Slumping SuperSonics search for elusive division title

SEATTLE — After nearly two weeks the ice has long melted and the champagne in the Seattle SuperSonics’ locker room is getting awfully warm.

A Northwest Division title seemed like a certainty on April 2 when Seattle held a 9 1/2 -game lead over Denver. But after a six-game losing streak, the division title and the Sonics’ confidence heading into the playoffs seem to be in question.

“There is a lot of tension. The gorilla is getting heavier and heavier,” Seattle forward Danny Fortson said. “We just need to focus and get a win. Once we get a win, we’ll be OK.”

Seattle is still in a favorable position. The only way the Nuggets can pass the Sonics for the division title is if Seattle loses its last four games and Denver wins its last four — including games at Houston and Phoenix.

Still, it’s not the way the Sonics wanted to be playing heading into their first playoff appearance in three years. The Sonics have not won since beating Portland 89-87 on April 1. Following a five-game winning streak between March 18 and 25, Seattle has lost 8 of 10.

Seattle’s most recent loss came Wednesday, a 95-90 setback to Dallas. All-Star forward Rashard Lewis and key reserves Antonio Daniels and Fortson all returned from injuries against the Mavericks, but the Sonics still fell short.

Seattle has not won a division title since 1998, when the Sonics ended a run of three straight Pacific Division crowns.

“It’s been tough for us,” Seattle coach Nate McMillan said. “It gets tougher every time you drop a game. We’ve dropped six games and we’re not happy at all about that.”

The Sonics’ best chance at wrapping up the division should come tonight when they play their last regular-season home game against conference-worst New Orleans. Seattle closes the season with games at Minnesota, Dallas and Houston.

The Hornets have lost five straight, and lost to Seattle by 17 and 18 points earlier this season.

“We need to start slowly shifting into playoff mode,” Daniels said.

After being relatively healthy for most of the season, Seattle has been victimized by injuries at the end. Reserve forward Vladimir Radmanovic went on the injured list March 18 with a stress fracture in his lower right leg.

Ten days later, Lewis went to the sidelines with a deep bone bruise in his right foot and missed the next eight games. Daniels had missed three games with a left knee injury and Fortson was out for two games with a left shoulder sprain before each returned Wednesday.

“This team has shown what it can do when it’s healthy and we’ve seen who we are when we’re not,” McMillan said. “It’s just happened to us at a time when it’s toward the end and we’re getting ready for the playoffs.”

Lewis was averaging 20.7 points before being sidelined and served as a second offensive option to guard Ray Allen. Without Lewis in the lineup, more of the offensive has fallen to Allen. The Sonics have averaged just 93 points per game and have shot only 29 percent on 3-pointers during the losing streak.

The SuperSonics’ defense has allowed more than 107 points per game in the last six contests.

Radmanovic is not expected to return before the end of the regular season, but could be available in the playoffs.

McMillan is hoping that with everyone else available and back in the regular rotation, Seattle can use the final four games to build momentum into the playoffs.

“I think you can gain some confidence in four games,” McMillan said. “We’ve all got to get into a rhythm.”