Jazzblows: Sonics beat Utah 122-105

The Seattle Supersonics beat the Utah "Why are they still called" Jazz 122-105 last night at the Key.

The Supes overcame a physical Utah team that sent Seattle to the line a season-high 45 times. Seattle improved to 13-1 when they attempt at least 30 free throws

Rashard "Too Smoove" Lewis lead the way with 36 points, shooting 12-17 from the field, and 7-8 (!) from three-point land. The Sonics as a team shot an astounding 59 percent from the floor (38-64).

Almost lost in the shuffle was another great game from Nussbaum's boy, Antonio Daniels, who had 24 points and eight assists.

Utah, which was lead in scoring (20) and rebounding (12) by Carlos "I was a loser and a" Boozer, lost for the fifth time in the past six games.

Seattle's next game is on Tuesday, in Los Angeles against the Lakers.

Sunny Jim?

It looks like the Suns are about to acquire Jim Jackson and Samuel Dalembert:

From ESPN:

The Phoenix Suns are closing in on the acquisition of disgruntled New Orleans swingman Jim Jackson, league sources told ESPN.com.

The trade for Jackson, expected to be finalized later Friday, would likely send three Suns reserves -- Casey Jacobsen, Maciej Lampe and Jackson Vroman -- to the Hornets. Jackson has refused to report to New Orleans since he was traded by Houston for David Wesley just after Christmas.

The move has multiple benefits for Phoenix, which started the season 31-4 in spite of its serious depth shortage. Jackson, 34, would immediately give the Suns a veteran scoring option off the bench and also give coach Mike D'Antoni a ready-made replacement for Joe Johnson if the Suns can convince Philadelphia to part with center Samuel Dalembert in a swap for Johnson.

(Thanks to Ryan J for the tip!)

UPDATE: It's official: Jim Jackson is a Phoenix Sun.

Why I'm Ticked Off This Week: Jump Around

All season long, we’ve heard the Sonics live and die by the 3. How that if the Sonics aren't draining from 25 feet, they can’t win games.

The PI’s Danny O’Neil even devoted a few trees to the issue the other day, explaining how the Sonics are only 1-7 when they hit less than 30% from beyond the arc.

Guess what. It’s all a bunch of crap.

Writers love to formulate logic based on their opinions, and there few opinions tougher to shake than the one which says the Sonics are a jump-shooting club. To back up their claims, writers point to Seattle’s poor showing in games which they shoot badly from beyond the arc.

What O’Neil neglects to mention, however, is that NEARLY EVERY TEAM IN THE LEAGUE shoots badly from beyond the arc when they lose.

Phoenix? 30% in losses, 39% in wins.
Cleveland? 28%, 37%.
San Antonio? 29%, 39%.
Sacramento? 31%, 37%.
Seattle? 27%, 42%.

This just in ... when you don’t shoot well, you’re gonna lose. Rather than just accept the simple truth in that sentence, writers like O’Neil grasp at tenuous claims like “long rebounds from missed 3’s” and other such nonsense.

Lost in all this supposition is the truth. The truth is that 68% of Seattle’s shots are jumpers beyond 15 feet. What does that mean, though? Well, here’s how some other teams compare:

Phoenix (67%), San Antonio (63%), Sacramento (67%), Detroit (65%), Indiana (67%), Miami (61%).

With the exception of the Heat, ALL of the top teams this year are within a few percentage points of Seattle, meaning all this talk about the Sonics being a bunch of jump shooters isn’t just dumb, it’s flat-out wrong.

Look, the Sonics, when they’re hitting their outside shots, are one of the best teams in the NBA, excepting no one. When they’re not hitting them? Well, they’re just like every other NBA team that isn’t hitting its’ threes. Lousy.

OTHER GRUMBLINGS
One point people fail to take into consideration with the injury to Steve Nash is that he gets hurt almost every year. Face it, he’s in his ninth season and he’s played 80+ games twice. Yeah, when he’s healthy he’s a very good player, but the Suns have to pay when he’s hurt, too, and if they think it sucks now, wait until he’s 34. ... Am I the only one sick and tired of retro/alternative jerseys? 20 years ago when I grew up loving the Sonics, they had two uniforms: home and away. For some reason, it was enough for everybody. How about a moratorium: teams can wear retro jerseys no more than twice a season. Except for the Celtics, who wear them every night. ... Is the NBA so desperate for help that Urkel merits his own spot on their website?