HEAD-TO-HEAD 5-1 RECORD 6-2 W-2 STREAK L-1 4-1 LAST 5 4-1 101.2 PF 85.1 94.0 PA 82.8 43.2 RPG 40.9

Sonics (5-1) at Indiana (6-2)
Friday, November 14, 4:30 p.m.
Conseco Fieldhouse
Radio: KJR AM 950

Looking to reverse the trend which saw them start out the season as one of the East’s best teams, but slip to the third seed by the end of the season and then get summarily drilled in the playoffs by the Boston Celtics, 4-2, the Indiana Pacers made major off-the-court shakeups this summer. Former coach Larry Bird, an Indiana native, returned to the organization as President of Basketball Operations, and the likely successor to CEO/President Donnie Walsh. In turn, Bird fired his replacement, Isiah Thomas, and replaced him with former Pacers assistant Rick Carlisle. Rightly or wrongly, Thomas got the axe for the failure of the Pacers to achieve the postseason success Indiana’s talent seemed to assure. There were changes on the court as well. Luxury tax concerns forced the Pacers to sign-and-trade free agent center Brad Miller, giving up reserve guard Ron Mercer as well and returning Scot Pollard from Sacramento. Former Sonics point guard Kenny Anderson was signed as a free agent and has taken over as Indiana’s starter, bumping Jamaal Tinsley all the way to the end of the bench. The most important move of the summer for the Pacers, however, extended the status quo, as All-Star forward Jermaine O’Neal re-signed to stay in Indiana long-term and serve as the team’s anchor now and in the feature. So far, the Pacers moves have paid off during a 6-2 start that has them atop the Central Division. The Pacers are just 2-2 at Conseco Fieldhouse, however, and will be looking to improve that mark tonight.

The Sonics are only halfway through a four-game tour of the midwest, but the road trip has already been a success after a back-to-back sweep of Minnesota and Milwaukee. Don’t expect the Sonics to get complacent during this weekend’s conclusion of the trip, however. Tonight features a contrast in styles. A good defensive team last season, the Pacers have moved near the top of the league this season, thanks in part to the slower pace employed by the controlling Carlisle. The Sonics, meanwhile, boast one of the league’s most potent offenses and an up-tempo attack. While the Sonics generally run their offense from the outside in, the Pacers, even with the loss of All-Star Miller, still boast a top-notch frontcourt. What pace tonight’s game is played at may go a long ways towards determining the outcome.

