Marc Stein wrote a small item in his ESPN.com column that said that if Rick Carlisle is fired by the Pacers, he may be a favorite to replace Hill as head coach. I have a hard time believing that could be true. Carlisle clearly is a good coach, and I like him personally; I got to know him some when he was the Sonics color announcer. But his offense is notoriously deliberate, and I think the last thing the Sonics need is a deliberate half-court offense. This team is built for speed and scoring, and putting them with a coach who wants to control the entire game would I think be disastrous. How many times have we heard players say this year that they need to be more uptempo to get easier shots? Personally, I think they are going to need a guy like Mike D'Antoni protege Marc Iavaroni or Rick Adelman, a great offensive mind. They need to play to their stengths -- unless they decide to shake up the core of the team.

Lots of stuff happening tonight. Ray said he will have surgery on both his ankles a week from Saturday -- and said the delay is because the doctor's daughter goes to UCLA and he promised her he would take her to the Final Four if the Bruins got there. Ray said he has a hard time with anastesia (sp?) and that he did not want to have to go under twice so he will have both ankles done at the same time, having to wear boots immediately after the surgery. He said he will stay in LA for a few weeks after the surgery so he can be there for his follow-up visits. He said he is going to try to rent a house there rather than be in a hotel. I think he can afford it.

I talked with Swift for a little. He said he is ahead of sked on his rehab. I asked when he expects to be back to 100 percent and he said August. I said, you know this is a full year to 18 month rehab, right? His response was that it depends on the individual's body and that he is well ahead of sked in his rehab and so he expects to be fully healthy by August. I'm skeptical, but give him the benefit of the doubt for optimism. I also asked him if he feels any increased pressure because of the way everybody is saying this season fell apart because of his injury, which means when he comes back they better win. He said he has not really thought about it. Half jokingly, half serious, I told him that another way to look at it is this: With everybody saying how important he is, he has a lot of leverage in contract negotiations because he must be vital to the team's success. He laughed and said he hadn't thought about that either.

I was thinking more about Bob Hill's comments the other night, and I think he wisely made them at the right time. Coming on the heels of a 25-point comeback victory, which shows the team has not quit, certainly holds more weight than when the Sonics go through this next stretch of games against really hard teams and likely will piece together a substantial losing streak. If he was going to say he deserved to have the job -- which I dont blame him for stating -- now was the time he had to do it.

After reviewing the tape of the Denver game, Bob Hill said Reggie Evans' shot that broke Andre Brown's nose was not dirty or intentional, just Reggie being Reggie. Hill said before that denver game that Mike WIlks was going to see more time, but then didnt get in because the game did not allow for it. He said he checked with Wilks after the game and Wilks was fine with it.

Sorry no blog from minny, there was no wireless in the bowl where we were seated during the game.

In Denver, Bob Hill talked a lot about his contract before the game, finally saying he thinks he deserves a shot to coach this team while it is fully healthy. He said he met with Clay last week, his first one-on-one sit down with the new owner, though he said his job situation never came up. He talked at length about it, but he basically said he doesnt want to come back to Seattle to coach because he has said all the right things to Clay, he wants to come back because clay thinks he is a good coach who can win a championship. His coaching credentials are well documented, he said, he has developed Wilcox, Petro, Collison and Rashard, and he said he feels like the team is close and he feels like he can take it to the next level with a few additions to the roster. I think he used the term "footprints," and said he left footprints in Indiana, he left footprints in San Antonio and he would like to be able to leave footprints in Seattle and he would feel like he failed if he was not given that opportunity.

Hill also said he thinks Mike Wilks earned some playing time based on the way he performed in the comeback win, though he did not know how much. It comes to the detriment of Luke, is my guess.

Practice will be canceled tomorrow because of the recent heavy game sked.

Sonics had practice at the Target Center on Monday evening, unfortunately I missed it because my flights were canceled in the morning from Sea-Tac and I got rerouted through Chicago on a different airline, arriving in Minny at 5:30 last night. My understanding is there was not a great deal of stuff that happened, it was about a 75-minute practice to let the players get their legs loose.

