From: tamada@cheshire.oxy.edu (Michael K. Tamada)
Subject: Sonics end of year report
Organization: Occidental College, Los Angeles, CA.  USA
Distribution: usa
Date: Thu, 31 Dec 1992 03:07:55 GMT


     Well I'd been a SuperSonics SuperSceptic so far this season, but
after seeing three road games, where they beat Portland and the Lakers,
and narrowly lost to the Suns, all without Shawn Kemp, I convinced.
     The Sonics are not up there with the Suns and Bulls as The Teams
to Beat, but they're right there with New York, Portland, and maybe
Utah in the next group of contenders.  
     #1 reason:  Gary Payton (as several people have already noted)
has improved tremendously.  He will shoot outside shots without hesitation,
and he's hitting at a 54.5% rate.  Apparently a lot of credit goes to
assistant coach Tim Grgurich, who literally spent one month of the
summer with Payton having him shoot thousands of jumpers.  Grgurich
is described as a guy who breathes, eats, and lives basketball -- no
life outside of coaching.  Must be pretty crummy for his family, if he
has one, but it pays off for the Sonics.
     #2 reason:  good team defense.  Without Kemp, and for that matter
Benjamin, the Sonics were seemingly outmanned down low.  But their
traditional hard-nosed, overplaying, double-teaming, gambling style of
defense has now been backed up with excellent defensive rotation.  
Offensive players who get the ball suddenly find themselves swarmed under
by Sonic defenders...when they pass off to a teammate, the teammate doesn't
have a wide open shot because another Sonic defender rotates quickly to
cover him.  With their athleticism and quickness, the Sonics are all over
the court, giving them the best of both worlds -- they can swarm and
double team the basketball and yet rarely get burned by good passing. 
(It sure helps that Magic isn't around to torment the Sonics.)  And
McKey and Kemp, with their shot-blocking, make a nice final line of
defense.
     Other reasons:  Eddie Johnson was in an early shooting slump but
is back to his usual form.  Getting McMillan back from his injury helps
a lot.  The Sonics have several players who can step up and lead them
to victory:  against Portland, it was Derrick McKey.  He and Cliff 
Robinson had a titanic struggle -- Robinson ended up with slightly 
more points, but McKey shot slightly better and more importantly 
burned the Blazers in the first 3 quarters.  Robinson in the 
4th quarter finally quieted McKey down, and Robinson also scored 
a bunch of points in the 4th quarter to make the game close, but 
by then it was too late.
     Against the Lakers, McKey was in early foul trouble and sat out
most of the 2d quarter.  But Dana Barros and Gary Payton and Vincent
Askew stepped forward with big games.
     Finally, the Sonics have great versatility.  Against the Clippers
the previous week, they ran like Westhead's LMU teams, and won 121-101.
Against the Lakers, they ground out an 80-79 victory.  The Sonics can
be a running team or a half-court team, and they can go inside or outside.
     Possible pitfalls for the Sonics:  they haven't played well against
eastern teams.  They've lost to Chicago, NY, and Cleveland.  They've lost 
twice to the Suns, although a 3-point loss, in Phoenix, without Kemp, isn't 
too shabby.  Phoenix could get even better as the season passes because KJ
will be back, Majerle will shoot better, and Barkley will be more used
to his teammates.  (Dumas could be a real boost for them too.)  Portland 
could get better when Kersey returns and when and if Drexler 
recovers (Drexler's been playing, but he's at best at 90% physically). 
Halfcourt offense is probably still the Sonics weakest points, although
they look much better than when KC Jones was in charge.  
      Anyway, I think the Sonics have a very good chance of making it to
the western conference finals.  But they have to think up ways of beating
the probable opponent -- Phoenix.  And if they do make it to the finals,
they've got to develop ways of countering the tough teams in the East:
Chicago, NY, maybe Cleveland if they get their act together.
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  |__	       o
  | W			   Mike Tamada
		  |\	   Institutional Research Office
		   \O	   Occidental College
		    |      tamada@oxy.edu
		   /|
		  | |

Newsgroups: rec.sport.basketball.pro