Second Coming: A SuperSonics Return

[Trent Booty]

Re: Second Coming: A SuperSonics Return

Dude, I LOVE your dynasty. It always makes me go back to mine. This is amazing.

[trekfan]

Re: Second Coming: A SuperSonics Return



December 25th, 2016


"What's a billionaire want with my daughter?" A ring of cigar smoke followed the question as Abby's father, Vernon, eyed him with suspicion and a tough of hostility. "You could date a super-model. You could date a Hollywood actress. You could date damn near anyone and you're dating my daughter." He let out another puff of smoke. "Why?"

Max, his hands around a warm cup of coffee, didn't feel as threatened as Vernon was trying to make him. The man was large -- taller than his daughter (clearly where she got the height gene) -- and his face was nicked in a few places and you could see that the man wasn't one to fool around with. As Abby had told it, her father had been a Navy lifer -- Abby's mother was a doctor -- and her father had seen a lot of action.

But Max had sat in a room full of other billionaires, made his case to them to bring back the Sonics, and had won. Nothing could intimidate him as much as that roomful of billionaires had. "Why?" he repeated the question. He hadn't had much chance to ask himself that, really, so he just went with the first thing that came to mind. "Because we ... fit. We work."

Vernon rolled his eyes and turned outwards, his eyes looking into the snow-covered trees around their nice chunk of property. "You just 'work', huh?"

"We do," Max affirmed. He sipped at his coffee and debated whether to cite the fact that Abby had made it for him -- and done it right -- but he decided it was best to let that go.

Vernon wasn't in a mood for the little touches. The man took his cigar and twisted it into his ashtray, mostly done with it. "I'm watching you, billionaire or not." H gave the cigar one final, violent twist. "You got me?"

Max nodded once. "Understood."

Vernon nodded back at him and opened the sliding door back inside. "Come on, my wife should have some of the food ready."

Max followed the man back into the warmth, shutting the door behind him, and he could hear the Sonics game going on. He made a conscious effort not to watch it; it wouldn't look good to see him fawning over his team when he was here to meet everyone.

Truthfully, there weren't that many people too meet. Abby had one brother and one sister, both older than her by a few years and both with their own kids at this point. Abby had been, as her mother had put it, a "pleasant surprise." As such, Abby was very much the baby of the family.

Though she seemed more rebellious than baby, if he understood some of the references made to her past relationship exploits. The two hadn't really discussed their prior ones, and he was fine with that: he didn't really want to revisit those memories and he doubted she did either.

It was like thinking about all those years without the Sonics ... in fact, the last relationship he was in ended when the Sonics left.

"Hungry?" Abby held a warm plate of ham in front of him, its honey glaze wafting into his nose. She gave him a look of concern. "Was the coffee bad?"

He blinked, remembered where he was, then shook his head. "No, it's great. I just got lost in thought, that's all."

She smirked and set the plate down on a nearby TV tray -- the living room was scattered with them, a tradition among the holidays; everyone had their own unique tray and unique place to sit them at. There was so much food that it usually took up the whole dining room table anyway, as he had been told.

"Well, feel free to dig in whenever you want," she said as she took a bit of ham and scarfed it down. She nodded happily. "It's really good and we tend to do things buffet style." She smirked. "Mom can never cook things on time."

Max didn't need to invited twice and grabbed a slice of ham. He ate it rather quickly and was glad to find it tasted as good as it smelled.

Abby laughed at him. "I think you're gonna need two plates."

[trekfan]

Re: Second Coming: A SuperSonics Return


It came down to the final 30 seconds. After a back and forth game where neither team could hold onto the lead, the Sonics were dealt a right hook across their proverbial jaw as JJ Redick canned a wide-open triple against a sagging Jamal Crawford. Staples Center went bonkers, a timeout was expected to be taken by everyone ...

Except Lionel Hollins didn't bother. He let the ball be inbounded in, Jennings took it up court, called for a pick, and Nerlens Noel delivered it; a deft pass to Noel set him up for a tough layup against Blake Griffin and the Sonics took a 110-108 lead with 19 seconds left. Staples was stunned, Seattle was celebratory and the Sonics would shut down CP3 on the final possession, forcing him to give it to Griffin, who tried to post up Noel but had to jack up a fadeaway long-two that clanked harmlessly off the rim.

Seattle won and now sits at 29-4. The Clippers, second in the conference, now sit at 21-9. Both teams have surpassed the expectations set for them, but this game was a big one for Nerlens Noel. Now the new "money man" on the team, Noel demonstrated how valuable he was across the board -- he was named player of the game for his efforts and with his stat line, there really wasn't any other choice.



The game was personal for him it seemed, but out of all the Sonics on the floor he probably had the smallest axe to grind against LA. Former Clippers Jamal Crawford and Lance Stephenson were expected to be big contributors in this game and JC sure was -- 16 points, two boards, four rebounds in only 22 minutes.

Lance was much quieter and didn't have a great game -- he went only 3-of-8 from the field -- but he dished out five assists, grabbed two rebounds, and generally played within the team concept, something that impressed former teammate Paul Pierce.

"He's matured, you can see that," said Pierce after the game. "He's not trying to win it by himself ... shots weren't falling for him, so he eased up and helped out in other ways. That's the right way to play and I'm proud of him for seeing that."

