The low point of Sonics rookie guard Luke Ridnour's season came on Jan. 28 at the STAPLES Center in Los Angeles. The night before, Sonics starting guard Brent Barry had broken a bone in his right ring finger, bringing Ridnour back into the rotation after nearly a month of irregular playing time. Not yet ready to return to regular minutes, Ridnour was embarrassed by Lakers counterpart Derek Fisher, who harassed Ridnour on his way to a career-high-tying six steals in just 18 minutes of action.

Ridnour dishes the ball to an open Vladimir Radmanovic. Jeff Reinking/NBAE/Getty

The next day at practice, one media member asked Sonics Coach Nate McMillan about the possibility of using Ronald "Flip" Murray as the backup point guard, dropping Ridnour out of the rotation altogether. But McMillan had other plans. After practice concluded, McMillan had a lengthy chat with Ridnour, using his own experience during a 12-year career as a point guard to help build the rookie's confidence.

"He had a rough night the night before," McMillan told the media about his pep talk. "I just talked to him about what I expect, certain things he can do because of the way teams are going to defend him."

Left unsaid? That how Ridnour responded to the biggest adversity of his young NBA career would say a lot about just what kind of career it will be.

Ridnour came out fighting. He scored six points in an 11-minute stint in the Sonics next game, against Sacramento. Five days after the loss to the Lakers, Ridnour rang up 12 points and four assists in an easy victory over the Chicago Bulls, his first time in double-figures since December. Ridnour gives the credit to McMillan for sticking with him.

"It means a lot, to know that he trusts you, because you have games where you're up and down, and there's games where you play more minutes and are able to do things and games where you play less minutes and you can't do as much," Ridnour said after practice earlier this week. "(Nate) just continued to give me a chance to play, and I've had some games where I've played well."

Indeed he has. Those two solid efforts set the tone for a fine month of February for Ridnour. With two games remaining, he is averaging 5.6 points and 3.3 assists in 17.8 minutes per game. His assist rate is higher than it has been since October, which consisted of just two games. Ridnour's 49.1% shooting during February is easily his best mark in any month of the season, and he's also hit on 40.0% of his three-pointers.

It's all typical of a young player who is finding his stride in the NBA, and Ridnour believes he has improved throughout the season.

"(I've) gotten better as the season's gone on, learned from the people in front of me and just continue to try to make the most of the minutes I get," Ridnour said when asked to summarize his season.

"When to go, when not to go," he elaborated, discussing what specifically he's improved. "How to find things you can do and can't do. I'm just getting comfortable with the guys I'm playing with. The more minutes you play, the more comfortable you get."

"I think he should be a productive player in this league," McMillan said. "I think he can certainly play in this league and depending upon the time on the floor and how he continues to work will tell how productive he can be, but he is a guy that you can use certain ways. The level of intensity goes up, the energy, the speed of the game, so you can use him different ways. We've used him as energy coming off the bench to change the tempo, and he's been able to do that when he's had his opportunity."

Ah, opportunity. As it always is, opportunity has been the key for Ridnour.

At the start of the season, Ray Allen's ankle injury opened a spot for Ridnour in the rotation. Before the season, he wasn't expected to be a regular, with Allen, Barry and free-agent pickup Antonio Daniels likely to handle the minutes in the backcourt. Given the chance to play, Ridnour impressed during the two preseason games he was healthy enough to play in as well as the early part of the regular season.

By the time Allen returned, however, the Sonics backcourt had become crowded by Daniels' emergence as one of the NBA's top reserve point guards and Murray showing his skills by scoring 20 or more points in 10 of the team's first 11 games. Ridnour was the odd man out, playing just 107 minutes over 12 games during the month of January.

Barry's injury changed the equation again, allowing Ridnour a regular 15-20 minutes a game during February. With Barry due back before long, things could get complicated again. That's why McMillan has been considering giving Ridnour a start or two before Barry's return.

"I've thought about a lot," McMillan said on Thursday about changing his lineup. "Not to be sarcastic or anything like that, I've thought about a lot. There have to be reasons for making changes, not to just make a change, but yes I have thought about possibly Luke in the lineup, several other guys, changing the rotation."

McMillan later hinted at the possibility that Ridnour could get the start tonight against Phoenix before apparently deciding against it.

A regular spot in the rotation "makes it easier, because you know when you're going to get in most of the time," Ridnour said. "You know you're going to get a chance to play a little bit. It makes it easier, but either way you've still got to try to be ready and make the most of the time that you do get."

Ridnour has aggressively driven the lane despite his small size. Jeff Reinking/NBAE/Getty

One of the most important questions facing Ridnour during his rookie season was how well he'd be able to defend at the NBA level. Despite Ridnour being voted Oregon's best defender during his junior season, critics panned his defensive ability. Infamously, ESPN broadcaster Jay Bilas declared during the network's draft coverage that Ridnour "can't guard the chair I'm sitting in".

To be fair, Bilas' chair has had discussions with several NBA teams about signing a ten-day contract, but based on Ridnour's performance this season he would seem to be equal to the task. Initially, McMillan had the Sonics zone up whenever Ridnour entered the game, but his performance was impressive enough that in most matchups he now goes one-on-one with the opposing point guard - even, for a stretch earlier this month, former MVP Allen Iverson.

"I think he's defended better than people thought he would or could," McMillan said. He gets up into the ball, he stays on the ball, so they really can't take advantage of him. Whenever he has had really a huge (size) mismatch, we've gone to zone, so we've been able to cover for not only Luke but other guys when we need to."

On the subject of his defense, the typically humble Ridnour is surprisingly self-confident.

"It's been good," he answered definitively when asked about his defense.

"I feel I can stay in front of anyone, pick them up full court and put pressure on them," Ridnour later elaborated. "All smaller guards have trouble down low, but that's why you double-team the block and everything. I think I've done a pretty good job at it."

Naturally, the native of Blaine, WA has been a fan favorite at KeyArena since he first took the floor, entering the game to chants of "Luuuuke" and receiving heavy applause from the Sonics faithful.

"It's good," Ridnour said about his fan-favorite status. "(Fans) realize when I come into the game, I try to bring energy to the game, try to pick the game up, push the ball, pick up the ball. That they appreciate that makes me feel good."

Taking advantage of that popularity, the Sonics handed out "Luke in the Box" toys before last Sunday's game with the Boston Celtics, featuring a miniature Ridnour replica that pops up. Ridnour took some heat from his teammates for the comical representation.

"It's a little embarrassing. It's kinda cool at the same time, but it's also embarrassing."

Ridnour will probably take the embarrassment if he continues to play as well as he did in that game, when he scored 15 points on 6-for-9 shooting and handed out five assists and two steals without committing a turnover. During his 25 minutes on the court, the Sonics outscored Boston by 18 points on the way to a 21-point victory.

It was a performance that re-confirmed just how good Ridnour can be when he finds his groove.