SSSBDA

Patience Pays for Hansen, Sonics Fans

Tue, 11 Sep 2012 11:14:47 -0400

In 1992, the Seattle-area publisher Positively for Kids released a book co-authored by Mariners star Edgar Martinez about his journey entitled Patience Pays. Long-time Seattle sports fans will know the title was appropriate for two reasons. Not only was Martinez known for his patient approach at the plate, he also willingly suffered through an extended run at AAA during the early part of his career that may ultimately have kept him from putting up the statistics necessary to reach the Hall of Fame.

For two decades, Martinez has stood as the paragon of patience in Seattle sports. That changes today, when the Seattle City Council is expected to announce agreement on a revised Memorandum of Understanding approving the financing for a new NBA/NHL arena to be built when a tenant for the building is found. The final deal is the result of the immense patience with the political process shown by Chris Hansen, the leader, driving force and public face of the group of investors that plan to build the arena and bring an NBA team back to Seattle.

While the deal came together quickly in the context of our local political scene, where replacing doomed and decaying roadways can take years if not decades, it was the product of months of negotiations. At first, Hansen worked with Mayor Mike McGinn and King County Executive Dow Constantine to produce a Memorandum of Understanding that was in satisfactory condition to take public in February.

Over the last seven months, the arena plan was subject to public scrutiny that turned contentious at times. In the face of opposition from the Port of Seattle, the Seattle Mariners and anti-arena groups, among others, Hansen stood strong and patiently reiterated the unique nature of this deal and the value of bringing back the Sonics. When the City Council expressed its unwillingness to pass the MOU in its original form, Hansen was flexible enough to agree to changes that left all parties satisfied.

Now is not the time to dredge up past mistakes, but it’s worth noting how refreshing Hansen’s calm demeanor was in contrast to the way previous Sonics ownership groups negotiated in public and took offense when politicians did not simply acquiesce to demands much higher than the ones Hansen’s group made. At many points during the process, Hansen would have been justified in considering the conclusion that bringing the NBA back to Seattle was not worth the trouble. Instead, he stuck with his plan and has been rewarded with a completed deal where others failed time and again.

Of course, Hansen isn’t the only one who has been patient. The members of the former Sonics ownership group that have joined Hansen also put aside the bitter disappointment of the way the team left. The hidden hero in this entire process was former Sonics president and CEO Wally Walker, who advised Hansen behind the scenes and was responsible for introducing him to the influential local businessmen who lent his investment group credibility. Walker, who voted against the sale of the team to the Oklahoma City group as a member of the board in 2006, has since worked tirelessly to help bring back the Sonics. That, not any of his decisions as general manager, should be his enduring legacy in Seattle.

No group has been more patient than the fans. More than four years after the franchise moved to Oklahoma City, the Sonics have become arguably Seattle’s most popular sports team. Led by ArenaSolution.com’s Brian Robinson and Adam Brown and Jason Reid, the creative forces behind Sonicsgate, fans refused to let the team die. They kept sporting Sonics gear and showing up at public events.

Without the vocal, passionate support of fans, Hansen might never have tried to bring the Sonics back, and their role in the political process cannot be overstated. Fans from all walks of life and of all ages turned out in numbers too big to ignore at the public hearings held by both the King County and Seattle City Councils to explain to elected officials what the Sonics meant—and still mean—to them.

Realistically, this is still a time for patience. Aside from an Environmental Impact Study, the final hurdle to bringing the Sonics back—securing a team—is the most challenging. Everyone involved must be prepared to potentially wait years for a team to be forced to move. As unstable as the NBA’s landscape might feel, there has been just one move—the Sonics to Oklahoma City—since 2002. Relocation simply does not happen that frequently. The important thing is that Seattle is now ready and in position to take advantage should an opportunity arise rather than watch helplessly as a team moves to a city with no history of supporting NBA basketball and no built-in fan base.

I’ll be honest. There were dark moments, even within the last few months, where I never imagined we would get to this point until decades had passed since the Sonics’ departure. Had the City Council rejected Hansen’s offer, unprecedented in the history of Seattle sports facilities, I’m not sure any deal would have been possible in the current political climate. That is why, though this is a step in the process and certainly not the destination, today is a day well worth celebrating. We’re that much closer to returning the Sonics to their rightful home.