The Sonics bench, usually a source of good things, was also muted for this game -- other than JC, no member of the Sonics second unit scored more than four points.

This was a battle between two of the best starting fives in the West, and it didn't fail to entertain. Christmas has arrived, Seattle, and the Sonics are the best gift we can ask for, especially with performances like this.

Go Sonics.

[trekfan]

Re: Second Coming: A SuperSonics Return


New Year, New Teams: NBA Trades and Signings

January 2nd, 2017

By Vonny Lee


The NBA season is a third of the way over and teams are prepping the war rooms to find that next signing or trade to put them over the top and get them to the postseason. Here's what's happened so far.



Trades



It was only a matter of time. The Suns have been looking for a way to unload Rondo for what feels like a month and they found a taker in the Pistons, who are dealing with their own reality with Reggie Jackson massively underperforming his contract. Jackson has clearly shown himself incapable of running the point in SVG's offense, so Detroit went after a point guard in trade.

They landed on Rondo. They gave up little-used backup Spencer Dinwiddie for the rights to Rondo, who becomes a free agent after this season anyway. Dinwiddie will likely find himself on the bench in Phoenix, but at least it's warmer there. Both teams hope they've solved one another's problems with the trade, but only time will tell who got the better end of this deal.


Signings


1. Philly signs Miles Plumlee, 1yr/$4.65M.

Jahill Okafor is out for next 4-6 weeks with a torn calf muscle, a terrible blow to a Sixers squad that currently sits at 17-18 and is the current 7th seed. Philly needed a center, desperately, to fill in for Okafor and the ever-reliable Miles Plumlee answered the call.

Plumlee isn't flashy and isn't going to get many highlight reel plays, but he does the dirty work and has shown an ability to blend into multiple offensive systems, ranging from Indiana, to Phoenix, and Milwaukee. What the Sixers run will be simple by comparison and Plumlee should give them the play they need in order to avoid drowning before Okafor gets back.


2. Denver signs Austin Rivers, 2yr/$5.44M with a team option.

Gerald Henderson wasn't having a great season, but his presence was a valuable one for the young Nuggets squad; he'll have to continue to be valuable on the bench after suffering a serious spinal injury last week. What was originally thought to be just a spinal contusion turned out to be much more. Henderson has had surgery and is out for the rest of the season, effectively.

The Nuggets, with plenty of cap space, went into free agency and grabbed the young Austin Rivers. Rivers refused to re-sign with the Clippers after what went down between them and his father, and has spent the last few months in basketball purgatory as front offices around the league essentially blacklisted him for putting family before basketball. Rivers now gets a chance to nail down a starting spot on a Nuggets squad that could use his offense. Denver can afford to take a chance on the former 10th overall pick as they continue to build around Mudiay.


Contract Extensions

1. T'Wolves sign Gorgui Dieng to a 2yr/$24M extension.

The T'Wolves have locked in their PF/C and done so at a good price. Dieng's contract will run out at exactly the same time as KAT's, which will allow the Minnesota front office to evaluate the pairing together over the next two seasons or so (once KAT returns from injury). Based on Dieng's play this year (7.5 PPG, 13.2 RPG), it looks like Minny has found their front-court partner for KAT.

2. Grizzlies sign Russ Smith to a 3yr/$6M extension.

It's not a seismic move for the Grizzlies, but the organization has been pleased with Smith's improvement. Smith has earned his playing time, grabbing 13.5 MPG while scoring 4.5 PPG, dishing out 3.1 APG, and doing it all efficiently as he's shot 44 percent from the field and 48 percent from deep.

Smith gives the Grizzlies bench a good dose of offense and as they prepare to transition away from the Grit-and-Grind era, he might play a role. Whatever the case, he's a safe signing for the bench.

3. Hawks sign Tim Hardaway Jr to a 2yr/$13M extension with a team option.

Atlanta's season may not be going well at all (15-20), but they've been impressed with the play from Hardaway Jr. He's averaging 10.3 PPG on 44 percent shooting from the field and 40 percent shooting from deep. He's looking like a legitimate player out there and the jump in his efficiency is a big reason the Hawks have signed him. Kyle Korver has yet to make his thoughts known on whether he'll return to the Hawks and ATL still has a decision to make between Teague and Dennis Schroder (the latter continues to regress while the former is looking much better than he was early in the season).

4. Thunder sign Serge Ibaka to a 3yr/$28.5M extension.

The Thunder got a major hometown discount from Serge Ibaka, who didn't even want to consider the possibility of free agency and secured his long-term future with the franchise. Like Durant, Serge looks to be a Thunder lifer.

This gives the Thunder some more room to up their contract offer for Westbrook, who continues to refuse to budge from his 24M dollar starting point. Westbrook and the Thunder are adamant that the two will work out a deal, but it is increasingly looking like the Thunder front office is getting fed up with Westbrook. Despite Serge's lower than expected salary, the Thunder are projected to still be only 2M over the salary cap once all their re-signings are done (that's Steven Adams and Anthony Morrow, both locks to make at least 7M a year, with Adams likely getting a 9M-10M offer).

OKC knows, like most of the league, that they will be locked in to their current team if they make those signings and sources are saying that the Thunder aren't sure this team can get a title. It's likely that everyone else's contract extensions are put on hold till the offseason, when the verdict on this squad will be much clearer.

