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Mouhamed Sene

Bob Hill

Earl Watson

"Don't worry if Allen gets by you," Sene reportedly said. "I'll take care of it."

Sene's declaration would be bold enough if he was an experienced veteran, but he came into the evening with just 44 minutes of experience as an NBA player. Already, the 20-year-old, who spent last year playing in Belgium, seems to have developed the confidence to play with the best in the world.

"That kind of confidence tells me that he's going to be really good. For him to have the courage to say that right now says volumes." Terrence Vaccaro/NBAE/Getty

"That kind of confidence tells me that he's going to be really good," says Hill. "For him to have the courage to say that right now says volumes. Now is he ready to back that up? He did the other night in Dallas. On a consistent basis? I don't know."

As the Sonics move into the 2007 portion of their schedule, the development of Sene has become a key topic. Virtually since the native of Senegal arrived in Seattle as the 10th pick of the 2006 Draft, Hill and General Manager Rick Sund have been peppered with questions about when Sene might be able to contribute and whether he will be sent to the NBA Development League. Now, with Sene showing improvement in practice that has translated into short stints on the floor, the Sonics must decide the best course for continuing his development.

"What our decision boils down to," Hill says, "is, 'Is he better being with us and playing 38 seconds to four minutes or going to the D-League and playing 35?' Obviously it's better to go to the D-League and play 35 right now. Although I think we do a really good job with our big guys, I think right now, for him, it might be the right thing."

At the same time, complicating matters is the Sonics lack of depth at the center position. Robert Swift, who would have started in the middle, is out for the season with a torn ACL. Veteran Danny Fortson's status is a nightly question mark because of his chronically sore left knee. Nick Collison can match up with centers at times, but has proven more effective at power forward. And rookie Andreas Glyniadakis was waived Thursday.

The result is that, barring the addition of a more reliable veteran option at center, Hill has had little choice but to play Sene when Fortson and Johan Petro, the team's only consistent presence in the middle, face foul trouble, or when Fortson is unavailable. Sene has held his own in those situations, showing flashes of brilliance while also demonstrating at times that, because of his inexperience, he needs time to develop.

"Every performance for him has been a little bit different, because his minutes haven't been heavy, so he's only out there for so long," explains Hill.

"The other night in Dallas, he had three blocks and one of them was really a big-time block on (Dirk) Nowitzki. He ran the floor and missed a layup and then he ran the floor and fouled somebody trying to block the shot again. He almost brought, if this is possible, too much energy to that game. He hustled himself into bad position."

"His nose for the ball, his competitive spirit and his ability to capture the ball on rebounds ... those things are very good," offers Sonics Assistant Coach Jack Sikma, who is primarily responsible for working with Sene and the team's other big men. "In very specific environments, he can be effective. But the way this league works is you don't always control your environment, so it's not just under specific environments; you've got to broaden your abilities to be effective on the court. There are flashes of brilliances, but you have to be well-rounded enough so that the moments of non-brilliance are solid enough to be an effective player in the league. Then you can stay on the court so you get more moments where you can make a difference in the game. That's going to take some time."

Tuesday's game in Dallas showed why the Sonics are excited about Sene, and also why he is currently limited. Sene ran the floor well and blocked a career-high three shots. Included was an incredible rejection where Sene contained one drive to the basket, then, following a pass, changed directions to block Nowitzki's shot before flying toward the sideline to try to keep the ball from going out of bounds. On offense, Sene was less effective, missing both of his shot attempts and shooting 2-for-6 from the free-throw line.

Sikma describes the D-League as being, "as close as you can get to the NBA game." The best opportunity to get Sene experience may be coming. The Sonics D-League affiliate, the Idaho Stampede, plays a stretch of five games in seven nights starting next Wednesday, while the Sonics have just three games - all at home - in that stretch. The Sonics would have the opportunity to send a member of their staff, possibly Director of Basketball Operations Dave Pendergraft, to Boise to oversee Sene's use, and the affiliate is close enough that members of the coaching staff could potentially check out home games which fall on days off for the Sonics.

The Stampede boasts an experienced veteran at the point in one-time Sonics guard Randy Livingston, while swingmen Luke Jackson and Eddie Robinson also offer heavy NBA experience. 7-3 former Washington Wizard Peter John Ramos has been manning the pivot for Idaho.

"Playing time is number one, just to get a feel for five-on-five," says Sikma of the goals for Sene's development in a potential D-League stint. "I think we're looking for situations where he is getting a feel for where he's supposed to be on the court to be effective. One-on-one defense, so he understands what he can do or can't do so that he can stay in games longer. There's times for individual skills development, that type of thing, but we think he needs as much 5-on-5 situation as he can, especially when you look at his history. He played in Belgium last year and didn't get a lot of time on the court and came to basketball later than most. He needs to develop court savvy."

The coaching staff share's Sene's confidence that, in time, he will develop into a key contributor. The only question is how to get him there.

"I'm excited about the kid," says Hill. "He's going to be a good player, but he needs to be on the floor."