- Kevin Pelton

More Kevin Pelton on the Sonics

Wroten's Best Shot

Sat, 14 Jul 2012 20:43:00 -0400

LAS VEGAS - Tony Wroten heard your criticism. He knows you don’t think he can shoot. The doubts served as motivational fuel as Wroten prepared for last month’s NBA Draft and then to join the Memphis Grizzlies, who selected him 25th overall. During Wroten’s debut for the Grizzlies in the NBA Summer League on Saturday, the work showed.

Wroten drained a pair of three-pointers and shot 7-of-8 from the free throw line during an impressive performance. Wroten finished with 19 points, eight rebounds and six assists as Memphis beat New York’s summer squad, 93-77.

“I thought I did pretty good,” Wroten said afterward. “We got the win - that’s what matters the most.”

Wroten was proudest of his shooting display, which was atypical of his season with the Huskies. Wroten made two three-pointers in a game just twice (at St. Louis and at Arizona) and shot 16.1 percent from beyond the arc. The free throw line, where Wroten shot 58.3 percent, was an ongoing struggle. The game probably featured the best shooting of Wroten’s post-high school career.

“They said I couldn’t shoot,” said Wroten. “I used that as motivation. I thought I could shoot. That’s why I’m glad I worked every day on my jumper. You could see the results.”

Even before coming to Las Vegas, Wroten could tell the difference in his shooting.

“I’ve seen a lot better shots,” he said. “Shots falling. Even when I miss shots, it still feels good. More consistent.”

According to Wroten, the key has been repetition rather than any adjustment to his form. However, Wroten’s stroke from long distance looked smoother and more natural than last season, which could help his accuracy.

Saturday was just one game. Erasing questions about his outside shooting will take Wroten months, if not years. His college numbers spoke for themselves. Still, it was a start toward the work Wroten has done paying off, and toward silencing the critics.

- Kevin Pelton

Seattle's Second NBA Championship

Fri, 22 Jun 2012 12:26:00 -0400

A quorum of the SSSBDA gathered to watch Game 5 of the NBA Finals at Oskar’s Kitchen in Queen Anne last night. Shawn Kemp’s bar seemed like an appropriate place to watch the Miami Heat possibly knock off the Oklahoma City Thunder. As compared to the group that came to Oskar’s after the pre-Game 2 rally for a new arena, the people at Oskar’s Thursday seemed to be NBA fans more than jilted Sonics fans.

The KOMO camera crew that came to gather reaction got precious little footage, as the reaction at the buzzer—with the outcome long since decided—was subdued at best. I thought we might get some kind of toast when the TV feed was turned down, but the announcement turned out to be that someone’s lights were on. So we just enjoyed our French Dip sandwiches and a classic closeout performance by LeBron James.

Nonetheless, there’s an eerie parallel between the Sonics’ lone championship, won in 1979, and the Heat’s path to the title. I first noticed during SSSBDA member Seth Kolloen’s live tweets of the ‘79 Finals that the series followed the same pattern—the home team winning Game 1, followed by the lower-seeded team winning the next four. That’s only happened one other time in NBA history (the 1973 New York Knicks over the Los Angeles Lakers).

Beyond that, the ‘79 Sonics and ‘12 Heat also had identical results in the conference finals, making them the lone teams in NBA history to share the same last two rounds. Like Miami, Seattle lost three in a row in Games 3-5 and had to win a do-or-die Game 6 on the road in Phoenix, beating the Suns on Mother’s Day after Paul Westphal’s mom sung the National Anthem.

I’ll even note that the Sonics won their opening series (after a bye) by a 4-1 margin, just like the Heat over the Knicks, though the losses came in different games.

Alas, I’m not expecting 300,000 fans to pack downtown Seattle for a parade to celebrate this championship.

- Kevin Pelton

Seattle's Posthumous Love for the Sonics

Fri, 15 Jun 2012 02:37:46 -0400

I could tell Thursday’s rally to back the arena proposal Chris Hansen has presented to the city of Seattle and King County was going to be something special before I reached Occidental Park. As I searched for a parking spot and walked toward Seattle’s historic Pioneer Square Thursday afternoon, a splash of green and gold was obvious amidst the business people and panhandlers who call downtown home. On every corner, there were Sonics jerseys, T-shirts and warm-ups worn over work clothes.

The funny thing is that description sounds a lot like the atmosphere in downtown Oklahoma City during the NBA Finals, which continued with Game 2 at the same time the rally concluded. While Oklahomans bask in the reflected glory of a Thunder team three wins away from a championship, Sonics fans are keeping the memory of 41 seasons of basketball alive and trying to bring the NBA back to Seattle.

