Opponent: Golden State Warriors
When: 7:30 p.m.
Where: The Arena in Oakland (Calif.)
TV: None
Radio: KJR (950 AM)
Probable starters: For Seattle – forwards Vin Baker (6 feet, 11 inches) and Rashard Lewis (6-10), center Art Long (6-9), guards Brent Barry (6-6) and Gary Payton (6-4). For Golden State – forwards Antawn Jamison (6-9) and Danny Fortson (6-8), center Erick Dampier (6-11), guards Jason Richardson (6-6) and Larry Hughes 6-5).
Next game: Detroit at Seattle, 7 p.m. Saturday.
Scouting report: The Sonics will be getting their first look at Golden State since Brian Winters was named interim head coach, replacing Dave Cowens who was fired on Saturday. Since then, the Warriors have won two of three, beating Memphis and Detroit while losing to the LA Lakers.
“Any time a coach is fired like that,” said Seattle’s Nate McMillan, “players tend to respond with more intensity and work a little harder.” Then, recalling his own debut (the Sonics won three of the first four and nine of the first 12 after he replaced Paul Westphal a year ago), McMillan added, “I’m well aware of how a team responds when a coach has been fired.”
With a 10-16 record, Golden State is mediocre at many things. The one thing the Warriors do well is rebound. They are the NBA’s top rebounding team, averaging 47.8 per game, and they are also tops in offensive rebounds at 17.0 a game. By contrast, Seattle is 26th in total rebounds at 40.3 and 13th in offensive rebounds at 12.3.
In the first game between the teams on Nov. 16, Seattle was outrebounded 47-31, but still managed to slip past the Warriors 100-91.
“They’re a team with a lot of talent,” McMillan said. “They do a great job of rebounding the ball, they’re a very physical team, and right now they’re a very dangerous team with their new head coach. They play well at home, and we need to play a good game down there.”
Injury update: The Sonics expect to have forward Vladimir Radmanovic back for tonight’s game. He has missed two games and most of a third after spraining his right ankle in a Dec. 12 game against the LA Clippers.
“I’m not limited,” Radmanovic said after Thursday’s practice. “I feel good.”
McMillan said he planned to talk with team trainer Mike Shimensky before making a final decision about Radmanovic’s status, “but he looked OK (at practice Thursday).”
Center Jerome James, who has been out 16 games with a severe ankle sprain, did a bit of running on Thursday. “I’ve been saying the same thing for the last month,” McMillan said, “but he’s a week away maybe. But this was the first day he was allowed to do some scrimmaging.”
Add, Radmanovic: The stereotype of NBA European players, at least those who are new to the league, is that they are soft defensively. Radmanovic, for one, takes exception to that label.
“Everybody is talking about European players like they can’t play defense,” said the 21-year-old Yugoslavian, Seattle’s first-round draft pick last summer. “They say they are soft and things like that. But I don’t agree with that because if you play basketball in Europe you have to play defense, too. Here you have quicker guys, but that’s the only difference. You need to improve your defense to a higher level if you want to play against them.”
Said McMillan of Radmanovic and fellow Yugoslavian Peja Drobnjak: “They’re young (Drobnjak is 26), but they have the potential to be solid players in the league if they work and if they learn the game. Both of them can shoot the ball very well.”
Mr. Hustle: Desmond Mason is becoming a fan favorite for his spirited and aggressive play, and his teammates are similarly impressed. Certainly the Sonics missed his presence when Mason missed six games with a sprained knee. He returned from the injured list on Sunday.
“You need the energizer bunny out there and Des is certainly that guy for us,” Brent Barry said. “He plays every minute on the court as hard as he possibly can, regardless of his physical conditioning. I don’t know what he’s told (the media), but he’s definitely not 100 percent. He’s still limited by that knee. But when those lights come on and when that popcorn starts popping, he’s going to play.”
Rich Myhre
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