Sonics All-Draft Team

Supersonicsoul has a fun look at what it considers to be the top five Sonics ever drafted at each position, based on a very simple piece of criteria: games played. Sound overly rudimentary in the Hollinger era? Not when you look at the starting five of Payton, Dennis Johnson, Sikma, Kemp, and Scottie Pippen. That's right, Scottie Pippen, whom the Supes quickly flipped for Olden Polynice. Ouch. Double ouch: Mo Sene and Rich King are on the worst five squad. I've got nothing against the suckitude of Sene, but shouldn't Wild Bobby Ginger merit equal consideration?

Topics: Sonics

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White Women Can't Jump

I've grown to embrace the women's game, but one thing that still bugs me about the WNBA is how it actually seems to get incrementally tougher for players to score the closer they get to the rim. What would be gimmes in the men's game feel like boulder lifts in the women's game. Why? No hops. But the young lady in the above video doesn't seem to share this burden.

Topics: WNBA

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Save Our Sonics Cinema

Stalwart Sonic-savers Jason Reid and Camp Jones assiduously documented the June 16th rally outside the Federal Courthouse. Here is Part 1 of the resulting opus:

Topics: NBA

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Shaq Serenades Kobe

Warning, audio NSFW:

Props to TMZ for the vid and thanks to Nick for the tip.

Topics: NBA

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Weezy to the Heat?

The South Florida Sun-Sentinel is reporting that the Sonics and Heat are considering a trade that would send perennial underachiever Chris Wilcox and the #4 pick in this week's draft to Miami in exchange for perennial underachiever Mark Blount and the #2 pick. Suffice it to say, we're none too fond of Beasley, but he has undeniable talent — and the opportunity to cut ties with the sweet but frustratingly lackadaisical Weezy has us salivating a bit. But Weezy's entering the final year of his contract while Blount, a seven-foot loser stiff who makes Wilcox look like Kevin Garnett, still has two more left on his, so fuck this deal.

Topics: Sonics

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Say It Ain't Lopez

Scouts have also expressed concern about Lopez's congenitally misshapen right hand.

DraftExpress' Jonathan Givony is reporting that, while most Internet sites are predicting that the Sonics will draft Bayless with the fourth pick, most NBA teams with whom he spoke believe the Sonics will draft Brook Lopez.

A month or two ago, this would've seemed like a hot pick, and indeed, like any other investment market, the draft contains its hysterias and irrational fluctuations, so it can be hard to know when a rise or decline is warranted. But in this case, Lopez's predicted drop from the top half of the lottery seems justified for a couple reasons: his college shooting percentage and rebounding numbers were good but not great, and he posted epically slow times in the speed and agility drills at the combine. He's got some solid skills, but he's not fourth pick material. And from a fan's perspective—assuming we in Seattle get to remain fans—I'd much rather the Sonics build around speed than plodders. Anyone who's watched the Houston offense can recognize that Yao Ming hamstrings Tracy McGrady and the running game, and it'd be a bummer to see the Supes management do the same to Jeff Green and Kevin Durant.

UPDATE
Chad Ford is reporting that the Supes are now leaning toward super-athletic UCLA guard Russell Westbrook, but only if they can't engineer a trade (most likely Wilcox and the #4 for Mark Blount and the #2) to get Miami's pick and select Michael Beasley.

Topics: Sonics

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Storm Get Little, Get Bigger

We're a day late and a dollar short here with this news, but the Storm continued their win-or-else quest for a title this year by trading a second-round draft pick to Atlanta for 6'2" forward Camille Little, who will provide some much-needed depth on Seattle's injury-prone front line.. Full press release after the jump.

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Topics: Storm

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Even Rich Athletes End Up In Foreclosure

Rich guys like ex-Sonic Vin Baker, who is following up his failed restaurant opening with the possible forfeiture of his massive Connecticut home, evidently. I guess this is what happens when you try to party every night with Gary Payton and his Keith Richards metabolism in the prime of your career. Shawn Kemp could hack it (kind of), Vin & Tonic never could.

Topics: Sonics

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To the Olympic Trials Before the UW

The UW women's track program is about to get a lot better. One of its prize recruits is California high school phenom Christine Babcock from Irvine's Woodbridge High School. This season she set two national prep records by running 4:33.82 for the 1,600 (just shy of a mile) and 4:16.42 for the Olympic distance of 1,500 meters—qualifying for the women's Olympic Trials later this month in Eugene. High school sprinters sometimes qualify, but among distance runners, her accomplishment is almost unheard of. (You'd have to go back to Mary Decker for such a prodigy.) She's a long shot to make the team, but in this nice interview here, she discusses how she found the UW to be "the perfect place." And you better believe she was recruited by everyone—Oregon, Stanford, etc.

It's quite a coup for head coach Greg Metcalf. I hope I'm wrong, but I think only a few of his current athletes qualified for the Olympic Trials (Jordan Boase in the 400 meters, Norris Frederick in the long jump, plus a few more who only hit the "B standard" as opposed to the "A standard" necessary to compete in Beijing this August). So the program is clearly headed in the right direction.

Topics: Olympics and Track and Field

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Switch Hitter, Meet Switch Pitcher

Think you've seen all there is to see in baseball? Think again. This is one of the most unbelievable sporting scenarios I've ever witnessed.