I wrote a story that is in today's News Tribune about the team's ad campaign, but I also asked Sean Cockerham, our Olympia-based reporter, to make a few calls to see where things stand in the Senate and the House. Sean said there is some agreement with Margarita Prentice that if there was a vote taken in the Senate today, it might pass. However, it seems as if they are far away in the House, and I dont see that turning around dramatically in the final 3 1/2 weeks, before the end of the legislative session. I'm not sure what that means other than that it doesn't look good. I'm still not sure that means they are necessarily out of here, but I suspect if a vote is not taken on the issue, the next step for Clay is to issue a threat that the team is leaving. Even then it becomes a timing issue, and the politicians still may not feel compelled to do anything because they know the team is forced to stay here through next season. If I was a politician and didn't want to be forced to officially state my opinion on this, I'd just say: Let's wait until after the 2007-08 season and then revisit where we are. Of course, that means a very ugly lame-duck season next year where the talk is primarily about leaving and where the crowds, I would suspect, are either not present because it no longer is their team or mutinous if the team is not good. These are all very tricky public relations decisions that will be interesting to see how they play out. Because let's say, for instance, that Clay does not get his arena vote. And then let's say he doesn't want to make a threat so that he can salvage the 07-08 season. Then it looks like he is not making good on the threat to leave and there is no reason for the legislature to feel like it has to make a move. I guess the best option is for Clay to wait until Oct. 31 to make any type of statement; that is the one-year deadline of the sale of the team, by that time all the season tickets will be sold and any free agency matters will be resolved, and it is heading into the next legislative session giving the politicos something to think about. But don't forget this small matter: If Clay does decide to leave, he still has to pay off the KeyArena lease, he still has to pay a relocation fee and he still has to have Ford Center upgraded to standard NBA conditions. All told, that is probably $100 million, so he is close to having $500 million invested in the team before he has even seen a playoff game. It gets expensive being rich these days, does it not?

So with the game so out of hand, I was looking around the arena at some other scenes and I notice this large fellow in the suite above Section 127. Upon closer inspection, it was Bill Russell, dead asleep, with his head on his chest, his wife nudging him a couple times to wake up. A few minutes later, Russell gets a visit from another distinguished gentleman, Sonics owner Clay Bennett, who apparently was the caffeine that Russell required because he didn't doze off while speaking to Bennett as far as I could tell. The season is winding down, folks.

I dont usually blog during a game, but this was too funny. When Bob Hill sent Danny Fortson in the game, Gregg Popovich quickly went to insert Fabricio Oberto because he clearly did not want to get Tim Duncan injured by Fortson. Oberto clearly did not want to go in the game against Fortson, so Pop stood up, looked down the bench at Oberto and asked, What the f---? Oberto slithered to the scorer's table. Fortson, by the way, received a loud ovation from the fans.

I attended the Save our Sonics gathering at Touchdowns Bar and Grill in Renton on Saturday afternoon, and it was a good turnout that included Clay Bennett, Lenny Wilkens and Jim Kneeland, the team's spokesman on the arena issue. Also in attendance was Kathy Keolker, the mayor of Renton, Margarita Prentice, the Chairwomn of the Senate Ways and Means committee, and Alex Pietsch, the head of Renton development. I would guess 100 people showed up, though I would say at least a third were Sonics employees supporting the cause. This was all part of a larger Sonics Pr campaign as the legislature enters the final month of the session and is being asked to make a decision. The other stuff is an info center in the Renton business district that will sell season ticket packages and answer questions for anyon einterested, the opening of a web site devoted to the events center and a "town meeting" on Fox Sports with Bennett in which he will answer qustions about the issue.

Here is the one thing that gives me concerns. Any time I ask Prentice about what is happening, she avoids the question being asked and lapses into this spin doctoring gibberish. Apparently she thinks all reporters just fell off the turnip truck and are her vehicle to disseminate talking points, and every time I try to pin her down on something she says she doesn't know. She said she thinks something will happen soon but didnt know when. She said she thinks she has the Senate votes but doesn't know how many. She said she is confident the House will turn around despite Frank Chopp's negativity but doesn't say why or if she has even guaged where the members of the House stand. It all seems to be nebulous cheerleading with very little substance. Hopefully that will change as we get closer to the decision-making, but I hope she is more forthcoming and substantive with members of the legislature than she is with the media.

Ray finally made the decision most of us were expecting, that he will miss the rest of the season to have surgery to remove the bone spur in his left ankle. The date for surgery has not yet been determined, it depends Ray said on the schedule of Dr. Richard Ferckel, the same guy who scoped Ray's ankle in 2003. Ray said the sooner the better. He said Ferckel looked at his x-rays and MRIs over the weekend, said he didn't like some of the stuff he saw in the pictures and recommended he stop playing and have the surgery. Not that is matters, but Ray said the rehab is six to eight weeks. He will be ready for training camp next season. He said he is not concerned that this will impact the rest of his career because there is not structural damage. Ray also said he will have surgery on his right ankle to clean out some of the scar tissue he has in there. I guess if you were cynical, you could second-guess why Ray is going back to the guy who did the job in 2003 that requires him to go back in now and clean it up. Luckily, I'm not cynical.

