Empty the Bench

A 41-point drubbing at the hands of the San Antonio Spurs yesterday wasn’t the only event to send Seattle SuperSonics’ fans to the edge of a cliff. They also have to reconcile the fact that their star shooting guard, Ray Allen, will be sidelined for the rest of the season with a bum ankle. With the Sonics’ record standing at 27-42, they now find themselves in the hunt for extra ping-pong balls in the upcoming draft lottery, and that’s about it. If they couldn’t win with Allen in the lineup, they certainly won’t fare any better with him decked out in a suit on the bench.

At this point, there are worse fates than “earning” a better chance at landing one of the top two or three prospects in the 2007 NBA Draft. The Sonics have the 6th-worst winning percentage in the Association, and there’s a good chance they’ll now slide into the top four for worst overall records. If Greg Oden or Kevin Durant become their reward for underachieving despite a solid core of young, talented players, then hey, maybe it was worth the pain.

Still, one has to believe that all this losing is taking a toll on the Sonics’ other superstar, Rashard Lewis. He has already let his frustration boil over once recently, and with more losses staring him straight in the face for another month, we wonder if he’ll even bother negotiating with Seattle once he becomes a free agent this summer. If he doesn’t believe the team has a plan for the future, why would he waste his prime years toiling away in misery? Locking up Lewis must be a priority for the Sonics, but even if they pull out all the stops, we’re not sure if Lewis will head for greener pastures no matter what.

Let’s quickly get back to Ray Allen and what his loss means to fantasy owners. This couldn’t come at a worse time with most head-to-head formats starting the playoffs this week. There isn’t a magic answer for replacing Allen’s monster per-game averages: 26.4 points, 3 three-pointers, 4.5 boards, 4.2 assists, 1.5 steals, 43.8 FG PCT, and over 90% FT. The waiver wire has already been scrubbed and scoured hundreds of times by desperate owners, so Allen’s departure pretty much leaves folks shit out of luck. Damien Wilkins figures to see more touches and shots now, so he’s an option, but don’t expect the world from him. Our advice is to drop Allen immediately (obviously) and just take the best player available, regardless of position. Best of luck with that.

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