[Vision2020] Seattle Sonics Best Team And Season: Nate McMillan, Mr. Sonic

[Ted Moffett]

Don't forget the 1995-6 Sonics (64-18 WL season, the best in Sonics history)
coached by George Karl, the Sonics team that made it to the NBA finals for
the only time yet since the Sonics championship in 1979, who played
the Jordan led Chicago Bulls in the NBA finals.

Nate McMillan, who some called Mr. Sonic, was incredible when the Sonics
swept (4-0) the NBA Champion Hakeem Olajuwon led Houston Rockets during that
seasons playoff run.  Everyone talked about Payton and Kemp, but McMillan
made that team click.

McMillan shot a team best percentage 19 of 40 3 pt. goals, 48%, during the
whole 1996 playoff run.  Karl, it was obvious, had been holding him back
during the regular season, and in fact Nate sat out 13 regular season
'95-'96 games.

The Sonics were playing a Bulls team that set an NBA record 72-10 WL for an
82 game season, a team some say was the best in NBA history!

The Sonics had just won a tough 7 game series against the formidable John
Stockton/Karl Malone Utah Jazz team, a championship level team, while the
Bulls had been resting for 10 days, only losing one game during their
playoff run to the finals.  The struggle against the Jazz had clearly
drained the Sonics, and contributed to McMillan's injury problems.

McMillan played in the first half of game one against the Bulls, but would
not return till game 4 in Seattle!  Nerve damage in his lower back.  This
alone can explain the Sonics poor showing against the Bulls in games 2 and 3
and again in game 6.

If it hadn't been for Nate McMillan's injury, I think the Sonics could have
beaten the Bulls.  And the 1995-96 Sonics team at full strength was capable
of winning the NBA championship against many other NBA championship teams.

Nate was a defensive terror, third on the team in steals, fourth in
assists, during the regular season, averaging only 23 minutes per game.  His
steals to minutes played ratio was the best on that team by far, and during
the playoffs he was also third on the team in assists, even though playing
more of a 6th man role.

The Sonics desperately needed him at full speed against the Bulls.  He was
the smartest player on that team, who understood Carl's complex defensive
and offensive system, and later became the Sonics head coach, though now he
is coaching the Portland Trail Blazers.

He was too injured to really help during critical moments in game 6, only
playing 10 minutes.  It was sad, because I guessed that coach Karl played
McMillan in that elimination game because he deserved to be on the floor at
this moment, the peak of his basketball career, but it was clear that Nate
was perhaps doing more harm than good because of his injury.   I remember
Nate sitting on the bench during the finals in game 6 with the Bulls crying,
because he was too injured to play, I assumed, and he knew his chance for a
ring was slipping away!

Coach George Karl commented on Nate McMillan's importance during the NBA
finals against the Bulls:

http://www.truehoop.com/31832-print.html

Perhaps the most important change in game four was that backup Seattle guard
Nate McMillan was able to fight through his back trouble to play a little
bit.

"With Nate on the court we were pretty incredible," says Karl. "I think we
won seven out of nine quarters. He wasn't the best player on the floor, but
he was the glue. That was the thing about that team: we could throw defense
at you, we could throw shooting at you, we could throw big guys at you.
Whatever we were doing, Nate knew how to make it happen. Gary Payton is a
great point guard, but Nate was the true point guard of that team."
---------
http://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/SEA/1996.html

http://www.nba.com/history/finals/19951996.html

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Vision2020 Post: Ted Moffett

On 8/11/06, Steven Basoa <sbasoa at moscow.com> wrote:
>
> Now, now, DW.  Seattle has at least one other bright, shining moment
> in the history of sports: The 1979 Seattle Supersonics, coached by
> Lenny Wilkens, won the NBA crown.
>
> SB
>
>
>
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