Carlesimo Made Official

The Sonics put rest to any fears that Lenny Wilkens would stage a coup d'etat by naming P.J. Carlesimo head coach at a press conference today. The team had planned to announce the signing of a veteran small forward to help in the growth of youngsters Kevin Durant and Jeff Green, but that plan has fallen by the wayside.

Instead, Carlesimo will now preside over Seattle's most highly anticipated rookie duo since Dana Barros and Shawn Kemp, or perhaps since Jon Sundvold and Scooter McCray. I'm not sure. Anyway, he's got plenty of work to do, and P.J. will get right at it with a game tomorrow at 6 pm west coast time in the Las Vegas Summer League. Most of the games will be on NBA TV, although the Milwaukee tilt on Wednesday will be on webcast only.

Personally, I'm a bit ambivalent about the whole Durant Era. I think for non-Sonics fans, it's a no-brainer: you're amped for the greatest thing since Jordan. But with the threat of the team moving hovering over this season like a distant storm cloud at a picnic, it's a bit difficult for me to get too excited about the year ahead of us. After all, why bother getting overly enchanted with a franchise that may be leaving in less than a year's time?

It's a weird time for Sonic fans: A gutted roster, exciting rookies, our fifth coach in four years, new ownership, a new GM ... heck, it's gotten so odd that Luke Ridnour is starting to look like an elder statesman on this club.

Whatever your feelings, Kevin Durant puts on a Sonic jersey in a competitive environment for the first time tomorrow afternoon. Let's hope the good times start to roll.

Seattle's New Head Coach

I woke up this morning ready to give P.J. Carlesimo a break. Let’s be honest, in a perverted way, Carlesimo has become the Kermit Washington of coaches – a man whose entire career has been, as the Sonics’ new head coach puts it, “defined by one moment.”

And that’s unfair. Latrell Sprewell has gone out of his way since the choking incident to prove that he’s not the mellowest fellow on the planet, and if making Rod Strickland upset sentences you to coaching prison, well, there’s going to be plenty of inmates in that jail cell.

As I was saying, I woke up this morning ready to extend a hand to Carlesimo, but, quite frankly, after reading the media’s reaction to his hiring, and the quotes they provided, now I’m not so sure.

"I've wondered for several years now why more people haven't attacked P.J. to come run their program," Gregg Popovich told a San Antonio newspaper last month. “It shows how little people look at what's needed to run a program and how much they look at superficial stuff that means nothing.”

Well, that’s one way to look at it. Another way would be that after 5 ½ years as a head coach, Carlesimo has yet to win a playoff series. And those Blazer teams weren’t devoid of talent, either. Two years after Carlesimo was fired, that Portland team (with 3 of the same starters) was in the Western Conference Finals.

As for the Warriors, Carlesimo took them from 30 wins to 19 wins in his first season. (Bizarrely, this will be the first time in P.J.’s career that he won’t be replacing Rick Adelman, as he followed in Heir Rick’s shoes in both Portland and Golden State. Want to hear something even more bizarre? Carlesimo’s father was the head coach at Forham University, as was Bob Hill.)

Anyways, to say Carlesimo is being judged solely by the choking incident is unfair. He’s also being judged on a middling-to-poor record in the NBA. Yes, he’s been at Popovich’s side for half a decade, and he surely has picked up useful information about the Spurs’ “culture” (ugh) in doing so. Yes, he has supposedly mellowed in the intervening years, as the cold, hard hand of reality smacked him across the face so that he may wake up to the fact that unless he changed his personality, he would never draw a paycheck as a head coach.

Can people change? Of course. Personally, though, I’m not interested in whether Carlesimo becalmed his inner anger.

I’m more interested in seeing if he can win a playoff series.

Sonics to hire P.J. Carlesimo?

"Must . .. resist . . . urge to choke . . . "

The San Antonio Express News reports that the Seattle Supersonics are about to introduce Pesti Pal #1, P.J. Carlesimo, as the new head coach:

The Seattle SuperSonics have decided to hire P.J. Carlesimo as their new head coach, an NBA source said Tuesday evening.