One fear when the Sonics moved to Oklahoma City in 2008 was that the city would turn its back on basketball and forget about the team, focusing its attention on the remaining pro sports franchises. Instead, the Sonics have in some sense become more popular. On a cloudy weekday afternoon, more than 5,000 fans played hooky and battled rush-hour traffic to pack Occidental Park (renamed Seattle SuperSonics Park for the day by a proclamation from Mayor Mike McGinn), cheering on former heroes like Shawn Kemp, Gary Payton, Detlef Schrempf and Slick Watts and directing “Thank You, Chris” chants at the Seattle-born hedge-fund manager behind the strongest effort yet to return the Sonics to their rightful place.

The rally had a tangible purpose—to demonstrate to the Seattle and King County Councils, as well as the NBA, the depth of support for the arena proposal. The local radio hosts who emceed the event encouraged fans in attendance to tweet @SeattleCouncil and @KCCouncil to voice their opinions. The crowd cheered King County Executive Dow Constantine, who helped negotiate with Hansen the Memorandum of Understanding that the respective councils have been presented for approval, and the supportive local politicians Constantine welcomed on stage. With heavy coverage from the local media, the message surely reached the rest of the council members.

Yet more than anything, the rally was a welcome opportunity for Sonics fans to gather and reminisce about better times. We screamed “SUPER! SONICS!” and sang along to The Presidents of the United States of America’s 1995-96 Sonics anthem. We pulled jerseys out of closets, going deep into the archives. (Personally, I hadn’t worn the Nate McMillan jersey I chose in years, perhaps not since he left for Portland.)

There were plenty of Kevin Durant’s No. 35s, Payton’s No. 20s and Kemp’s No. 40s, to be sure, but also random jerseys from Earl Watson to Spencer Haywood to one brave soul who willingly sported his Jim McIlvaine jersey. Fans who came empty-handed had the chance to buy T-shirts, like one featuring the lineup of the ‘96 Finals team, and a Back to the Future parody supporting “Back to Seattle.”

Maybe renewed interest in the Sonics was inevitable after their departure. The painful moving process and Oklahoma City’s Finals runs have reminded fans how much the team meant to them. The Sonics also have the unique ability to avoid ever tarnishing good memories with poor performance in the present, a challenge for the city’s other sports franchises.

Most of all, though, I think the Sonics have found their nostalgic sweet spot in absentia. A whole generation of kids, myself included, who grew up knowing Seattle as a basketball town first and foremost have now come of age. YouTube has allowed fans to rediscover the highlight reels Kemp and Payton built on a nightly basis during the early 1990s, as well as play-by-play broadcaster Kevin Calabro’s matching soundtrack. Social media has made it easy to share those fond memories.

The hard feelings that once lingered from Kemp’s ugly exit have long since dissipated, and the former Sonics star has become a fixture in the community since returning to Seattle. The bar Kemp owns just blocks from KeyArena, Oskar’s Kitchen, has become a popular hangout for 20- and 30-somethings. Fans flocked from the rally to Oskar’s to watch Game 6 of the NBA Finals—and, yes, to cheer against the Thunder.

One of Hansen’s wisest moves was to work with the league to ensure that any team that comes to Seattle will bear the name Sonics and brand the arena effort accordingly. Unlike Charlotte after the Hornets moved, there is no interest in a fresh start here. Our support is not so much for NBA basketball in general as the Sonics in particular and a history that dates back to 1967, when the Sonics welcomed Seattle into the world of professional sports, for better or worse. While that history may technically belong to the Thunder now, jerseys, memories and legends can’t be relocated.

Some four years after the team moved, there are as many Sonics fans as ever. All we need is a team. The support shown at Thursday’s rally makes it all the more likely that Hansen’s plan will make that a reality and bring the Sonics back home.

- Kevin Pelton

More Kevin Pelton on the Sonics

206 Around the League: 5/3/2012

Fri, 04 May 2012 10:00:10 -0400

Player	Boxscore	MIN	FGM-A	FTM-A	3PM-A	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	+/-	PTS
Jason Terry	OKC 95 DAL 79	31	3-10	3-4	2-5	3	6	1	0	4	-16	11

206 Around the League: 5/1/2012

Wed, 02 May 2012 10:00:11 -0400

Player	Boxscore	MIN	FGM-A	FTM-A	3PM-A	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	+/-	PTS
Marvin Williams	BOS 87 ATL 80	21	1-6	1-2	0-2	6	0	0	1	0	-13	3
Spencer Hawes	PHI 109 CHI 92	18	1-3	0-0	0-0	3	0	1	1	1	11	2

