With just 16 games left in possibly the last Sonics' season in Seattle, the road to the end of the year is a twisting path that will probably lead to few wins for this team. The Sonics face 13 teams that could end up in the playoffs, and already blew a potential win by losing to Minnesota for the first time this season in Seattle on Friday.
"We're going to be playing teams that are at the elite level," Seattle point guard Earl Watson said. "It's a good experience for us because we're about to see how teams prepare mentally for the playoffs. Just the focus and tenacious nature that they have is going to be key for us to pick up on because it's something that you can't duplicate unless you're in that situation." Seattle coach P.J. Carlesimo understands the daunting task ahead for his team, as the Sonics face several teams looking to better position themselves for the playoffs. However, Carlesimo sees the next five weeks as a learning process for his young players, particularly rookies Kevin Durant and Jeff Green.
"The deeper you get into it when you are playing playoff teams, or team that are playing well, it's not easy," Carlesimo said. "This is where we'd like to be at some point. We'd like to be where we're the people dictating things by how hard we play defensively, and how hard we play."
WOLVES 121, SONICS 116: The Sonics led at halftime 60-57, but were outscored by Minnesota 40-28 in the third quarter. The T-Wolves led 97-88 beginning the fourth quarter and held off a late rally by the Sonics to get their first win over Seattle in four tries this season. Ryan Gomes led seven Minnesota players in double-figures with 23 points and 15 rebounds.
