Kevin Pelton, SUPERSONICS.COM | November 26, 2007
In all the talk leading up to the 2007-08 season about the important role new Seattle SuperSonics center
Kurt Thomas would play in the locker room as the team's most experienced veteran, it was easy to forget about what Thomas could bring to the Sonics as a player. A month into the campaign, Sonics fans and those watching the team need no such reminder.
Over the weekend, Thomas played two very different roles and helped the Sonics in both games. On Friday night, he came off the bench to play a key role as the Sonics rallied from a double-digit New Jersey advantage in the third quarter to get back in the game. Thomas was on the court for the closing minutes as the Sonics nearly completed their comeback attempt. Sunday, Thomas made his second start of the season and matched up with long-time foe 
Tim Duncan, helping the Sonics get off to a strong start.
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"We just play better when Kurt's on the floor. More than anything he just is a stabilizing influence for us."
Sam Forencich/NBAE/Getty
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"We just play better when Kurt's on the floor," Sonics Head Coach
P.J. Carlesimo said after Sunday's game. "Defensively he’s a presence and he’s a guy that they have to guard in pick-and-rolls because of his ability to shoot the ball. More than anything he just is a stabilizing influence for us."
Early plus-minus numbers support that conclusion. The Sonics outscored the Nets by 11 points with Thomas on the floor on Friday. Over the course of the season, they are +14 in his 91 minutes of action, the second-best mark on the team.
Even at age 35, 13 years removed from becoming the third player to lead NCAA Division I in both scoring and rebounding as a senior at TCU, Thomas still has plenty of game. Thomas' strength is his post defense, as famously tested against Duncan last May in the playoff matchup between the Spurs and Thomas' old team, the Phoenix Suns.
What drew less notice was that Thomas, with his well-honed midrange jumpshot, also offered he Suns some offense in that series, averaging 9.7 points in the six games. He posted a double-double of 15 points and 12 rebounds in Game 5, when Phoenix was without All-NBA big man Amaré Stoudemire.
Thus far this season, it has been Thomas' rebounding that has proven most valuable to the Sonics. His 7.2 rebounds per game rank third on the team despite the fact that Thomas has seen his minutes limited by a hamstring injury suffered just before the start of the regular season. Thomas has rebounded 21.6% of missed shots while on the floor, best on the Sonics and good enough to rank him amongst the NBA's leaders.
No longer the phenomenal athlete he was in his early days, Thomas has compensated with experience - positioning and knowledge of what to expect from the opposition. That "veteranism," to borrow a term coined by former Sonics guard Flip Murray, helps out the younger Sonics when Thomas is on the floor alongside them.
"He's a veteran," rookie forward 
Jeff Green said earlier this season. "He's been doing it for a while, so he makes it easier for myself, being a rookie, to go out there and play against those type of guys who have been in the league and playing together for a long time now. You can tell that he's out there - he's talking, he's trying to help you out."
The early part of the season has reinforced Thomas' value in part because his hamstring has limited him to five games so far. The Sonics have been cautious with Thomas' comeback, limiting him to 18 minutes on Friday, his return to the lineup after missing the previous three games. Thomas was able to ramp up to a season-high 25 minutes on Sunday, making his second start of the season.
"It's tough, but they definitely want to be cautious," Thomas said after Friday's game. "They don't want me to re-aggravate the injury. I definitely wanted to play more minutes, but I've got to keep a level head, listen to the training staff and the coaching staff and try to do the right thing."
After all, the coaching staff wants to keep Thomas on the floor as well. They know how valuable his presence is to the Sonics.
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