Carlesimo has spent the previous five seasons as an assistant on the staff of Spurs coach Gregg Popovich.

Seattle’s new owner, Clay Bennett -- a former member of the Spurs’ ownership group -- has tried to use the Spurs as a blueprint to remake the Sonics. Last month, Bennett hired Spurs assistant general manager Sam Presti to oversee the Sonics’ front office.

Seattle is expected to announce Carlesimo’s hiring Wednesday afternoon.

Read it here.

Thanks to Supersonicsouliac John McWalter for the tip!

UPDATE: The Seattle P.I. reports that the Sonics have a press conference scheduled for Thursday afternoon. It looks like this might be for reals.

Hollinger Weighs In

ESPN's resident statistical expert, John Hollinger, offers his take on the Rashard Lewis signing. Hollinger makes the point - to which I agree - that the Magic are not overpaying Lewis, if one takes the vantagepoint that all free agents are overpaid, Lewis is still only 28, and the probability is that he will not be a tired veteran at the end of the contract. Hollinger also points out that due to the presence of Durant and Green, Lewis' skills were less valuable to the Sonics, to which I think all Sonic fans would say, "No kidding."

Lewis Gone

And with that, he was gone.

Rashard Lewis, having spent the first nine years of his career in Seattle, growing from a gangly high-schooler who only scored 47 points his rookie season to an All-Star small forward who became the most coveted free agent of the summer, is no longer a Seattle Supersonic. Lewis indicated to the Orlando Magic on Monday that he will sign a max-contract deal with the club on July 11, the first day free agents are allowed to sign on the dotted line (as reported by Marc Stein at espn.com).

It's an odd feeling, but not as odd as one might expect considering the length of his stay in town. In fact, I think most of us are less surprised to see Rashard leave than we were to see Ray Allen dealt a few days ago.

Lewis' departure has been speculated for months now, with Orlando being the most likely destination, and when the Magic declined to contact Darko Milicic about his impending contract negotiations, the writing was on the wall - the perennial also-rans were going strong for Lewis.

After dinner with club officials on Sunday, Lewis apparently made the agreement on Monday, and now the Sonics are left without a 22.4 ppg scorer, a player who always seemed to frustrate Sonic fans for what he didn't do, and never pleased us with what he did.

I was reading Harper's a month or two ago, and I came across this quote from E.M. Forster that he wrote in opposition to critics of his friend Samuel Coleridge, a poet who - like Lewis - never seemed to satisfy anyone:

"He seldom did what he or what others hoped, and posterity has marked him as her prey in consequence. She has never ceased to hold up her plump finger to him, and shake it and say that he has disappointed her ... But if one turns on posterity and says, 'Well! what else do you want him to ! Would you rather have Comberbacke as he is or not at all?' she is apt to be silent or to change the conversation."

It's an telling indictment of our relationship with Rashard Lewis. Lewis seldom received recognition for his scoring abilities, or his speed, or his passing, or anything else. Rather, he received criticism for his deficiencies - in rebounding, his defense, his lack of excitement on-court. He was not a leader, not a #1 player, and he never professed to be. Some will argue that in accepting a $15 million per year contract, Lewis should accept the responsibilities of a leader, and that's a fair argument.

But I would counter that what would you expect him to do? If the market will pay him $15 million every year for the next five years, should he turn it down? Would you?

No, Lewis will not be remembered for any great accomplishments in the won-loss column in Seattle, and that, ultimately, was what sealed his fate in this town. In the end, the 6'10" small forward left as he arrived, an unknown quantity with immense potential. Thanks for your efforts, Rashard; we're sorry it just never worked out.

Rashard to sign with Orlando?

"Psst. It's me--the ghost of Ray Allen. Leave this place...NOW"

It's really just a rumor of a whisper of a rumor, but Ben Q. Rock (!) of the Orlando Magic blog "Third Quarter Collapse" says a local TV station has reported that Rashard will sign a 5-year, $75 million dollar deal with the Magic.

