April 20, 2002

Without a real plan for this column, I think I'll just try to put together a series of thoughts I have about this series. Some of them I've shared with others already, others are virgin territory.

Let me begin by saying that I really have a feeling about this series that reminds me of the 2000 Playoffs. Of course, that might just be because it's the only first-round series I can really remember where the Sonics came in as the underdog, as they obviously are this season. I vaguely recall the 1992 playoffs, when the Sonics upset the Warriors, but my memory of it is hazy. I remember keeping the TV tuned to TNT even though the first or second game, whichever it was down in Oakland, was blacked out up here. I was hoping that they might still show us the halftime show! Game three, as I recall it, was played while I was on a plane, headed to Orlando to go to Disneyworld. I tried hard to find coverage of game four down there, but our hotel room didn't have TNT. I also learned then that I don't want to live on the East Coast -- at the 11:00 news, which was staying up particularly late for a 10-year-old, the game was still only at halftime.

What I don't remember about that series is whether I felt the Sonics had a chance to win it going in. Probably I did. That's how 10-year-old minds work. Actually, I can't even say I remember if I thought the Sonics would beat Utah. I wasn't paying particularly close attention to the Sonics at that point. I got stuck working through game one, barely watched game two, and was busy out of town during game three. Finally, game four I got to attend. It was a good day which I will always remember, in that I got a full scholarship to the University of Washington that afternoon. Then that evening, in addition to the Sonics winning, my best friend from high school asked a girl who was way too good for him to prom. It was a pretty good day.

By that time, my brother and I had taken to describing the Sonics as "Stayin' Alive", and playing an old '70's tape with the BeeGees song on it whenever possible. I may yet break that out this year, depending on the circumstances. By game five, I definitely thought the Sonics were destined to upset the Jazz, who would then tumble hard. Unfortunately, I was a year early with that prediction, but damn if the Sonics didn't come close. The fun of that series started a Kevin renaissance of Sonics hoops that continues to this very day.

Anyway, I think that Utah series was awfully similar to this one, other than the fact that the Spurs are way better than that Jazz team was. The Sonics are coming in on a down note after a poor April, and already we're hearing about lineup changes. Next, we need a Frank Hughes-sparked controversy.

If the Sonics are to win this series, I think they must do it in the same manner they nearly upset Utah. Especially with the injuries to Lewis and Radmanovic, I think the Spurs will hold serve at home. The Sonics can seize momentum at home in games three and four, send it back to Texas, and shock the world. Not that I think that will happen, mind you, but I sure wouldn't mind.

It is true that before we start writing off the Sonics we need look only at when the Sonics were the team in the Spurs' shoes.

No, I don't mean 1994 by that comment. I mean 1997. And 1998. Both times, the Sonics were the second seed, and both times they received a real scare from a seventh seed that went ahead two games to one, forcing the Sonics to win two straight to advance. In '97, that was the Phoenix Suns, and in '98 the Minnesota Timberwolves. Honestly and objectively, I don't think either of those two teams is as good as this year's Sonic squad. Such is the curse of the new West.

Of course, both of those two teams probably had higher Q ratings than the Sonics. Other than Gary Payton, I'm not sure that the national media -- and many of the local columnists (yes, I'm looking at you, Art Thiel) -- know that much about the team.

I was watching TNT's Playoff Preview show this evening, and Kenny "The Jet" Smith bet Charles Barkley 100 bucks he couldn't name three Sonic reserves. Charles came up with two -- Randy Livingston (who he played with in Houston) and Shammond Williams. He also named Art Long, who apparently doesn't count because he's not on the playoff roster. Ernie Johnson then mangled the names of some of the guys he missed, including Peja Drobnjak and Olumide Oyedeji. I'm not even going to attempt to recreate Johnson's mispronunciations, but suffice it to say they were not real pretty.

Those of you who know me pretty well, or at least my attitudes about basketball, could probably guess that I'm not a real big believer in the importance of "playoff experience". Maybe it's just me, but I don't think the game really changes that much. The object is still to put the ball in the hoop and keep your opponent from doing the same. Apparently, it changes. I guess I'll never know for sure, seeing as my odds of playing a playoff game in the NBA aren't very good. Personally, it all reminds me of the classic Super Nintendo game Tecmo Super Football. When you played a regular season game in that game, there was this nice, happy background music. Then when the playoffs began, there was this really ominous sounding music, like somebody was dying.

Even if I don't think playoff experience is important, I still think experiencing the playoffs will help the young guys move together as a team next season. And it really disappoints me that Earl Watson was left off the roster. If he was the best backup point last week (and he apparently was), why should that change this week? Yes, I know, Livingston could be used at small forward, but let me put it this way -- if Randy Livingston is playing small forward against San Antonio, the Sonics are screwed no matter what. It just seems funny to me that they would talk for quite some time about how important the post-season experience was for the young kids, and then leave one of them off the roster.

What really worries me is that the Watson decision is symptomatic of a larger trend, Nate McMillan really changing his style in the post-season. I hope he doesn't go away from what has been successful for the Sonics for six months just because now it's the playoffs. I also hope that Nate doesn't start overcoaching. That's the best thing Phil Jackson does, in my opinion. My English teacher talked to us about a quote he had heard from Denzel Washington where Denzel said his secret to success was getting out of his own way. I think that's true in sports, with coaches. Sometimes the really important thing for them is to not screw their team up. Nate hasn't screwed up the Sonics at all so far, let's hope he doesn't start now.

Bottom line? San Antonio in four. No more discussion about it . . . let's just see what happens.