Rick Sund Quotations

We're in a playoff race, and not only in the race but fighting for home-court advantage, and he had to step up and get meaningful minutes. When he did that, he responded. Nothing is more meaningful than the playoffs in the NBA. That's why the league went after him.

We knew we were the first. It was a selling point. We also wanted him to feel the belief we had in him.

We like a lot of things that Chris can do. And we are excited to have him. He's only 23 years old and he can run. Those are the types of guys we are looking for.

We did discuss a number of proposals, and in the end, they liked the qualifying offer. We're very happy to have him back.

We're absolutely thrilled to welcome Ray back to our team. He's a proven All-Star and one of the top players in the NBA. He's been a tremendous asset for the Sonics, both on and off the court.

We're absolutely thrilled. He's a proven all-star and one of the top players in the NBA.

We're happy Vladimir has decided to return to the Sonics. He's a multi-positional player who can shoot the three and he's a good fit with our team.

One of the strengths of the Sonics, last year and again this year, is depth at the four and five spots.

One of our concerns has been, and probably always will be - unless you have a (Tim) Duncan or a Shaq (O'Neal) - having enough depth at the center position with enough flexibility so you can match up with all the different teams, because teams give you different looks, ... That was a strength last year, and it will be another strength for us this year. We have the strength with Vitaly, versatility and talent with a guy like Nick Collison, a low-post game. You have some length now and running ability in Mikki and some youth in Petro and Robert and some toughness and bulk in Danny.

Rick's playmaking ability, ball-handling skills and size make him a nice complement for our team. He is a true point guard, and I think he and Luke Ridnour will give us a good tandem at that position.

Brunson had a lot of good things to say, said his feel for the game is very good.

He improved as much in one season as any player we can remember and we expect that trend to continue. We believe Damien will be a part of our young, talented core for years to come.

He has reached the guys and he has made them believe that we are going to make a jump next season.

He had an excellent summer for us in Utah and last season was a pleasant surprise. We'd like to give him another opportunity.

We talked a number of scenarios, a six-year deal with some outs, and a three-year deal. In the end, he was most comfortable with one year. We're glad to have him back and signed.

We're pleased to have Mikki in a Sonics uniform. Mikki's length and his ability to run the floor complements the Sonics' style of play and gives us added depth at both the center and forward positions.

Were pleased to have Mikki in a Sonics uniform, ... Mikki's length and his ability to run the floor complements the Sonics style of play and gives us added depth at both the center and forward positions.

We've epitomized the word 'inconsistent' for professional basketball. We talked a lot in the last two weeks trying to (figure out) 'How can we get more consistent?' ... We talked, and we both kind of felt that a change might be in the best interest of the club.

We've epitomized the word 'inconsistent' for professional basketball.

He's a competitor defensively and we can definitely use the help there. We really liked him as a rookie and didn't want to lose him. We're glad to have him back.

He's been a tremendous asset for the Sonics, both on and off the court, since we acquired him in 2003.

I talked to him this afternoon and acknowledged the fact of possible starting time and (the Timberwolves) revamping their team, and his response was, 'Rick, this is home.'

My only plan is next season. I think we're playoff-caliber, and our expectations are we should make the playoffs next year.

We were looking for an athletic player that can play above the rim. His athleticism is a big plus for us, and he can run and can finish. He's looking for a place to be where he can get a fresh start as well.

We were so good last year being injury-free. Nick's starting to play pretty good, a really good first quarter (on Sunday). He's a tough guy and hopefully it heals and he will be back.

We are doing center-by-committee, and we have to have that depth there. Vitaly gives us bulk. Mikki gives us length.

We basically, like most teams in this league, do center by committee. We needed another committee member.

We basically, like most teams in this league, do center by committee, ... We needed to get another committee member. We've got a couple of young guys in (Robert) Swift and (Johan) Petro with Vitaly and now Mikki. Mikki's 7-foot and a little different player than Jerome, but their stats are virtually the same. Mikki runs the floor a little better, Jerome gives a little more bulk.

We're excited to have Flip back next season. He adds explosiveness to our backcourt and is versatile enough to play both guard positions.

We like that bulky type of center. It was important for us to get somebody with that type of body. And there is a certain comfort zone with Vitaly.

We like him. We want him back. I've said we'll try to get something done, and now we'll have to wait and see how it goes. I can't imagine anything that might happen between now and July 1 to change that.

We like him and we've liked him for a long time. We didn't want to do a deal just to do a deal. He's somebody that we targeted and somebody we feel can help us.

With Bob Hill's experience and success as a coach in the NBA, we believe he will help us toward our goal of making the playoffs this season.

We've had some surprising and disappointing losses and we've got to find wins. Bob tried. He really did. But I just felt like a change was necessary.

Bobby Weiss is the new coach and he'll open up the four spot (power forward) to everybody.

Due to his outstanding work ethic in his rookie season, Damien earned the respect of our players, coaches and fans, ... He improved as much in one season as any player we can remember and we expect that trend to continue. We believe Damien will be a part of our young, talented core for years to come.

I've told the players every season that any dialogue that a player has with me is private. And any dialogue as far as trades is private because it's just too much of a distraction during the season.

That's no knock against Luke, and in effect, we think this will make Luke even better. It certainly improves our team.

This incident happened before the season and we're looking forward to this matter being resolved soon.

It's going to be interesting to see what they're going to do, ... They have some flexibility. I'm sure a lot of teams will be calling them.

It's good that it's a graduated thing. With the amount of money that it used to be, those in the league office didn't think that $500 was severe enough.

That's one more free agent we can check off for the year. I'm happy to get that behind us. It gives us some depth at the guard position.

It's been fun to watch him mature. You love seeing that in your young players. Now he knows he's one of the key spokes in the wheel.

I've known Bob for a long time, but he understands and I think he thought we were going to do better. I'm disappointed in this team. I am disappointed in the fact that a coaching change has been made, 30 games into the season. But we're very, very inconsistent and that's an area Bob Hill is going to have to deal with. We did what we thought was necessary.

It's never easy to make a deal, even those that seem the simplest. When you want to do it, another team maybe wants to wait. So there's much to consider.

In his three years with the Sonics, Vitaly has given us a tough, physical presence in the middle along with the ability to score.

In my view, he's been developing since he took over. He's done a nice job.

His assists per minutes played is one of the best in the league. What we like is that there is no unknown with him. You know what you're getting. He knows who he is.

His knowledge of defense will complement the skills of our existing staff.

He's taking on a real nice leadership role,

I am not so much looking at what it's going to do this year as much as what does it do for the future. What pieces fit? What doesn't? What's the best style of play? The real question is not how they play today but how we perceive them to play in the future.

He and I agreed that a change needed to be made to serve as a catalyst for elevating the performance of our team, and the timing is right for us today.

The importance of getting Ray done; that was our No. 1 priority in the offseason. He's really taken this team under his control in terms of leadership.

a multipositional player who can shoot the three, and he's a good fit with our team.