finals (I'm going out on a limb here), Allen could be fully recovered by July, giving him plenty of time to get ready for the season.

And that's probably exactly what Allen and the Sonics were thinking. If the surgery doesn't affect next season, and if Allen can play with the pain, then why not let him play? Ray's comments that the team might - perhaps subconciously - tank the season if he decided to sit out is accurate.

Obviously, how the Sonics play the next couple of months doesn't mean squat for next year (or have you already forgotten the 15-11 run to finish last season, that portended great things?), but there's no harm in giving a message to the rest of the team that their best player doesn't pack it in when things get difficult.

Speaking of packing it in, the Sonics will be visiting a slew of contenders for Greg Oden in the next week or so. But before you start penciling in road victories, bear this in mind: the Knicks have won 2 straight and the Sixers and Celtics are both working on four-game win streaks. In other words, the trip won't be a cakewalk.

Allen's Status Still Up in the Air

Looks as though Friday's CT scan of Ray Allen's ankle didn't give all the answers the doctors had been expecting, so we'll all have to wait until Monday to see if he'll suit up again this season.

According to supersonics.com and Frank Hughes at the TNT, Allen will visit a foot specialist on Monday to determine what if anything should be done to alleviate the pain he's feeling from a bone spur. Also, he'll be a game-time decision for the Sunday game with Charlotte.

Obviously, the prudent thing to do is let Ray have surgery as soon as possible, freeing him up for recovery in time for next season. Still, you have to admire Allen's tenacity in the face of the pain. According to Ray, he's been in pain for most of the season, yet in spite of that he's managed to make the All-Star team, lead the team in points, and basically be the best shooting guard in team history (not to mention his unreal January when he put up 30 points on a regular basis).

Basically, what I'm trying to say is that I was totally wrong when I said the Sonics shouldn't sign Allen to a long-term deal. The guy is tougher than he would seem at first blush, and his defensive shortcomings aside, if the Sonics are going to pay somebody $15 mil a year to play shooting guard, I can't think of too many other players I'd rather give it to.

Winnin' Ugly

No other way to describe last night's win other than ugly. With Allen out with bone spurs, the Sonics rode Rashard Lewis to a 2-point home win.

Once again, the bench failed to come through, although it was nice to see Gelabale finally get some minutes (his 13 minutes were more last night than just about any game in the past couple of weeks, and his +7 was the best on the team despite the limited minutes). In fact, you could argue that teaming Gelabale with Watson at the beginning of the 4th quarter was what won the game.

Bizarrely - in this ever-bizarre season - the next five games are all winnable, and I'm including the four-game eastern road swing. Charlotte, New York, Philly, Boston, and Toronto - none of those clubs is scaring anyone this year, with the possible exception of the Raptors, and if you look at it from the perspective that the Sonics' record against the East is better than the Raps' record against the West, well, you might let yourself get a little optimistic.

Deja Vu

You know those Sports Illustrated videos that come out after a team wins a championship? Well, if SI decides to make one for the Sonics' season - and I'm not saying anyone would buy it, mind you, but bear with me here - they could save a whole pile of money if they just ran last night's loss to the Clippers instead. After all, the pieces were all there on display:

Fourth quarter disappearing act? Check
Coasting through the first half? Check
Overreliance on Allen and Lewis? Check
No low post presence? Check
Bewildered quotes after the game? Check
Frustrated coach? Check

As Rashard Lewis put it after the game was done, "It was just one of those nights."

One of those nights, one of those seasons, man.

Game Night: Clippers

There isn’t much to be excited about if you’re a Sonics fans these days. Putting aside the stadium debate for at least one more day, and shelving all talk of Oklahoma, we’re left with an underperforming team that is coached by a man who will likely be fired this summer, a GM who is polishing his resume because his bosses are likely prohibiting him from making any moves, and a roster of players who seem incapable of taking the step from lower middle class to easy street.

Tonight, the Sonics play the Clippers. Considering how badly the year has gone in Seattle, it could be worse – we could be Clipper fans, after all. With Shaun Livingston’s horrific injury possibly keeping him out until the end of Bush’s presidency, the Clips are turning to ET tonight to lead them.

For some odd reason, the Sonics play well in LA, at least against the Clippers anyways. As I see it, the game has a couple of keys to success:

1. Containing Chris Kaman on the glass
2. Getting out of Rashard Lewis’ way

Seriously, Rashard could go for 40 tonight, I just have a feeling.

