Northwest Sports: In the Morning

Bad news all-around for the Sonics...
Mark Cuban tells Gary Washburn he's against the Sonics moving. "My prejudice is against having a Dustbowl Division in this part of the country because I don't think in the big picture that helps the NBA and I think the bigger market helps the NBA." Great, the owner everyone hates is on our side!

The NBA will try to bluff the Sonics into settling their lawsuit. The city should Just Say No, writes Art Thiel.

Slade Gorton speaks out about the state government's failure to back the Key Arena remodel: "This is a failure of both imagination and courage on their part. In this case, political leaders who should have been a part of the solution were, instead, the problem." Here's a transcript of Greg Nickels' remarks.

The Sonics didn't have four quarters of fight in them against Dallas, writes Gary Washburn.

Sene tore his lateral meniscus playing for the Idaho Stampede and will need surgery.

Mariners win a game!
After Ryan Rowland-Smith's stellar relief performance, Dave of USS Mariner says I told you so.

The Mariners needed this win to prove they aren't still prone to long losing streaks, writes John Hickey.

JJ Putz will try throwing today for the first time since hurting his rib, writes Hickey. Also in that notebook, news that Arthur Rhodes is headed out to rehab at AA West Tennessee.

Jose Lopez' heads-up play was key, writes Geoff Baker.

While the hitters have struggled, the Mariner starting pitchers have been among the best in baseball, writes Baker.

Happy times for Storm Nation
New Storm Yolanda Griffith, now the third former MVP on the team, joked that they are a "women's Boston Celtics," writes Darren Fessenden.

Griffith is one of the most underrated players in WNBA history, writes Kevin Pelton.

The Storm will obtain backcourt depth in today's WNBA draft, writes Fessenden. After trading away their first round pick for Swin Cash, they don't have a pick until the 22nd slot in the second round.

In other news...
The Blazers played with passion, trust, and balance in a win over the Lakers, writes Dave of BlazersEdge.

New Husky special teams coach Brian Davis motivates by expecting more from players, writes Bob Condotta.

The T-Birds failed to convert their power plays, and that's why they lost, writes Jim Riley.

Tacoma's Michael Putnam is trying to win his way back to the PGA Tour from the minor-league Nationwide Tour; he lost his PGA card last year after finishing 158th on the money list.

Kevin Love's mom says that, contrary to a report in the LA Times, Love hasn't decided whether to enter the NBA draft, writes Joe Freeman.

New OSU coach Craig Robinson needs to start recruiting pronto, writes Paul Buker.

Oregon RB LaGarrette Blount, a JC transfer, reminds Oregon coaches and players of Jonathan Stewart, writes John Hunt. Blount's powerful running style (he's 235 lbs.) has earned him the nickname "Blount Force Trauma."

Speaking of Jonathan Stewart, that toe surgery he had has dropped him on draft boards, writes Aaron Fentress. Low enough that he'd get to the Seahawks at #25? Some say yes.