Post#5 » by jenn_gp » Mon Oct 13, 2008 5:21 pm
^Hahah!
Yeah, but I will defend Gary on this one. Think about this: if you were an NBA player who played 12 1/2 years of your life (including all the years in your prime) in one city and you are a potiential Hall of Famer in the league, wouldn't you worry about where your jersey is retired? It is an honor for any player to get their jersey retired. Gary is in a very difficult situation, one that not very many players get tied up in when they choose to retire. I don't blame him for wanting to retire his jersey in the one place who made him who he is...I'm actually quite proud of him for sticking to it. He could have easily chose to retire his jersey in OKC since they are actually the Sonics (until if/when a new one comes to Seattle). I'm glad that he's fighting for us, even if he's mostly only doing it so he can retire his jersey here. As a GP fan that makes me thrilled.
Gary deserves it just as much as anyone else currently hanging up in the rafters of Key Arena. You can hate his attitude, but you can't deny the man played his heart out night in and night out for us.
When I have my first child and name it Payton (I've wanted to do this since I was younger and my husband doesn't have a say in the matter), I want to be able point up into the rafters of the Sonics future arena and tell them "hey, this is how you got your name."
You can call me crazy or obessed, that's fine. You can even not like Gary as a person. But Gary played his heart out every night he laced them up in Seattle. He's a Hall of Fame caliber player, numerous All-Star bids, trips to the NBA finals, and although he wasn't a champion as a Sonic, he earned a well deserved ring. He deserves to have his jersey retired in Seattle. How would you feel if he up and decided to retire in OKC? I would feel betrayed and pissed off, I don't know about you.