Carlesimo Happy to Be Back in Seattle

So suppose you're brought in not as a lame duck coach, but the coach of a lame duck team, one whose owners have already sold much of the furniture and ceased to promote as a local attraction. In theory, you can help whip some young prospects into shape with your patented, neck-popping yells and crude version of basketball acumen. But no, the whole thing is a disaster -- perhaps as had been planned all along -- and when the team slips away in the night, your days there are numbered. And now, they've cut you loose, your assistant has them looking vital and promising, and the whole thing has effectively ended your coaching career.

Naturally, if you're P.J. Carlesimo, erstwhile Sonics/Thunder coach and, if not quite a scapegoat, at least a symbol of all that was rotten for Seattle NBA fans in 2007-08, you put down roots in the Emerald City. From the Post-Intelligencer:

"It just wasn't good not being with the family. Being back here is great. To be honest with you, the kids have loved the last two days. It's more snow than they've ever seen, so they are happy as heck. It's great to be back here, it really is.

"We were just real fortunate, the neighborhood we live in, the school the kids are in, an absolute home run for us, so really it's worked out perfect."

No surprise that P.J. loves Seattle. Everyone does, except for Clay Bennett. Earlier in the piece, Carlesimo explains that he kept his house in Queen Anne throughout his OKC sojourn. That's either an indication of how much he'd like his kids growing up in Seattle, or proof that he always knew his role in the whole Bennett Conspiracy: to scuttle the team under the guise of providing tough love, making youngsters earn their minutes while forcing them to fend for themselves amongst strange aquatic beasts like Wally, Watson, and Wilkins. He played right into that franchise's hands -- more Presti brilliance, I know -- and while he ruined every Sonics game I went to last year, I kind of feel sorry for the guy.

The question is whether he'll get harassed on the streets like Howard Schultz does. I can personally vouch for honorable men and women who want a chance to shout at the former Sonics owner and Starbucks doyen from a moving vehicle. Preferably with some raw eggs on hand.

This post originally appeared on the Sporting Blog. For more, see The Sporting Blog Archives.