G U A R D S
	Stuck on the bench behind Brent Barry and Gary Payton with the Sonics last season, Anderson insisted he was still a starter. After another half-season as a reserve in New Orleans, Anderson has made good on his word this season, emerging as the Pacers starter. Anderson has not been as effective as he was in Seattle, however, and is shooting below 40% with an assist-turnover ratio of precisely two. Barry bucked a mini-slump against the Bucks, hitting four of his six shot attempts (including 3-for-4 from downtown) to score 11 points. More importantly, Barry handed out seven assists against just two turnovers as the Sonics controlled the turnover problems they’d experienced the previous two games.
	After his sixth straight 20-point game, the only person getting more headlines than surprise Sonics star Ronald Murray is Paris Hilton. In the last two days alone, Murray has been spotlighted on ESPN.com, CNNSI.com and NBA.com. A Murray tape would probably not include a lot of highlights from Wednesday night, when he struggled at times with his shot (including 1-for-4 shooting from the free-throw line), but that Murray could still net 20 points in his worst game of the season is remarkable indeed. Murray won’t get a stiff defensive challenge from 38-year-old Reggie Miller. The Pacers legend is having a disappointing season thus far. While his accuracy is still impeccable – 45.5% from three-point range – Miller is playing a bit role in the Pacers offense, averaging just 8.6 ppg.
F O R W A R D S
	Tonight’s small forward matchup highlights a pair of fast starters. Artest and Rashard Lewis shared Player of the Week honors (for the East and West respectively) for the week of 11/11-11/17/2002. They’ve each been named their respective conference’s Player of the Week again this November, missing sharing the honors by a week. After their strong Novembers, both players faded last season, though they remained outstanding. This year, they’re looking to sustain that momentum and perhaps each make their first All-Star appearance. A first-team All-Defense selection last season widely considered the NBA’s best perimeter defender, Artest has picked up his offense this season and is averaging 19.3 ppg on 43.4% shooting. Lewis has also shouldered more of the Sonics offense in Ray Allen’s absence, and is currently third in the NBA with a 25.9 ppg average. Artest will give Lewis a tough time tonight, but Lewis does have a size advantage in the post.
	Last season, O’Neal made the leap from star to superstar, one of the NBA’s ten best players. An All-Star starter, O’Neal joined the elite 20-10 club with 20.8 points and 10.3 boards a game, in addition to better than two blocks per. O’Neal was unstoppable in the playoffs despite the Pacers failure, averaging 22.8 points and 17.5 rebounds. Strong and quick, O’Neal is extremely difficult to defend in the low block and a good free-throw shooter when he gets to the line. O’Neal is another tough assignment for Vladimir Radmanovic, but the third-year Sonics forward has done a quality defensive job this season in addition to his team-leading eight boards per game. Could Radmanovic’s 22-point outing against Milwaukee be a breakout game for him?
C E N T E R
	With Pollard playing abysmally, Jeff Foster has replaced him as Indiana’s starting center. One of the league’s better rebounders, Foster is averaging 8.0 boards so far this season despite averaging less than 26 minutes. Less of a factor on offense, Foster is shooting 47.2% from the field last season after a dreadful 36.0% effort last season. Calvin Booth continues to impress as the Sonics starter in the middle after a 12-point, 9-rebound effort against Milwaukee. Averaging 14.6 rebounds per 48 minutes himself and shooting 50%, Booth is doing exactly what the Sonics need him to do.
B E N C H
	In its worst performance of the season, the Sonics bench was outscored 44-8 by Milwaukee, the main reason the Bucks were able to hang around and make it a close game. Rookie Luke Ridnour (left) has struggled lately, committing as many turnovers (five) as assists in his last two games. Reggie Evans was also largely a non-factor against Milwaukee, and the Sonics need these two players to step up. Indiana’s bench is led by one of the league’s top sixth men, Al Harrington (right). Harrington, who dropped 26 on the Sonics in KeyArena last December, is third on the Pacers with 13.3 ppg. Guard Anthony Johnson has been one of this season’s biggest surprises, Murray aside. Just two years removed from being cut by the Sonics in training camp, the former Nets backup has made 10-for-18 from three-point range and is Indiana’s fifth-leading scorer. Pollard and Austin Croshere, a favorite of the Bird-Carlisle regime, are both struggling and have shot a combined 5-for-30 from the field.

TEAM LEADERS LEWIS O’NEAL Lewis 25.7 PPG O’Neal 19.5 Radmanovic 8.0 RPG O’Neal 11.0 Barry 5.3 APG Anderson 4.3 Radmanovic 2.2 SPG Artest 2.4 Booth 1.3 BPG O’Neal 3.0 Radmanovic 39.3 MPG Artest 41.5

Foster leads Pacers regulars in plus-minus per 48 minutes at +9.6. (The Pacers are +41 in Foster’s 205 minutes, +19 overall.)

The Sonics faced a difficult task in the middle game of their three-game road trip. Not only were the Indiana Pacers the NBA’s second-best team in terms of record at the time, they were nearly unbeatable at home, having lost only once prior to the visit by the Sonics. Early on, that didn’t seem to bother them at all. After a slow shooting start, the Sonics caught fire behind the reserve leadership of Anderson and took a lead to the locker room. Indiana pulled ahead slightly in the third quarter, but the Sonics were still in the game heading to the fourth with a chance to win. That’s when their offense went south, however. The Sonics scored just two points in the first 6:27 of the fourth quarter as the Pacers built an insurmountable lead and held on to the 93-80 victory. Gary Payton led the Sonics with 18 points, while a balanced Pacers attack saw six players score double figures, none of them more than 14.

Sonics - Guard Ray Allen (arthroscopic surgery, right ankle) and forward Nick Collison (left shoulder surgery) are on the injured list.

Indiana - Guard Jamison Brewer (sprained toe) and forwards Jonathan Bender (arthroscopic surgery, left knee) and James Jones (strained left hamstring) are on the injured list.