List of Seattle SuperSonics seasons

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The final Seattle SuperSonics game at KeyArena during the 2007-08 season Last Sonics Game 2008 (square crop).jpg
The final Seattle SuperSonics game at KeyArena during the 2007–08 season

The Seattle SuperSonics, also known the Sonics, are a former professional basketball team based from Seattle, Washington, United States, that played from 1967 to 2008. [1] They were members of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1970 onward; the team played in the conference's Pacific Division from 1970 to 2004 and the Northwest Division from 2004 to 2008. [2] [a] The Sonics joined the NBA as an expansion team in 1967 and were named for the supersonic airliner under development by Boeing, which was later cancelled. [4] They played for their first eleven seasons at the Seattle Center Coliseum, which was built for the 1962 World's Fair and had a seating capacity of 12,595. [5] The team moved in 1978 to the Kingdome, a multipurpose stadium shared with other sports teams, and set NBA attendance records there during a seven-season stay. [6] The Sonics hosted twenty Kingdome games with crowds larger than 30,000 and drew a league-record 40,172 spectators at a 1980 playoffs game. [5] [6]

Contents

The team returned to the Seattle Center Coliseum in 1985 as attendance at the Kingdome declined and the stadium's scheduling and layout caused issues for fans. [6] [7] A major renovation of the Coliseum began in 1994 and displaced the Sonics, who played for two seasons at the Tacoma Dome, a suburban arena that was expanded to 16,296 seats. [8] The renovated Coliseum, renamed to KeyArena, had the NBA's smallest seating capacity at 17,072 and hosted its first regular season game on November 4, 1995. [5] [9] The team played their final home game at KeyArena on April 13, 2008. [10] After the end of the 2007–08 season, the Sonics were relocated by its new ownership group to Oklahoma City. A lawsuit to halt the relocation and enforce the team's 15-year lease at KeyArena was filed by the Seattle city government but dropped as part of a settlement in July 2008. [11] [12] The team has played since the 2008–09 season as the Oklahoma City Thunder; [13] as part of the settlement, the SuperSonics name and history was left with the city for use by a future team. [11]

In their 41 seasons as an NBA team, the SuperSonics had an all-time regular season record of 1,745 wins and 1,585 losses; in the playoffs, they had 107 wins and 110 losses. [14] They reached the postseason 22 times and played in three NBA Finals, winning one league championship in 1979. [14] The Sonics were the first team from Washington state to win a major professional sports championship since the Seattle Metropolitans in the 1917 Stanley Cup. [15] Their .524 winning percentage was also historically the best among professional teams in the Seattle area, surpassing the Seattle Seahawks and Seattle Mariners. [16] The team's all-time points leader is Gary Payton with 18,207 points; he also holds the most assists in Sonics history at 7,384. [17]

The Sonics had a 23–59 record during their inaugural season and finished with the NBA's second-worst record, narrowly ahead of fellow expansion team San Diego Rockets. [18] The team were below .500 for their first four seasons and had their first winning season in 1971–72, where they earned a 47–35 record. [19] The Sonics clinched their first playoff berth in the 1974–75 season, [20] which was followed by consecutive NBA Finals in 1978 and 1979 against the Washington Bullets. [21] Seattle lost the first final, but defeated Washington in the rematch after finishing first in the Western Conference. [22] Lenny Wilkens, who led the team to both finals appearances, was replaced as head coach in 1985 after missing the playoffs by finishing with a 31–51 record, which his successor Bernie Bickerstaff equaled the following season. [23] The Sonics made an unexpected run to the Western Conference final in the 1987 playoffs, only to lose to the Los Angeles Lakers. [24]

The 1990s brought more consistent success, including eight consecutive playoff appearances, with head coach George Karl and new players Shawn Kemp and Gary Payton, both acquired in the draft. [25] The Sonics finished as the top seed in the 1993–94 season with a 63–19 record, but lost in a major upset to the eighth-seeded Denver Nuggets in the opening round of the playoffs. [26] The team reached the 1996 NBA Finals—their third and final appearance—after clinching first in the Western Conference standings but lost to the Chicago Bulls in six games. [27] The Sonics were eliminated in the conference semifinals two more times under Karl before he left the team along with Kemp by 1998. [25] The team, now under coach Paul Westphal, missed the playoffs in the shortened 1998–99 season, but returned the following year as a seventh-seed. [28] [29] Westphal was replaced early in the 2000–01 season by assistant coach and former Sonics player Nate McMillan, who led the team through rebuilds and to their two final playoff appearances: in 2002–03 and 2004–05 as the Northwest Division champions with 52 wins. [30] [31] The team's final three seasons in Seattle all finished with losing records and no playoff berths under the three different head coaches. [32] The Sonics had 20 wins and 62 losses during their 2007–08 season, their worst record in franchise history, shortly before moving to Oklahoma City. [16]

