The Seattle Supersonics on Public Radio?

Sports on public radio? What's this world coming to?

As hard as it is to believe, I will be on KUOW this weekend taking about the Seattle Supersonics &mdash and it won't be about the stadium!

The always funny John Moe from "Weekend America" is doing a story on fans who root for their teams to lose, and we talk about the conflicted emotions of watching the Sonics come back from 25 down to win a meaningless game.

The piece will air during "Weekend America", this Saturday at noon locally on KUOW, or you can download the podcast. And, no, I don't know what a podcast is.

Sonics Win Back-to-Back on Road; Hill Wants More

Got to take issue with this from an otherwise fine article from Jayda Evans at the Times:

Hill and his staff have drastically improved five players — Chris Wilcox, Nick Collison, Earl Watson, Johan Petro and Damien Wilkins, and Allen was averaging a career-best 26.4 points on two bum ankles.

I don't know that any of those guys - other than Collison and possibly Petro have "drastically improved." Watson's play has been erratic, Wilkins seems to have flatlined, and Wilcox has put up inferior numbers to the ones he had during his spring fling with the Sonics last year. And, if you think about it, shouldn't Petro be improving regardless? Wouldn't he get better just standing in a gym by himself taking free throws, considering his relatively sparse experience in competitive basketball?

I also enjoyed this bit from Hill, culled from Frank Hughes' piece at the TNT:

I am not the kind of person who runs in his office and starts pointing fingers at other people.

Oh, please, Bob. Hey, I wanted you to get the job and I thought you got unfairly tossed in San Antonio, but if you're going to stand there and say that you haven't thrown players under the bus this year, well, you're flat out lying.

Enough of that. The more pressing news is the Sonics' second consecutive win on the road, a 3-point triumph over the Answer, Melo, Nene, and the Ball-grabber. Once again, the story was Rashard Lewis, who dominated the end of the fourth quarter and carried the Sonics to the win. Once again, Luke Ridnour proved he and Bob Hill are not even in the same book, let alone on the same page.

It's puzzling, you know, how Hill is able to get these guys to play so hard when they have so little for which to play. In fact, it's given me an idea: Maybe the Sonics ought to try an innovative strategy next year: Hire Rick Adelman to coach the team from November until March, fire Adelman, and let Hill guide them the rest of the way. This way, the Sonics get Adelman's regular season brilliance, none of his craptacular playoff failures, and they get Hill's obvious ability to win in spring-time with none of the fall weather doldrums.

Sonics to fire Bob Hill, hire Lenny Wilkens?

From the Chicago Tribune (via Yahoo!):

Seattle SuperSonics coach Bob Hill continues to throw players under the bus, which would seem to eliminate him from future NBA coaching consideration. In recent losses, he blamed Earl Watson and Chris Wilcox for costing games by blowing plays and said the Sonics should give up if they lose Rashard Lewis in free agency. The word around the NBA is Lenny Wilkens will return to coach in a transition season as the team considers a move next season.

Read the rest here.

Sonics Dominate in 4th Quarter; Pope Announces Conversion to Judaism

Yes, you read that box score correctly. The Sonics dominated a 4th quarter and THEY were the team that rallied from behind.

Earl Watson and Rashard Lewis were the keys to victory, especially EW's 24 points off the bench. And who would have guessed that Mike Wilks would get nearly as many minutes (17) as Luke Ridnour (24)?

Add it all up, and the Sonics seem bound and determined to get the 7th pick in the draft this year. For one night, though, it all seems oddly worthwhile.

Do Your Part

Supersonics.com has been running a bracket for the past month or so, with various aspects of Sonic history involved in the "games." At the moment, the battle is between Bob Blackburn and Squatch.

Now, I'm not going to tell you how to vote, that would be, well, Republican. Instead, I'm going to tell you that if someone were to vote for Squatch, I would be severely disappointed in them.

Severely.

So, do your part, honor the past, and go to supersonics.com and vote for Bob Blackburn. Remember, a vote for Bob is a vote for greatness. A vote for Squatch is a vote for a Halloween costume.

