SEATTLE – According to the rumors, the Seattle SuperSonics were in the thick of trade talks in the days prior to Thursday’s NBA trading deadline.
The reality was slightly different.
With a young roster that should only get better in the years to come, and with a record that is already one of this season’s best, the Sonics stayed on the sidelines in the weeks leading up to the deadline. Though they participated in general discussions with teams around the league, sometimes tossing out names that might be part of deals at some later date, Seattle never was all that serious about getting something done now.
“We really and truly didn’t have any irons in the fire,” general manager Rick Sund acknowledged on Thursday afternoon. “We like our team. The players are fitting together good.”
Heading into last weekend’s All-Star break, “we were great for the first 50 games,” Sund said. “And now,” he added, citing road wins Tuesday and Wednesday against Houston and New Orleans, “we’ve been great for the first 52 games.”
Still, that didn’t stop the rumor mill from churning out several scenarios involving the Sonics. One prominent web site, for instance, had Seattle working on a deal that would send All-Star guard Ray Allen to the Boston Celtics for guard Paul Pierce and forward Tom Gugliotta. The same site also had the Sonics offering forward Vlade Radmanovic as trade bait with several teams.
“I heard the one about Ray for Paul Pierce,” Sund said with a chuckle. “I also heard Ray for (New Jersey’s) Vince Carter and I heard Ray for (Washington’s) Gilbert Arenas. But I don’t pay any attention to any of the rumors.”
Moreover, league rivals have mostly backed off from calling the Sonics because the team is doing so well. Which was vastly different from a year ago, when Seattle engaged in extensive discussions with other ballclubs before the trade deadline, and two years ago, when the Sonics acquired Allen as part of a multi-player trade with Milwaukee for guards Gary Payton and Desmond Mason.
“Last year (at the deadline) and in the summer, the media made it seem like we were going to be easy prey,” Sund said. “They were writing and saying, ‘The Sonics have to do something,’ and so everybody and their brother was calling us. But we weren’t going to be easy prey.
Even though the Sonics were under .500 at last season’s trade deadline, he said, “we liked our club and we stayed with it. We were not going to trade those guys.”
Though Seattle could perhaps have acquired a veteran player to help in the playoffs this season, Sund’s strategy is to stay the course with his young players.
“I’d rather let Nick Collison get some playoff experience rather than find a power forward that already has playoff experience,” he explained. “Let’s let Luke Ridnour get some playoff experience rather than trying to find somebody better than him. Danny Fortson has never played a second in the playoffs, so let’s let him do that. And I’d rather have Vlade Radmanovic get more playoff experience instead of looking for somebody else. Those are the goals we want to accomplish.
“Is (a lack of playoff experience this season) going to be a negative for us? It could be. But I’d rather have the guys on our club get that opportunity. Then, if we have some success this year, that’s great. And if not, that experience will still help us in the future.”
Seattle coach Nate McMillan says he stayed out of most front-office conversations about prospective trades. His obvious preference, though, was to keep his squad intact.
“Because of the success of the team,” McMillan said, “there wasn’t a lot of talk about changes. I think with the situation that the team is in, something had to be awful good for us to make a move.”
Now, he went on, all the players “know they’ll be here for the remainder of the season.”
The Sonics went through a light-hearted afternoon practice on Thursday, which may have had something to do with the team’s two recent wins. No doubt, it also had something to do with the trade deadline passing at noon.
For Allen, most of the speculation can be traced to his contract status. He is in the final year of his six-year deal and will be an unrestricted free agent after the season. Talks between the Sonics and Allen’s agent, Lon Babby, are ongoing, but the two parties are still a good ways apart. Seattle is believed to have offered Allen a five-year contract in the neighborhood of $70 million, while the five-time All-Star is thought to be seeking a package worth closer to $90 million.
Despite the current impasse, Allen said the passing of the trade deadline “is a great relief. We all like each other and we’ve got something special going on, so it’s good to know that we’ll be able to finish out the season together. … We’re glad to get through it and now we can go forward.”
“I’m thankful that our team remained the same,” agreed guard Antonio Daniels.
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