Mr. Baker: B+
He should start games and the 3rd quarter. He should stop throwing the ball around the gym. His turnovers aren’t really high, but the way they happen is a concern.
(originally posted on Sonicscentral.com)
Search News and Information
Custom Search
April 28, 2006
2006 Sonics Report Card - Ray Allen
Mr. Baker: A-
As a team captain, he had a career year on offense. He needs to defend better. Sometimes the offense
was working too hard and wasting time to get Ray the ball and not moving on to a second option for a play.
(originally posted on Sonicscentral.com)
As a team captain, he had a career year on offense. He needs to defend better. Sometimes the offense
was working too hard and wasting time to get Ray the ball and not moving on to a second option for a play.
(originally posted on Sonicscentral.com)
2006 Sonics Report Card - Bob Hill
Mr. Baker: B
The team he started with got his former boss fired. He forced players to play their positions and work their way into or out of the roster. He evaluated who he had and what he needed. He picked another path, to develop the kids and let the point guard run the offense. He was successful comapred to Bob Weiss, whom I gave a D. I hear that a coach needs to coach to the strength of his team, that’s true. He also has to coach to the weakness of the team. This team is young, kids need structure. Weiss put players in a position to figure out what they want to do in a play. Only a few of the players have had enough experience playing to make
that situation be successful. Weiss was a poor fit.
(originally posted on Sonicscentral.com)
The team he started with got his former boss fired. He forced players to play their positions and work their way into or out of the roster. He evaluated who he had and what he needed. He picked another path, to develop the kids and let the point guard run the offense. He was successful comapred to Bob Weiss, whom I gave a D. I hear that a coach needs to coach to the strength of his team, that’s true. He also has to coach to the weakness of the team. This team is young, kids need structure. Weiss put players in a position to figure out what they want to do in a play. Only a few of the players have had enough experience playing to make
that situation be successful. Weiss was a poor fit.
(originally posted on Sonicscentral.com)
April 27, 2006
2006 Sonics Report Card - Nick Collison
Mr. Baker - C+
Nick needs to shoot a 15 foot shot constantly to be effective, though his personal fouls need to come down the team is net +2 in net fouls when he’s on the floor.
(originally posted on Sonicscentral.com)
2006 Sonics Report Card - Chris Wilcox
Mr. Baker: B-
He’s one dimensional right now, fortunately for the Sonics it is the third dimension, and he’s
added “up” as a possible direction for a pass to go.
( Originally posted on Sonicscentral.com)
He’s one dimensional right now, fortunately for the Sonics it is the third dimension, and he’s
added “up” as a possible direction for a pass to go.
( Originally posted on Sonicscentral.com)
Say it, Sonics are leaving Seattle
I believe Sonics will leave for Bellevue or maybe Renton. Either way, those cities will pluck what was a Seattle 1970s sports jewel from its Key Arena setting. The prongs are coming loose from the setting, thanks to a Seattle City Council that is asking for nearly that same things the Sonics rejected last year. The city wants rent from $1.9- $3 million a year, the Sonics to pay a larger and undefined amount of the project cost and assume the risk for major maintenance items for the arena.
Read it for yourself the crux, in part:
(Link to actual crux)
A. Capital financing terms
1. Any proposal for public funding of a Key Arena renovation must be submitted to the voters of King County for their approval.
2. Any new tax revenues approved by voters should be dedicated to paying off the existing debt associated with the 1994 remodel and helping to fund a remodel of Key Arena.
3. Public funding for the remodel comes exclusively from “visitor” taxes or “user” taxes/fees (excluding parking and admissions taxes as stated in section B.3 of this resolution) and not from local general public tax revenues or the City of Seattle’s General Fund.
4. The “visitor” or “user” taxes/fees must be collected from taxpayers throughout King County.
5. Any funding package shall include funding for arts and heritage programs and facilities.
6. The Basketball Club of Seattle contributes a significant amount towards the capital costs associated with a new remodel of Key Arena and is responsible for any gap between the tax revenues generated in King County to pay for the remodel and the project’s capital costs.
7. The Basketball Club of Seattle is responsible for any capital cost overruns associated with a new remodel of Key Arena.