Bill the Beerman, RIP

From the Seattle P.I.:

Bill Scott, better known to his many fans as "Bill the Beerman," died Sunday night from complications of colon cancer originally diagnosed in 2001. He was 58.

For more than 20 years, Scott led cheers in the Kingdome, starting in 1976 as a beer vendor who spontaneously encouraged fans to shout at Seahawks and Mariners games.

If you lived here then and went to the Kingdome, you knew him, the big barrel-chested guy with the beard and booming voice who sold you beer and gave you permission to cheer.

Read the rest here.

Listen to Bill the Beerman in action (from my old "Sonic Boom LP").

Loserville Update

Couple of games that affected the Sonics' drive for Oden last night. Boston beat the Raptors (yay), but Portland and Milwaukee got their L's on, meaning the Sonics now hold the 6th-worst record in the league (going by percentages). With a road game in Minny tonight, a loss would move Seattle a step further away from Philly and a little closer to the Hawks.

With that in mind, here's how some of the draft "experts" see the Sonics going:

Draft Express: Spencer Hawes (um, no thanks)
NBA Draft.net: Jeff Green, Georgetown (author makes mental note to pay extra attention during Final Four)
Hoops Hype: Julian Wright, Kansas (again, no thanks)
MyNBA Draft.com: Joakim Noah, Florida (I cannot think of a player I would less like to have on the Sonics, and I'm including junior college guys with one leg)
Fantapedia.net: Yi Jianlian, China ("his face up game would fit in with the Sonics' up-tempo offense"; right, because what the Sonics desperately need is a center who doesn't like to play down low).

Should be an interesting game tonight. I was shocked by how the Sonics handled Garnett in the last meeting since you would assume he'd be able to get whatever he wants in the paint. I'd have to expect the Wolves to get something tonight, though.

Goodbye Ray, Hello Oden?

The bad news is that Ray Allen is out for the rest of the season. The good news? The Sonics just got a step closer to landing Greg Oden!

Seattle, WA (Sports Network) - Seattle SuperSonics guard Ray Allen will miss the rest of the season with bone spurs in his left ankle.

Allen, the NBA's eighth-leading scorer (26.4 ppg), will require surgery but a specific date has yet to be determined.

"It makes sense for Ray to go forward and have the surgery," Sonics general manager Rick Sund said. "He's been playing with pain for some time now, and all parties involved agree that this is what is best for Ray in the long run."

(from the Seattle P.I.)

No Ray Tonight

According to David Locke at supersonics.com, Ray Allen will not be playing tonight against the T-Wolves.

Allen's headed for LA to meet with the same surgeon who operated on his ankle a couple of years ago. The Sonics expect to know this weekend, or possibly Monday, if he'll go ahead with the surgery and bag the rest of the season.

Whoa, There, Weezy

What would you say about a power forward who scored 46 points and grabbed 33 boards in two games in March? Sounds a lot like Chris Wilcox and his recent performance, right?

Um, yeah, it's Wilcox alright, but it's Wilcox from last year, when he went off against Milwaukee and Sacto in back-to-back games on March 21 and 22. Of course, he followed that up by grabbing 33 boards in the next five games, then going for double-doubles in four straight, then single-singles in three straight.

In other words, if anybody thinks Chris Wilcox has suddenly turned the corner and is entering the realm of a consistent scorer/rebounder, I'd suggest downing a nice glass of warm milk and settling down. Call him Weezy, call him Wilco, call him whatever, but the man has proven one thing in his five years in the league: He is just as capable of scoring 6 points as he is 26.

Is it circumstances? Is it lack of PT? I have no flippin' idea, but the fact remains that Wilcox has gone for big nights in LA and now in Seattle, yet for some reason he has yet to elevate his game to the next level. His flukish 79% free throw percentage for the Sonics last season was a total aberration from his career marks, and Coach Hill admitted in Kevin Pelton's article today at supersonics.com that he's reluctant to throw the ball to Wilcox down the stretch due to Weezy's inability to hit shots from the stripe.

