Locked on Sports

Sonics 101 Bulls 97 – FINAL SCORE
Good win for the Sups
This team desperately needed a win, but the Bulls have lost 8 in a row and really looked poor. I am not sure this convinced me the world will be greatly different.
They play the final portion without Ray Allen
Sonics did allow 57 points in the 2nd half after a brilliant defensive 1st half.
Ridnour was much better
Reggie, Danny and Vitaly don’t play
Petro and Swift play 39 of the center minutes


Sonics 93 Bulls 87 with 2:19 left in the 4th Quarter
Ray Allen will not return
Sonics are running everything through Lewis in the post

Sonics 88 Bulls 84 with 4:24 left in the 4th Quarter
Petro fouls out with 32 minutes and 9 rebounds.
Swift has 7 minutes 5 fouls
Bulls have scored on 10 of 14 possessions in the 4th Q


Sonics 82 Bulls 75 with 8:01 left in the 4th Q
The Bulls had the ball on two possessions with a chance to make it a one possession game and failed on both
Sonics put the Bulls in the penalty at the 9:14 mark
Ray Allen goes to the locker-room with an eye injury.
Flip enters for Allen
Sonics are playing tight. They have lacked confidence all season.


Sonics 79 Bulls 73 with 10.01 left in the 4th Quarter
Reggie Evans and Danny Fortson have not played
Swift struggling against Othella Harrington and picks up fouls 3,4,5
In the first two possessions the Sonics young centers commit three fouls which puts the Sonics in jeopardy of getting into the penalty early.


Sonics 77 Bulls 68 at the end of 3 quarters
The Sonics answer a 7-0 wun with an 8-0 run of their own.
The combo of Wilkins and Murray on the floor together doesn’t work.
Sonics allow 28 points in the 3rd Quarter.
Scott Skiles went with the end of his bench and may have left them in too long.


Sonics 68 Bulls 56 with 3:52 left in the 3rd Quarter
The Bulls are beginning to get dribble penetration
The Sonics ball movement is far superior tonight.
Petro is surviing and not getting into foul trouble.
Sonics lead 64-52 when Allen goes out.


Sonics 62 Bulls 48 with 7:47 in the 3rd Quarter
The Sonics are playing well.
Hill has talked about having his big men run the floor and he believes both Swift and Petro can out run other bigs. Petro just did and got a follow dunk.
The Sonics are really pushing the tempo.
Ridnour is creating more tonight then he has all season.


Sonics 51 Bulls 40 at the half
The Sonics have only allowed 40 points in the 1st half. They allowed 38 in the 1st Quarter the other night.
The Sonics floor spacing while running the floor is strong tonight. This may all be amazing for Rashard’s game. He is only 2 of 7 but this team is being built around his talents under Bob Hill
Sonics explode in the final few minutes of the half. They close on a 13-3 run.
They have a 20-5 advantage at the free throw line.
Very good first half.
They are pushing the ball up the floor and going to the rack.


Sonics 36 Bulls 35 with 2:%9 left in the 2nd Quarter
The Sonics are doing a great job sealing the paint.
The two 7 footers seems to be having an impact on the defensive end
The Sonics offense has lost its flow. While Flip was on the floor the Sups didn’t seem sure what they were trying to do.
Petro and Swift have played all the center minutes.


Sonics 31 Bulls 25 with 8:10 left in the 2nd Quarter
This is a good match-up for Petro and Swift with Chandler out and the only centers for Chicago Sweetney and Harrington
Swift has really been working hard and has changed his body fat in the last 3 months from 14% to 7%. His time with Dwiight Daub the Sonics strength and conditioning coach has been extensive.
Swift just missed a turnaround jumper in the post but it looked smooth.
The Sonics defensive close outs are much better


Sonics 24 Bulls 24 at the end of 1 Quarter
We have seen Rashard in the post more and we just say the lock and lob that Bob Hill talked to us about in the post-game interview last week.
Kirk Hinrick is lighting Seattle up
Robert Swift scored
The Sonics length in the paint with Swift and Petro has been successful in the 1st Quarter.
Hill is working Lewis. Remember Allen is out of the game with 2 fouls.


