Opponent: Phoenix Suns
When: 6 p.m.
Where: America West Arena, Phoenix
TV: FSN (cable)
Radio: KJR (950 AM)
Probable starters: For Seattle – forwards Rashard Lewis (6 feet, 10 inches) and Reggie Evans (6-8), center Jerome James (7-1), guards Ray Allen (6-5) and Luke Ridnour (6-2). For Phoenix – forwards Quentin Richardson (6-6) and Shawn Marion (6-7), center Amare Stoudemire (6-10), guards Joe Johnson (6-7) and Steve Nash (6-3).
Next game: Dallas at Seattle, 5 p.m. Sunday.
Evans is Seattle’s forgotten free agent
Most of the attention is on All-Star guard Ray Allen and head coach Nate McMillan, but several other Sonics are also in the last years of their contracts.
One of them is forward Reggie Evans, who has been instrumental in the team’s success this season. Evans has started every game in 2004-05, save for the three games he missed with gastroenteritis, and he leads the team in rebounding at 9.2 per game. If he maintains that mark, he would have the highest rebound average for a Sonic since Shawn Kemp averaged 10.0 in 1996-97.
Evans, who is in his third NBA season, is perhaps the biggest bargain of all the Sonics. After earning a minimum salary of $350,000 in his rookie season, he received a two-year contract worth $1,470,000 that pays him $770,000 this season. Among the Sonics, just guards Mateen Cleeves, Damien Wilkins and Flip Murray are making less this year.
After this season, Evans will be a restricted free agent, meaning he can sign with another NBA team, but Seattle would have the right to match that offer.
For his part, Evans says he rarely thinks about his next contract, though it is bound to be for considerably more money than his current deal.
“The only thing I’m thinking about is that I want to continue to play (in Seattle),” Evans said. “But as far as negotiating the contract, nah. I just want to stay with my team. That’s what I’ll be thinking about. I’m comfortable here in Seattle.
“The other thing is that I want to make the playoffs,” said Evans, one of several Sonics who have never been to the postseason. “The last time I went to something really big was my junior year (at Iowa) when we went to the NCAA tournament. My senior year we didn’t go, and my first two years here we didn’t go to the playoffs. So right now, taking that first step and getting my feet wet by going to the playoffs is my main thing.”
Color change: The Sonics wore their alternate road jerseys, which are gold, for Thursday’s game, so Sacramento opted to wear its home whites.
That’s a fact: Heading into tonight’s game at Phoenix, the Sonics have yet to lose on the road when shooting at least .450 from the field. That’s right, Seattle is 8-0 away from home when shooting .450-.499 (the Sonics have yet to shoot .500 or better on the road this season).
Seattle has had 14 road games where it shot .449 or worse, and the Sonics split those games.
At home, the Sonics were 8-0 when they shot .500 or better heading into Thursday’s game, but were 5-2 when they shot .450-.499 and 5-4 when they shot under .450.
Rich Myhre, Herald Writer
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