Detractors will point to Karl Malone's improved FT% as evidence that players can change from the stripe, but they should also point out that Malone's percentage went up each year at the start of his career, until he reached a point where teams could not longer count on fouling him. Wilcox' numbers, however, have been as inconsistent as his overall play: 50, 70, 61, 64, 78, 65.

I'm not saying Wilcox isn't a decent player, and it's possible he's worth the six and a half mil a season the Sonics are paying him. But to say that he's "figured it out" after five years of inconsistent play based on a week and a half of above-average performances ... well, I guess I'm just a little more skeptical.

Schlep to the Finish

There are about 15 games left on the schedule for the NBA, and the Sonics are in a death match with about five other teams for the 3rd-worst record in the league. It’s not the kind of competition GMs anticipate at the start of the season, but we can’t all have our cake and eat it, too. (Actually, as Sonic fans we don’t even get to look at the cake, let alone eat it).

Here are the Contenders:

Milwaukee: 25-42
Charlotte: 26-43
Philly: 26-42
Seattle: 26-41
Atlanta: 27-42
Portland: 27-40

And a quick look at handicapping (and that is definitely the right word to use for this group) how the rest of their seasons play out.

Milwaukee (15 games left): It’s likely they’ll win a couple of games, as they’re home against Boston, NY, Indy, Atlanta, and Charlotte. FINAL RECORD: 29-53

Charlotte (13 games): The Bobcats have won 4 of 6 and are probably the team least likely to tank the rest of the year, with the exception of the Blazers. FINAL RECORD: 31-51.

Philly (14 games): The Sixers 7-game win streak at the beginning of the month torched their chances at getting the #1 or #2 spot. Philly’s got home games against Boston, Charlotte, Atlanta, and Toronto, plus roadies against NY and the Celtics. FINAL RECORD: 31-51

Seattle (15 games): Thank God for the Western Conference, where teams actually suit up 12 people who can walk and chew gum simultaneously. The Sonics have all of two relatively winnable games left (Memphis and Denver at home), plus the roadie against the Blazers. Minny on the road is possible, but other than that we’re looking at a big ol’ list of Ls. FINAL RECORD: 29-53.

Atlanta (13 games): The Heat snapped ATL’s 5-game home win streak on Wednesday, but the Hawks could still do some damage down the stretch. FINAL RECORD: 31-51

Portland (15 games): Portland’s probably got the hardest schedule to close up, with 9 road games, including the dreaded Texas 3-step. I can see 3 or 4 wins, but no more. FINAL RECORD: 30-52.

With all of that, here’s how the field plays out:
29-53: Seattle, Milwaukee
30-52: Portland
31-51: Charlotte, Philly, Atlanta
A Sonic loss to Portland on the road (entirely possible) would put them at 28-54, provided they don’t screw up and win a game they shouldn’t. How Ray Allen decides to finish the year will be huge; if he decides to sit, I think the Sonics are the odds-on favorite to finish with the 3rd-worst record.

We’ll check in tomorrow with how the team with the 3rd-worst record has fared in the draft the past few years.

AD and Earl

Unbelievable. On the same day that Kevin Pelton and David Locke write long tomes about the lousy luck the Sonics have in the fourth quarter, Gilbert Arenas throws in a layup with no time on the clock and the Sonics lose again.

With the Wizards in town, that means old friend Antonio Daniels suited up in Key Arena. AD was the unsung hero of the Sonics' run to the semifinals back in 04-05, and was one of the first casualties of free agency to that team. At the time Daniels left, everyone thought it made sense to let him go. After all, was it worth it to pay $ 6 million a year to a backup point guard?

Well, try this on for size. The Sonics are paying Earl Watson almost exactly what AD is getting, and their contracts both expire at the end of the 09/10 season. In other words, instead of having a malcontent, poor shooting point guard who can't play D, we could have a team-focused, poor shooting point guard who plays great D ... for the same price. Of course, AD might have wanted to leave regardless, inasmuch as he didn't feel he needed to subbing for Luke Ridnour, so this all may be moot. Still, I can't help wondering what the Sonics' record would have been the last couple of years if we'd had him coming off the bench instead of Watson.

Just goes to show you that the future is never as simple as it might seem.