Which players drafted by the Sonics had the most success, historically speaking? There are a number of ways to evaluate success, but the easiest is games played.
After all, the man who knows the best whether a player is contributing is the head coach. Well, except when that coach is PJ Carlesimo, but I digress.
So, herewith, the leader in games played at each position by Sonic-drafted players (with year drafted and total games played):
PG: Gary Payton (1990), 1335
SG: Dennis Johnson (1976), 1100
SF: Scottie Pippen (1987), 1178
PF: Shawn Kemp (1989), 1051
C: Jack Sikma (1977), 1107
And, yes, that small forward slot is still painful to look at. As a side note, that’s one hell of a team, and not in an all-star starter at every position kind of way. I mean in the sense that that group of five men would probably win a championship every season. You’ve got tenacious defense at four of the five slots, good shooters at all five spots, three great ball-handlers ... I mean, it’s almost a perfect team, right?
Best of all, how’d you like to be the point guard bringing the ball up against DJ and the Glove. How many violations for not getting the ball past the half-court line in time would those two create in a game – 5, 10, 30? Just a beautiful lineup.
Of course, you can’t have the good without the bad, so here’s a list of the worst starting lineup (and I use that term loosely) of Sonic draftees (I’m restricting this to first-round selections only):
PG: Frank Oleynick (1975), 102
SG: Bud Stallworth (1972), 313
SF: Sherell Ford (1995), 28
PF: Mo Sene (2006), 41
C: Rich King (1991), 72
Perhaps I’m being unfair to Mo Sene, inasmuch as he hasn’t been given much of a shot in the NBA thus far, and the guy is still in his early 20s. Still, if you’re headed to Las Vegas to place a bet on a player’s future, I’m guessing you’re not sinking $250 into the Mo Sene bet, now are you?
Tuesday, June 24
Monday, June 23
No Bayless?
Hope you haven't already ordered a Jerryd Bayless Sonics' jersey. According to draftexpress.com:
Is Jerryd Bayless as much of a lock at 4 as everyone thinks? A number of NBA teams we’ve spoken with don’t think that’s the case. Almost everyone at this point in fact has Brook Lopez slated be picked by Seattle, with Bayless dropping slightly to the Knicks at #6. If Lopez doesn’t go 3rd, 4th of 5th, he will be taken by a team that did not work him out, as he only agreed to be seen by those three teams.
Link here.
Just throwing this out there, but I'm guessing that the sound at the draft party (is there a draft party this year?) will sound awful familiar to people attending Mariner games at Safeco Field this season.
And, no, they won't be saying "Broooooooooooook."
Is Jerryd Bayless as much of a lock at 4 as everyone thinks? A number of NBA teams we’ve spoken with don’t think that’s the case. Almost everyone at this point in fact has Brook Lopez slated be picked by Seattle, with Bayless dropping slightly to the Knicks at #6. If Lopez doesn’t go 3rd, 4th of 5th, he will be taken by a team that did not work him out, as he only agreed to be seen by those three teams.
Link here.
Just throwing this out there, but I'm guessing that the sound at the draft party (is there a draft party this year?) will sound awful familiar to people attending Mariner games at Safeco Field this season.
And, no, they won't be saying "Broooooooooooook."
Friday, June 20
Tough Offseason
In trying to follow the Sonics this off-season, I’ve often tried to search for a metaphor that best explains how unnerving the past few months have been.
In a perfect world, all of our energy would be focused upon the six draft picks the team holds in next week’s draft, in addition to the future of the existing roster. Trading Chris Wilcox or Luke Ridnour, looking at mid-level free agents, and so forth ... that’s what fans do in the off-season, and, in some ways, it makes the off-season almost more enjoyable than the regular season.
Obviously, that has not been the case this spring and summer. With the trial hanging over our heads, it’s difficult to muster the energy to study possible draft picks. In a way, it’s akin to being a child at Christmastime, but a child with parents on the verge of divorce. He tries to care about the flyers that arrive in the Sunday newspapers, wants to figure out which Star Wars action figures he hopes to get, talks the talk with his friends at school, but all along an immense cloud of sadness follows him as he walks to and from school.
Mind you, I’m not trying to ask for sympathy here. After all, this is a sports team we’re talking about, not something that will cause irreparable harm to our collective psyches the way a divorce would to a 12-year-old.
Still, I think it’s the best metaphor to use for the situation here (and, to be fair, I’ve heard this metaphor from some our commenters previously; so, whoever came up with this, consider this your acknowledgement (update: it was mcwalter)). And, just like in a divorce, even if the judge tells the parents to stick it out for two years, it’s not as if those two years are going to be sunshine and lollipops.
No, we just want to get past it, to get on to being just plain, old regular fans again, like all the other fans in the neighborhood.
In a perfect world, all of our energy would be focused upon the six draft picks the team holds in next week’s draft, in addition to the future of the existing roster. Trading Chris Wilcox or Luke Ridnour, looking at mid-level free agents, and so forth ... that’s what fans do in the off-season, and, in some ways, it makes the off-season almost more enjoyable than the regular season.
Obviously, that has not been the case this spring and summer. With the trial hanging over our heads, it’s difficult to muster the energy to study possible draft picks. In a way, it’s akin to being a child at Christmastime, but a child with parents on the verge of divorce. He tries to care about the flyers that arrive in the Sunday newspapers, wants to figure out which Star Wars action figures he hopes to get, talks the talk with his friends at school, but all along an immense cloud of sadness follows him as he walks to and from school.
Mind you, I’m not trying to ask for sympathy here. After all, this is a sports team we’re talking about, not something that will cause irreparable harm to our collective psyches the way a divorce would to a 12-year-old.
Still, I think it’s the best metaphor to use for the situation here (and, to be fair, I’ve heard this metaphor from some our commenters previously; so, whoever came up with this, consider this your acknowledgement (update: it was mcwalter)). And, just like in a divorce, even if the judge tells the parents to stick it out for two years, it’s not as if those two years are going to be sunshine and lollipops.
No, we just want to get past it, to get on to being just plain, old regular fans again, like all the other fans in the neighborhood.
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