206 Around the League: 4/30/2012

Tue, 01 May 2012 10:00:13 -0400

Player	Boxscore	MIN	FGM-A	FTM-A	3PM-A	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	+/-	PTS
Jason Terry	DAL 99 OKC 102	30	5-12	1-2	2-6	1	1	0	0	2	-17	13

206 Around the League: 4/29/2012

Mon, 30 Apr 2012 10:00:10 -0400

Player	Boxscore	MIN	FGM-A	FTM-A	3PM-A	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	+/-	PTS
Marvin Williams	BOS 74 ATL 83	14	1-5	0-0	0-0	1	0	0	0	0	-6	2

206 Around the League: 4/26/2012

Fri, 27 Apr 2012 10:00:12 -0400

Player	Boxscore	MIN	FGM-A	FTM-A	3PM-A	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	+/-	PTS
Spencer Hawes	PHI 86 DET 108	26	8-13	0-0	0-0	7	1	1	0	0	-15	16
Jason Terry	DAL 89 ATL 106	26	3-9	4-4	1-4	5	5	0	0	0	-7	11
Rodney Stuckey	PHI 86 DET 108	27	5-11	3-3	0-3	1	4	0	0	3	15	13
Martell Webster	DEN 131 MIN 102	28	5-10	0-0	1-4	1	3	0	0	2	-21	11
Marvin Williams	DAL 89 ATL 106	23	2-9	1-1	1-3	2	2	1	0	2	13	6
Jon Brockman	MIL 74 BOS 87	16	1-3	0-2	0-0	7	0	0	0	1	3	2
Terrence Williams	LAL 96 SAC 113	10	2-4	0-0	0-0	1	1	1	1	0	2	4
Brian Scalabrine	CLE 75 CHI 107	3	1-1	0-0	0-0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2

206 Around the League: 4/25/2012

Thu, 26 Apr 2012 10:00:10 -0400

Player	Boxscore	MIN	FGM-A	FTM-A	3PM-A	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	+/-	PTS
Spencer Hawes	PHI 90 MIL 85	28	3-13	2-2	0-0	6	4	1	2	1	16	8
Jon Brockman	PHI 90 MIL 85	21	0-3	0-0	0-0	9	0	0	0	1	-2	0

206 Around the League: 4/24/2012

Wed, 25 Apr 2012 10:00:11 -0400

Player	Boxscore	MIN	FGM-A	FTM-A	3PM-A	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	+/-	PTS
Marvin Williams	LAC 102 ATL 109	27	5-11	0-0	1-3	4	3	1	0	2	8	11

206 Around the League: 4/23/2012

Tue, 24 Apr 2012 10:00:13 -0400

Player	Boxscore	MIN	FGM-A	FTM-A	3PM-A	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	+/-	PTS
Spencer Hawes	PHI 105 NJN 87	17	4-7	0-0	0-0	1	3	0	0	0	9	8
Rodney Stuckey	DET 97 IND 103	20	0-2	0-0	0-2	0	2	2	0	2	-5	0

206 Around the League: 4/22/2012

Mon, 23 Apr 2012 10:00:11 -0400

Player	Boxscore	MIN	FGM-A	FTM-A	3PM-A	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	+/-	PTS
Marvin Williams	NYK 113 ATL 112	39	10-14	5-7	4-6	11	0	1	3	1	7	29
Martell Webster	GSW 93 MIN 88	38	7-14	0-0	4-9	5	1	0	0	1	1	18
Rodney Stuckey	TOR 73 DET 76	32	1-7	5-6	0-1	3	6	2	0	2	-1	7
Terrence Williams	SAC 114 CHA 88	12	3-6	0-0	0-0	2	1	0	0	0	3	6

206 Around the League: 4/19/2012

Fri, 20 Apr 2012 10:00:11 -0400

Player	Boxscore	MIN	FGM-A	FTM-A	3PM-A	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	+/-	PTS
Rodney Stuckey	MIN 91 DET 80	30	2-8	0-0	0-0	1	3	0	0	1	-14	4
Martell Webster	MIN 91 DET 80	27	1-4	0-0	1-4	3	2	0	1	2	20	3

