For two years, Earl Watson has endured insults on blogs, in
newspapers, and from Sonics fans in
KeyArena. My closest friends,
who also happen to be my weekly basketball game compatriots, have
always hated Watson. Everybody thinks Watson is a basketball Claudius
who steals love and playing time away from the local-boy Hamlet, Luke
Ridnour.
But I am here to tell you that Watson has played magnificently this
February, racking up his first career triple-double (23 points, 10
rebounds, and 10 assists) against Sacramento and leading a
third-quarter comeback against Memphis that might be looked back on as
the finest 12 minutes of his career.
And Watson has played this well in an insanely distracting
season—a season of multimillion-dollar lawsuits, an inconsistent
rookie superstar, an empty KeyArena, massive teammate turnover, and a
head coach who constantly reminds the local press that Watson’s playing
time depends solely on the state of Ridnour’s fragile mind, body, and
jump shot.
Well, let me get out my hand drum so I can sing this honor song:
Earl Watson is a better point guard than Luke Ridnour. Way, ya, hey,
ya. 