Sonics 10 Bulls 10 with 7:30 left in the 1st Quarter
The first play of the game was what Bob Hill dreamed of. Lewis in the post. He gets doubled and kicks it out to the top to Vlady who hits a three.
The defense does not look noticeably different
Chicago is not a good offensive team and that is obvious.
Ray Allen checks out with 2 fouls with the Sonics trailing 10-8. This has been the Sonics biggest problem this year. Playing without Allen. They have averaged being outscored 1 point every two minutes.


Storylines
1) Bob Hill's debut
2) Vlady as a starter
3) The team back in Luke's hand
4) Petro and Swift

Locked on Sports: Shoddy defense drove Weiss off the cliff: "The Roadrunner cartoon had a recurring scene in which his nemesis, Wile E. Coyote, would sprint full speed over the edge of a cliff. For a brief moment, the Coyote would stay suspended in air, looking around until, all of sudden, he would look down and go screaming toward earth.

At 13-17 the Sonics were in a similar position. The fall was coming -- and it was going to be colossal.

Losing streaks were coming. Substantial losing streaks were coming, 15 of 20, 25 of 30 or worse. That is why the ax fell Tuesday.

The mystery of the Sonics' first 30 games is not how a 52-win team went to below .500, but how a team playing the worst defense in the history of the NBA had actually won 13 games."

The word out of Chicago is that Bob Hill is thinking about starting the following starting line-up.

PG: Luke Ridnour
SG: Ray Allen
SF: Rashard Lewis
PF: Vladimir Radmanovic
C: Johan Petro

In addition, Robert Swift will be active and will play as well.

THE FIRING
I have three different thoughts on the firings.

This is a sad day because Bob Weiss is a very good man. More importantly, he is a good basketball coach and he is a great basketball mind. Had the players been able to motivate themselves the way professionals should be able to this could have been a really wonderful relationship. Weiss believes in a positive climate and those are the types of climates that last and foster success.

Secondly, something had to be done. I have been saying for weeks that this team is on the edge of a colossal fall. Their defense is so putrid that it was going to catch up with them. It was also clear that the inability to play defense was not changing. The last 10 games were worse then the previous 20. The Sonics were on the verge of a huge fall and management may have just caught it quick enough.

I hope Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis are looking in the mirror today and feeling very guilty. They asked for this man and then they died on a vine for him. The players are the ones that should feel this in their heart. They asked for Weiss they knew what they were getting and they didn’t respond. That is the real issue here, is these players didn’t respond to an environment they requested.

WILL IT CHANGE EVERYTHING

This move may help, but it is a masking agent on a team with issues. Whoever the coach is they don’t have anyone on the perimeter that can defend the ball and there are no shot blockers inside to prevent the constant quest to go the rack.

In addition, the chemistry that was so fantastic last year is broken in this locker-room. Some of the guys got money and some didn’t and it has split the locker-room and the camaraderie is gone.

It is on the players much more than any coaches

Bob Hill wrote a book on how to coach basketball.
Here is are a few of the comments from the opening pages.
“A coach must be able to respond to his player’s question about strategy for success. A team’s core leaders must support their coach’s philosophy for the coach and the team to be successful.”
"Basketball was invented to be played at a quick pace."
"Anything done at a quick pace is subject to error and anything subject to error is unpredictable. A coach’s job is to eliminate unpredictability without interfering with the player’s innate ability to play."

I just spoke with a long time NBA assistant coach.

Here is what he said about Bob Hill. Overall he was very positive. He called him very detailed oriented. A more intense man then Bob Weiss. Historically, defensively his teams don't switch. It is more of a guard your man or their will be repricussions approach. On offense he runs a more screen and move style game then just the drive and kick game the Sonics have been playing. In addition, you can anticipate a huge dose of Rashard Lewis in the post.

I will have more as the day goes on.

Sorry I have been a little slow in getting this up. I have been following this story all morning and am still tracking it right now. Here is a quick breakdown.

FIRING OF WEISS
It is clear the Sonics front office felt the lack of effort and lack of defense was not going to change. Word is that training camp didn’t have the structure and demands that the Sonics had hoped and the concern started before the season even started.

