Legendary Sonics Lenny Wilkens, Gary Payton, Shawn Kemp participating in Seattle Pro-Am

This news release was made yesterday but many may still not have heard so I'm posting it here so it doesn't get lost in the comments elsewhere.  If you missed out on the tickets Chris Hansen made available, you may still have an opportunity to be part of this in the days to come.  Worst case, buy tickets at face value.  But whatever and however you do it, be there.  This will be one of those days you will look back and regret if you miss out.

LENNY WILKENS NAMED HONORARY COACH FOR SEATTLE-PRO AM

Former Sonics Coach Returns to KeyArena July 10 for Storm, Seattle Pro-Am Double-Header

SEATTLE - Legendary Seattle SuperSonics head coach, Lenny Wilkens, will partake in the Seattle Pro-Am at KeyArena as an honorary head coach, the Seattle Storm announced today. The double-header will include a night of outstanding professional basketball starting with the Storm taking on the Phoenix Mercury, followed by the Seattle Pro-Am. The Seattle-Pro-Am, Seattle Storm and the Sonics Arena Group are partnering to bring one of Seattle's greatest basketball legends, Lenny Wilkens, back to the KeyArena for one night.

"This will be an incredible night for the Seattle Basketball community," said Wilkens. "With the Storm and the Pro-Am in one night, this will be a wonderful showcase for Seattle basketball fans. I am thrilled to be involved in this event for our fans."

With a storied career as both a player and a coach, Wilkens has been inducted in the NBA Hall of Fame as a player (1989) and twice as a coach (1998, 2010). In his career as a player, Wilkens is a nine-time NBA All-Star and 1971 NBA All-Star MVP. Wilkens played for the Seattle SuperSonics for four seasons and was an All-Star three of his four seasons in Seattle. He has 17,772 career points, 5,030 career rebounds and 7,211 career assists.

Wilkens would go on to become the NBA's second winningest all-time head coach in his 22 seasons. He has an all-time coaching record of 1,332-1,155 and a record of 478-402 as head coach of the Seattle SuperSonics. During his tenure as head coach in Seattle, Wilkens led Seattle to the playoffs in six of his eight seasons, including the NBA Championship in 1979. His long list of accolades as a coach include: 1994 NBA Coach of the Year with the Atlanta Hawks; assistant coach of the Dream Team in the 1992 Olympics; and head coach of the Dream Team II at the 1996 Atlanta summer Olympics where he coached the US Men's team to gold.

Tickets for the event are good for admission to both the Seattle Storm game and the Seattle Pro-Am game, and can be purchased at StormBasketball.com or by calling 206-217-9622 (WNBA). 

The Storm game will tip off at 7 p.m., followed by the Seattle Pro-Am, tipping at 10 p.m.

The Storm announced on June 29 that Chris Hansen's Seattle Arena Group purchased 2,000 tickets for the double-header. The tickets are being made available on a first-come, first-serve basis to the thousands of long-time supporters of the Seattle Arena Group.

UPDATE 7/6/2015 11:54 am

It was just announced that the Sonics' dynamic duo that took the team to the 1996 NBA Finals, Gary Payton and Shawn Kemp, will act as honorary coaches during the event.

"Seattle has a rich history of professional basketball, with the Seattle Storm continuing the tradition," said Payton. "It is an honor to be a part of this exciting double-header and to be able to come back to KeyArena and coach."

"The Seattle Storm and the Seattle Pro-Am are giving back to the Seattle community in a big way," said Kemp. "It will be a great night, coming back to KeyArena to see the Storm play and then see the men take the court. I am looking forward to reuniting with Gary and coaching the Pro-Am."