There was a time when George Karl's first glance at a freshly released NBA schedule would've found him searching for the date he'd return to Seattle. There was a time when the chance to face the SuperSonics wasn't just a job, but an adventure.

Then again, there was a time when Karl's presence in KeyArena meant the homemade signs would've outnumbered the empty seats.

Karl on Sunday came back to the once-rowdy building on the west end of the Seattle Center campus, the building his Sonics team christened six years ago by winning a club-record 38 home games. Aside from seeing his face on the video board during a round of separated-at-birth celebrity lookalike - George from Milwaukee was juxtaposed with George from the Seinfeld show - Karl might've been hard pressed to tell whether he was in Seattle, Sacramento or San Antonio.

The warm-and-fuzzy portion of the homecoming proceedings took place before the game, when the crowd of 13,595 gave him a standing ovation. Of all the prominent names who've left Seattle over the past few years - a short list would include Shawn Kemp, Randy Johnson, Ken Griffey, Jr., Alex Rodriguez, Joey Galloway - only George Karl can count on a standing ovation upon his return.

"He got more applause when he was introduced than I did," Sonics guard Brent Barry said. "I think it's a classic case of the old expression, 'Gone, but not forgotten.' There's been enough time now. Since he left this organization, we've been through an ownership change and two head coaches.

"But nobody's forgotten the success he had here."

Karl now is a full-fledged, rock-ribbed Cheesehead; in his fourth season with the Bucks, he's already the dean of the Central Division's seven coaches. If George Karl suffered a spontaneous meltdown and quit, like, today - remember when that always seemed as distinct a possibility as the sun setting? - Milwaukee would represent the second-longest stop of his pro-basketball career, exceeded only by the seven seasons he spent in Seattle.