Against Memphis Howard Schultz watched the game from behind the Sonics bench because he wanted to see what was taking place and how the team was being lead.
Obviously, he didn’t like what he discovered.

The Sonics players asked for Weiss and didn’t perform. It in a lot of ways this falls square on the shoulders of Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis.

HIRING OF HILL

Bob Hill was hired until the end of the season and was not given a multi-year deal.

The word around the league is that Bob Hill is an extremely confident almost cocky man. He has been called a taskmaster. The Sonics hope that some of his confidence will rub off on the team. According to people in the league, both his stay in Indiana and his time in San Antonio ended in personality conflicts.

At Indiana his teams were up-tempo good offensive teams and below average defensive teams. They rarely forced turnovers, but improved every year in FG% defense. Offensively, they were great shooting teams that were ok rebounding and a little loose wit the ball.

In San Antonio, Hill had two great years before being let go in his third year. Again his teams were up-tempo, but this time with the presence of David Robinson was an outstanding defensive team. Again, his teams didn’t force turnovers and didn’t offensive rebound.

From his past experiences you should anticipate a high tempo effective offense that gets back defensively without much offensive board work and then doesn’t gamble or attempt to force turnovers.

Pacers 115 Sonics 96 – FINAL SCORE
The Pacers were without O’neal, Tinsley and Artest and they drop 115.
This was the best chance to win on the road
The Pacers had lost 4 in a row
The Sonics were so dreadful defensively I am not able to describe it.
No one player to single out, not one concept to single out. Just a question of effort and
Pride.


Pacers 89 Sonics 71 at the end of 3 Quarters
I really have no idea how the coaches and players watch the film. It has to be just mortifying. There was a rebound a moment ago and two Sonics players just never moved, never jumped and never made an effort. What do they think when sit in the room with their teammates and watch film.
Now on the next play someone just left their best three point shooter wide open. Again how do you explain yourself.
Then on the final play of the quarter no one stopped the ball and the Pacers got another three. Do you care? How do you let this happen. I am mystified.


Pacers 78 Sonics 60 with 4:20 in the 3rd Quarter
Petro commits 4 fouls in 6 minutes of action. He is not ready to play. Knock that option off the list.
It is really hard to come from behind when you can’t defend anyone.
Statistically the defense is getting worse rather then getting better.


Pacers 70 Sonics 47 with 10:00 to play 3rd Quarter
The Sonics start Ridnour, Allen, Lewis, Evans and Petro
What is next?
Earlier tonight Weiss said he is not comfortable with the youngsters yet. I guess a 63 point half can make you comfortable.
7-0 run by the Pacers to open the half


Pacers 63 Sonics 47 at the half
Line of the night from KC – “the Sonics have really picked up their defense in the Quarter as the Pacers are shooting 60%.” The scary thing is that is true.
In the first quarter the Sonics defensive efficiency was 183. Think about that it means the Pacers were averaging 1.83 points every possession. Think about it. That is unreal.


Pacers 49 Sonics 38 with 6.33 left in the 2nd Quarter
Damien Wilkins has come off the bench to defend Stephen Jackson and is slowing him down and Wilkins is making the hustle plays. This is why Wilkins is better off the bench with the ability to defend any position or play any position on offense.
Ridnour should start with Wilkins coming off the bench. Wilkins versatility may mean that he closes games at the point, but he losses that energy when he starts.
Flip is having a good offensive game.


Pacers 44 Sonics 31 8:38 left in the 2nd Q
Here is why Seattle still has a shot in this game. Indiana is not as good defensively as they once were. Without Artest they don’t have that personality. In other words, with this size lead they will relax and the Sonics could get hot.
The Sonics defense has picked up – this means the Pacers have only scored on 3 of the last 6 possessions rather then 16 of 22 in the 1st Quarter. We are dealing with different standards.


