“We are very excited to have Kenny, Vitaly and Joseph joining the Sonics roster,” said Sund. “With the addition of Kenny and Joseph, we feel our backcourt can match up with any in the league. Kenny provides us with a wealth of experience from an outstanding career, especially this season when he quarterbacked the Celtics to the Eastern Conference Finals.

“In addition to our goal of continuing to add youth to our roster, Joseph gives us another young player who has a positive upside,” added Sund. “Vitaly, although currently injured, is a player that gives us a tough and rugged physical presence in the paint who also has the ability to score inside and outside.”

Anderson, 31, started in all 76 games he played for the Celtics during the 2001-02 season, averaging 9.6 points, 5.3 assists, 3.6 rebounds and 1.86 steals in 32 minutes per game. Playing in all of Boston’s 16 playoff games this season, Anderson averaged 12 points, 4.8 assists, 3.1 rebounds and 1.31 steals in 35 minutes per game. An 11-year veteran, Anderson was originally drafted by the New Jersey Nets in the First Round (second pick overall) of the 1991 NBA Draft. The 6-1 guard from Queens, N.Y. holds career averages of 14 points, 6.7 assists, 3.3 rebounds and 1.61 steals with five NBA teams (New Jersey, Charlotte, Portland, Toronto and Boston).

Potapenko, a six-year veteran, was selected by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the First Round (12th selection overall) of the 1996 NBA Draft. Playing in 79 games this season for the Celtics, Potapenko, 27, averaged 4.6 points and 4.4 rebounds in 17 minutes per game with nine starts. Potapenko led the Celtics in rebounds 11 times during the 2001-02 season. A native of the Ukraine, the 6-10 forward/center has career averages of 7.2 points and 4.9 rebounds. His career-shooting percentage is .477 from the field.

An early-entry candidate in the 2001 NBA Draft, Forte was selected 21st overall in the First Round by the Celtics. Forte played in eight games during the 2001-02 campaign, missing 56 due to injury. At the University of North Carolina, Forte averaged 18.7 points, 5.8 rebounds and three assists per game over two seasons (69 games).

“Kenny and Joseph bring great depth to our backcourt and Vitaly will be another strong addition to our solid group of frontcourt players,” said Head Coach Nate McMillan.

Baker, 30, is a four time NBA All-Star. He was named All-NBA Second Team in 1998 and All-NBA Third Team in 1997. He was a member of the gold medal-winning 2000 Olympic team. Last season, his ninth in the NBA, Baker played in 55 games. He was the Sonics fourth-leading scorer averaging 14.1 points, 6.4 rebounds and 1.3 assists while shooting 48.5 percent from the floor.

Acquired by Seattle on Sept. 25, 1997, in three-team trade with the Milwaukee Bucks and the Cleveland Cavaliers, Baker was originally drafted by the Bucks in the First Round (eighth pick overall) of the 1993 NBA Draft. The 6-11 power forward from Old Saybrook, Conn. holds career averages 16.9 points, 8.2 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 35.7 minutes per game.

Williams originally signed with the Sonics as a free agent on Aug. 12, 1999. His best season was in 2000-01 when he averaged 6.8 points, 2.8 assists and 1.9 rebounds per game. Williams scored a career playoff-high 23 points vs. Utah on April 22. In the past season, he played in 50 games and averaged 4.4 points, 1.7 assists and 1.3 rebounds in 12.1 minutes per game.