1996: The Last Great Season

As this year's NBA Finals wind down, Percy Allen takes a bittersweet look back at the last Finals I actually cared about, the epic 1996 Sonics/Bulls battle. Nate McMillan gives a heartbreaking "should-woulda-coulda" breakdown of the series:

Unable to play because of back spasms, McMillan took a cortisone shot before Games 4 and 5 to relieve the pain. The Sonics won both games and forced the series to return to Chicago.

It was the last time McMillan would play, as Seattle fell 87-75 in Game 6.

"You go your whole career playing basketball and now you have this opportunity to be on the biggest stage in your life — it doesn't get any better than this — and you can't play," McMillan said. "Why? I just kept asking God why. I know that if I could play — had a little confidence at that time in my career — I could have an impact.

Sigh . . .

Read the whole story at The Seattle Times.

Seattle Sonics Do It

I'm ashamed to admit that I've never heard this song before. Luther Rabb was a (relatively) well known Seattle musician in the 1970s, and apparently this song was THE song to celebrate the Sonics' championship season (which ended, coincidentally, with a victory over Washington 32 years ago today).

Anybody have access to the song that they could share with us? If not, I'll track it down on LP and find a way to upload it to the site. Seems like an important part of Sonic history, no?

Jack Sikma and Napoleon

Just acquired a Sonic yearbook from their championship season, and as you might expect from a late 70s book celebrating sports, it is chock full of wonderful photos.

Including, as you might have guessed by now, the remarkable one shown above, depicting Jack Sikma in front of a painting of Napoleon Bonaparte. The photo was taken during the Sonics' practice time after the conclusion of the Western Conference Finals and before the start of the NBA Finals (photographer unknown; although it is one of the following four folks: Dave Hood, Tim German, Tom Moore, and Meg Anstett).