Topics: El Beisbol

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Darryl Tapp on Pedicures, Waxing, and Kicking Big Baby's Ass

ACE for Men, a comb-centric company not to be confused with the iconic medical bandage supplier, has ramped up its efforts in the area of grooming by getting Seahawk defensive end Darryl Tapp to sign on as a spokesperson (the Celtics' Big Baby Davis and Tigers' Justin Verlander are among Tapp's fellow ACE endorsers in other sports). Tapp, a Virginia native who returns home each summer to "stay on the sofa" at his mother's house, makes no bones about his fondness for pedicures. In fact, Tapp was en route to an appointment at Good Manicure and Nails in Chesapeake when he submitted to the following Buzzer Beater exclusive Q&A.

BB: You say on the ACE website that Josh Wilson and Baraka Atkins are the two Seahawks who are most in need of some grooming attention. Why? What sort of manscaping are they in need of?

DT: Facial things. Baraka has the sideburn thing going on. He likes to keep them wild and hairy, but he needs to take care of that. And Josh has the Evan Almighty thing going on right now.

BB: Were you the sort of kid who came home with mud all over his clothes and leaves in his hair, or were you always dressed like a mini Kanye West?

DT: I was definitely the kid who had leaves in his hair. My mom and my brother had to teach me my grooming techniques.

BB: At what age did you come into your own; what was the turning point, from a personal grooming standpoint?

DT: Sophomore year in college, getting ready for a formal event on campus — a fraternity dance. You gotta step up your game.

BB: Have you ever waxed anything on your body? If so, what?

DT: No waxing. That's inappropriate.

BB: Would you ever wax a teammates' back hair, if he was really in need?

DT: No. That's inappropriate as well. He's gotta ask his wife or girlfriend or a loved one to do that. I can't help him.

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Topics: Seahawks

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Who Knew KG Had a Thing for Short Irishmen?

But really, he does.

Topics: NBA

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Jeff Clement Likes Fishing (and Baseball)

Imagine you’re R.A. Dickey last night: You’re 33-years-old making only your 36th big league start in your career and just your third since April 6, 2006. You’re 10 -16 with a 6.46 ERA. Your fastball isn’t so fast and your best pitch, a knuckleball, only works when the weather’s warm, but your home club is Seattle. You’re not quite big league material but you were pitcher of the year playing AAA ball in Nashville in the Pacific Coast League. It’s probably safe to say that R.A. Dickey will never earn a spot on a rotation and as he walked towards the dugout after his first inning last night, already down a run, I felt bad for him. Here’s a guy who had obviously busted his ass to make it to the big leagues, had done whatever it took. He picked up the knuckleball in 2005 when he was about 30-years-old but he’s never quite earned any job security. And as any big leaguer will tell you, the difference between the farm system and the majors is huge. So I had some sympathy for R.A. Dickey, a man who had tasted the fine wine of the majors but was going to spend most of his career drinking cheap domestics.

Then, the Mariners came to the plate last night and the scoreboard in centerfield started flashing those meaningless bits of trivia that tell you that Ichiro likes to eat rice before games and Jose Lopez’s favorite music is salsa. But when Jeff Clement came to the plate, the scoreboard told me that his dream job (besides baseball) is professional fishing.

I took it as an insult and I hope the 24,163 in attendance did too. Not that I blame Clement — I’m sure he was just answering questions — but to tell an entire stadium full of people — most of whom would give anything to trade positions with any Mariner — that a player could have a different dream job is pure horseshit. These guys play professional fucking baseball for a living and most of them make more in a year then I will in my entire life. Suddenly, I didn’t feel so bad for R.A. Dickey, or even Richie Sexson, who has struggled mightily this season.

The Mariners lost again last night 8-3 against a Florida Marlins team that didn’t deserve it. The M’s out hit Florida 13-11 but stranded everybody. Afterwards, the locker room was as quiet as a funeral home and I’m sure that for some players, their career with the Mariners was indeed dead. (See the post below) But I don’t feel bad for any of them. I love my job, but I’d trade places with any Mariner — even Richie Sexson or R.A. Dickey — in a heartbeat.

Topics: El Beisbol

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McLaren Out, Riggleman In

KJR is reporting that the M's will anounce the dismissal of manager John McLaren at an 11:30 press conference, and that bench coach Jim Riggleman will take his place on an interim basis through the end of the season. Just as removing Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, and Kevin Garnett from the Celtics' title-clinching blowout made a ton of symbolic sense, we're left scratching our heads as to why Johnny Mac wasn't shown the door at the same time as Bavasi. But better a couple days late than never.

Topics: Mariners

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The Shocker Strikes Only Once

Monday’s Save Our Sonics rally was the roar of a little David determined to stand up to a rich, conniving Goliath. We enjoy this: There’s nothing sports fans like more than a good underdog story. It’s us against the owners, the league, and the world. A good scenario might entail cheering for a scrappy, undermanned squad for two years and hoping for a long-shot championship to keep the team here, or at least glorify our martyrdom. Is there any spectator experience more exhilarating than watching one’s favorite team—dismissed by all except its staunchest supporters—shock the world?

The problem is, the world can be shocked by that team only once. (Fool me once, the President might begin.) After that, the thrills diminish, and there’s no way to pack the pipe tight enough to match the first high. Or one is left with a variation of the madonna/whore complex, unable to support the team that no longer possesses the underdog purity that was its original draw. Worst of all, one can be so addicted to the thrill of underdog victory that one becomes what one previously hated: the obnoxious fan of the favorite who disingenuously claims disadvantage.

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Topics: Damon Agnos: The Bounce to Ecstasy!

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