Comments on Thursday Morning Sports Report

A couple of things the P-I got wrong:

1. The Sonics were great last night. Wilcox, Allen, and Ridnour in particular. They were weak on D, but their general team chemistry and individual excellence (Wilcox is a great addtion) made it an exciting, inspiring game to watch. They didn't blow every conceivable opportunity; they were dominantly ahead every second of the game, except for the first minute of the 2nd quarter, when the Blazers went on an 8-point streak, and the last 19 seconds, when the Sonics were frankly outplayed. It was game, though, and not a debacle. not hardly.

2. Sell-out crowd my azz. I was at the game, and would estimate that the Key Arena was no more than 85% full. All the red seats were remarked on by many people around me, and were generally understood as protest against the impending move of the team away from town.

Speaking of which, there was a guy at the game walking around the concessions stands and bathrooms with his son, carrying a big sign that said "Thanks! Howard You Pig"

I asked him what the sign meant and he said it was because Howard Schultz ("you know, he owns STARBUCKS?") sold the Sonics and that they might have to move. I said, "why is he a pig?" He said, incredulously, "He made a PROFIT on the sale."

Noted.

The Chokelahoma Sonics. I hung this in a Key Arena bathroom.

Sonics who? Haven't they left yet?

I caught a little bit of the game at a restaurant, which had the sound on and very audible, and the crowd seemed DEAD despite the game being very close.

Way to show em you still want em, KeyArena crowd :P

Sonics crowds are never loud anymore. It's hard to cheer with a silver spoon in your mouth and a stick up your ass.

Case in point: Howard Schultz's old seats (four courtside mid-court) were empty for 3 of the 4 quarters.

Looking out the window at this fine 'Fall-back' weather, all's I can think about is baseball, baseball, baseball. Now's the time, btw, to get those frequent flyer miles going towards a reservation if you plan on getting a seat to Florida (my Mom doesn't live in Arizona) for Spring Training.

So what if the M's don't get Matsuzaka. It's a tad bit of a money scam, don't you think? Look at the Yankee$ -- douched by the Tigers. I'd rather have the M's go after 2 or 3 pitchers for the price they'd spend for Matsuzaka. They sure as hell ain't gonna be able to raise ticket prices on the fans after the last couple of seasons. The M's have to be tasteful, yet effective with their signings, not going for a single platinum bullet. Shiz, their silver bullet signings of the last 3 seasons have virtually all blown chunks o chunder on Seattle fans. I think the Tigers type of model is more the M's speed, and something the fans here could get hyped about. The last thing Seattle fans want is another asswipe brought here to collect an unemployment check. (I can hear you snickering already, MIMo).

Well, I'm in for 16 games again this year nonetheless. I'm forwarding my plan selection to the M's ground crew, so that they can elect not to do any more stupid fucking dances around second base if they don't want to hear my carotid-bulging booing every goddamned time. Pathetic. If you want to entertain me, get your lame asses off the field, set up a table at second base, and show me a monkey playing a quick hand of cribbage against a dolphin. Way better. I'd cheer for that.

As far as the Seahawks go, the games just get bigger each time they lose, donchaknow. Versus the Raiders (defense) on MNF...Huge! Darrell Jackson, Deion Branch, and, yes, Seneca Wallace have all shown that they want to be players that will make the big play. Now if we can only get a John Lynch type tackle out of the defense, we just might win. Yay!