Table key

Seasons

Seattle SuperSonics record by season, 1967–2008
Year Season Conference Fin.DivisionFin.Regular season [32] Playoff results [33] Awards Head coach [32] Ref.
WL Pct. GB
1967–68 1967–68 Western [a] 5th2359.28033Did not qualify Al Bianchi [34]
1968–69 1968–69 Western [a] 6th3052.36625Did not qualify [35]
1969–70 1969–70 Western [a] 5th3646.43912Did not qualify Lenny Wilkens [c] [36]
1970–71 1970–71 Western 8th Pacific 4th3844.46310Did not qualify Lenny Wilkens (AMVP) [37] [38]
1971–72 1971–72 Western 6th Pacific 3rd4735.57322Did not qualify [39]
1972–73 1972–73 Western 8th Pacific 4th2656.31734Did not qualify Tom Nissalke (13–32)
Bucky Buckwalter (13–24)
[40]
1973–74 1973–74 Western 6th Pacific 3rd3646.43911Did not qualify Bill Russell [41]
1974–75 1974–75 Western 4th ¤ Pacific 2nd4339.5245Won first round vs. Detroit, 2–1
Lost conference semifinals vs. Golden State, 2–4
[42]
1975–76 1975–76 Western 2nd ¤ Pacific 2nd4339.52416Lost conference semifinals vs. Phoenix, 2–4 Slick Watts (JWKC) [43] [44]
1976–77 1976–77 Western 8th Pacific 4th4042.48813Did not qualify [45]
1977–78 1977–78  * Western  *4th ¤ Pacific 3rd4735.51411Won first round vs. LA Lakers, 2–1
Won conference semifinals vs. Portland, 4–2
Won conference finals vs. Denver, 4–2
Lost NBA Finals vs. Washington, 3–4 *
Bob Hopkins (5–17)
Lenny Wilkens (42–18)
[46]
1978–79 1978–79   Western  *1st ¤ Pacific 1st ^5230.634Won conference semifinals vs. LA Lakers, 4–1
Won conference finals vs. Phoenix, 4–3
Won NBA Finals vs. Washington, 4–1
Dennis Johnson (FMVP) [47] Lenny Wilkens [48]
1979–80 1979–80 Western 2nd ¤ Pacific 2nd5626.6834Won first round vs. Portland, 2–1
Won conference semifinals vs. Milwaukee, 4–3
Lost conference finals vs. LA Lakers, 1–4
[49]
1980–81 1980–81 Western 10th Pacific 6th3448.41523Did not qualify [50]
1981–82 1981–82 Western 2nd ¤ Pacific 2nd5230.6345Won first round vs. Houston, 2–1
Lost conference semifinals vs. San Antonio, 1–4
Gus Williams (CPOY) [51] [52]
1982–83 1982–83 Western 4th ¤ Pacific 3rd4834.58510Lost first round vs. Portland, 0–2 Zollie Volchok (EOY) [53] [54]
1983–84 1983–84 Western 5th ¤ Pacific 3rd4240.51212Lost first round vs. Dallas, 2–3 [55]
1984–85 1984–85 Western 10th Pacific 4th [d] 3151.37831Did not qualify [56]
1985–86 1985–86 Western 11th Pacific 5th3151.37831Did not qualify Bernie Bickerstaff [57]
1986–87 1986–87 Western 7th ¤ Pacific 4th3943.47626Won first round vs. Dallas, 3–1
Won conference semifinals vs. Houston, 4–2
Lost conference finals vs. LA Lakers, 0–4
Tom Chambers (AMVP) [37]
Dale Ellis (MIP) [58]
[59]
1987–88 1987–88 Western 7th ¤ Pacific 3rd4438.53718Lost first round vs. Denver, 2–3 [60]
1988–89 1988–89 Western 4th ¤ Pacific 3rd4735.57310Won first round vs. Houston, 3–1
Lost conference semifinals vs. LA Lakers, 0–4
[61]
1989–90 1989–90 Western 9th Pacific 4th4141.50022Did not qualify [62]
1990–91 1990–91 Western 8th ¤ Pacific 5th4141.50022Lost first round vs. Portland, 2–3 K. C. Jones [63]
1991–92 1991–92 Western 6th ¤ Pacific 4th4735.57310Won first round vs. Golden State, 3–1
Lost conference semifinals vs. Utah, 1–4
K. C. Jones (18–18)
Bob Kloppenburg (2–2)
