HeraldNet: And now, a short break from the Mariners



RECENT POSTS:
• A Mariner's Little League memory that will never fade August 27 • Lining up (and sitting down) the starters August 26 • Mariners option Lowe to Tacoma August 25 • Dickey back in the bullpen ... for now August 24 • Baseball in August: Oh the agony August 23

Archives:



RELATED ARTICLES:
• Twins snap losing skid, beat Mariners 6-5 August 27 • Red Sox acquire Kotsay from Braves August 27 • Rowland-Smith gets first victory as starter in 3-2 win over Twins August 27 • Mariners Appalachian League entry in playoffs August 27 • Mariners notebook August 27 • Baseball to start using instant replay on Thursday August 26 • Beltre's homer lifts Mariners to win over Twins in 11 August 26 • M's UPDATE: Lowe sent down August 26 • Gutty win for Felix Hernandez August 25 • MLB NOTES: Pirates' manager ejected August 25


ADVERTISEMENT <script language=JavaScript src="http://ads.heraldnet.com/servlet/ajrotator/169233/0/vj?z=heraldnet&ct=122081&dim=169231&abr=$scriptiniframe"></script><noscript><a href="http://ads.heraldnet.com/servlet/ajrotator/169233/0/cc?z=heraldnet"><img src="http://ads.heraldnet.com/servlet/ajrotator/169233/0/vc?z=heraldnet&ct=122081&dim=169231&abr=$imginiframe" width="160" height="600" border="0"></a></noscript>

Mariners Blog

July 3, 2008

And now, a short break from the Mariners

Posted at 7:42 pm by By Kirby Arnold

Somebody asked me a few weeks ago what I considered best sports event/story I'd covered in my career. Given I started this gig when I was a high school sophomore in 1970, there's a lot to consider.

It could have been the 1977 AL Championship Series between the Yankees and Royals. Or any of the 10 Indy 500s I covered. Or the 1995, 2000 and 2001 Mariners. Or anything involving Edgar Martinez, Jay Buhner and Ken Griffey Jr.

Then I arrived at something that surprised me because it was so clear-cut in my mind: the 1996 NBA Finals between the Seattle SuperSonics and Chicago Bulls.

I'm not the biggest NBA fan, but it was cool to see how sports fans in the region became enthralled with the Sonics just months after they'd fallen all over themselves during the Mariners' "Refuse to Lose" stretch drive in 1995.

The lasting memory of that June -- and of my career, now that I think about it -- is the joy I had watching Michael Jordan. It wasn't just the talent he brought to the court that awed me, but his ability to pull off feats greater than the unbelievable things he'd done before.

For that, I'm glad there was NBA to watch in Seattle.

When word came down yesterday that the Sonics are leaving Seattle, I thought I'd have the same reaction as any non-NBA junkie, that it really wouldn't matter to me.

Then I thought about the good times with the Sonics -- hearing stories of their championship season before I moved here and seeing what guys like Slick Watts, Dennis Johnson, Bernie Bickerstaff, Jack Sikma, Tom Chambers, Xavier McDaniel, George Karl, Nate McMillan, Gary Payton and others meant to my sports enjoyment.

And then I thought of Michael Jordan, and how I'd never have seen him in person without an NBA team in Seattle.

I'll miss the Sonics.

Return to Mariners Blog

TODAY'S TOP JOBS

View All Top Jobs

>> view all top homes

>> view all homes

<script language=JavaScript src="http://ads.heraldnet.com/servlet/ajrotator/105699/0/vj?z=heraldnet&dim=100749&abr=$scriptiniframe"></script><noscript><a href="http://ads.heraldnet.com/servlet/ajrotator/105699/0/cc?z=heraldnet"><img src="http://ads.heraldnet.com/servlet/ajrotator/105699/0/vc?z=heraldnet&dim=100749&abr=$imginiframe" width="728" height="90" border="0"></a></noscript>
\|Contact Us \|Advertiser Services \|Home Delivery \|Newsstand Locations \|Classifieds \|Feedback \|About the Company \|Work@the Herald \|Site Map	© 2008 The Daily Herald Co., Everett, WA.