NEWS

SuperSonics to Fans: Sea-Ya!

Dejected Sonics fan / Photo: Honu Photo

It ain’t exactly the Dodgers leaving Brooklyn or the Colts leaving Baltimore or even Nicolas Cage leaving Las Vegas, but the SuperSonics are leaving Seattle for Oklahoma City (OK City SuperOkies you heard it here first, holla at your trademark!). A sad day in Starbucks town, indeed. Named after the city’s famed space needle (not as rumor has it, a famed resident’s spaced needle), the Sonics won a championship in 1979 and might’ve won a couple more in the ‘90s with their own group of West Coast All-Stars if someone hadn’t turned Shawn Kemp on to donuts. In honor of the mighty green and gold, we present the five greatest moments in SuperSonic history.

5. Shawn Kemp version 1.0. It’s not the rain man, it’s the Reignman. Peep the triple finger point, which would probably be good for a 10-game suspension today.

4. Lenny Wilkins. The Dapper Brooklyn Don was once the winningest coach in the L, and he did it without excessive brylcream or bullshit zen mantras.

3. Shawn Kemp version 2.0. Makin’ big girls the world over feel just a little better about themselves.

2. Niles Crane. Dude had a mean crossover (pause) before he started drinking Chianti for breakfast and mooning over Daphne.

1. Shawn Kemp’s various and sundry prodigy, not to mention the most impressive collection of jump-offs this side of Greg Louganis.