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Read an Except From Tales from the Seattle SuperSonics Slick Watts Gallery Purchase the book! Sonics History Home

What was the process for getting the book started?
Hughes: The publishing company contacted me a year and a half ago, and they wanted to do something that involved the history of the Sonics. I took a look at who had not only a really good history of the Sonics but had the ability to tell a lot of stories, that had a sense of popularity. There were a lot of candidates, but I think Slick was the best. At the time, I knew Slick was popular, but I didn't realize until we actually got into the book how popular he was, because I didn't grow up here and I didn't really know the level at which he was a fan favorite. Then I was doing research for the book and I came across this thing on the Internet that went back through the '70s. Somebody actually wrote, 'If this guy ever does a book, you should buy it, because there will be some great stories in there.' It turned out there's some great stories in there.

"Somebody actually wrote, 'If this guy ever does a book, you should buy it, because there will be some great stories in there.' It turned out there's some great stories in there."

Slick, was participating a natural for you when Frank asked you?
Slick: To me, at first, I didn't think it was so natural because it's something where you have to go back deep in your mind, remember some stories you want to forget. When you witness and go through the life that I've gone through, so many things take the place of other things. What I mean by that is I have friends down south that I actually have forgotten their names, because the mind can only hold so much. When you get real popular, other places and other names take their place and push so much out of your mind. I'm not on the scale of Muhammad Ali, but I can imagine him trying to remember something that happened to him 20 years ago, but so many things keep coming at you. You try to remember the important things or the highlights, and then you find out later on you remember that you forgot some things. It's a tough situation, but it's fun. I enjoyed it. I was reading it, and it took me for a ride. I told my wife, 'I wrote this with Frank, and I'm getting into it, trying to figure out what was next.' It's fun, yet it's difficult, but I have gone through a lot of things in life, a lot of good and bad. Like Frank said, if anyone from the Sonics past or the present was chosen to do this, I think I was the best choice for that reason. I know so many people and went through so many things. Sometimes, I wish I could sit down and talk to Frank on some more things, because it all starts coming back sometimes.

Hughes: You should have called me!

Did you remember things that maybe weren't something you had thought about in a long time?
Slick: Sometimes when you're talking to (Frank) and that day, a lot of things come up, and sometimes when you're driving around, more things come up. I think I should have had a tape recorder for when those things came. It's like when you have a speaking engagement. I would talk to myself like I planned to talk to the people. Once I got there, I didn't want to talk about what I had thought about, because I thought I was being repetitious. I forgot, didn't nobody hear me talk about it but myself. It's real tricky when you've got a whole lot of things on your mind. People were in and out of my life and events in and out of my life, so you try to pick the things that meant a lot to you.

Hughes: We did a series of interviews up at the Starbucks on Queen Anne Hill a bunch of mornings in the summer and into the season. Maybe the seventh or eighth time we'd met, he told me that he had played over in Italy and had some great stories from there. I said, 'Slick, why are you waiting for the seventh or eighth interview to tell me this?' He said, 'I forgot until this very moment.'

Slick: So many things happen to a person that didn't go to UCLA, didn't get the life that some of these kids get, but yet it happened and it happened so fast. I went from leading the league in steals and assists to Seafair Grand Marshall twice, Sports Star of the Year three times, all these things that some of the guys who played 15, 16 years didn't taste that type of glory. It was an accident, but it was a fun accident. That's what I always say.

Frank, what was the process like for you?
Hughes: I thought it was really good both because it was an experience I always wanted to do - I've always wanted to write a book - but also, I started covering the Sonics in 1997, so you kind of know the Sonics history from GP and the early '90s on. But you don't really get a sense of how the organization was instituted in 67-68 and everybody who was a part of the organization up to 1990.