5. Bucks sign Giannis Antetokounmpo to a 3yr/$45M extension.

Milwaukee is having a poor year, but the Greek Freak isn't the problem. Averaing 12.5 PPG, 7.8 RPG, and 4.5 APG on over 50 percent from the floor and deep (he's taking only single-digit triples, don't freak out about that number), he's been the lone brightspot in an otherwise disappointing year.

No matter what, it appears Freak is part of the Bucks future and that's a good thing for Milwaukee. It's figuring out the rest of the roster that continues to be the problem.

6. Bucks sign Damien Inglis to a 3yr/$9M extension

Milwaukee signed, what they hope, is the long-term backup to both the Greek Freak and Jabari Parker in Inglis. Inglis, the 2nd round pick from France in 2014, has received significant playing time this year (13.5 MPG compared to just 5 MPG last season) and has demonstrated some solid play. The Bucks hope he can develop further and, if he can, may have a valuable trade chip down the line.

7. Warriors sign Andre Iguodala to a 2yr/$7M extension.

The biggest shocker so far, Iggy has taken a steep discount to stay with the Warriors and done the organization a big favor in the process. Iggy was expected to command a similar salary of at least 11M when he hit the market this summer (and some teams were reportedly willing to offer him more than that to pull him away from the Warriors), but he's put all that to rest by signing for pennies.

"I made my money at this point," said Iggy after the extension was announced. "It ain't about money right now, it's about winning, it's about believing in a group of guys ... I wasn't gonna find that anywhere else. I want more titles and I want them with these guys. That's it."

With Iggy taking that type of paycut, Golden State finds themselves with a surprising amount of cap room, approximately 21M, and in need of a center, as every singe one on their roster is a free agent this summer. In the past, the Warriors have been linked to one center in particular: Dwight Howard. They attempted to sign him during Howard's last free agent run and their ownership has always liked him. If Dwight were to go to the Warriors, a team almost designed to take advantage of his amazing defensive chops with all their shooting, Golden State could be a monster come next season.


In Other News ...

1. Chandler Parson has gone down with a broken knee cap, putting him out of action for the next 2-4 months. Since he's been out, Dallas has won five straight and find themselves only six-games under .500 after an abysmal start to the season.

It's not a good look for Parsons, who was having a good year for Dallas before his injury (16.6 PPG, 6.0 RPG, 3.1 APG on 42 percent shooting, 39 from deep). Parsons hasn't played a full season of basketball in his entire career and this marks the third straight year he's suffered an injury that will keep him out for a significant period of time.

"His free agency is on life-support," a source said. "Dallas doesn't want him, Houston won't take him back, and he looks like an injury-prone shooter whom his team does better without. He's gonna get stuck with a one year, team-friendly deal at this point and he better hope he makes it stick next season."

2. Gordon Hayward is having a really bad year. Shooting only 40 percent from the field, 27 percent from deep, and scoring only 15.5 PPG, Hayward looks to have completely disconnected from the Jazz.

"He's moving on," said ESPN Insider Marc Stein. "He's absolutely done in Utah and he won't be back. He's upset and disappointed at the way the organization dealt with Derrick Favors and he won't be done the same way -- Utah's MO has been to deal their stars before they can leave, ever since what happened with Deron Williams, but Hayward isn't playing into that strategy. The morale and locker room is very bad in Utah right now and the Jazz are prepping for the deadline."

3. Multiple preseason title contenders are struggling and out of the playoff picture right now. Cleveland (16-19), San Antonio (16-18), Atlanta (15-20), and Phoenix (15-18) are the biggest surprises so far and the players on those teams don't seem to have many answers.

"For some teams, it's injuries. For others, it's merely the lack of personnel they had last season ... they still have time to turn it around, but if the deadline arrives and they're still in the hole, things might happen. The Suns, especially, can easily blow up their squad if things get worse. I don't expect it to happen, but you have to watch for it at this point: nothing is out of the realm of possibility," said one league executive.

4. Multiple former 1st round picks are coming up for contract extensions and many of them look like they won't get it. Marcus Smart (BOS), Archie Goodwin (PHX), Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (DET), Trey Burke (UTA), Dennis Schroder (ATL), and Victor Oladipo (PHI) are all names that might find themselves traded at the deadline or in free agency.

"It's looking like the 2013 class will be one of the worst ever," said one NBA scout of 30 years. "Anthony Bennett has completely washed out of the league, Oladpio has regressed over the last two years and looks like the worst player on the freakin' 76ers. That top-10 is legendarily underwhelming ... it wouldn't surprise me to see half that draft class playing in China in a few years."

Often maligned, the 2013 draft class has produced nothing so far. The best players at this point appear to be Nerlens Noel, the Greek Freak, Michael Carter-Williams and Rudy Gobert. The 2013 class still has a few years before final judgment can be passed on it, but it looks very likely that it will go down as one of the worst in NBA history and league executives won't waste money on them with that reputation.

[trekfan]

Re: Second Coming: A SuperSonics Return



The Sonics have one man to thank for keeping them afloat during the miserable third quarter they played and that man is Bojan Bogdanovic. Bogdog isn't going to win an awards for his play ever, but he's definitely the Sonic of the game for this girl.

Let's start with the first quarter, where Seattle came out and hummed on offense and defense. The Suns looked bad, plain and simple. They missed wide open looks, allowed a ton of good shots on defense, and ended the quarter down by 13.

