Quite frankly, we're losers committed to winning. The roster we have is not and will likely never be good enough to win a championship. However, management cannot risk trading Rashard Lewis or Ray Allen because Seattle fans are extraordinarily fickle. If they think the team isn't committed to winning, the Sonics won't have a shot at a new arena deal. So, we continue on the course of mediocrity and hope a season like last year happens more often than not. Our general manager has made some brilliant moves, but the team president has made some idiotic ones. Even if the team had cap room to sign free agents, nobody major would want to come to Seattle because of the average basketball environment and the fact that it's so far away from the East Coast. I can't even blame Wally Walker or Howard Schultz for everything that's happened to this team. A lot of different things have happened to make this team the way it is. At least the next couple of years should be interesting.
I was going to post something similar, but more along the lines of 'where do we go from here?', especially now that we've rid ourselves of guys who apparently didn't fit into our long term plans (except for Fortson). More specifically, what are we missing that would make us a perennial playoff team and even a championship contender? Let's look at our roster: Center - Swift, Petro Seems adequate, maybe even better than that if they continue gain experience and improve like they have this season. I can see them both at 15-10 in the near future. Conclusion: Good enough, no change. Small Forward - Rashard, Damien Wilkins Rashard's played better than his All-Star year last year, but the question remains (at least in my mind) if he's a premier 3 in this league. His shooting is top 5, but the rest of his game - creating, rebounding, defense - and intagibles/leadership are average to sub-par. Even before his bad toe in the playoffs last year he was starting to fade. As someone said earlier, if only he had the fire that he displayed while trying to get into that All-Star party. Wilkins to me is a decent backup 3, but he really nees to work on his shot and his defense is good but not great. Conclusion: Need to upgrade. Maybe Gelable's the answer Power Forward - Collison, Wilcox Hopefully now both will get an opportunity to get consistent minutes. I think they complement eachother pretty well and if they can fullfill their potential we're solid here. Conclusion: No change, but they need to get better. Shooting Guard - Ray Well I think I've made my feelings about Ray pretty clear so I won't belabor anything. He's obviously an All-Star and as shown in the playoffs has the stuff to excel in the post season pressure cooker. Conclusion: I wouldn't mind a trade for Gordon or Hughes but I'm not sweating it. The only thing is that I'd like to see him blend his game to the benefit of the younger guys on our frontline. Point Guard - Luke, Watson Maybe the roles should be reversed - start Watson and bring Luke off the bench of a spark. Now that we have Earl we're pretty solid, but I don't think Luke's the point guard to lead us to the promised land, not as a starter. Conclusion - Need to upgrade, or like I said, develop Earl and bring Luke in as a tempo guy. Whew! Longer than intended. Any thoughts?
I think we still need another SG maybe...a backup to Ray. Maybe like a 6'7, athletic, defensive minded guy.But wait...we're hoping to have Gelabale next season, right? From what I've been hearing, Gelabale could be that player. Obviously, the NBA is different. But if Johan can show promise... I see no reason why Gelabale can't help us either.
I'm very excited to see how Gelebale and Petro get along next year (seeing as though they both hail from France). Hopefully they will become beasts on the court after they become more vocal, and not turn into Rashard Lewis types of players.
