Sonics Regain Swagger Lost In Postseasons Past

The Seattle SuperSonics have regained their old swagger during their current five-game winning streak, according to guard Hersey Hawkins.

“It seems as though for the first time this year we know that if we stick to our game plan and stay aggressive, we’re going to win,” he said. “It seems like we have the attitude that the Sonics used to have, that cockiness, that arrogance that says, ‘We’ll play our game and you do something about it.”’

Hawkins was on the receiving end of that attitude the past two seasons as a member of the Charlotte Hornets. When he reported for training camp in October it was understandably missing.

Shellshocked by their second consecutive loss in the first round of the playoffs, Sonics players went their separate ways during the summer and dealt with the disappointment.

Even though they can’t put their playoff past behind them until the playoffs roll around again in April, their recent surge, particularly without injured All-Star forward Detlef Schrempf, has made them feel good again.

“With Det out, (David) Wingate is playing more off the bench, Vinnie (Askew) is playing well, Nate (McMillan) has been very key and everybody else has just been trying to support each other,” said center Sam Perkins.

The three new members of the playing rotation - Hawkins, Wingate and Frank Brickowski - no longer have to think about their on-court responsibilities, Perkins said.

“We’re doing things by habit now,” he said. “The cohesiveness and closeness has come a long way from the beginning of the season.”

Notes

Several members of the Sonics didn’t realize they were perfect in overtime - 5 for 5 from the field and 7 for 7 from the foul line - in Saturday’s 123-112 win over Phoenix.

Coach George Karl credited the perfect run to the confidence gained from scoring on the first two possessions.

Gary Payton drove the lane and scored on a left-handed moon shot and Perkins knocked down a 12-foot turnaround jumper over Charles Barkley.

“Then we frustrated them defensively and we hit all of our foul shots,” Karl said of free throws by Hawkins, Payton, Askew and Shawn Kemp. “Any time you make your free throws, you’re going to win a lot of games.”

There’s no added pressure, according to Kemp, yet tonight he’ll have a chance to personally impress Atlanta Hawks coach Lenny Wilkens.

As head coach of the 1996 U.S. Olympic basketball team, Wilkens will be among those deciding who will fill the two remaining berths on the Olympic roster, including one for a power forward.

No power forward in the NBA is rebounding as frequently as Kemp nor shooting as accurately. Yet his chances of being named to the team almost hinge on the way he celebrates his dunks.

When the 10-man roster was announced last fall, Kemp was seemingly snubbed because of his flamboyace, although a few players already named to the team are arguably more flamboyant, including Reggie Miller.

Kemp was also guilty of associating at the 1994 World Championships with Dream Team II teammates who do not fit the Olympic image, according to Sonics assistant coach Dwane Casey.