In the second, Seattle put in its usually reliable bench and the Suns stuck their subs in, too. Phoenix's subs out shot and out classed Seattle's, without a doubt. Led by the flamethrower shooting of Archie Goodwin (3-of-4 from deep), the Suns wiped out that lead, took the lead, lost the lead, and ended up down by just a single point at the half.

The third quarter saw all the starters inserted back in for both sides and you had the feeling Phoenix was about to take Seattle to task: they did. Bledsoe and Knight got a fire lit under them at halftime and came out gunning. No longer tentative, the duo got inside and asked Seattle's bigs to keep them out of the paint.

Noel and Gortat failed to do that in the third. Seattle went down by just four points midway through the third but the lead felt much bigger as the Sonics could get no shots to fall, from anywhere. With three minutes to go, Coach Hollins went back to his bench and brought in Bogdanovic, who had gone 0-for-3 from deep in the first half.

Bogdog abandoned the three and instead focused on going inside. He dominated the smaller Booker and Goodwin, scored at will driving inside on deft pick and rolls, and brought Seattle back from their deficit by himself almost. By the end of the third, Seattle led 86-81 because of Bogdanovic.

The fourth was a fight, back and forth, between the two teams. Jennings, who had been quiet since the first quarter, decided to involve himself again as a scorer and not just a passer. Gortat started getting some good rolls on his shots, Noel feasted on the soft inside play of Markief Morris (and Morris horrid shooting, the man went 2-of-7 from deep and missed some gimmes), and the Sonics pulled out a win in a game they looked destined to lose.

Brandon Jennings was awarded player of the game, but without the heroics of Bogdog in the third, this game would have been lost. Seattle now moves to 33-6 as the Suns drop to 16-20.

Go Sonics.

[trekfan]

Re: Second Coming: A SuperSonics Return




Seattle survived a tough battle against the T'Wolves, 106-103, and have Jeremy Lin and Bogdanovic to thank for it. Lin finished the game with 16 points and 10 assists, Bogdanovic finished with a cool 20 points (4-of-8 from deep) and the Sonics won despite underwhelming performances from most of their starters.

The starters were shaken, understandable so, after Brandon Jennings landed awkwardly on a triple attempt and had to be helped off the court. The landing was a bad one and the pain was real for Jennings, who couldn't put any weight on his right leg as he tried to get himself to the locker room.

The score of this game doesn't really matter -- Brandon Jennings is out for the next 1-2 months, at least, with a severely broken ankle.

"He broke it rather cleanly," Sonics lead trainer, Taylor Stuart, said in the postgame press conference. "He's lucky he did, it's going to make things easier. We expect he'll be back in mid-March at the latest, assuming no setbacks."

Jennings was subdued after the game and one can understand why. This is the second serious injury he's suffered in three years, but this one is rather minor in comparison to his ruptured Achilles.

"It's tough, definitely, especially with the year we're having ... but I have faith in these guys, for sure. They'll keep it going while I patch myself up. I'll be back," said Jennings.

For Seattle, this puts a major damper on the season so far. The Sonics have been sneaking away with wins lately as opposed to blowing people out and the blood is in the water -- Jeremy Lin, the electric backup Seattle acquired last season, is now the starter. This is a reality that we have accept, but it means there's some lineup shifts that are going to occur. We're left with two big questions.

1. How many minutes do you give Lin?

Lin has been having a hell of a year as bench leader. He's been scoring 9.4 PPG, dishing out 4.8 APG and shooting 50 percent from the field and 49 percent from deep. But that's against a lot of second unit players on the other side. Lin will be facing starters, consistently, for the first time in three years and those percentages are sure to drop.

Coach Hollins and owner/GM Max Newman have both espoused faith in Lin in the past, so neither will be changing that tune now, but Lin hasn't averaged over 28 minutes a night since 2013, when he was with Houston. Lin has shown to be a deadly bench player, but his days as a starter show him as inconsistent at best. Seattle, however, has no choice but to play him there -- he's earned the trust of his teammates and coaches. Optimally, you don't want Lin playing more than 30 minutes a night but then we come to the next question ...

2. Who gets Lin's minutes?

Lin has been playing 20 a night for the Sonics most games and he's been a valuable point guard and shooting guard off the bench. There's only one player on the bench who might actually fulfill that role and his name is Malik Newman, the 10th overall pick from the last draft. Newman has bided his time and has no minutes to his name this season, but that's about to change in a big way. Newman isn't the shooter, passer, or scorer Lin is, but the kid can get hot fast and, against second unit players, that might be enough.

You have to think Newman gets at least 10 of Lin's 20, which means the other 10 have to go somewhere else, and with Seattle a bit shaken from Jennings injury, I'd hope Hollins takes those minutes and gives them to Carl Landry.

Arguably more deadly a shot from mid-range than Carl from the Walking Dead, Carl Landry has taken his demotion to mentor the young pups with class beyond belief. He's a great veteran and one could use some minutes tossed his way as Seattle is going to need to find some offense to replace what Jennings brought to the table.

Whatever the case, Jennings was in the midst of an incredible year and had been mentioned as an MVP candidate before the injury. With him out, so ends his bid as an MVP and All Star as well. Seattle's season isn't doomed, far from it, but a historically amazing finish is likely out of the equation now, which is a shame.