B. Lease terms
1. Any negotiated split in revenue streams between the City and the Basketball Club of Seattle and/or rental payment to the City must be sufficient to pay all direct and indirect Key Arena operations and maintenance costs for which the City is responsible. In addition, as the owners of Key Arena, the City should receive annual net revenues (after any City direct and indirect costs are paid for) that are at least equal to what the City projects Key Arena can generate without the Sonics/Storm as tenants.
2. The net revenues the City receives from above shall be deposited into the City’s General Fund to be used at the City’s discretion.
3. Revenues that the City currently receives from parking and admission taxes should be deposited into the City’s General Fund to be used at the City’s discretion. These revenues should not be included in any calculation of net revenues to the City described in criteria B1 above.
4. The lease requires the Sonics/Storm to play at Key Arena at least through the life of the debt payments or be responsible for paying off any remaining debt service should the Basketball Club of Seattle attempt to terminate its lease prior to that time.
5. The Basketball Club of Seattle is responsible for all major maintenance to the arena through the life of the debt payments.
6. A proposed lease should carefully address potential impacts to existing Key Arena employees.
7. The Basketball Club of Seattle commits to providing tangible benefits to the public. These public benefits should be in addition to those already offered by the Basketball Club of Seattle and should not be used as “credits” against the City’s bottom line as outlined in B1.
~ Seattle City Council
Great, it’s official, Seattle city council wants what they have said that they have wanted for the past year.
What’s the City of Renton’s take on dealing with the Basketball Club of Seattle?
Alex Pietsch, Renton’s economic-development administrator, said a major sports facility would serve as a cornerstone for The Landing and “create a tremendous amount of energy and activity in an area we’d like to see revitalized.”
Construction is scheduled to start later this year on the first phase of the urban village, with 600,000 square feet of retail and 900 apartments or condos on former Boeing land. An arena would take up the 20-acre second phase of the development, Pietsch said.
The city is paying for $24 million in road and utility improvements near the arena, and the state plans to widen I-405 between Renton and Bellevue. The city is also open to all funding possibilities for a new arena.
“We’re going in with eyes wide open,” Pietsch said.
Eyes wide open? What is this “eyes wide open” thing you speak of? I’m from Seattle where you can get $31 million in Streetcar to nowhere money with little more than colorful pictures sketched out by Paul Allen’s promoters, but don’t expect to get a nickel if you actually have an option to leave.
Go Renton!
Go Bellevue!
I’ll drive from my Seattle home to your city to watch our team; and I’ll spend my money, and never again vote for spending one darn nickel on the Seattle Center.
(originally posted on Sonicscentral.com
April 17, 2006
What about Bob? Contract Option Picked up on Hill
A couple weeks ago I was flipping through the TV channels after a Sonics game and came across the movie What about Bob? It started me thinking What about Bob Hill? Will Bob Hill be around next year? That question was answered today with the announcement from the Seattle Supersonics that they have picked up the option on Bob Hill's contract for next season. I think that's a smart move. Bob Hill has made the effort to develop the young players on the team. He has given them more structure, and a well defined system for the players to work in.
Bob Weiss, the man Hill replaced, ran what he called a "flex" offense. This allowed players to start from positions on the floor and react to what the other team is doing. That's a fine system if you have veteran players that can easily recognize situations on the fly. Unfortunately veteran players are the exception to the Sonics roster. The lack of structure was so frustrating for Robert Swift that he had asked to go play in the NBDL, NBA minor league, just to get some experience. Before young Robert's wish could be granted Bob Weiss was fired, replaced with Hill, and changing Swift's career.
Player development has never, ever, been more important as it is now. The age, years in college, of the player is less than it was 20 years ago. 10 years ago when Kevin Garnett was showing that the high school kids that perform at a higher level are likely wasting some of their time going to college, or at least giving away money. But those few high school players that dared to make the jump to the NBA had the benefit of playing with veterans: on teams that comprised mostly of players that went to college, or played many years of European ball.
The players that were drafted shortly after Garnett, and even to the draft of Rashard Lewis in 1989, had on the job training for inexperienced players. Those players worked with college educated, full-grown men. The necessity to coach, to develop players to the extent is required on such a massive scale, just wasn't the situation 10 years ago.
What the Sonics have today is Robert Swift, 20, on the floor with Rashard Lewis, neither having the benefit of college. One player is learning very little from the other because the other, the veteran, is 26, and according to his coach is playing at 65% of his developed ability. Somebody else, somebody other than the veteran players that were available in the past, has to take up those aspects of development beyond the x's and o's that isn't handed off from player to player.
