Sonic Sign GM, Durant below average in workouts

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/basketball/319188_miller09.html
Sonics hired 30 year old Sam Presti of the Spurs, who apparently was the best GM on the market. 30 seems kind of young, but I don't know, the Spurs are a good organization, and maybe he'll turn out to be Paul DePodesta. The Coaching Job is still up for grabs, and the candidates are Dwane Casey, Rick Carlisle, or PJ Carlesimo. The first two are ok, but Carlesimo seems to be just a good assistant coach. Anyways, Presti said he had defense in mind, so we'll have to see the changes he can make.

http://insider.espn.go.com/espn/blog/index?entryID=2893057&name=ford_chad
Durant ranked 78th, the worst score of anyone who complete all the workouts. He measured out out be 6-10 1/4, 215 pounds, with a 7-4 3/4 wingspan and a standing reach of 9-2. This is all good stuff, as a 6-10 guy with his ability to shoot makes him Garnett mixed with Rashard Lewis.
Bad news is that he has a no step vertical of 26 inches, a normal vertical of 33 inches, and he benched 185 pounds 0 times, which is less than either I or my brother (both under 140 pounds) can do. Even worse is that his lane agility was 12.33 seconds, a full second behind Rodney Stuckey and .42 seconds behind un-agile center Hawes. His 3/4 court sprint was the 2nd slowest among the top 25 prospects (except YiJianLian, who did not participate) at a time of 3.45.
Good news is that Durant has been so busy with endorsements, he hasn't done many of the drills that other guys have done. Most of these experts who train athletes for these combines get an extra 5 reps on the bench press or 5 inches on the vertical leap, so I'm not worried. I knew Durant wasn't a jaw dropping athlete before anyways.

Lastly, and interesting trade proposal my brother suggested, Rashard Lewis in a sign and trade, Chris Wilcox, Earl Watson, one of our three centers, and the next 2 first round picks (2008 and 2009) in exchange for Garnett. This would make our starting rotation: Ridnour, Ray Allen, Durant, Garnett, Petro/Swift with a bench of Wilkins, Gelebale, Collison, and Sene.

Grizzlies Get Iavaroni

Well, the Memphis Grizzlies have signed former Phoenix Suns Assistant Marc Iavaroni as their next head coach. Damn! I was really hoping the Sonics would land him, but I guess not. The question I have is this: who the hell are the Supes trying to get? Why haven't I even heard rumors about who the team wants to fill either the head coach or GM position? Has Lenny Wilkins fallen asleep at the wheel?

Rashard Lewis opts out, heads for Free Agency

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=2883178
This was bound to happen anyways, and it doesn't mean he leaves the Sonics. I'd prefer Chauncey Billups, but of course as soon as I mentioned it, he blew ass the last two games. Also, it seems like it'd be hard to get him to leave Detroit. Anyways, we'll have to determine if Durant and Lewis can play together, or if Portland for some reason drafts Durant, then resigning Lewis would be a good idea.

Sonics get number 2 pick!

Sonics get the number two pick, Blazers get the number one pick. I can't explain how ecstatic I am, the NW is now a basketball hot bed, with two future hall of famers going there. I'm kind of mad we didn't get the first pick, but I think both players are championship caliber players. The Sonics are now saved, and are probably going to stay in Seattle. Oden would really have helped us out on defense, but either way, we get a good enough player that Rashard Lewis might resign, and we immediately become contenders.

Stop Pitching Weaver

This is going to be a short entry, as it's really only a quick vent of frustration, but for fuck's sake, STOP PITCHING WEAVER! He's terrible! He's a guaranteed loss every time he's on the mound. I understand we paid an obscene amount of money for him, but at some point, we have got to cut our losses and just drop him. In six starts, he has compiled a stunning 14.32 era, and in not one of those starts has he managed to have more innings pitched than runs earned. NOT ONE! Drop him and drop him NOW!