But that's the NBA. Even the best of things are subject to the cruel will of the basketball gods.

Go Sonics.

[trekfan]

Re: Second Coming: A SuperSonics Return



The Sonics now move to 35-6 after tonight's win against the Jazz, but the team won in spite of itself. Seattle tallied only 27 assists and turned the ball over 11 times in an ugly, ugly win.

The first quarter was all Seattle as the offense hummed with Lin early. When the second unit came in towards the end of the first, they kept momentum going, but the Jazz started taking advantage of rookie Malik Newman, who was targeted by Utah all game long. Both Trey Burke and Dante Exum had their way with the young rookie, who was a step slow on rotations and allowed the Jazz to drive inside.

Utah went to work in the second making this game ugly and they did a marvelous job at that; if anything, the Jazz know how to make things look ugly (look at what they did to their team) and Seattle played right into the Jazz's hands. When Lin came back into the game in the second quarter, Seattle was in desperate need of offense and he tried to do it all by himself.

Lin is no Brandon Jennings and despite how well his shooting stroke was working in the first (4-of-8 from the field, 2-of-3 from deep), Lin went ice cold the rest of the game as Utah dared him to shoot and he made them look very smart for doing so. The offense stagnated, went in fit and starts, and the only brought spot all night was Bogdanovic.

Yes, the Croatian was again a leader from the bench, this time shooting at will from beyond the arc (3-of-6 on the day) and helping keep Seattle in it despite how dark it was looking. The crowd in the PAC was understandably worried and you can't blame them -- the team looked bad and, for the first game without the dynamic Brandon Jennings, it gave no one any confidence.

Seattle somehow won the game and that was mostly due to Utah jacking up shots at the end, trying to get the win, but ending up only giving Seattle more opportunities to score. Score Seattle did, when it mattered, but on a watchability scale of 1-10, this game was just a 2.

A win's a win, though, so ...

Go Sonics.





Rookie Watch



Newman saw his first minutes of action tonight and he got a solid 20, more than I would have given him, and he made the best of them. The rookie's passing was on point -- he tallied only one official assist, but he had some good hockey assists in there -- and he scored nine points, four of those in transition opportunities, getting up court with RHJ and Lance.

But he was mostly ineffective as a shooter, missing some easy ones, and generally looked overwhelmed when he got crowded by the Jazz in the paint -- Rudy Gobert will do that to you.

All in all, his night wasn't as bad as it could be, he only tallied three turnovers, and he wasn't a sieve on defense. I give him a C+ for the effort, but he needs to get those assists numbers up and those turnovers down as we go along.

[trekfan]

Re: Second Coming: A SuperSonics Return



It was an ugly game for the Sonics. Despite managing to stay close for most of the game, Seattle never managed to lead the game. Not. Once. New Orleans tallied a 14-point lead, but only managed to do that by the very end after the Sonics flat gave up with the last minute to go in the fourth.

NOLA piled on, plain and simple, and for a team that was knocked out of the WCF last season by Seattle, you'd expect that. There were a lot of fouls between the teams and Anthony Davis again found himself in foul trouble -- Seattle's strategy in the past had been to target Davis, knowing that if he went off the floor NOLA's chances of winning dropped significantly.

But the Pellies are a different team this year, they don't just have Davis -- they have veterans Joe Johnson and Joakim Noah, two players who know how to hold the fort and make a difference when their superstar is out. Johnson used to be one such superstar (inefficient as he was) and Noah has always been a fantastic number-two option (borderline number-one some years).

Seattle couldn't muster enough to get over the Pelicans. It was another inefficient day for Jeremy Lin, who didn't even get the start (Jamal Crawford did) and managed to put up a poor stat-line -- 5-of-13 from the field for him and JC. There was only one guard who actually managed to score consistently: Malik Newman.

Yes, the rookie, whose performances have been uneven in the five games he's played (Seattle is 3-2 since Jennings went out), looked like the best player on the court at times against the Pelicans, a good sign for a player that has seen more bench minutes than game minutes for this season.

Seattle's offense continues to struggle and sputter -- without a dynamic point guard to run it (Lin used to be that, but he can't handle the starter minutes), the defenses they play against tighten up. Seattle can't penetrate and they can't score, which leads to nights like this, where the team can't get above 100 points and never leads once the entire game.

I'm not sure where Seattle should go for offense at this point -- Lin can't handle the starter's minutes and neither can JC, both players best off the bench at this point in their careers. Newman is young, raw, and unproven, but his unknown quantity might be enough to make opponents fear him, if only a little.

I'm still for getting Landry some minutes, but Coach Hollins seems to really like seeing Larry Sanders blow easy layups and go for blocks (and get fouls). Sanders is my least favorite player on this squad and the Sonics, in my humble (and right) opinion would be better off letting him go.

I doubt anyone takes him on at the deadline, but I bet money Sanders walks in the summer for a bigger contract and a starter's job.

That's a whole 'other story, though. Right now, Seattle sits at 36-8 and in really good shape approaching the all-star break. They will not eclipse the Bulls' record of 72-10 (good), and they will find it hard to get to 50 wins before the break (and maybe even after with how wildly uneven the team is playing) but their work in the early season has given them some cushion.