Got a call from Sonics pr impresario Kurt Fedders who said there is no update on Ray. Don't know if that is accurate or the Sonics don't want to release bad news before they have to for ticket sale purposes, but it doesn't look like we will find out until Friday about Ray's status. I put a call in to his agent, Lon Babby, but have not heard back. He's on the East Coast so it is getting late there, doubt I hear from him.

Still no word on Ray and his conversation with the ankle specialist at Duke. His teammates didnt seem to know much either. Sonics say they are waiting to hear word. As for practice, it was longer than normal. Bob Hill said if Ray is unable to go Friday against Minny or the rest of the season, that the only way for them to be successful is if Chris Wilcox continues to play like he has the past two games. Wilcox said he is ready to do that and that he looks forward to the opportunity. Bob also said that the coaching staff knew the Wizards had no timeouts at the end of the game Wednesday and that Gordie Chiesa told everybody in the huddle. The fact that Rashard thought the Wizzies were going to call timeout is on Rashard, apparently. Bob said he will continue to go to Rashard at the end of games if Ray is no longer able to play. He also said he will not inform the players about the difficulty of the upcoming schedule and that he wants to treat it like it is any other stretch of the season, even though given the quality of the opponents it may be the toughest stretch. I will update the blog when I hear something on Ray.

So here's the deal with Ray: He is feeling increasing pain in his left ankle because of the bone spur. He left the arena early tonight to get an x-ray while standing up that he can send to a doctor at Duke for a second opinion. Ray was referred to that doctor by his agent, Lon Babby. He is sending the x-ray over tonight, he should hear from the doctor in the morning and will proceed from there. He said he has not made a decision one way or the other about season-ending surgery, but he said the pain is only getting worse and worse -- and was part of the reason he was 4-for-19 from the field on Sunday in Portland. He said the doctor in Seattle has told him that he is not in danger of more structural damage, though he said he is worried that compensating for the ankle could negatively affect other parts of his body. He has been feeling tenderness on his knee lately and got an MRI that determined he has chondromalacia, the same injury that Antonio Daniels had when he was with the Sonics. Damien will start for Ray with Gelabale getting increased minutes. I asked Bob if Ray does shut it down for the season if he would consider starting Gelabale and giving Sene and Petro a bunch of minutes just to develop them. Bob said it would not be fair to the other players to say they are going to develop only and go out and lose, so while he would give those players more minutes he would not exclusively try to develop them.

I am told that Ray Allen is not playing in tonight's game against the Washington Wizards, which was my concern yesterday when I heard he went to the doctors to have the bone spur in his ankle checked out. Mssr. Dave Boling, making a welcome appearance at the Key, said he saw Ray leaving, so I dont know if he will be available to speak with us tonight. The question, of course, is whether he will or should shut it down for the rest of the season. Locker rooms open in a few, so I'll blog again once the locker rooms close. I am on KJR with Gas at 6:35, so if you want an update before I get back to my computer, tune in then.

So there was a somewhat interesting development at practice today. It started out as a mundane interview with Bob Hill which veered into him talking about the team's +- differential. He said for a team with only 26 wins, the fact that their differential -- the number of points a team is outscored by or outscores its opponents by -- is only -1 is a huge indicator or how close they are. And then he says, I know people will look at this like I am trying to save my job, but it's true." This is the first time Bob ever has said anything about his job without being prompted by one of us, which to me means he is starting to think about it as the season winds down. I didnt pursue it because I didnt think there was any reason to, but I thought it was something out of the blue that was pretty interesting.

Also, Ray went to the doctors today to have his foot checked out. Not sure how serious it is. He was getting treatment after the game in Portland on Sunday and was not available to speak to us, a rarity, and the fact that he is going to the doctor sends up a red flag for me. Bob was downplaying it, I guess we will see what happens tomorrow and if he is available.

Also, the Sonics just released a web site, eventscenterfacts.com, that will allow folks a central place to go to get answers about the arena stuff, links to articles, profiles of the development team, etc. The release also said they will combine that with radio ads to educate folks about the positive aspects of the arena.