Pacers 38 Sonics 23 at the end of 1 Quarter
Watch the Sonics defensively and they don’t have a single player how raises their hands above their waste on defense.
Not a lot to say. The Pacers without O’Neal, Artest and Tinsley scored 38 points in the 1st Q. That is terrible. Absurdly terrible.
It is a real mystery. Do the players not have any pride, do they not have the talent, are the coaching schemes bad? I don’t know the answer I know this. The coaching staff emphasized defense all camp. They have pounded and pounded every practice and it is not clicking at all.


Pacers 11 Sonics 2 with 8:16 left in the ast Quarter
Disastrous start to the game.
The Pacers have scored on 5 straight possessions and all of them have been laty-ups.
Rick Carlise has gone big and is playing Stephen Jackson at the 2 forcing Allen to guard him.



News items and Storylines
Jermaine O'Neal is not going to play for the Pacers tonight
Jamal Tinsley is also out.
Wilkins will start at point for the Sonics. Weiss has said he will only play two point guards.
Danny Fortson is active and available.
Radmanovic is mired in a miserable slump. Will he be in the rotation?

GRIZZLIES 100 SONICS 96 -- FINAL SCORE
Their were portions tonight where the Sonics played like they had it, the magical it.
The defense was terrible for the majority of the night.
Pau Gasol was the best player on the floor
Wilkins did well at the point tonight.

Grizz 98 Sonics 96 with 3.3 seconds left in the 4th Quarter
Sonics got killed down 2 on a unlucky bounce. They forced Bobby Jackson into a tough shot and he got it blocked but he got it back and flipped it to Dahanty Jones and he scored as the shot clock expired.
Ray took one of those pull up 3’s early in the clock that when they go down is awesome but this one rimmed out and it left Seattle down 6 with 2:00 left and Memphis had the ball.


Grizz 92 Sonics 88 with 3:25 left in the 4th Quarter
This was about as low as the team had been, Sonics have two stops in the 4th Quarter, it had become disgusting and Bobby Jackson just went waltzing through the lane with no resistance.
Then a spark. Wilkins jumped into a passing lane and had an impressive dunk going the other way. It got the crowd sparked. Then the ball bounced their direction because of hustle by Wilkins and then Flip played defense and hit a three off a lewis doubleteam in the post.


Grizz 88 Sonics 77 with 7:05 left in the 4th Quarter
Sonics have no offensive rebounds in the second half. The Grizz are 29th in the NBA in defensive rebounding.
The Sonics aren’t playing like a team any longer. It is so obvious when you see it that when it doesn’t happen it looks even worse.
Pau Gasol is conducting every thing and the other guys are knocking down the shots. He is either finding the open guy or every guy is open.


Grizzlies 82 Sonics 77 with 8:42 left in the 4th Quarter
Shane Battier has 5 three’s he is having a big time night.
The defense is not nearly as good as it was earlier in the half.
Luke Ridnour has played just 5 minutes tonight all in the 1st half.


Grizzlies 75 Sonics 68 at the end of 3rd Quarter
In the first half Gasol had 9 to 10 scoring attempts. The key to the second half is keeping those down in the second half. In the third quarter he had 2.
Nick Collison is short arming his jumper and has missed two open shots that he has to make
Same story as the first Q when Flip enters the world falls apart. In his two minutes the Sonics were outscored by 5 points. It can’t be all him or could it be?


Sonics 68 Grizzlies 68 with 2:27 left in the 3rd Quarter
The shots the Grizzlies are making are shots you can live with. They are tough looks by their least good offensive players and they won’t go in all night long.
The Sonics are not getting beat at the basket. They are cutting off the lanes. They are playing a lot of zone and keeping the Grizz on the outside.
The Sonics are blasting Gasol. The book on Gasol is he gets tired and soft if you work on him. I wonder if that isn’t true about any player and once a player gets labeled that way he gets blasted every night


Sonics 64 Grizzlies 63 with 5:50 left in the 3rd Quarter
There is the lead. Ray Allen 3.
Great basketball by Seattle to open the half.
They look better as team. Their interaction has been strong. Their communication looks better. It is really encouraging.