Sonics 106-Clippers 97

Sonics Memorabilia

Here's a great Sonics Memorabilia site you should check out:

The Seattle SuperSonics—or Sonics to their legions of fans in Washington—play in the Northwest Division of the NBA’s Western Conference. Founded in 1967, the Sonics are Seattle’s fist professional sports team and the only Seattle franchise to win a championship. Naturally, the possibility of the team’s move to Oklahoma City has fans of the Green and Gold up in arms. The biggest draw for Sonics fans right now is 19-year-old superstar Kevin Durant. The Sonics drafted the 6’9” shooting guard in 2007 after Durant finished his freshman season at the University of Texas.

Seattle fans can get their fix on autographed sports memorabilia, including merchandise signed by their favorite players, by checking out sportsmemorabilia.com. One of our favorite items is the autographed Kevin Durant basketball. Named NCAA Player of the Year after only one season with the Longhorns, Durant has hand-signed this piece and added the “07 NCAA POY” inscription. While you’re there, check out all our autographed basketballs—chances are we’ve got one with your favorite player’s name on it.

For your home or office, you might want to consider a framed, autographed photograph of Durant holding his #35 jersey or a Kevin Durant photomint. The photomint, which features a shot of the athlete in action, also comes with two 24KT gold coins—one for the SuperSonics and another for the NBA. Our authentic NBA logo patch featuring the green and gold S makes a great touch to any Seattle scrapbook or memorabilia collection. Or, make it a part of your wardrobe by sewing onto a bag or piece of clothes! Let us be your source for your basketball gear and Sonics memorabilia!

Sonics New Owners: Jerks and Bigots

I really want to write some good news about the Sonics.

I'm a life-long fan. I've been with them through the ups and downs. I considered naming my first-born Xavier. Every day I wake up hoping there will be something positive to write about the team and the new owners. Instead, I have to read this:

Two members of the new Sonics ownership group are heavyweight financiers of a national political group dedicated to banning gay marriage.

Together, co-owners Tom Ward and Aubrey McClendon donated more than $1.1 million to Americans United to Preserve Marriage, a conservative Christian group that opposes gay marriage.

The group is led by Gary Bauer, an outspoken leader of conservative groups including the Family Research Council and Focus on the Family.

According to the group, gay couples "flout marriage by using it for their own political agenda (and) cheapen the institution."

Read the rest in today's Seattle P.I.
(originally reported in The Stranger)

Yes, we wouldn't want to "cheapen" an institution that has a 50% rate of failure!

As much as I hate bigoted right-wingers like McClendon and Co., the one we should be aiming our pitchforks at is former owner Howard Shultz. He pissed and moaned about how much money he was losing on the team (while living it up on millions of dollars of shareholder-funded perks), then knowingly sold the team to a group he knew had no chance (and probably no desire) to keep the team in town. Why? Because the city dared say no to his demand to build more luxury boxes for his rich friends.

The new owners, of course, claim they have every desire to "make things work" in Seattle, but if they can't win over a basketball slut like me, what hope do they have?

In other crappy news, Rashard has turned down a contract extension. At least the Sonics beat Portland last night--take that Nate!

Reason to Hate Oklahoma, #478

Like I needed another reason to hate Oklahoma.

It appears that at least one sleaze-ball sportscaster in Okie-town is referring to our team as the "Oklahoma/Seattle Sonics".

(Thanks to Ian for the tip!)

Bitter Pill

In a season of disappointments, Friday night's loss must have been especially difficult for Bob Hill to swallow.

It wasn't enough that his team got outrebounded 26-5 on the offensive glass. Or that Ray Allen had as many turnovers as the Hornets.

No, the most disappointing part of the whole affair was how the rest of the Western Conference did it's part.

What do I mean? Well take a look at how the teams ahead of the Sonics in the standings fared Friday evening:

Portland - Loss (at home, against Memphis!?)
Sacramento - Loss
Minnesota - Loss
Denver - Loss
New OKC - Win
Golden St., Clips - Idle

That's right, everything that could've broken the Sonics way on Friday did - with the exception of their game, natch. Considering the Sonics are in San Antone tonight, you can't blame Bob Hill if he hit the mini bar pretty hard last night.