I forgot to mention in yesterday's posting that I also asked Kneeland how the Pittsburgh Penguins' decision to stay in Pittsburgh affects the Sonics. He said it does not because their pursuit of a hockey team is well behind their desire for this arena situation to be resolved, and the Pens things was more immediate. A hockey team could not come here until after the arena is built, so that issue is four or five years behind the curve. I dont completely agree with him that is has no affect because it is a domino affect. If the Pens had gone to Kansas City, that is a) one less city to worry about when some team does want to relocate and B) if it had gone to kansas city that is no longer a likely destination for the Sonics if they move because I dont think KC can support both NBA and NHL. Kneeland, of course, can't say that, but to say that decision has not affect on Seattle is naive. All these cities are tied together at this point.

Sonics took today off, will practice tomorrow in preparation for Wednesday's game against Washington. I spoke with Jim Kneeland, the team's spokesman for the arena situation, and he said there is not a ton happening right now, the team is just trying to get th votes necessary to pass the bill before the end of the legislative session on April 22. Kneeland acknowledged that the bill will not even get out of the Ways and Means committee unless the legislature is sure it will be pass both the House and the Senate. He said he thinks they are close on the Senate, he does not know about the House, which is where most of the opposition has been voiced. I asked him what happens if no vote is taken by the end of the session and he said, "Then I think we have a serious problem." It sounds like this thing is going to come down to the very last minute, in part because most politicians are simply hoping it goes away. Sean Cockerham, our reporter in Olympia, says there is not a lot of talk about it right now because the legislature is trying to make decisions on so many other bills. Clay Bennett is coming into town at the end of this week and he will, among other things, meet with King County Council members Dow Constantine and Larry Phillips. Bennett is hoping to persuade them to not send this thing to a public vote, though it looks like that is inevitable. My editor was telling me that King County Council members make $115,000 a year and they hold on to those positions very tightly, so they do not want to jeopardize those spots by approving a bill their constituents may not want.

We showed up in Portland and were introduced to 10,000 or more of Portland's finest anti-war demonstrators walking the streets in a protest. Unfortunately, the protest ran right in front of my hotel, meaning, the police told me, I had to park down the street, lug my bags up the street to check in, then head back down through the demonstrators to get to the game. Peace to all.

Bob Hill said he reviewed the tape of the Warriors game and he said Rashard was open on the last play but there was not enough patience shown and the ball was thrown to Damien instead for that final shot. Bob said he thinks all these late-game failings are from inexperience, and a lot of times these young guys are panicking in crucial moments and not executing the play that is drawn up. It has happened time and again this season, he said, and is a big reason the season has gone so poorly.

He said he pulled Luke in the Warriors game because he had five turnovers and was not shooting the ball well. He said, though, that Luke told him he is feeling fine and there was no residual soreness from the playing his first game after his neck injury.

Rashard told an interesting story before the game. With the NCAA tournament on, somebody asked Rashard what colleges he was considering. He said Kansas and Florida. I knew he had considered Alabama and asked him about that. He said he visited Alabama. He said he knew he wasnt going to go there when he got a call to his hotel room at 4 in the morning on the night of his visit from people who called him the N word and said they were going to hang him. He said he told the Alabama coach, who was angry because he knew he had lost Rashard as a potential recruit. Supposedly, Rashard said, the coach looked into the call but couldnt find anything out because the call was made from a pay phone.

Rashard said he wasnt really angry after he took 11 shots in the Detroit game, it was just that Detroit played decent defense on him. (Not sure if I believe him completely, but he is usually pretty straightforward.) Anyway, he admitted he needs to take a different approach when it comes to playing out of the double-team, either taking a quick shot or learning to face up and attack the double team.

Here's an amusing -- and typical -- NBA story. So two women call over a Sonics employee before the game and show her their tickets. They are comp tickets 18 rows up. The women say they have relationships with players from Charlotte and Detroit and Golden State, and they KNOW for a fact that the players spend $200 apiece on the tickets. And since these are obviously comp tickets, Sonics employees must be taking the $200 per ticket and pocketing the money. These are crappy tickets, they say, and they refuse to sit in these comp seats. So the Sonics employee has to do some legwork and eventually assures the women that they are not stealing the money, that sometimes players just ask their PR folks for a few freebies and the PR person produces them. The women say they are not leaving until they get better seats and until they find out what happened to the money that the Sonics employees stole. So the Sonics go ask the Warriors pr person about the tickets and he asks the player - who I dont want to name but who recently got into a legal scrape in Indiana before he was traded to the Warriors and whose name sounds like Even Flaxsen -- and the player says no he did not pay $200 a ticket. So the Sonics employee goes back to the women for a third time and explains what happens. I believe they were quoting Danny Fortson, a former Warrior, when they said, "Whatever."