Optimally, you want to get the 1st seed, get Jennings back, and make a deep run in the playoffs with the fresher Jennings (Jennings' injury might be a blessing in disguise, assuming his recovery goes well), but right now Seattle just needs to focus on one thing: keeping their heads above water.

Because from where I sit, it looks like they're starting to drown and the sharks below (LAC, OKC, HOU, GS) smell blood.

Go Sonics.

[trekfan]

Re: Second Coming: A SuperSonics Return



January 21st, 2017

"We could be in some trouble." Lionel Hollins dribbled the basketball and slowly went for a layup. He wasn't as youthful as he once was, he wasn't as nimble, but Max could still see the player's form in him.

His layup was promptly followed by a swish from Ray Allen from the corner. He picked up another ball from the rack and launched it again, connecting once more -- just as machine like as ever. "We need to trust in Lin. His shooting makes the difference."

Max took a ball from his rack and jacked up a three from the top of the arc, but his shot clanked off the rim and went high. "I think we need to give Newman a run."

Ray's shooting motion was interrupted and he stopped. "The rookie? His shooting is almost as bad as Rondae's."

"But he can get inside. He can drive by guys." Lionel picked up another ball and began to dribble it as he walked towards the left corner. "We're lacking movement. We're lacking guys getting the inches they need to operate." He got to his spot and stopped dribbling. "Lin doesn't have the ability to penetrate consistently anymore."

Ray shot his triple and watched it just miss, rimming out and away. "He can shoot better than Newman and shooting is part of what Brandon brought to the table."

"But not everything," Max pointed out as he shot another three, this one getting glass and going in, albeit it not very cleanly. He frowned. He was more out of practice than he thought. "We could always try Nate."

At the thought of Nate Robinson starting, all three men just shook their head.

Lionel looked for a long moment at the hoop and shot a three, which fell short. He sighed. "We'll give the kid a run. But our next game is against the Clippers ... and it's not exactly an easy matchup."

Ray shot another three, this one connecting. "If we want to see what he has, we don't want it to be easy."

Max turned around and glanced up at the championship banner in the rafters. They had played Rondae Hollis-Jefferson and gotten an amazing rookie campaign from him. Would they be so lucky again?

It wasn't like they had a choice.

[trekfan]

Re: Second Coming: A SuperSonics Return



The Seattle SuperSonics now sit at 38-9 after a big win against the Clippers (who fall to 34-11) at the PAC. The game was a statement game if there ever was one.

If you'll recall, the last time Seattle met LA, it was at Staples on Christmas day and Seattle snuck out of there with a win thanks, in large part, to Nerlens Noel. Noel's 27-point, 11-board effort helped stop the Clippers and give Seattle a crucial win.

Nerlens wasn't as big a factor scoring-wise in this game, but he showed up when it mattered most. The two biggest factors in this win were Lance Stephenson (22 points, seven assists) and Malik Newman (15 points, 12 assists).

Let's start with Lance: he hasn't had a great last month. Jennings going down has allowed defenses to key off on him and force him to shoot more from the perimeter, which every team in the NBA knows is the way to keep him from being effective. Lance's game relies on mucking it up, getting inside, and making the high-percentage shots.

The last game against the Clips he was a complete no-show. This game, he came out and made his presence felt very early. Lance was outplayed by JJ Redick on Christmas day and this game he smothered Redick during the crucial parts of the game -- mainly, the second-half. Lance's defense prevented the Clippers from getting Redick involved for most of the second-half and that gave the Sonics an edge they desperately needed.

The other edge? Malik Newman. Malik was just the epitome of a monster in this game. His stat line (15 points on 6-of-9 from the field, 3-of-3 from the line, and 12 dimes with a steal and only one turnover) is a masterpiece to behold. He played within the offense, he got his looks (and dunks -- four by my count) and he played faster and better than CP3 in the first-half.

CP3 outplayed Malik in the third quarter, without a doubt. He schooled the rookie on how to set up shots off screens, he rained down fire from deep, and he had Malik's head spinning. CP3's damage in the third was why the Clippers managed to grab an 11-point lead.

But Seattle didn't lose their composure, and that's mostly due to Jeremy Lin coming into the game in the third to give the rookie a breather; Lin came in when Paul went out and Paul's replacement (CJ Wilcox), didn't respect Lin in the least. So Linsanity briefly showed up as Jeremy calmly went 3-of-4 from deep in the quarter, nearly single-handedly wiping out the Sonics deficit and also finding his teammates for some nice buckets (mostly on hockey assists, but he was super-efficient from the field).

Lin and Crawford helped the Sonics avoid going down double-digits, and the the Clippers lead was only seven heading into the fourth. Normally, that would spell doom for Seattle, as any deficit without Brandon Jennings has been too much to overcome for this team.

But, on this night, that seven-point lead was fool's gold for LA. The Clippers had multiple opportunities to expand that lead, to hit the kill shot, and they missed. Seattle grabbed those misses and went, full-steam, into transition.

Malik came back in at the start of the fourth and his burst of speed ran the Clippers ragged. He, RHJ, and Lance were bullets out there as they zipped by the Clippers' players.

RHJ was fed, early and often, in transition and his big buckets can't be overlooked -- but those passes to get him those buckets came from Lance or Malik. Seattle would eventually get the lead with just a few minutes left in the game, battle LA to keep that lead, and then rely on Noel and Gortat to close it out (which they did).


