Aubrey A Fan of Sonic Blogs?

Thanks for the extra traffic, Aubrey, but we'd rather have our team back.

Call me crazy, but maybe Aubrey McClendon's statements regarding the inevitability of the Sonics' relocation was a good thing. After all, what the hell has there been to talk about for the past couple of weeks? With training camp still eons away, A-Mac's statement/retraction has given us all something to whine about for a couple of weeks. Thanks, Aubrey.

As expected, a deluge of comments about Aubrey's comments today in the papers. You've got Steve Kelley (who thanks McClendon for "exposing chairman Clay Bennett as the duplicitous salesman he is" and goes on to call Bennett & Co. "fat-cat burglars"!), Eric Williams details the backpedaling from Bennett and McClendon (Williams also appeared on the Team 1040 in Vancouver last night; I know, because me and the other Sonic fan in B.C. both were listening), Art Thiel weighs in with a well-reasoned piece on the entire situation, Ted Miller counsels patience for Sonic fans, and also terms McClendon's comments "a calculated move," Margarita Prentice bemoans the fate of the team in Clay Bennett's official voice, and Gary Washburn has a quote from the NBA about the situation in his write-up.

See, I told you McClendon was working for us. Last week, I'm watching the paint dry at this site, and now we've got a dozen stories to examine and a million opinions to scream. Gotta love, controversy, right?

All of that aside, ponder this for a moment:

How would you feel if the Sonics had gotten the 6th pick in the draft, and rather than building around Kevin Durant, they were building around Yi "Chairmaster" Jianlian?

Suddenly, I just felt a whole lot better.

Collison Practicing With Team USA

Starting Wednesday, Team USA will be practicing in Las Vegas in preparation for the FIBA tournament that kicks off on August 22. Joining the roster of 16 players is Seattle's Nick Collison.

Collison joins a team that lost Kirk Hinrich, Shane Battier, and Greg Oden on Monday, meaning the roster has been trimmed to 16, with the possible additions of Mike Miller and/or Tayshaun Prince at some time in the future. ESPN's Chris Sheridan figures Kevin Durant will be cut, leaving Collison a two in four shot of making it (he would be battling with Prince, Miller, and Michael Redd for two spots).

Bennett Attempts To Clarify

In response to Aubrey McClendon's comments to an Oklahoma paper, Clay Bennett issued the following statement today:

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"As the controlling owner, I admire my fellow owners and appreciate their support. While they are excited about the basketball operations and the future of the team on the court, they, like me, have been disheartened by the lack of progress we have made to secure a new arena for the Sonics and Storm. Aubrey expressed his personal thoughts and, in context of the story, was not speaking on behalf of the ownership group. It is my hope we will see a breakthrough in the next 60 days that will result in securing a new arena for the Soncis and Storm in the Greater Seattle area."

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So, when McClendon said that "We didn't buy the team to keep it in Seattle; we hoped to come [to Oklahoma City]," he's completely on his own? He never had any conversation with Clay Bennett about that? Really?