I have a hard time believing Rashard would sign this early, especially for five years, when he could get six with a sign and trade. Then again, I thought Living Colour was going to be the "Band of the 90's"*, so what the hell do I know?
*See Tahoma High School Newspaper, Dec, 1989

UPDATE: Now ESPN is saying it's true. Time to bust out the Body Glove, Rashard!

Notes

Will Seattle soon be the new "Rip" city?

A plethora of notes about the Sonics in all 3 newspapers this morning. Whatever you say about Sam Presti and the trade of Ray Allen (of which even a curmudgeon such as myself is beginning to admit his appreciation), adding Kevin Durant and Jeff Green and trading Allen has shoved this team back into relevance in this town.

Gary Washburn at the PI reveals that Dwayne Casey is emerging as the favorite for the head coach position, and that the announcement may come soon (side note that Percy Allen throws Terry Porter's hat into the ring as a possibility). Also of note in Gary's story is this quote from Sam Presti, in which the new GM comments on the type of coach the Sonics need:

"... We do have guys like (Nick) Collison, Lewis and (Earl) Watson who may be young but have played some years and have developed."

Anyone else notice how two folks - Ridnour and Wilcox - were conspicuously absent from that list? And how that makes it more possible that they may be traded for, oh, I don't know, Rip Hamilton?

The last rumor is courtesy of Frank Hughes, and, as Brian Robinson points out at SonicsCentral, the salary combination of Ridnour/Wilcox for Hamilton works out. If Presti can pull that off, I think I might convince Paul to rename our site "superprestisoul.com".

And, finally, Rashard Lewis and the Magic continue to dance (and dine)with one another. Considering that a) the Magic have yet to contact Darko Milicic (which has made the former #2 a little less than thrilled), whoss contract would be a stumbling block in their pursuit of Lewis (they are rumored to be meeting Milicic on Sunday to resolve the situation), and b) Vince Carter re-upped with New Jersey over the weekend, the possibility of Lewis finding a home in Orlando just got a little bit more likely.

The Orlando Sentinel's Brian Schmitz even got Tony Dutt, Lewis' agent, on the record saying of the Magic and Lewis, "There is no better fit."

The New York media also continues to speculate that Isiah Thomas is still pursuing Lewis, but the bag of recycled materials they want to include in return is so useless, it's not even worth linking to the story.

And, finally (whew!), thanks to commenter Josh, who directed us to this story at True Hoop - who I always neglect to read on the weekends (for shame!) - where it is revealed that Zabian Dowdell will be playing for the Sonics' summer league team. Dowdell tells Henry Abbott that had the Sonics not dealt away their #35 pick to Boston in the Allen deal, that he would have been their pick.

As I always say, Sam Presti is a brilliant man, because Dowdell was my favorite choice for the Sonics at that spot.

Sunday, Sunday, SUNDAY!

Sunday is the big day for free agents in the NBA.

Orlando, Miami, Charlotte, New Jersey, New York, Portland ... it's the proverbial list as long as your arm of teams which are interested in retaining the services of Rashard Lewis.

According to a Miami paper, the Heat have ramped up their interest of teaming Lewis with the Wade-O'Neal combo that propelled Miami to the title last year (is it me or does that seem about 4 years ago now?). With Udonis Haslem as the bait, I'm guessing the Sonics are less than interested in biting.

Orlando and Charlotte are, of course, the most likely destinations for Rashard, but even those clubs are starting to look more unlikely. After acquiring Jason Richardson's $10 million salary, are the Cats all that thrilled about adding Lewis to the mix? Considering Gerald Wallace is as or more likely than Rashard, probably not.

Which leaves Orlando. Personally, if I had to wager on whether Lewis will be wearing blue or green next year, I'd have to bet on blue. If you're Orlando, and your options are 1) renounce rights to Milicic and sign Lewis or 2) sign Milicic and give up on Lewis, you've got to go with door number 2, right? Interesting to see how the front office will spin trading away a first round draft choice to get a center who played about 100 games in a Magic uniform before leaving, but that's their problem, I suppose.