Rookie Watch


Malik Newman has made a believer out of me tonight. I know, I know, it does seem like an overreaction, but trust me, the boy can PLAY. I had my doubts about picking him in the draft (10th overall for a backup point guard? Could we not have found a more impact player?) but Newman played against one of the best in the game tonight in CP3 and he beat the man.

CP3 outscored him (28 points), but he didn't out-assist him (he only had five) and CP3 shot 11-of-25 from the field (but 6-of-11 from deep), so he didn't have a great shooting night. Paul, at the end, wasn't as impactful or effective as he could have been -- you have to credit the rookie for most of that because he was matched up with Paul for most of the night.

Newman was efficient. He was a good passer. He was a vicious, opportunistic dunker (I didn't know he could dunk) and he looked better than any other player out there.

Now, he is fresher. And younger. And he has so little mileage on him at this point. But he played a damn fine game and, until Jennings gets back, he deserves to have his shot at the starter role (assuming he doesn't blow-up and cost Seattle a game between now and mid-March).

It was just one game, but it was another win against a top Western Conference foe, and the second one notched against the Clippers. LAC has to hope for a tie in the head-to-head matchups with the Sonics, but the two teams won't see one another again till March 27th -- by that time, Seattle may have Brandon Jennings back.

And, hopefully, a tight grip on the 1st seed.

Go Sonics.

[Trent Booty]

Re: Second Coming: A SuperSonics Return

Question: who plays PF? Does one of Gortat/Norl move there? Curious because this is quite a team you've built. Love how there are no stars (until RHJ develops ) and you still find a way to dominate.

[trekfan]

Re: Second Coming: A SuperSonics Return

Question: who plays PF? Does one of Gortat/Norl move there? Curious because this is quite a team you've built. Love how there are no stars (until RHJ develops ) and you still find a way to dominate.

PF is Noel, primarily. Gortat is my all-time C and I use Larry Sanders as a C/PF (though, for the next few games, I'm going to slot Carl Landry back in as my PF and just have Sanders play C minutes, because he gets beat too often by the stretch-4s of the league).

Long-term, I want Noel at C, someone else at PF (a stretch-4, maybe, a tweener Pf/SF type perhaps), and Gortat will be my big man off the bench (he's about a year or two away from aging out of being a full-time starter, I think, but we'll see what happens).

The team is predicated on dude's playing their roles -- if they stay in their lanes, and do the things they're good at, we do well. If we have someone try to be someone else (say Lance wants to be a gunner for a night and toss up 20 shots), then we get really, really bad. The team isn't built to come-back from large deficits, but if we keep it within single digits, 7 points or less, I feel confident we can come back -- more than 7 and I feel less confident, double-digits and I'm praying for a miracle.

RHJ is gonna be a monster when get hits his full-stride, but that's at least two seasons down the road. Noel is darned close to being super-good, and he's my big for the future, barring major injuries or any sort of demands.

[trekfan]

Re: Second Coming: A SuperSonics Return



Seattle now moves to a 42-10 after beating the Rockets in a game that looked over in the first half. The Sonics were coming off a disheartening 105-93 loss to the Knicks, who outplayed the Sonics at every turn. It was bound to happen as Seattle had only escaped Charlotte by one-point, the Blazers by two, and the Bucks by two in the previous three games -- still, the Sonics won those games and they were 4-1 after moving Malik Newman into the starting lineup.

This game would be another test for the young rookie as Houston had two very different types of point guards for him to face off against -- Patrick Beverly (defensive savant) and Ty Lawson (offensive dynamo). If the two could combine into one guard, Houston would be damned near unstoppable, but luckily only one sees the floor at a time.

For the game, Lawson got the start and Houston probably regrets that in retrospect. Lawson hasn't done much to quiet his critics. His scoring, his assists, his shooting percentages are all down after last year and he looks to be declining. He did well in this game -- 15 points on five dimes, 7-of-13 from the field -- but he simply didn't pass his teammates open.

Seattle dared Lawson to drive it inside and Lawson took the bait, leading to him getting blocked or having his shot fall wildly off-target. Seattle got out and RAN after those misses in the first-half, which allowed them to pile up an eight-point lead by the time the halftime entertainment (gymnasts doing crazy things with their limbs -- it was both cool and disturbing). It looked like Seattle was going to run away with it.

And then James Harden showed up. Harden was stifled by Lance in the first-half, but he got going in the second-half with his only three of the entire game (Harden went an uncharacteristic 1-of-6 from deep) and that was enough to shake Houston out its malaise and begin to punish Seattle from deep.

Corey Brewer, Terrence Jones, KJ McDaniels and Patrick Beverly (especially) were given the green light to jack up triples and they connected on a lot of them.

Seattle continued to roll with its steady offense, only getting two threes the entire game: one from Bogdanovic and another from Lance Stephenson (I know, right?).

The fourth quarter rolled around and Seattle's lead had been cut to four (and, at a few points in the third, was wiped out completely). Luckily for Seattle, the triple isn't a high-percentage shot for a reason and as Houston kept jacking them up, they went cold. The Sonics, continuing with their ground-and-pound style of play, got inside and got the dunks. Or, the layups. Or, the fouls. They passed the ball with great skill (46 assists as a team) and that ball movement was a big reason why the Sonics did so well in the paint.