All of this mental professional development, the monitoring, used to be handled by veteran players. The players used to come out of 4 years of college. Those days are over. The smartest thing the Sonics have done in recent memory is the hiring of Jack Sikma. Coincidentally, he was on many NBA All-Star rosters with Kareem. Sikma is a veteran not so far removed from his years of playing that the player that he can't transfer the implicit knowledge of how to play when explicate instruction sometimes fails.
The Sonics have added another assistant coach, Detlef Schrempf, to mentor every player they have playing power forward. All of the back court players have been to college and likely will only need the leadership of Ray Allen and not a specialized coach. Coach Bob Hill has stepped up to address the Small Forward position; he’s called on Rashard to set an example through his own improvement.
Bottom line on the new Bob Hill era; he's exactly the coach you want for the players you have right now. I wouldn't bother changing him if you do not intend to change the players. The Sonics management apparently feels the same way. The young players need structured plays and development, Hill provides both by the bucket full.
It is more important than ever to have a coaching staff that can develop players.
Bob Weiss, the man Hill replaced, ran what he called a "flex" offense. This allowed players to start from positions on the floor and react to what the other team is doing. That's a fine system if you have veteran players that can easily recognize situations on the fly. Unfortunately veteran players are the exception to the Sonics roster. The lack of structure was so frustrating for Robert Swift that he had asked to go play in the NBDL, NBA minor league, just to get some experience. Before young Robert's wish could be granted Bob Weiss was fired, replaced with Hill, and changing Swift's career.
Player development has never, ever, been more important as it is now. The age, years in college, of the player is less than it was 20 years ago. 10 years ago when Kevin Garnett was showing that the high school kids that perform at a higher level are likely wasting some of their time going to college, or at least giving away money. But those few high school players that dared to make the jump to the NBA had the benefit of playing with veterans: on teams that comprised mostly of players that went to college, or played many years of European ball.
The players that were drafted shortly after Garnett, and even to the draft of Rashard Lewis in 1989, had on the job training for inexperienced players. Those players worked with college educated, full-grown men. The necessity to coach, to develop players to the extent is required on such a massive scale, just wasn't the situation 10 years ago.
What the Sonics have today is Robert Swift, 20, on the floor with Rashard Lewis, neither having the benefit of college. One player is learning very little from the other because the other, the veteran, is 26, and according to his coach is playing at 65% of his developed ability. Somebody else, somebody other than the veteran players that were available in the past, has to take up those aspects of development beyond the x's and o's that isn't handed off from player to player.
All of this mental professional development, the monitoring, used to be handled by veteran players. The players used to come out of 4 years of college. Those days are over. The smartest thing the Sonics have done in recent memory is the hiring of Jack Sikma. Coincidentally, he was on many NBA All-Star rosters with Kareem. Sikma is a veteran not so far removed from his years of playing that the player that he can't transfer the implicit knowledge of how to play when explicate instruction sometimes fails.
The Sonics have added another assistant coach, Detlef Schrempf, to mentor every player they have playing power forward. All of the back court players have been to college and likely will only need the leadership of Ray Allen and not a specialized coach. Coach Bob Hill has stepped up to address the Small Forward position; he’s called on Rashard to set an example through his own improvement.
Bottom line on the new Bob Hill era; he's exactly the coach you want for the players you have right now. I wouldn't bother changing him if you do not intend to change the players. The Sonics management apparently feels the same way. The young players need structured plays and development, Hill provides both by the bucket full.
It is more important than ever to have a coaching staff that can develop players.
April 16, 2006
Risk Adverse Summer?
With the disaster of last summer fading to memory (let it go) I have to wonder if the Sonics would look to have every loose end tied up before the start of next season. Last summer was short sighted: the coach left, 3 players took one year contracts and the roster was missing an able-bodied backup point guard. That mixed bag got them a fired coach, a horrible record, and all 3 players that had 1 year contracts traded by the time February came around.
What are the loose ends?
The coach is signed through next year.
Chris Wilcox is a restricted free agent. The restriction allows the Sonics to match any offer made to Wilcox by another team.
The backup point guard, Earl Watson, is one of the best defenders in the NBA at his position.
Point Guard Luke Ridnour and Power Forward Nick Collison are both eligible for contract their contracts extended this summer.