I grew up in D.C., so I don't know the sporting history as well in Seattle, but just covering the team, it gave me a really good sense of how the organization came along and how it developed. It's not just a book about Slick and his playing days with the Sonics, it's about Slick and his relationship with Wilt Chamberlain, Slick and his relationship with Bill Russell, Bob Lanier, Reggie Jackson, Jesse Jackson, Muhammad Ali, and there's all these people Slick interacted with. The ones that I was able to interview, just in crossing paths with them and covering the league, I got some stories from them about Slick and got a better idea. Not only was it a great experience writing it, it was a great experience talking to them and learning everything that had happened leading up to when I started covering the team in '97.

Do you guys have a favorite section or story from the book?
Hughes: I like the stories about Wilt.

Slick: It wasn't too much fun, but the one people would probably never know is that some coaches, especially Russell, had this way of when we'd go to other cities and he wouldn't play you because he knew you had your family in the stands. Me and Leonard (Gray) were talking about that last week on the phone. Leonard said, 'Yeah, I remember that. I wanted to kill him, man.' I told that story in my book, and I'm still puzzled by that. That was Russ' game. When you had all the tickets, you were prepared to sit.

"It was an accident, but it was a fun accident. That's what I always say." Sonics Photos

I like the Jim McDaniels story, I think. I still laugh at that one sometimes, riding around by myself.

Hughes: There's a story in there where Jim McDaniels gets hit by a taxicab in New York City.

Slick: He was calling me country and dumb. 'Come on rookie, you're so dumb, you don't know how to walk the street, follow me.' As soon as he stepped out there, boom! I thought he was hurt. I ran to him and said, 'Jim, Jim.' He said, 'Rook, if you tell somebody, I'm going to kill you.'

Hughes: The good thing about the book is it's in anecdotal form, so it goes from one story to the next as opposed to getting bogged down in this happened and then this happened. It's just highlights from Slick's career and sometimes random thoughts about what Slick thought of Russell or what Slick thought of what Russell was doing as coach or what he thought of when Lenny came in. You can pick it up, read it, read one page and set it back down, come back a week later and feel like you don't have to catch up again because it's a story after story after story.

It's fun sitting here having a conversation with you, Slick. Does that carry over to the book?
Hughes: My wife was reading it the other day, and she said, 'You know what's great? I can actually hear Slick's voice reading the book.' I think that's great, because I was interviewing Clifford Ray, and he said, 'You know what's great about Slick? Just the way he uses the language and the way he tells a story.' It's great because Slick has, I think, a unique way of speaking and a unique way of telling a story, and I think that comes through in the book.

What kind of relationship did you build during the writing process?
Slick: I think even before then, I used to see Frank all the time, and he was always a nice guy, always had a smile. We always had a real nice relationship, but you get closer when you sit down and talk to each other, see each other every Monday. You get so you can trust him and you tell him things you wouldn't tell other people, grow like a friend in a lot of ways. You get a stronger bond from it.

Hughes: Like I said, I knew Slick, I knew about Slick. We would see each other at games and say hello, but we didn't really have a personal relationship. Now I consider Slick a friend. When the hurricane hit in New Orleans, I called Slick and said, 'I hope your family is okay,' because I knew his mom was down that way and Slick is from Mississippi. You think about people when you start to become friends with them, and that's what Slick and I have right now. No matter what happens from here on out, we always have that tie.

Speaking of that, your proceeds from the book are going to hurricane relief, right Slick?
Slick: My proceeds from the book I'm going to donate to the victims down south. I just thought it was a good idea that I use my proceeds from the book to help the people in New Orleans and Mississippi.

Did your family end up okay?
Slick: Everybody ended up pretty good. Scared. My mama said the wind was 125, 150 miles an hour for 16 straight hours, so that can be pretty frightening, wondering when it's going to get stronger and when the top of your house is going to blow off. They live in Richland, Miss. now. For four days they heard the wind and no lights, a lot of prayer, but everybody was alright.

Any other thoughts?
Slick: Basically, I hope people buy the book and enjoy the ride and put themselves in my position, because I'm a fan too.