Chris Tomasson of the Rocky Mountain News reports on last nights Nuggets loss to the Supersonics 79-77.  

That brings Denver's losing streak to 10.

Frank Hughes of The News Tribune writes that Sonics guard Brent Barry believes this is the season that he makes history.  Barry has longed for the opportunity to become the first player in NBA history to win both the Slam Dunk Contest and the 3-point Shooting Contest at All-Star weekend.

Barry already has half that honor, winning the dunk comp as a Clipper in 1996, and he hopes he'll get his shot at the three point title this year.  Last season Barry declined an offer from the league to participate as he and his wife were expecting a child.

"This year is a little different circumstance," Barry said. "I would go if they invited me. Jon (Barry, Brent's brother) and I talked about it, and hopefully he could get into (the contest) too and we could mess around."

"It would be cool to say," said Barry on the potential record. "It's just a contest, but it would be cool to have under your belt. I got the hard one (slam dunk) out of the way. I mean, let's be honest, I somehow bamboozled my way into that win. This one I actually have the skills to do it."

"I don't know if I could win it the first time doing it, but I know I would do better than Rashard (Lewis, who shot a ball off the side of the backboard last season). I feel like I would have a good chance. I would say I would do well."

The New York Knicks have announced that the team will retire Patrick Ewing's famous #33 jersey at half time of a Feb. 28 game against the Orlando Magic.

"I am honored to have my jersey retired by this franchise," said Ewing, who is an assistant coach with the Washington Wizards. "I have spent the majority of my career in New York and I will always consider myself a Knick. I will always cherish the memories that I have made in New York."

ESPN.com reports that Ewing will join greats Walt Frazier, Dick Barnett, Earl Monroe, Dick McGuire, Willis Reed, Dave DeBusschere and Bill Bradley as the only Knick players to have their numbers retired.  Ewing played 15 seasons in New York, coming close to winning an elusive championship on various occasions but just fell short each time.

"Patrick was the symbol of all that was great about New York basketball over a 15-year span that includes two NBA Finals appearances and four division titles," said Knicks general manager Scott Layden. "We feel there is no finer honor to bestow upon him that to have his number take its rightful place in the rafters with other franchise greats."

After forcing a trade to Seattle in 2000 Ewing's production dropped dramatically.  At season's end he was not retained by the Supersonics and signed with the Orlando Magic for part of their mid-level exception, where he played sparingly off the bench - recording his career first DNP-CD (did not play, coaches decision) - then was again told his services were not required.  Rather than play on, Ewing decided to accept an assistant coaching job with nemesis Michael Jordan and the Washington Wizards this season and there he remains.

Ewing ended his career with averages of 21.0 points, 9.8 rebounds and 2.45 blocks per game in 1,183 games played.  Patrick Ewing, we salute you!

Frank Hughes of the News Tribune reports that the Sonics are in the middle of a tailspin. Failure to execute in the fouth quarter has led to three straight losses, but Hughes suggests that Nate McMillan?s new rotations may have something to do with the slump.

With Vitaly Potapenko?s return from the injured list and Kenny Anderson?s missing practice, McMiian has tightened up his rotation. While the players won?t say anything, it?s obvious that the new rotation has negatively affected the offense.

"I'm trying to find a balance," McMillan said. "Right now, most of our best guys are small ... and Vitaly has come in and given us some pretty good minutes ... so we've gone with that.I cut the rotation to keep a flow to our play so we are not seeing such a drop in the way or the style we play. Because right now our players and the guys who are coming in with that (second) unit, I'm finding there is not a flow just because of the ability of the players that we have."

Reading between the lines, McMillan is saying that neither Anderson nor Calvin Booth is playing well enough to merit playing time, despite contracts that pay Anderson $9.185 million this season, second highest on the team, and Booth $4.992 million, sixth highest.

McMillan says the lack of playing time for Booth and Anderson is not punishment for lackluster play. He insist he is playing the matchup game. "I'm looking at matchups," McMillan said. "What I'm dealing with is finding that balance that can give it to me on the offensive end and the defensive end."

His biggest problem is finding lineups that are balanced offensively and defensively. "You are trying to get both and some of our guys don't give us both. I have to be careful with substitutions and matchups because some matchups (are going to fail)."

Jayda Evans of the Seattle Times reports that Kenny Anderson continues to make waves in Seattle. He claims "it was nothing", but the team fined him and held him out of last night?s game as "punishment".

Anderson says it was a common mistake. He was sick on Tuesday and missed the team?s practice but failed to call the team to let them know. "It had nothing to do with nothing," Anderson said. "I wasn't feeling well, period. Just like if you weren't feeling well and missed a day of work. I paid the consequences. I was fined accordingly, and now we can forget about it."

Anderson would not say how much he was fined, but the maximum fine for missing practice is $5,000. Sonics coach Nate McMillan admitted the benching was in response to Anderson missing practice. "It was an unexcused absence," McMillan said sternly. "He'll suit up, but we won't play him. That's just the way I'm playing the game."

Anderson has been disappointed with his role with the Sonics since being traded by the Celtics last summer, but he insists that missing practice is not related. "Minutes is minutes," Anderson said. "I wish I could play a lot more, but this has nothing to do with that."