Put it this way: If I'm Rashard Lewis' personal shopper, I wouldn't be buying any green bananas.

10 Reasons to Like Delonte West

All based off of last year’s numbers ...

1. Gets to the line more often than Ridnour or Watson, and not by an insignificant margin.
2. Better rebounder than either player, by a smaller margin over Watson, and a larger margin over Ridnour.
3. Blocks twice as many shots as either player
4. Shot better from the floor than either player.
5. Better foul shooter than Watson, as good as Ridnour.
6. Player Winning % almost twice as good as either player
7. More Win Shares than either player
8. West’s numbers were greatly enhanced when he played off guard, as opposed to playing the point. In his minutes on-court at the 2, the Celtics – a terrible team last year – outscored opponents 42% of the time. For some reason, he seemed to shoot better and simultaneously hold opponents in check more effectively as a 2. Those Celtic fans and West followers who argue that he was miscast in Boston as a point guard are right, at least judging by the statistics.
9. His shooting percentage, while low last year (43%), was much better in 05-06, when he hit 49% from the floor. If he can find something in between those numbers, I’ll be happy with that.
10. West played much better as a starter getting solid minutes than as a reserve getting spot duty. This is true of most players, but it’s a good sign if the Sonics intend to use him as their starting shooting guard.

There, I did it. I found 10 nice things to say about Delonte West. If I keep this up, maybe by next week I’ll be starting a Wally Szcerbiak Fan Club.

Honestly, it’s a logical move for the Sonics to find a secondary player to fill the shooting guard role. If Durant is the focus of the offense, it doesn’t make sense to have a ball-hog type guard that needs 23 shots a night. In Presti’s world of defensive players who can man multiple positions, West is a thoughtful option.

Also, for any Celtic fans who are dropping by, feel free to add your thoughts as to what we can look forward to with West on board. We’d like to fill in the gaps that the statistics leave empty with a better picture of the newest Sonic.

Reactions From Around the Country

This guy thinks Alvin Davis is still with the Mariners.

Before we go into our own draft day grading, here's a smattering of reactions from writers and experts on last night's machinations.

Foxsports: Gives Danny Ainge a failing grade for the Allen trade, calling Green a solid NBA player.

Andy Katz, ESPN: A-; to quote “The price was high for Green. While moving Ray Allen and his contract was smart, I'm not sure the same can be said for taking on Wally Szczerbiak's contract.”

Bill Simmons, ESPN: Predictably, throws up in his mouth at the thought of a hobbling Ray Allen playing shooting guard at age 34.

Foxsports, Pete Schrager: Hopes Jeff Green likes “coffee, Alvin Davis, Microsoft, and Sonic Youth.” Somebody get this Schrager guy an internet connection will ya? Or at least a newspaper printed in the last 15 years?

Foxsports, Charley Rosen: Thinks the Celtics got a true steal of a deal, that Wally World is a broken-down shell of himself, and that Jeff Green better be good.

SI.com, Chris Mannix: Gives Boston the day’s top honors for getting Ray Allen, calls Wally World a “lockerroom lawyer” (!).

SI.com, Jack McCallum: “Absolutely love this deal from the Celtics standpoint.” He goes full flip-flop, though, in the next paragraph, by saying he thinks the Sonics had to make the deal. Way to go out on a limb, Jack.

PI, Art Thiel: “That can’t be all” is Thiel’s opening paragraph. He thinks reserving judgement till the rest of the moves are made is the wise choice.

ESPN.com, David Thorpe: Say Sam Presti has given the Sonics a fresh start and raves about all the moves.

Buzzer Beater, Mike Seely: Unlike the rest of us unwashed masses, Seely was on board from the start, specifically because of Allen’s age.

TNT, John McGrath: The Sonics have dealt away their only source of identity (Allen) in this area for a hope and a prayer.

