Duke Basketball Report · May 20, 2022
YouTube Gold: The Late, Great Seattle SuperSonics
Jack Sikma shooting a free throw for the Seattle SuperSonics in the late 1970’sIt was a real shame when the Seattle Supersonics - by then they were generally called the Sonics - moved to Oklahoma City in 2008.
That’s no knock on OKC. The team has done well there in a lot of ways and it’s a deserving fan base. But Seattle was just cool.
The team developed a great aura. A 1979 championship team was built around Gus Williams, Dennis Johnson, Jack Sikma, and Lonnie Shelton, and “Downtown” Freddy Brown.
In the 1990’s, Seattle built another superb team around Sean Kemp and Gary Payton.
The team became deeply ingrained in the Seattle psyche and when it was moved, it was traumatic for many fans.