Frank Hughes of the News Tribune reports that Seattle forward Vladimir Radmanovic had a few words about the officiating in last night?s game against the Cavaliers. Radmanovic was ejected after elbowing Cleveland?s Carlos Boozer with 24 seconds left in the Soncis 111-98 win.

Radmanovic didn?t dispute the elbow, but explained that it was the culmination of several minutes of dirty play by Boozer.

"I just want the (league) to see the ... tape .. and then see what happens," Radmanovic said after the game. "This is crazy. Guys are hitting me with like three minutes left in the game and the referees don't call nothing. I hit the guy and he calls a technical foul. Yes, I hit him, but they have to call something under the basket. The last three minutes, I took 10 elbows from him and I didn't say anything. That referee, I don't know how he saw that hit that I threw at that guy. If he was expecting that, that was the only way to (see) that because I am not hitting the guy for no reason."

Radmanovic was involved in a confrontation last week in New York with the Knicks? Kurt Thomas. The two were shoving each other. Thomas ended up being fines $5,000 for shoving Radmanovic in the back after the game.

Radmanovic has no problem with rough play, but he believes that dirty play should not be tolerated by the officials. "If a guy plays hard with me, I am going to play hard with him. But don't play dirty because that is not basketball," he said. "I don't care who is testing me and who is not. If a guy hits me, that's a foul. That's what they should call. There is no other thing to say about that."

Gary Payton says the Sonics remind him of when he thought he was the Energizer Bunny.  

They?re a young team, and the Glove says, ?know one way: play hard. And that's the way they do that, and when they are tired they don't know how to do that. When their shot is struggling, they don't know how to get out of it.?

Frank Hughes of the Tacoma News Tribune quotes Payton as saying that?s why you can?t predict how the team is going to play on any given night.  

Payton said it took him about six years, the year the Sonics made it to the NBA Finals, to learn how to adjust to the NBA lifestyle.  Either he?d want to party all night or do Play Station all afternoon.

Nowadays Payton does what all of us wish we could: he has a nap during the afternoon of a game.

On a different matter, Hughes recounts what Sonics coach Nate McMillan did during the Rashard Lewis negotiations.  He talked to Raptors coach Lenny Wilkens (also a former Sonics coach).  Wilkens has been McMillan?s mentor since McMillan became coach.

Percy Allen of the Seattle Times reports that Rashard Lewis wis suspended for one game after his run-in with Travis Best in Saturday?s win by the Sonics over the Heat. "The league informed me this afternoon that Rashard was suspended for the punch," said Sonics General Manager Rick Sund. "I was stunned."

Sonics coach Nate McMillan was also stunned. He was upset that the game officials warned him that an altercation might take place during the final minutes of the game at KeyArena. "The official warned me," McMillan said yesterday. "He said tell your guys to keep their heads, but protect themselves.

"Evidently, he heard something in (the Miami) huddle that alarmed him that we should be careful on the floor because (Heat Coach) Pat (Riley) had told his team something. I couldn't get my team together in time. Two possessions later they get the flagrant foul on Rashard."

On the play, Lewis attempted to score on a breakaway but was prevented by Best who grabbed him and drew a flagrant foul. As Best walked away, Lewis confronted him and they went chest to chest. Replays showed Lewis fist near Bests? face, but Lewis denies throwing a punch.

Best was not punished by the league for his part in the altercation.

The incident capped a game that was littered with altercations. One instance involved Desmond Mason and Vladimir Stepania. Replays appeared to show a punch thrown by Mason that didn?t connect. Stepania was later ejected for tangling with Reggie Evans.

"What we have to do is move on," McMillan said. "Everyone else has to step up and be ready to play. Mase will be in the lineup at Rashard's spot. We're going to need guys from the bench to step up and play."

Frank Hughes of the News Tribune reports that the Nets aren?t commenting about Jason Kidd?s future. The all-star guard will be a free agent next summer and more than a few teams will have the money to offer him a considerable contract.

Seattle will have a decision to make this summer as well. Gary Payton will be a free agent as well. If Seattle decides not to re-sign Payton, they would love to see Jason Kidd in a Sonics uniform. Considering the Sonics are a rebuilding team, Kidd is unlikely to put himself in that position. But Sonics owner Howard Schultz has a good relationship with Kidd.

When asked about the situation, Nets GM Rod Thorn said that it?s not a lock that Kidd will return to the Nets next year. "From the time he got with us, he has steadfastly maintained that he is going to become a free agent," Thorn said. "I think that because of the success we had last year ... if he feels we have a chance to do well, our chances are better that he will be with us."

Hughes writes that three teams will likely be able to offer maximum contracts to try and lure Kidd from New Jersey. Utah could have more than $20 million available if Karl Malone and John Stockton retire. Denver could have about $16 million, and San Antonio could have about $15 million with the retirement of David Robinson and is the team most likely to land him. Seattle could have about $9 million if it does not re-sign Payton.

Thorn did mention the possibility of a sign-and-trade deal for Kidd, but said it?s not in the Net?s plans right now. "At this time, we are not interested in a sign-and-trade," Thorn said. "But you never know what is going to happen. We have only played 17 games, we have a long ways to go this year, and strange things happen."