Grizzlies 61 Sonics 59 with 7:28 left in the 3rd Quarter
Battier just fouled Reggie coming down to dig and after the play Eddie Jones looked at Battier and was like “dude that is Reggie Evans and Battier said I know.
The Sonics are playing great basketball to open the half. They are playing smart, like teammates and it will pay off. Great picks, great plays, good defensive intensity.
Gasol is killing them in the post – he is getting doubled every time and he is doing a great job of finding the open man.


Grizzlies 55 Sonics 50 at the half
The last two possessions have shown how good Battier and Jones are defensively. Allen and Lewis will have to stay calm and together all night because nothing will be easy.
Lewis just made another stupid play, fouling out of frustration while in the penalty. He has made more of those recently then I am used to.
Bob Weiss has done a great job calling timeouts in between a players free throws to ice him for the second one and forcing him to miss
Off Efficiency numbers – Grizzlies 126 Sonics 123 – league average is 102.


Grizzlies 49 Sonics 45 with 2:20 left in the 2nd Quarter
Sonics have gotten sloppy with the basketball
Vlady is a shadow of the player he was last year. He was the key for the team last year and without him they have to find an entire new identify.
Wilkins adds a great energy to the team


Grizzlies 30 Sonics 26 at the end of the 1st Quarter
Reggie’s offense is much better but when he faces a team with shot-blockers he has to realize he can’t get the shot off.
Flip enters the game and the other teams point guard scores back to back baskets and the Sonics go from being up 1 to down 4. That is in one and half minutes of action. Nice work.
I

am not sure if Flip's shoulders hurt from shooting so much but he seems incapable of raising his arms to effect a shooter.
Sonics defense was not in the arena in the first quarter. They got just 5 stops in the entire quarter.


Sonics 24 Grizzlies 23 with 1:52 left in the 1st Quarter
The last two possessions show you how great Rashard has become offensively.
Rashard went to the post on Shane Battier who is one of the best defenders in the NBA and their was nothing Battier could do to defend his hook to the middle.
The next possession Lewis was on the perimeter one on one on Gasol and drove baseline to beat Gasol when the help came he dished out to the wing and then the Sonics great ball movement lead the ball back to Rashard who was in the corner for a 3. That is awesome


Grizzlies 19 Sonics 14 with 5:25 left in the 1st Quarter
Gasol is awesome so far.
You wonder why Atlanta is Atlanta they traded Pau Gasol for Abdur-Rahim. Ouch
Sonics are going to bring the double to Gasol everytime. It is going to come from the top.
Memphis is blitzing Ray Allen which means doubling him off the pick n roll. This is popular manner of defending the Sonics.
The amount of Grizzlies arms around the basket is just amazing. Whenever Seattle goes to the basket they are in the midst of a jungle of elbows and arms. It is a remarkable contrast to what happens around the Sonics basket


Storylines
1) Grizz's will be without Damon Stoudamire, done for the season and Mike Miller. Where will they get their three point shooting?
2) Great defenders on the Sonics stars -- Eddie Jones on Ray and Shane Battier on Rashard.
3) Damien Wilkins at the point guard. Will this be the answer?

ESPN.com - NFL - Smith: Hawks not settling for seconds: "As good as Chicago's defense is, it would be an upset if the Seahawks don't emerge from the NFC.

Should Seattle meet the Colts again, it'll be interesting, for sure. If I had to make a prediction today, I'd pick the better team to win it all.

Right now, that team is the Seahawks."

SONICS 112 NUGS 105 -- FINAL SCORE
That is a gutty win on a back to back in the altitude without your point guard.
Ray Allen did what all-star do and carried the team to a win.
Great defense on Anthony forcing the Nugs only scorer to miss the final 8 shots.
Reggie Miller after the game on TNT ripped the Sonics saying if they have to have Allen shoot 8 of 14 from 3 to win it will be a long season.
The Sonics did a nice job of eliminating the transition game.
Give Wilkins a big thumbs up for handling the role as a point guard



Sonics 109 Nugs 105 with 1:04 left in the 4th Quarter
Sonics have played very well but all of a sudden the Sonics have started making terrible plays.
It started with Wilkins taking a 3 that he shouldn’t have taken.
On the rebound Evans was over exuberant and fouled Anthony on the rebound.
Then totally inexplicably Lewis got a T --- how do you do that.
The Sonics have been defending Anthony great with double teams and good help defense.
Ray Allen has 10 pts in the Q
Bob Weiss just iced the free throw shooter.