Here is a link to a story on Rashard in Sports Illustrated. There are some interesting comments in there, particularly one where Rashard says he doesn't trust the Sonics.

After a welcome two-day respite, Friday's practice provided a chance to speak with Luke, who will, Bob Hill says, start against the Warriors on Saturday night. Bob said he simply asked Earl what to do, and Earl said, "Start him." I would think it would not be that difficult a decision since they have lost four in a row -- and we did not go to Earl this time to see if this is what actually took place. At this point, does it matter. Luke said the one thing that being away from the team provided him was the ability to see that they are very close to being a winning team. Seemingly, a play here and a play there is separating them. Luke said he has full range of motion and is not worried about driving the ball, and with him I believe it.

I asked Bob about Rashard and the 11 shots he got in Boston and then vs. Detroit. Bob said they worked on that extensively over the past two days, but it is up to Rashard to make quick moves or catch-and-shoot when he gets the ball rather than waiting for the double-team, which inevitably will come. It will be interesting to see if Rashard adopts these strategies in the final games of the season as he looks toward free agency.

The Sonics held a season ticket holders function last night and apparently Danny was late. It was a team function so Bob said he assumes Danny will be fined.

Not much else happening. If you are going to the game tomorrow, remember to wear Green. Happy St. Paddy's Day. I'll be the one sitting at press row without a green beer.

Kind of an uneventful pregame, not a lot of news coming out. The team will take Wednesday off, then practice Thursday and Friday in preparation for Satrday's game against Golden State. Bob Hill said Luke will practice those two days, though he said he did not know if Luke would start or not. I asked him who he thought was a better PG in an uptempo game (GS) and Hill didnt really answer, kind of saying it depended on which one was in an uptempo mindframe that day. Hmmm.

The players and coaches were picking names for their tournament brackets. Hill said he picked Connecticut State and Duke so chucked his paper away knowing his chances were futile.

In one of the last seasons I covered the Washington Bullets, they had both Chris Webber and Rasheed Wallace on their roster back then (as well as Juwan Howard and Gheorge Muresan, one of my all-time favorite players; he was like a cartoon character). It's weird sitting here watching them playing together again, in the twilights of their careers. What's that say about my dusty bones?

Luke Ridnour will not play against the Detroit Pistons tomorrow night because Bob Hill said he still is two degrees from having full range of motion in his neck, where he has a herniated disc. Ridnour practiced some on Monday but departed before his teammates went through a walkthrough to prepare for Detroit. Hill said Ridnour should be able to play Saturday and Sunday against the Warriors and then Portland.

Danny Fortson was at practice but declined to speak with the media. Hill said he chatted with Fortson prior to practice and everything was fine. He said he doubted Fortson would play vs. the Pistons.

Ray Allen sat down with Rick Sund and had a long talk during the latter portion of practice, though neither spoke with the media afterward. I'll try to task Ray about it before Tuesday's game.

I love the airlines. How about this day of travel? So after the game goes into overtime on Sunday, cutting my cab ride to the airport tight, I get to the Air Canada counter agent, who tells me she cant find my itinerary. So I pull it up on my computer and she says she still cant find it. Finally, another agent says that United suspended my ticket for some reason. I have to go to the United counter to get it reinstated. I go to the United counter, the woman reinstates it after saying she has no idea why it was suspended. She says I have to go back to the Air Canada counter to check in though. So I go back to Air Canada and they say, "Sorry, that flight is closed. You got here too late." Midieval torture of this person is a distinct possibility at this point, perhaps Pulp Fiction style. So they stick me on a later flight but say you only have a half hour connection once you get to Chicago so you have to run, which I do and catch the last flight home to Seattle. Once I get there, the line for cabs at 11:30 last night is 70 people deep. Off to the side is a group of five or six people with bushels of luggage, including skis, waiting for a minivan taxi. So 69 people go by, and right when I get to the front the leader of the pack, who looks like Jerry Garcia, decides he wants my cab because he is tired of waiting. Couldn't have been the person after me or the person before, but my cab. I tell him, my luggage already is in and it's not coming out. He says, "I have been waiting for 45 minutes." I say, "Well, what do you want me to do? My luggage is in the cab. Sorry." And he screams, for the entire line of people still waiting for their cabs, and God to hear, "Well F--- You." I decide to get Midieval on his ass and make a move for my samurai sword and then realize the Air Canada baggage handlers stole it. Bastards!