Malik Newman, in particular, was just killer from the line, getting there nine times and converting seven of them. There were definitely moments where Houston looked to be on the cusp of taking the lead, especially at the end where they fouled Seattle, watched them sink free throws, then hit a three.

But the Rockets simply didn't get enough from their big man, Dwight Howard, who looked washed up in this game. Howard was outplayed by both Noel and Gortat (his former backup in Orlando). He was blocked repeatedly by Gortat, as a matter of fact, which the Polish Hammer was more than happy about after the game.

"Used to, he block me. Now I block him. And I like blocking him," said Gortat.

Dwight looked disconnected out there and the Rockets looked better off without him when they went small. Houston, increasingly, looks like the place Dwight is destined to leave, but that's another story entirely.

The Sonics walked out of Houston with a win and that's all that matters -- they face the Rockets again, at home, on February 8th (their last game before the All-Star break), but they have a much more important meeting with the Thunder, at OKC, on the 6th.

That game will certainly be a rush.

Go Sonics.








BONUS NEWS

We don't normally cover other NBA teams in this blog, but we'll make an exception here for a former Sonic family member. George Karl was fired by the Kings early today (joining the Jazz's Quinn Snyder, who was fired last night) and his exit almost assures the end of his remarkable coaching career.

The Kings sit just a game above the Jazz for worst record in the NBA (currently a battle between the Jazz, Kings, Nuggets and Bucks for that dubious honor) and Karl, despite being loved by his team, simply wasn't getting results.

With his release, many insiders expect Karl to retire from the game as an active coach, but stay around either in a broadcasting role or as a consultant for an NBA franchise. Whatever the case, Karl more than deserves the accolades that have been foisted upon him and will always be beloved here in Seattle.

Best of luck, whatever you do, George.

[trekfan]

Re: Second Coming: A SuperSonics Return



WHEW. Well, that was a game, wasn't it? Seattle now sits at 43-10 following the monster game they had against the Thunder. The team was on fire, tallying more blocks (eight) than turnovers (seven), dishing 42 assists, knocking down 59 percent of their shots, and making OKC look foolish in the fourth quarter.

Where to start? Well, the first quarter was a throwdown between the teams. Fouls were exchanged (including another flagrant -- so far, since Seattle has returned, there have been flagrant fouls in over 80 percent of their games against OKC), defense was played, and Durant and Westbrook were largely held in check.

In the second, the Sonics got on a run late in the quarter as the Thunder's second-unit struggled mightily without either Westbrook or Durant on the floor (but Ibaka was out there ... yet that didn't seem to help much). The bucket that seemed to suck the air out of the arena was a Jeremy Lin triple with no time left on the clock just as the half ended.

He sunk it cold, nothing but net, and walked into the lockerroom without even looking back. ASSASSIN.

Lin's excellent play continued in the third as he dished the rock and found multiple open Sonics, who sank multiple open shots, and nothing was really celebrated at all. The Sonics were on a mission this game and their usually jovial nature after big plays was subdued.

They entered the fourth up big, took that lead to 20 at one point, had OKC trim it down, but Seattle just kept doing their thing. OKC had no recourse and, as a final insult, Lance Stephenson made sure to get a late game (like, with 12 seconds left) dunk on a defenseless hoop just to rub it in.

Lance was, unquestionably, the best player for the Sonics tonight, having one of his all-round games where he looked equal parts guard, forward, and garbage man. He cleaned up messes, made messes, and took out some serious anger on both rims.

Lance was named player of the game for his efforts and it was well-deserved.



For OKC, both Durant and Westbrook finished with 27 points, shooting over 50 percent from the field and from deep. The Thunder still lost because only one another player finished in double-digits, the backup guard Cameron Payne (who is a Sixth Man of the Year candidate with his play). Kanter was locked down by Gortat and only grabbed nine points (five from the line). Morrow was a missing man -- there were milk cartons with his picture on it being distributed around the arena, but no one saw him. Stat box said he had eight points on 3-of-13 shooting, so I can only assume he was shooting from Canada.

The biggest disappointment might be Serge Ibaka. Serge had five -- yes, five -- points on 2-of-8 shooting, four boards and four assists. He was a non-factor and three of his five points came from a triple. I'm fairly certain Adam Morrison (he has two rings and Durant doesn't have one: think about that) would have scored more.

Seattle held OKC to only 98 points, an impressive feat for a team that ranks first in offensive scoring in the NBA. They made them play singular, as the Thunder tallied only 24 assists, and not a single player finished with a positive +/- score. They team was -70 overall.

Seattle killed the Thunder this game, and that's with their starting PG out; Jennings was replaced by a rookie, and Newman had an okay game (five points, 14 assists), but was a non-factor scoring. And the rookie didn't need to score, because he was putting the ball in the spots for others to score.

The Sonics have one more game before the All-Star break (against Houston on the 8th) and then we'll be at the ASG festivities. RHJ has been chosen for the dunk contest (he should win, right?) and there's not a single Sonic who made the All-Star game (not even Jennings), which just goes to show you that the NBA is still a superstar league.

What a win.

Go Sonics.

[BlindSideNZ]

Re: Second Coming: A SuperSonics Return

Season is progressing fantastically. Newman looks to be a bit of revelation. Definitely keeping Jennings seat warm.