U.S. District court judge Marsha Pechman rejected a motion filed by the Sonics, ruling on Tuesday she would not determine monetary damages for a buyout regarding the KeyArena lease between the city of Seattle and the Sonics.

Attorneys for the Sonics filed a motion requesting Pechman decide how much a potential buyout would be if the Sonics won its case regarding terms of the lease. The city filed a suit against the Sonics in order to force the team to honor a specific performance clause in the contract, which states the team must play all of its home games at KeyArena through September, 2010.

In her ruling, Pechman stated the Sonics request falls outside the scope the two parties agreed on during a scheduling conference in January. Pechman also stated that granting the Sonics’ request could also delay the trial.

Further, the Sonics had asked for an accelerated trial date, which begins June 16th, with the possibility of the team moving to Oklahoma City this season should they win the case. Adding the task of determining a buyout could delay the trial because of the added work involved for both parties.

Check out the Pechman's ruling here.

Sonics assistant GM search ongoing

Seattle general manager Sam Presti said he is in the midst of searching to fill the role of assistant general manager left vacant when Scott Perry took the job of vice president of basketball operations with his former employer the Detroit Pistons just after the season ended.

The move was a promotion for Perry and a return to his roots. Perry, 44, was with the Pistons for seven years, beginning as a college scout and working his way to director of player personnel before taking the job with the Sonics. Perry’s wife and daughter still lived in a Detroit suburb during the season while Perry worked in Seattle.

“Scott (Perry) was just a really solid person who is a team-oriented person,” Presti said. “Obviously he had a great understanding of what we look for in players. He brought both coaching and scouting experience to our front office and he contributed in a lot of different ways.”

With salary cap specialist, assistant general manager Rich Cho already in the fold, Presti is searching for another good talent evaluator like Perry to help continue the rebuilding process for the Sonics as the team tackles the upcoming draft and free agency.

Also, listen to Seattle deputy mayor Tim Ceis talks about the latest court filing with KJR's Mitch Levy here.

And Sonics broadcaster Kevin Calabro talks NBA on KJR here.