Bob Hill said he has not spoken directly to Luke Ridnour but has been told that his rehab from a herniated disc is progressing. Luke should be at practice today. Bob said he suspects Luke will not start against Detroit on Tuesday because he has not played in a week but he will wait to see how Luke is before making a firm decision.

I asked Bob this question: Why would you draft a guy like Sene and develop him when generally young big guys who are taken dont succeed until they get to their second team, meaning you developed them for somebody else? His response was that the Swift injury makes Sene look like a bad draft pick because they now have a dearth of big men, but if Swift was healthy and Sene was in the background, it would give him time to develop and would not look like such a bad pick. I asked him what the long-term future of the three guys is since it seems unlikely you can keep all three. He didnt have an answer since it has to play out and you dont know how any will develop. He has said Sene is worse now than he was in training camp, Johan is worse now than he was last year and Swift obviously is hurt and not able to do anything. So I assume that means the entire year was a waste -- but I dont want to put words in anybody's mouth.

Bob said he does not know if Fortson will be at practice tomorrow. At this point it's all a mystery.

Locker room was relatively quiet. Ray and Rashard would not grant interview requests from television stations, so there is the question if they are tired of talking or are focused on the game or are angry. They usually always talk. Which is nice, I think.

Here is a story in Newsday about Lenny Wilkens going back to Madison Square Garden this week. The nut of the story is that Lenny insinuates he is not retired from coaching, though the story does not go on to say what that means specifically.

Because today's game is so early, Sonics are holding a team breakfast this morning, having their meetings and then heading over to the arena. Games are always interesting in Toronto, much like they are in Boston, for some reason.

I remember a few specific things from Toronto. Once, I think this was in about 2000, I am sitting courtside with Paul Westphal in pregame. We are yakking and watching this young kid named Tracy McGrady take jump shots. I am not exaggerating, McGrady hit about 15 straight 3s. Westy, in his dry wit, turns to me and says, "I guess he's got that shot down." I had an inkling McGrady might be pretty good even though he had not made a name yet.

Another memory from here is Vin Baker (hungover) gets the ball in the post during a Sunday afternoon game, guarded by 5-foot-3 Muggsy Bogues (or, as my wife calls him, Buggsy Mogues). Instead of backing him down, Vin dribbles outside and takes a fadeaway 15 footer. The entire place was stunned. That's the first time I saw Gary Payton really turn on Vinny. After the game, a Toronto reporter tells me the boys had been spotted out all night at certain clubs where there are scantily clad women.

I suspect the Sonics win this game today, after Rashard goes off in Boston and then Ray expresses some concern about his teammates' focus on Saturday, an issue Bob Hill said he would address. If they lose this one, given the motivation, there are some real issues here. One might suggest there are real issues anyway.

This is a tough, stressful travel day. After a week out, I wanted to get home sooner rather than later. So I booked a 6 o clock flight out of Toronto, the last one of the day. The game will probably end at 3:30 or 3:45, so I have to run to the locker room, get quotes, skate outside to catch a cab, get to the airport and go through Customs. I can only hope there are not long lines. A bit of a risk but worth it to get home 15 hours earlier. I will write at the airport and file from there or during my layover. That's the plan, anyway.

When Sonics coach Bob Hill informed Danny Fortson today that he had been suspended for two games, Fortson apparently asked him why. When Hill told him why, Fortson responded: "Whatever."
Bob his usually pretty laid-back about most things and doesn't get too upset, but he was visibly frustrated when speaking about Fortson. He was asked if he expected things to change when the Sonics return home, and Hill said, "They havent changed for two years so I dont know why I would expect them to all of a sudden be different." He said he did not know if Fortson had played his last game for Seattle, though he did not sound overly confident. The players did not really seem to care. They have not had Danny all year and understand that this is between Danny and management for the most part.

The locker room was actually really funny, with Damien and Wilcox going back and forth about Maryland, which has been knocked out of the ACC tournament, and Georgia, still playing. Wilcox brought up his championship, which nobody wanted to hear about. He was trying to use it as a trump card but they would not let him. Finally, Damien said, "Well, then let's start talking about playoff experience in the NBA." Wilcox quickly shut up.

There is a reporter from the Hartford Courant who has been following the team since New York. He is doing a big feature on Ray, keep your eye out for that on the internet if you get the chance.

