The Sonics Exist Again: A Primer

A controversial inbound play, but effective nonetheless.

After years of hardship, Seattle has an NBA team again.  Sure, any logical person might ask "why didn't the NBA just move Sacramento to Oklahoma City and cut out the middle man?"  Shut up, that's why.  The important thing here is that David Stern undid his mistake (sort of) and that Seattle will get to have a team again.  With a bit of luck, the ownership can purchase the history back from Oklahoma City officially and we can all pretend like nothing ever happened.  If that doesn't happen, I don't really care.  The Sonics exist, and I'm so happy I don't even mind have Jimmer Fredette on the roster.



Of course, now that Seattle has a team, it's the perfect time for you, the fan, to get to know who is on our newly re-minted team.  In a basketball sense... shit.  Luckily, we have a team, and we should have a few years of the glow from just having them exist that we can make do with the mess that the Maloofs left.  Keep in mind, there are a few players who almost certainly won't be around long enough for them to count.  For example, Travis Outlaw is still officially in the NBA.  Trust me, dear fan, you will not have to worry about Travis Outlaw, spending long nights sweating over the fact that you will surely be made fun of for not being familiar with his game when he plays 20 minutes the next game.  Travis Outlaw will not play games.  Yes, perhaps he will enjoy a game of Connect Four or Stratego with Chuck Hayes on the bench.  Beyond that, Travis Outlaw does not matter.  Forget about him.

There are a small handful of players worth mentioning however.  For instance, DeMarcus "Demascus" Cousins:  he is under contract for two more years before he becomes a restricted free agent, and is actually good at basketball.  His PER has been well above average his whole career (20.79 this year, with a league average PER at 13.41), and rebounds 8% better than the average center.  In the easier counting stats, Cousins has averaged over 17 PPG and 10 RPG the last two years, and even throws in 2 APG and a steal and a half.  Yes, he turns it over too much (3 per game), but has been steadily improving his turnover rate in his career as he has earned more and more playing time (dropping from 18% of possessions ending in turnovers his first season to 11.5% this year).  Strictly by numbers, DeMarcus Cousins is as good of a center as there is in the NBA, on par with Marc Gasol and the current incarnation of Dwight Howard.

DeMarcus Cousins, of course, is not strictly numbers.  You may have heard that Cousins has had a few problems with attitude and overreacting on the court.  Yes, he routinely gets suspended for mouthing off to coaches, officials, and everyone in between.  To be fair, who hasn't wanted to punch Sean Elliott in the face once in awhile?

It is entirely possible that Cousins never gets any more mature, sadly.  If that is the case, he may be destined to spend his career as a new Rasheed Wallace, constantly producing enough to be vital to the team while also contributing all sorts of stupidity.  This isn't necessarily a bad thing:  Rasheed Wallace had an excellent career, and was a welcome addition to any team.  Wallace's basketball knowledge far outpaces Cousins', but even so, that is a career arc that any player would be proud of.  Give Cousins a coach that actually knows any of what they are doing (Keith Smart and Paul Westphal have about as much coaching ability as I do), and he may very well shape up.  Cousins may just need a bit of stability to help him grow up, and if he does grow up, he may very well be a Hall of Famer.  If he doesn't grow up, well... Rasheed Wallace is definitely worthwhile.

Speaking of talented idiots: Tyreke Evans.  The Kings declined to sign him to the kind of contract extension players like DeMar DeRozan received, despite the fact that DeRozan is... well, DeMar DeRozan.  This is due in large part to the fact that Evans has statistically regressed every single season he has been in the NBA.  Keep in mind, however, that Evans' rookie year was historically good, averaging 20/5/6.  The Kings then decided to make Evans a point guard, then a shooting guard, then a point guard, then a small forward, all while giving him no sort of coaching or tangible leadership, so things have been a bit rough since then.

Evans' per 36 numbers tell a bit different story, however.  Yes, his scoring has dropped from 20 to 18 to 17 to 15, but his minutes have dropped off as well.  Evans has been scoring at 17 per 36 for the last three years, all while his rebounding numbers have increased and his assists have dropped, essentially mirroring his transition from point guard to small forward.  In short, Tyreke Evans is not the future Hall of Fame lock he appeared to be, but is far from the immense disappointment he is often made out to be.  Evans at his current level is an average to above-average swingman, which is nothing to get too worked up over.  Much like Cousins, Evans could easily break out to his full potential and be the player he was for that glorious rookie year, but will probably remain the solid player he is now instead.

These players don't really have much of any connection to Seattle yet, unfortunately, beyond Cousins' brief flirtation with the University of Washington back in his high school days.  Fear not however, for Isaiah Thomas has come to immediately be the fan favorite despite insane shot selection.  Much like his Husky career, Isaiah Thomas has outperformed expectations by shooting over and over and over again.  The Kings hilariously play him as a point guard because of his size, attempting to make him run plays and pass as if he wanted to do something other than score.

Isaiah Thomas will score points.  Thomas will shoot threes (six per 36), and he will score (18 points per 36).  Hell, he'll even throw in a steal a game, as well as three assists or so simply by luck.  Don't expect anything beyond a bad Lou Williams, and Isaiah Thomas will be all sorts of fun.  Try and find a pass-first point in his tiny frame, and you are an idiot and/or part of the Kings' decision-making process.

The only other player on the roster that really looks like he factors into any sort of long term plan is Thomas Robinson, the former Kansas star.  Robinson is one of those players who seemed to lack potential but was the most ready for the pros coming into the draft, which of course means he has looked absolutely lost and unready for the pros.  The Kings reportedly drafted him over players who are, you know, good, such as likely Rookie of the Year Damian Lillard, because they were afraid of losing Jason Thompson to free agency and needed a cheap replacement.  Thompson is, of course, the part-time starting power forward with career averages of 10 and 7.

This is why the Kings are bad.

Robinson may very well become a productive player (he was very well thought of coming into the draft, and its nothing new for college players to struggle at first), but so far it has not looked good.  Robinson mostly plays spot minutes (15 per game), and hasn't scored over 12 points this year, all while averaging four rebounds and half a block per game.  It may just take a few years for him to figure it out, but at this point Robinson looks to probably max out at a fringe double-double player.  Again, not a bad player but not exactly amazing.

Looking at this ragtag bunch of players, its pretty apparent why the Kings are bad, and why the future isn't exactly overwhelmingly bright.  Its almost certain that the entire front office and coaching staff will be revamped next season, as well as the roster, which can only mean good things because honestly, the team couldn't get anymore dysfunctional than it has been the last few years.  Even so, the Sonics (it feels good to type that) exist, and have a few players worth a damn.  Give it a few years, and we may even be a solid team, but until then, look forward to basketball just being around.  Hell, maybe they'll even bring back Chris Wilcox and Mikael Gelabale!  They did stuff one time!