206 Around the League: 4/18/2012

Thu, 19 Apr 2012 10:00:11 -0400

Player	Boxscore	MIN	FGM-A	FTM-A	3PM-A	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	+/-	PTS
Jason Terry	HOU 110 DAL 117	33	6-11	4-5	3-6	4	3	0	0	3	14	19
Terrence Williams	SAS 127 SAC 102	22	3-8	1-2	1-2	2	8	0	0	2	-14	8
Marvin Williams	DET 84 ATL 116	19	3-9	4-4	0-1	7	0	2	1	0	20	10
Spencer Hawes	PHI 103 CLE 87	16	4-5	0-0	0-0	7	1	0	0	1	14	8
Rodney Stuckey	DET 84 ATL 116	21	0-3	0-0	0-2	2	2	0	0	1	-13	0
Jon Brockman	MIL 112 WAS 121	1	0-0	0-0	0-0	1	0	0	0	0	-1	0
Brian Scalabrine	CHI 100 CHA 68	3	0-0	0-0	0-0	1	0	0	0	0	2	0

206 Around the League: 4/17/2012

Wed, 18 Apr 2012 10:00:10 -0400

Player	Boxscore	MIN	FGM-A	FTM-A	3PM-A	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	+/-	PTS
Spencer Hawes	IND 102 PHI 97	23	5-10	2-2	0-0	8	1	0	1	5	6	12
Rodney Stuckey	CLE 77 DET 116	28	3-8	2-2	0-1	4	6	1	1	0	46	8
Martell Webster	MEM 91 MIN 84	28	1-6	4-4	0-1	3	1	0	0	1	-16	6

206 Around the League: 4/16/2012

Tue, 17 Apr 2012 10:00:13 -0400

Player	Boxscore	MIN	FGM-A	FTM-A	3PM-A	REB	AST	STL	TO	+/-	PTS
Nate Robinson	SAS 120 GSW 99	31	11-20	5-5	3-7	2	7	1	2	-4	30
Jason Terry	DAL 121 UTH 121	54	11-25	1-1	4-9	2	3	2	3	0	27
Jamal Crawford	POR 107 PHO 125	36	7-16	8-10	0-4	5	4	1	3	-10	22
Spencer Hawes	PHI 100 ORL 113	32	3-10	4-4	0-1	6	9	1	0	-10	10
Marvin Williams	ATL 109 TOR 87	34	5-11	5-7	1-3	5	2	2	0	18	16
Martell Webster	MIN 88 IND 111	24	2-4	0-0	1-3	6	1	1	0	-24	5

206 Around the League: 4/15/2012

Mon, 16 Apr 2012 10:00:11 -0400

Player	Boxscore	MIN	FGM-A	FTM-A	3PM-A	REB	AST	STL	TO	+/-	PTS
Rodney Stuckey	CHI 100 DET 94	35	8-19	13-18	3-5	4	1	3	0	-16	32
Jason Terry	DAL 108 LAL 112	37	8-15	0-0	5-6	3	4	1	0	-6	21
Marvin Williams	TOR 102 ATL 86	30	2-5	2-2	0-1	6	3	0	2	-4	6
Terrence Williams	POR 103 SAC 104	11	2-3	0-0	1-1	2	3	1	0	-7	5

206 Around the League: 4/14/2012

Sun, 15 Apr 2012 10:00:10 -0400

Player	Boxscore	MIN	FGM-A	FTM-A	3PM-A	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	+/-	PTS
Nate Robinson	GSW 104 LAC 112	36	10-18	4-6	4-8	5	8	0	0	2	12	28
Martell Webster	OKC 115 MIN 110	36	3-5	1-3	0-1	1	0	1	2	1	-7	7

206 Around the League: 4/13/2012

Sat, 14 Apr 2012 10:00:09 -0400

Player	Boxscore	MIN	FGM-A	FTM-A	3PM-A	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	+/-	PTS
Terrence Williams	SAC 89 OKC 115	29	5-11	0-0	0-2	9	6	0	0	3	-12	10
Jamal Crawford	DAL 97 POR 94	27	6-17	6-6	0-6	3	2	2	0	1	10	18
Marvin Williams	ATL 109 ORL 81	31	6-12	3-3	1-4	4	3	1	0	1	12	16
Spencer Hawes	NJN 95 PHI 89	22	1-7	5-6	0-1	10	3	0	2	0	1	7
Jason Terry	DAL 97 POR 94	34	3-16	2-2	2-8	2	1	0	0	3	-3	10
Rodney Stuckey	MIL 113 DET 97	16	3-6	1-1	0-0	0	1	0	0	5	-19	7
Jon Brockman	MIL 113 DET 97	1	1-1	0-0	0-0	0	1	0	0	0	0	2