It finally warmed up a little here in Boston, after sub-zero temperatures last night. I took a walk through Cambridge today down through the Harvard campus. It looks like a great, vibrant place to go to school. My hotel is right next to the MIT campus. Not nearly as nice. Still better than Suffolk University though, one of the worst places I have ever seen an NBA team practice.

The Sonics just issued a release that the team has suspended Fortson for two games without pay for missing yesterday's practice (and, presumably, the shootaround on Tuesday). He will not be available for tonight's game in Boston or Sunday's game in Toronto. With his $6.6 million salary, that means he forfeits $146,000 for the two games. It would have been cheaper to take a cab.

Yes, I am a George Mason grad, and I am sad to say the Patriots will not be revisiting the magic of last March. Well, I didn't expect it every year, so once in a lifetime will have to suffice.

As for practice, the Danny Fortson saga continues. The Sonics held a practice at a little place called Suffolk University, in the basement of this building. (I told you it was a glamorous life.) The starters had permission to stay at the hotel and rest. Six players were there. Fortson was not. Fortson called Bob HIll and said he was given permission not to practice. That was not true, trainer Mike Shimensky said he was required to practice. Hill told Fortson to catch a cab to the gym. He never showed. Bob said he didnt know what he was going to do. He said it was one thing to miss a shootaround, another thing completely to miss a practice -- especially one he knew he was supposed to be at because he spoke with Bob beforehand and was told to take a cab. So Bob said he will think about what he wants to do and let us know tomorrow. A funny line came out of it though bceause Fortson told me that a cabbie "took him for a ride" in New York, the reason he missed the shootaround. So after we are done talking, Bob says, I guess this cab took him to Madison Square Garden.

The six players on hand -- Wilks, Wilkins, Gelabale, Sene, Johan and Andre Brown -- ran through plays and then played 3 on 3. Thrilling stuff. Hill said afterward he thought Sene was a better player in training camp then he is now because he has lost some of his fundamentals. He said they are dicussing sending Sene down to Boise for the third and final time to give him a chance to play in the NBDL playoffs.

Talked with Damien a little after his 18 point outing in Phlly. He said he is inconsistent this year because he loses agrressiveness when he catches himself watching Ray and Rashard. Also, he said, he was scared he was going to get pulled if he made a mistake. He knows it is up to him to stay aggressive, not pass up shots and play without concerns.

The Sonics now say Luke Ridnour is not going to join them on this trip but will be available next Tuesday for the game against Detroit. Bob Hill basically said it doesnt make sense to rush him back from a herniated disc since it is such a sensitive injury.

I asked Bob what he would have said after the game last night if the team had lost, given the 27-1 free throw discrepancy in the second half. He didnt want to answer the question, though he said he said something to one of the officials during the game and was greeted with silence.

I talked with Rashard for a little bit about the way he is approaching free agency since it seems like he will be asked in every city about it. THere were some headlines in New York this morning saying the Knicks will pursue him via a sign-and-trade, which is BS but the fact remains that he will be asked the question. He said he basically is going to be open to any option because he doesnt want to restrict potential suitors this summer. Which is smart. I asked him if there was any city he wouldnt go to and he said no, as long as he is playing he will be happy. It's funny to see the way Ray and Rashard are handling their impending free agency because Ray was very calculated in everything he said he did. Rashard I dont think really even thinks about it, at least not from a pr standpoint the way Ray does. Rashard just kind of goes through life and whatever happens happens.

Danny Fortson apparently made shootaround but is not likely to play tonight Bob said because it is a faster-paced game.

A few interesting items came out of pregame. The first was the disclosure that Danny Fortson missed the team's morning shootaround at Madison Square Garden and will not play tonight. He flew all the way here, was planning on playing for the first time in 37 games and then skipped the shootaround. Hill said he would have liked to use him against Eddy Curry tonight but he has to be fair to the other 12 players in the locker room. We asked why they didnt just do with Danny what Sacramento is doing with Artest and pay him but suspend him indefinitely. He said that is up to ownership, not him, though he did say he was frustrated for the organization that Danny would have that little regard for his job.

Luke's exam with a spine specialist confirmed that he has a herniated disc in his neck/shoulder area. Hill said Luke is in traction and if it works he could join the team in Boston on the team's off day. he had not yet figured out how to get Luke some work since the team will have a light practice that day after playing back-to-backs.

Also, a New York reporter was asking Hill about Rashard. And Hill had this intriguing quote: "If they don't re-sign Rashard this summer (as a free agent), they should just tear down the team and start over." I followed up on that, asking why he felt that way since the team had other pieces, and Hill said, "That wouldn't really be fair to Ray, not at his age."