George Karl (27–15)
[64]
1992–93 1992–93 Western 3rd ¤ Pacific 2nd5527.6717Won first round vs. Utah, 3–2
Won conference semifinals vs. Houston, 3–4
Lost conference finals vs. Phoenix, 3–4
George Karl [65]
1993–94 1993–94 Western 1st ¤ Pacific 1st ^6319.768Lost first round vs. Denver, 2–3 Bob Whitsitt (EOY) [53] [66]
1994–95 1994–95 Western 4th ¤ Pacific 2nd5725.6952Lost first round vs. LA Lakers, 1–3 [67]
1995–96 1995–96  * Western  *1st ¤ Pacific 1st ^6418.780Won first round vs. Sacramento, 3–1
Won conference semifinals vs. Rockets, 4–0
Won conference finals vs. Utah, 4–3
Lost NBA Finals vs. Chicago, 2–4 *
Gary Payton (DPOY) [68] [69]
1996–97 1996–97 Western 3rd ¤ Pacific 1st ^5725.695Won first round vs. Phoenix, 3–2
Lost conference semifinals vs. Houston, 3–4
[70]
1997–98 1997–98 Western 2nd ¤ Pacific 1st ^ [e] 6121.744Won first round vs. Minnesota, 3–2
Lost conference semifinals vs. LA Lakers, 1–4
[72]
1998–99 [f] 1998–99 Western 9th Pacific 5th2525.50010Did not qualify Hersey Hawkins (SPOR) [74] Paul Westphal [75]
1999–2000 1999–2000 Western 7th ¤ Pacific 4th4537.54922Lost first round vs. Utah, 2–3 [76]
2000–01 2000–01 Western 10th Pacific 5th4438.53712Did not qualifyPaul Westphal (6–9)
Nate McMillan (38–29)
[77]
2001–02 2001–02 Western 7th ¤ Pacific 4th4537.54916Lost first round vs. San Antonio, 2–3Nate McMillan [78]
2002–03 2002–03 Western 10th Pacific 5th4042.48819Did not qualify Ray Allen (SPOR) [74] [79]
2003–04 2003–04 Western 12th Pacific 5th [g] 3745.45119Did not qualify [80]
2004–05 2004–05 Western 4th ¤ Northwest 1st ^5230.634Won first round vs. Sacramento, 4–1
Lost conference semifinals vs. San Antonio, 2–4
[81]
2005–06 2005–06 Western 11th Northwest 3rd3547.4279Did not qualify Bill Weiss (13–17)
Bob Hill (22–30)
[82]
2006–07 2006–07 Western 14th Northwest 5th3151.37820Did not qualifyBob Hill [83]
2007–08 2007–08 Western 15th Northwest 5th2062.24434Did not qualify Kevin Durant (ROY) [84] P. J. Carlesimo [85]
Totals (41 seasons)1,7451,585.524All-time regular season record (1967–2008) [17]
107110.493All-time playoffs record (1967–2008) [14]
1,8521,695.522All-time overall record (1967–2008) [14]

See also

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 4 The Western Conference was established in 1970; prior to that, the Sonics played in the Western Division. [3]
  2. The formula is as follows:
  3. Lenny Wilkens was a player–coach for the SuperSonics from 1969 to 1972 and later returned solely as head coach in 1977. [21]
  4. The Seattle SuperSonics and Los Angeles Clippers finished with identical 31–51 records, but Seattle won the tiebreaker to finish fourth. [56]
  5. The Seattle SuperSonics and Los Angeles Lakers finished with identical 61–21 records, but Seattle won the head-to-head tiebreaker to place first in the Pacific Division. [71]
  6. The 1998–99 season was shortened to 50 games due to a player lockout that lasted until January 1999. [73]
  7. The Seattle SuperSonics and Golden State Warriors finished with identical 37–45 records, but Seattle lost the tiebreaker to finish fifth. [80]

References

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