Every position on the roster has, or will have a player a contract that keeps them here for a little while, except Rashard Lewis. Lewis intends to exercise an option in his contract that allows him to be a free agent in the summer of 2007.
The questions are gravitating toward Rashard Lewis: Will the Sonics keep him, sign him to a new contract, or trade him?
The Sonics would like to keep him, but at what cost? Wilcox, Ridnour and Collison are all due for pay increases. Will there be enough money to go around? There's a risk that he will play next year and just leave.
The Sonics could sign him to a new contract, but is he worth more than the $10 million he will get paid next year? There's a risk that he be over-paid to play the next 4 years.
They could trade him for an unknown entity. Are there too many question marks on the team's roster now?
It's a lot to ponder, and then I remember that last year's second round pick Mickael Gelabale will be making his way over from France. Read his fan mail here (no, I'm not kidding): http://www.euroleague.net/noticia.jsp?temporada=E05&jornada=2&id=1473
Maybe the youth coming from France is enough change, hopefully the Sonics resolve their situation for the long term with Lewis. I'll guess that they will not risk the season next year without the Rashard Lewis question answered.
What are the loose ends?
The coach is signed through next year.
Chris Wilcox is a restricted free agent. The restriction allows the Sonics to match any offer made to Wilcox by another team.
The backup point guard, Earl Watson, is one of the best defenders in the NBA at his position.
Point Guard Luke Ridnour and Power Forward Nick Collison are both eligible for contract their contracts extended this summer.
Every position on the roster has, or will have a player a contract that keeps them here for a little while, except Rashard Lewis. Lewis intends to exercise an option in his contract that allows him to be a free agent in the summer of 2007.
The questions are gravitating toward Rashard Lewis: Will the Sonics keep him, sign him to a new contract, or trade him?
The Sonics would like to keep him, but at what cost? Wilcox, Ridnour and Collison are all due for pay increases. Will there be enough money to go around? There's a risk that he will play next year and just leave.
The Sonics could sign him to a new contract, but is he worth more than the $10 million he will get paid next year? There's a risk that he be over-paid to play the next 4 years.
They could trade him for an unknown entity. Are there too many question marks on the team's roster now?
It's a lot to ponder, and then I remember that last year's second round pick Mickael Gelabale will be making his way over from France. Read his fan mail here (no, I'm not kidding): http://www.euroleague.net/noticia.jsp?temporada=E05&jornada=2&id=1473
Maybe the youth coming from France is enough change, hopefully the Sonics resolve their situation for the long term with Lewis. I'll guess that they will not risk the season next year without the Rashard Lewis question answered.
April 15, 2006
Chris Wilcox, How Much, How Long?
A couple weeks ago I thought the Chris Wilcox contract offer would be between $30 and $40 million over 4 years, start around $32 million, and it goes up to 40 if he keeps playing well enough to be the Western Conference Player of the Week. His offer could drop down to $30 if he chokes on the opportunity. I see no sign of choking, but a few coughs. A closer look might help zero in on a possible contract offer.
Chris Wilcox doesn't have positive numbers for the team. His current Roland Rating shows his effect on the team is -.09. What he does have is non-negative numbers. Huh? Take a look at the man he replaced, Vladi Radmanovic, who had a Roland Rating of -5.4. To oversimplify, that's a 4.5 point difference per game.
Maybe we are all viewing the team not sinking into a hole every game as a sign of greatness, when it's just a sign of goodness. He isn't going to win a lot of games all by himself. But I think he fills the stat sheet enough to put you in position for a second or first offensive option to win a game for you. Maybe I'm wrong, but that's exactly what I saw against the Suns on . He isn't going to win you any more games than Boris Diaw will for the Suns, but they have an effect on how teams behave. Being able to go "up-top" for easy buckets is breath of fresh air.
Wilcox isn't playing much better defense since coming over from the Clippers. His team defense looks better next to Nick Collison, Robert Swift and Johan Petro, in that order. Looking a little better might have more to do with those other players allowing him to go after the ball than it does his ability as a defender. His on the ball defense is only as good as his foot positioning when he jumps out to face a player. He's either flat-footed or he uses his length to alter shots. There isn't much middle-ground there. His rebounding isn't completely hollow, when he had his 24 rebound game against the Rockets on April 4, the team rebounding was up by 3 or 4. So, there was a net positive result.
