Eight is Enough

In the popcorn machine of life, last night's loss to the Orlando Magic was a entire bag full of duds.

The Sonics put on their worst display of the season in the first game of a five-game road trip that has gotten ugly almost before it has started. While it wasn't the worst game in Orlando in team history (you'll recall the game of two years ago when 3 or 4 guys got food poisoning and only 7 or 8 players dressed), it was plenty bad enough. To wit:

- Kevin Durant: As many turnovers (4) as field goals made

- 3 Point Guards: Combined 3 of 19 from the field (!)

- Team: 2 of 10 from 3-point range

- Kurt Thomas: 4 fouls, 4 points

I could go on, but there's no point. Even Magic fans aren't celebrating this one: "It's not that we played well enough to win this game, but rather that Seattle played horridly enough to lose it." (courtesy of Third Quarter Collapse's Ben Q Rock).

Legendary

With Seattle taking on long-time Sonic Rashard Lewis tonight, it made me think of other events in the team’s history. Here’s a quick recap of how three legendary Sonics fared in their first games against their former team:

January 2, 2004 – Gary Payton
Payton was dealt to the Bucks in Feb. of 2003, and in a bizarre twist of fate was a member of the Bucks when they played the Sonics the next day (or was it the same day?). In any event, GP wasn’t eligible for that game, and his return had to wait until 2004, when the Sonics played the Lakers in Seattle. The Glove didn’t disappoint, rattling off a 24-5-5 effort. However, Ray Allen’s 35 points were enough to power the Sonics to a 111-109 win at the Key.

January 8, 1998 – Shawn Kemp
Kemp’s first game against the Sonics came in Cleveland, and his 9 points were a disappointment to him, I’m sure, as was the 109-84 beatdown the Sonics put on the Cavs. However, Kemp still outscored Jim McIlvaine 9-0.

February 11, 2003 – Vin Baker
You might have missed this one, but Boston’s bizarre 82-76 win against the Sonics in Seattle featured 9 points from Vinny, as well as a 7 (!) point third quarter from the victorious Celtics. An ugly game befitting Baker’s ugly tenure and departure from Seattle.

Yeah, I've Heard of Him

Not sure if you've heard, but the Sonics are taking on Rashard Lewis and the Magic tonight. As you would expect, the old Sonic vs new Sonic angle is the one employed by the beat writers.

Lewis is living the high life for now, and the Sonics are, well, not exactly doing so great. 0-7 and off to the worst start in the franchise's history, Rashard must be thinking he made exactly the right decision. Add in Ray Allen's start with Boston, and the two former Sonic stars are a combined 10-2 this season. I'm guessing the Sonics will reach that 10-win plateau some time around Valentine's Day. At least, I hope so.

In other news, Eric Williams reports that Bob Swift is back on the injured list due to tendinitis in his right knee. As Williams points out, this is not entirely unexpected. On the positive side, Kurt Thomas looked just fine in Sunday's loss to the Pistons, putting up 10 points and 7 boards in fewer than 20 minutes of action.

As a side note to Sunday's loss, all five starters racked up negative +/- numbers, while all five bench players racked up positive ones. Of note, Earl Watson earned a DNP, with no injuries that I could find out about. Amazing how the point guard rotation has gone thus far, and you've got to wonder how long it's going to take for one of the three amigos to be dealt.