Sonics 98 Nuggets 96 with 6:38 left in the 4th Quarter
D Wilkins with a steal and fast break dunk to take the lead
Ray and Rashard both bury big three’s to answer Nuggets
The Sonics offensive performance is really impressive considering who they are playing.
Sonics have scored on five straight possessions
12 three’s for the game


Nugs 87 Sonics 86 with 8:55 left in the 4th Quarter
87 to 86 and the Sonics have a chance for the lead and they have a no pass possession and the Murray, of course, misses.
Ray and Rashard scoreless in the 4th Quarter


Nuggets 85 Sonics 82 at the end of the 3rd Quarter
Look for back to back and altitude to start to have an impact on the Sonics
Sonics defense improved late in the 3rd to keep them in the game.
This would be really gutty if Seattle pulls it out.
They must get someone other then Ray and Rashard to carry some of the mail.
Great hustle play by Vlady (that has been an oxymoron for most of the season) to close the quaerter


Nuggets 76 Sonics 69 with 6:00 left in the 3rd Quarter
Carmelo is killing the Sonics. He goes to the middle and knows their will be no impact. He drove baseline the help came from Vitaly but it was so passive that the Anthony got around the him and to the basket.
The Sonics have no attitude or aggressiveness to their defense


Nuggets 61 Sonics 58 at the half.
The Sonics transition defense is awful.
The Nuggets are getting way too many people free in the open court
Boykins is getting the Sonics again he had 12 points in the Q
Flip Murray’s defense is so bad it is hard to imagine how he sits through a film session.
Anthony had 23 points in the first half
The Sonics defense disappeared late in the 2nd quarter when the Nuggets got transition.
Ray Allen has been outstanding.
No one is picking up the punch for Luke or Danny
The lack of Camby changes the game entirely.


Sonics 42 Nuggets 41 with 5:21 left in the 2nd Quarter
The Nuggets are switching all picks and the Nugs are not getting any closer on Ray Allen.
Sonics have 10 second chance points
We told you in the pre-game show that the Sonics should be able to dominate the glass and that has been true.
Sonics transition defense needs to tighten.


Nuggets 34 Sonics 33 with 9:30 left in the 2nd Quarter
Flip and Mateen both turned it over
Sonics are getting beat on hustle plays by Denver
If they keep the Nuggets on the outside they will struggle to score


Sonics 27 Nugs 25 at the end of 1st
Sonics are doing a good job defensively keeping the Nugs on the perimeter other then the lob passes.
Rashard has been strong.
Once again the Sonics are -4 with Ray on the bench in just 3 minutes
Anthony is being kept outside but they are giving him too much room..



Sonics 25 Nuggets 19 with 255 left in the 1st Q
Slow start by the Sonics has been followed by 14-2 run
Turnovers were an issue early as three Sonics turns lead to Nuggets dunks.
Rashard has been involved much more then last night
Flip enters for Ray
Let's see how the Sonics do without Ray?

The Sonics will be without Luke Ridnour again this evening. Ridnour is still unable to keep food down and is experiencing nausea. Therefore, he was unable to join the team in Denver.

The Sonics will go with Flip Murray, Damien Wilkins and Mateen Cleeves at the point.

The Nuggets have been playing very small without the services of Kenyon Martin and Marcus Camby. At times they have fielded a line-up with Andre Miller, Earl Boykins and Earl Watson. This will stress the Sonics depth.

There still is no medical explination to Ridnour condition.

In today’s Tacoma News Tribune, Frank Hughes, wrote about talks between the Nuggets and the Sonics about a Flip Murray for Earl Watson trade.

I have spoken with some of my sources in the league and they confirm that these talks are considerable and legitimate.

The Nuggets are also in the midst of the Ron Artest talks with the Pacers and Watson would be a key piece to the Artest deal so the Sonics are forced to be in a bit of a holding pattern.

To make the deal work inside the salary cap the Sonics would have to include some other pieces.