Wilcox still isn't boxing out his man when rebounding, but I do think he's gotten better advice (my guess) from the assistant coaches. Rather than box out he's simply beating his man to the ball. I think he's picking up Reggie Evans' rebounding role, only; Wilcox isn't a complete slug on offense like Reggie. If Reggie could have scored like Wilcox then he wouldn't be in Denver right now.
I can see Wilcox is a third offensive option, in a few years. What do those guys make? I think it's close to what the Sonics offered Radmanovic, only, Radmanovic is a Small Forward and Wilcox is a Power Forward, and Power Forwards get paid more. 6 years at $42 million last year for Radmanovic becomes something closer to 5 years $42 million for Wilcox this year. But Wilcox doesn't want a long contract. Lop 10 million off of the end of that deal and it is 4 years at $32 Million. That's the high end of the salary range for him. It could get a little lower if he wants an option to end the contract after 3 years.
This is what it looks like today, to me. The cooling off between the end of the year on Tuesday and free agency on July 1, might hold his salary number down. Couple the passing of time with the restriction the Sonics have and I think he ends up close to Dalembert contract years 1 through 4, 4 year $37 million.
Let's see what a contract looks like per year, 10% raises, starting at $7 Million: $7 million + $7.7 Million + $8.47 million + $9.317 million = $32.478 million
I'm still stunned that last summer Vladi Radmanovic turned down that 6 year, $42 million contract, what a fool.
Know this; you rarely make up the money you leave on the table.
Chris Wilcox doesn't have positive numbers for the team. His current Roland Rating shows his effect on the team is -.09. What he does have is non-negative numbers. Huh? Take a look at the man he replaced, Vladi Radmanovic, who had a Roland Rating of -5.4. To oversimplify, that's a 4.5 point difference per game.
Maybe we are all viewing the team not sinking into a hole every game as a sign of greatness, when it's just a sign of goodness. He isn't going to win a lot of games all by himself. But I think he fills the stat sheet enough to put you in position for a second or first offensive option to win a game for you. Maybe I'm wrong, but that's exactly what I saw against the Suns on . He isn't going to win you any more games than Boris Diaw will for the Suns, but they have an effect on how teams behave. Being able to go "up-top" for easy buckets is breath of fresh air.
Wilcox isn't playing much better defense since coming over from the Clippers. His team defense looks better next to Nick Collison, Robert Swift and Johan Petro, in that order. Looking a little better might have more to do with those other players allowing him to go after the ball than it does his ability as a defender. His on the ball defense is only as good as his foot positioning when he jumps out to face a player. He's either flat-footed or he uses his length to alter shots. There isn't much middle-ground there. His rebounding isn't completely hollow, when he had his 24 rebound game against the Rockets on April 4, the team rebounding was up by 3 or 4. So, there was a net positive result.
Wilcox still isn't boxing out his man when rebounding, but I do think he's gotten better advice (my guess) from the assistant coaches. Rather than box out he's simply beating his man to the ball. I think he's picking up Reggie Evans' rebounding role, only; Wilcox isn't a complete slug on offense like Reggie. If Reggie could have scored like Wilcox then he wouldn't be in Denver right now.
I can see Wilcox is a third offensive option, in a few years. What do those guys make? I think it's close to what the Sonics offered Radmanovic, only, Radmanovic is a Small Forward and Wilcox is a Power Forward, and Power Forwards get paid more. 6 years at $42 million last year for Radmanovic becomes something closer to 5 years $42 million for Wilcox this year. But Wilcox doesn't want a long contract. Lop 10 million off of the end of that deal and it is 4 years at $32 Million. That's the high end of the salary range for him. It could get a little lower if he wants an option to end the contract after 3 years.
This is what it looks like today, to me. The cooling off between the end of the year on Tuesday and free agency on July 1, might hold his salary number down. Couple the passing of time with the restriction the Sonics have and I think he ends up close to Dalembert contract years 1 through 4, 4 year $37 million.
Let's see what a contract looks like per year, 10% raises, starting at $7 Million: $7 million + $7.7 Million + $8.47 million + $9.317 million = $32.478 million
I'm still stunned that last summer Vladi Radmanovic turned down that 6 year, $42 million contract, what a fool.
Know this; you rarely make up the money you leave on the table.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)