The players still were talking about the landing yesterday. Earl Watson said he felt sick all night, and Chris Wilcox said he couldn't even eat dinner his stomach was so upset. They said the plane felt like it was on a slalom course, and Earl said he was worried the plane was going to be lifted up the wind and flip over. Kevin Calabro was coming out of the bathroom at one point, the plane dipped and KC hit his head on the ceiling of the plane.

The Sonics canceled practice on Monday after they sat on the runway in Seattle for 90 minutes, delaying their landing into NY. They were scheduled to practice at 6 and didnt even touch down until 5:30. And the ride in was treacherous, I am told, very very choppy, to the point that Danny Fortson apparently was laying on the floor -- he gets nervous flying -- and a couple other folks were close to getting sick.

Stories in New York today suggest that David Lee may play. It looks like Nate Robinson, who has an apparent stomach virus, will not, meaning he will have missed both games against his hometown Sonics.

It is wickedly cold in New York. I tried to go out for a walk today, made it a block and headed back to the hotel. The wind is whipping down the avenues at frigid temperatures. I was going to try to walk from Times Square to the Garden for the game but I think a cab may be a better bet at this point. '

I'll blog after pregame locker room availability.

CT scans on Ray's foot confirmed that he indeed has a bone spur in his left ankle. He is listed as day-to-day for Sunday's game against Charlotte, which to me means that it is up to his pain threshold to determine if he plays against the Bobcats. But the real news is that he is going to see a foot specialist on Monday -- I assume to determine if he is going to have season-ending surgery or not. Sonics are not releasing the name of the foot specialist. What is also means, though, is that Ray will at least skip the flight to New York with the team because the team leaves at 8 am Monday morning. Whether he joins the team in NY or somewhere on the road, or opts to stay home and rest the injury, or whether he has surgery or not, remains to be seen after he sees the specialist.

I have placed several calls to the Sonics today and one to Ray and have not heard anything on the results of his CT scan that took place earlier today. I am waiting to hear from PR brainiac Kurt Fedders, though it is starting to get late on Friday and I am getting skeptical about a release of information. You'll know as soon as I do. Also, the Sonics canceled practice today except for individual workouts for four players. They will resume practicing today.

I walked into the locker room and Ray was sitting there in jeans and a button-down shirt when he usually is in his uniform. He is not playing tonight because he has a bone spur in his left ankle, right around where your shoe meets your ankle. He said surgery is a very good possibility because this has been bothering him for two months and nothing has changed. I asked him what about massages or exercises. He said, "I've been doing those, you just haven't known about it." He said he has been skipping practice, which we didnt know about either even though I continually ask Bob Hill about players' health. Clearly they wanted to keep this thing hidden. Ray said he has changed medicine twice and that has not worked. So he will go into the doctor on Thursday morning and determine if he can come back or if he needs surgery. He said if has surgery on the left ankle, he will get the right ankle scoped as well just to clean it out. So maybe the Sonics can make a run at Greg Oden or Kevin Durant after all because if Ray is done for the rest of the season then it will be difficult for them to improve their standing much. Oddly, this is a different ankle than the one that was surgically repaired in 2003, when the Sonics were playing -- ironically -- the Clippers in Tokyo. Basically, Ray said, he twisted his ankles three times when he was younger (once at Uconn, twice in Milwaukee) and he thinks he came back too soon to allow them to heal properly. He was telling a story about the All-Star game, and Allen Iverson was thinking about coming back right after, and Ray advised him not to come back too soon. Damien will start in Ray's place tonight, and probably for the forseeable future.

If you go to hoopshype.com, there are a bunch of stories in the New York papers about how Nets owner Bruce Ratner wants to re-sign Vince Carter. It is significant because Carter is probably ahead of Rashard in the free-agent pecking order, and if he stays in Jersey that means it is that much more difficult for the Sonics to sign Rashard. Also, I have been advised that there are ways the Milwaukee Bucks and Memphis Grizzlies can get about $10 mil under the cap to pursue free agents -- though I don't know about the Grizzlies since they are trying to reduce payroll to sell the team. That is one to keep an eye on because if a sale is done by the summer -- doubtful -- a new owner could use the money to boost up his new playtoy. But the timing there seems sketchy. Also, I think it is going to take more than $10 mil to keep Rashard. The Sonics can start him at 10 and give him 10.5 percent raises. That's why I still feel like Orlando and Charlotte are the only two viable candidates for him.