Today seems to be a day for arena talk. First I wrote a piece about Saving the Sonics which nobobdy bothered to reply to.
Secondly the Times and PI both feature basketball related stories. Who would have expected that one.
The Times has a quick feature on I-91. Like Clayton Bennett I feel that I-91 is irrelevant because it is not legally enforcable. Furthermore any publicly voted for intiative can supercede a previous initiative, so hypothetically if we voted not to ally funding of Arenas this year, and next year voted to pay for one then the second vote would carry more weight.
I'm still waiting for any member of the City Council to reply to my e-mail regarding whether return comparable to a bond payment is a fair criteria for any public service. Councilman Licata was not willing to voluntarily apply this criteria to any of his own expenditures as far as I know...
Gary Washburn chips in with a happy little article about Clay Bennett golfing in the rain. It's exciting to hear about his optimism and also interesting that he has been in touch with Ray. People respond well to Bennett but remember, we still need to do our part. If you wait for him to save the day we will lose this team.
SHAWN KEMP MISSES WORKOUT
So much for Kemp getting a shot with the Bulls. According to Chicago papers the PF misses his scheduled workout to visit a sick relative. While the sick relative part of it evokes some sympathy you have to wonder about his decision from a timing perspective. I have no idea if the relative was critically ill so will probably hold back judgement. This increases the odds that Kemp will wind up with a camp invite from the Sonics who I do not believe have ruled him out.
BONZI TO HOUSTON?
Why does Houston make sense for Bonzi Wells? With McGrady dominating the ball, Yao Ming dominating the middle, and Shane Battier ready to play every position on the floor I just don't see where Wells would fit in. They need guys who can space the floor and hit jump shots, not 2/3 combo players who want to hold the ball in the post. This is another example of cities that are attractive to NBA players getting free agent looks that places like Seattle do not. Houston is a great town for young black athletes to live and that may be all Wells is looking for.
This signing would make as much sense as Denver adding Earl Watson last summer. Maybe Houston and Wells would be the same type of situation. They could sign him and trade him mid-season. I'll have to check the status of their mid-level exception.