The playoff is the payoff

There's this common perception about the Sonics that their regular season, no matter how magnificent, is mostly meaningless because the playoffs are everything.

And it's easy to see why, considering the Sonics averaged 60 victories the past two seasons, only to collapse in the first round of the playoffs each time. That line of thinking isn't totally correct. On the contrary, the regular season carries heavy meaning for the Sonics, who became the first Western Conference team to clinch a playoff spot last week and once again are on a 60-win pace.

They don't need to play 82 games to prove themselves as a great team.

That's pretty evident. Shawn Kemp and Gary Pay-ton are having career seasons, depth is everywhere once again, and the Sonics still play terrific defense.

The test this season was to measure the team's character, its maturity and its mental toughness -- the elements that were in short supply in consecutive first-round losses to the Nuggets and Lakers. So far, the Sonics have earned high marks.

A pair of offseason moves helped cleanse the team's atmosphere. Hersey Hawkins doesn't have the defensive skills of the guard he replaced, Kendall Gill, yet Hawkins gives the Sonics their most reliable outside shooter since Ricky Pierce. Forward Frank Brickowski also arrived to provide veteran leadership and stability.

The Sonics are also learning to deal with Payton's moodiness. Earlier this season he had on-court flare-ups with center Ervin Johnson and guard David Wingate, but those incidents didn't escalate, unlike in the Nuggets' series two years ago when Payton's pouting developed into a rift with Pierce.

"Gary's learning to communicate better," Johnson says, "and a lot of people know how to take him now."

The Sonics also bonded when forward Detlef Schrempf missed 19 games with a fractured leg. Coach George Karl credited Payton's leadership, in fact, as the main reason the Sonics hardly missed a beat.

"I really believe we're in the same ballpark we were the last three years," Karl says. "Right now, we'll go forth with the attitude that we have to keep pushing ourselves to get better, and take as much confidence as we can into the playoffs."

In this make-or-break season, Karl has managed to keep the Sonics focused. Sure, there will be plenty riding on the playoffs. Even a first-round victory won't get them off the hook. Given those two years of disappointments, the Sonics are running behind on payments. Nothing short of a conference final will probably satisfy Owner Barry Ackerley and General Manager Wally Walker. If the Sonics don't meet expectations, major changes may follow.

"There's no doubt about that," center Sam Perkins says. "That's the obvious."

Despite the healthy signs and solid season, the Sonics can't convince anyone of their staying power until their postseason matches their regular season.

"Once the playoffs start, they'll feel pressure," Suns Coach Cotton Fitzsimmons says. Adds Suns forward Charles Barkley: "I still look forward to playing them in a seven-game or five-game series."

Some perceptions are hard to break.

COPYRIGHT 1996 Sporting News Publishing Co.
COPYRIGHT 2008 Gale, Cengage Learning