Faith

Whew. Allright, I'm back from down off the ledge after last night, although it was pretty close around 8:30 or so ...

There's a passage in Genesis 18 that I think is a good read for the morning after the Sonics dealt away Ray Allen and Glen Davis for Delonte West, Wally Szcerbiak, and Jeff Green. In the passage, Abraham is speaking to God about His plan for destroying Sodom.

Abraham wonders, would God destroy the righeous with the wicked? What if there were 50 innocent people in the city, would God destroy them as well? No, replies God, I would not.

Abraham persists. What if there are 40? What about 30, or 20, or 10? God replies, no, if there were only 10 innocent people amongst thousands of wicked, I would not destroy the city.

Finally, Abraham is satisfied, and God returns to watching "Highway to Heaven." The upshot of the story is that sometimes you have to have faith. Sometimes, even though you don't understand the reasoning behind a situation, you have to believe that the person orchestating a chain of events knows full well what he or she is doing, and if that person is reputed to be a wise person (as Sam Presti is), then maybe the best thing to do is shut your mouth and wait to see how it turns out.

Well, that's what I'm going to do. I don't understand why the Sonics mortgaged their present for Jeff Green and took on Wally Szcerbiak's contract when Theo Ratliff's was there for the taking, but Sam Presti does. I don't understand why the Sonics have 3 point guards, a half-dozen small forwards, three centers, three power forwards, and no shooting guards, but - hopefully - Sam Presti does. Perhaps the wisest course of action is to wait and see what the subsequent moves are (trading Luke Ridnour, trading Rashard Lewis, trading Chris Wilcox), and reserve judgement until the middle of July.

For those who thought we (or, rather, I) was too quick to rush to judgement on last night's events: You're right.

But you have to understand, we just spent the past decade with horrible general managers. The first, Wally Walker, is perhaps the most hated man in Seattle. The second, Rick Sund, chased after teenagers like R Kelly on a double shot of valium and Spanish Fly. We're not used to having astute people run this organization, so we're naturally gunshy about any actions they take.

So, to Sam Presti and Jeff Green: My apologies. I shouldn't be so down so quickly on the new regime.

After all, we've still got Kevin Durant, and that's not a bad consolation prize.

Wally Szczerbiak?

Well, this is what it has come to. Unbelievably, impossibly, increduously, the Sonics have somehow managed to turn what should have been one of the greatest days in team history into one of the worst.

Look, I know some people will spin this situation as a positive, and it is entirely possible that I reflect on this 5 years from now, and say, hey, that Presti sure knew what he was doing, right?

But I fail to see how Wally Szczerbiak and Jeff Green is greater than Ray Allen. When you add in the trade of this year's 2nd second round pick for one next year from Boston ... it looks even worse.

A few numbers, if you will:

1. Szczerbiak, of the 4 positions he played on the Celtics last year, was worst at the shooting guard, his presumed position with the Sonics. He has not played substantial minutes at the 2-guard in more than 2 years. In his career, the man the Sonics expect to guard opposing 2-guards has managed to not get hurt in only 4 of 8 seasons. He ended last year with ankle surgery, after missing 24 other games during the season with ankle problems. If this is the answer at two guard, what the hell is the question?

2. Delonte West performed the unique combo last season of making the Celtics offense worse and his opponents' offense better while he was on the court. Again, not someone you're too thrilled about.

3. Jeff Green, according to John Hollinger at espn.com, not only didn't deserve to be the #5 pick, "he doesn't deserve to be a lottery pick." This is who the Sonics traded their best player for? A 6'9" SF who didn't block all that many shots last year? Hey, Hollinger's analysis is fraught with peril, and he overlooks his own mistakes (Curtis Borchardt is your good idea of a pick, sir, really?), but the fact that Green is a risky proposition makes you question the wisdom of this trade.

I'll end with how I started. This was supposed to be a great day for Seattle basketball, a day when the flowers started to blow thanks the fertilizer laid by the previous administration. Instead, I feel like we just traded our b.s. for somebody else's pile of crap.