The Nuggets would be interested in this deal because they don’t have a shooting guard and are desperate for players that can create offense.

WOLVES 108 SONICS 95 - FINAL SCORE
Too much against a good defensive team to play with out their point guards
22 turnovers
shot distrubution a problem
poor defensive intensity.

Minnesota 90 Sonics 74 with 6:44 left in the 4th Quarter
Minnesota 7-0 run – ball game
KG dunk, Wally jumper, and a Wally 3.
Fortson had the ball down 8 and committed a silly turnover/foul.
Before we all go nuts about another loss. The amount of times Seattle needed a point guard tonight was amazing. Murray was playing with two dislocated fingers and he was awful and they really missed Luke keeping things together.
Not a lot of teams win in this scenario.
Another episode in the expolosions of Danny Fortson as he was ejected in a timeout
Danny can’t handle any prosperity.


Wolves 80 Sonics 72 with 8:45 left in the 4th Quarter
Sorry for the score typo on the last post
Sonics get it within 10.
The Wolves have lost 5 straight close games. They will be just as tight as Seattle.
In addition, Minnesota will struggle to score if the Sonics defend.
Shot distribution will be vital down the stretch.
Wilkins is still at the point.


Wolves 79 Sonics 69 at the end of 3 quarters
Sonics end the Quarter on an impressive 15-3 run.
Again with Jaric on the bench and KG on the bench for the end of the run.
Wilkins is now playing the poin

Wolves 65 Sonics 47 with 8:00 left in the 3rd Quarter
The rout is on
Flip Murray is awful tonight. As good as he was the other night he is that bad tonight. Oh my. He just drove in the lane with no idea where he was going. His turnover to assist ratio tonight is 3 to1. Which is ok if it is an assist to turnover rate but he is a turnover to assist rate. Also he is 1 of 10.
Ray Allen no shots in the second half.


Wolves 60 Sonics 45 with 9:37 left in the 3rd Quarter
Griffin just ran from outside the three point lane into the paint by three Sonics players, none of them, none of them, none of them touched him. He went through the lane totally untouched. How does this happen ?????? He caught the ball and threw up a shot that was goaltended. It is a miracle that nobody is willing to touch anyone.


Wolves 51 Sonics 41 at the half

Wolves 41 Sonics 33 with 2:47 left in the 2nd Quarter
The Fortson factor once again 15-4 run
Sonics continue the run
At the end of the night we may see the value of Ridnour. The shot distribution seems totally out of whack tonight. Allen has not had a shot in the last 11 possessions and Lewis has only had 1.
If the Sonics are going to complete this comeback that has to rectified.


Wolves 38 Sonics 24 with 6:00 in the 2nd Quarter
As we mentioned in the pre-game show look inside the numbers the Wolves two best Roland Ratings players, judging how a team performs when you are on the floor compared to when you are on the bench, KG and Marko Jaric were on the bench and the Sonics went on a little 7-0 run to quell the embarrassment.
The wolves are bad enough offensively that the Sonics could get back in this game.


Wolves 30 Sonics 15 at the end of the 1st Quarter
A miserable quarter
The way the Wolves go to the basket you would think Seattle has 5 midgets on the floor.
The Wolves are a great defensive team and they are stifling the Sonics in every aspect.
The Sonics turnovers were brutal. They finished with 7 for the Q and at one point turned it over 4 of 7 possessions.
Once again when Ray left the floor the Sonics feel apart. Unofficially without Ray on the floor the Wolves outscored the Sonics 7-0. The Sonics average being outscored a point every two minutes he is on the bench.


Wolves 16 Sonics 10 with 6:30 left in the 1st Quarter
Flip Murray starts at the point
Sonics transition defense is very poor early.
Reggie Evans is matched on KG and it is a terrible mismatch down low. This is a good example of how the Sonics miss Jerome James. Last year the Sonics would start JJ on KG and he would beat him at times but he was never comfortable being guarded by a large 7’1 guy.


Flip Murray jsut finished shot around before the game and it sounds as though he may well be on the active roster and be able to play tonight. I will update you when we know more.