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Sheryl Swoopes looked down at the piece of paper, gave a quick scan of the roster and made quite the pronouncement.

"When I look at this roster here, top to bottom, with the exception of the USA (basketball) team, I've never been a part of a team that had so much talent," Swoopes said Monday.

With that, the already lofty expectations for the 2008 Seattle Storm were raised even higher - and training camp only started Monday.

The Storm began camp under new coach Brian Agler with a thinned roster while many of their stars continued playing overseas. Lauren Jackson and Sue Bird are still competing in the Euroleague tournament with their team in Russia, while new forward Swin Cash is playing with the U.S. team in a tournament in China.

That meant most of the attention was left for Swoopes, who missed most of last season with a back injury, new center Yolanda Griffith and Agler, all adjusting to the start of their first training camp in Seattle.

For Swoopes and Griffith, it's a stark change from the past. Both were mainstays in Houston and Sacramento, respectively, spending their entire WNBA careers with one team.

They won titles and were MVPs with those teams, then jumped at the chance to join Jackson, Bird and Cash and create a roster in Seattle that looks more like an Olympic or All-Star team than a WNBA lineup.

"It does feel different. I have to get used to the uniform," Griffith said. "I'm excited about it. I did so much in Sacramento and I felt it was time for a different change and it was a good move for me."

While Monday was a get-aquatinted session for the 12 Storm players that are in camp, it was also a celebration of the team's future in Seattle. In January, Force 10 Hoops LLC purchased the Storm from Seattle SuperSonics owner Clay Bennett for $10 million, assuring the Storm would be in Seattle for the 2008 season and beyond.

The purchase closed six weeks ago, creating a hectic March and April for the new ownership group getting ready for the May 17 season opener against Chicago.

The new owners are taking over at a time when the city is on the verge of losing its NBA team after the league's board of governors last week approved Bennett's application to move the Sonics from Seattle to Oklahoma City for the 2008-09 season, pending the resolution of litigation between the city and the team.

But the sale of the Storm to local owners meant Agler could keep the core of his team intact - Jackson and Bird had both expressed their desire not to play in Oklahoma - and then build around those two.

While some observers wonder if the players can put their egos and credentials aside and mesh together, no one on Monday thought that would be a problem - even with Jackson and Bird potentially not joining the team until a week before the opener.

"If players come in and accept their role, I think it's scary how good this team can be," Swoopes said.

Notes: The Storm re-signed restricted free agent C Ashley Robinson on Monday. Robinson played 33 games for Seattle last year. ... Agler expects Cash to join the team in Chicago before its exhibition opener on April 30.

EW YORK - The messy split between Seattle and the SuperSonics lurched forward Friday when NBA owners approved relocating the team to Oklahoma City — a move legal wrangling might delay another two years.

"I'm giving this press conference in the face of a scorched earth policy," said NBA commissioner David Stern, who criticized civic leaders suing to force the team to stay until its lease expires in 2010.

He charged that their "strategy is to inflict as much harm on the Sonics in Seattle" to try to force a different outcome.

Owners voted 28-2 in favor of the move, with Dallas and Portland against it. The relocation carries a $30 million fee, and the Sonics could begin playing in owner Clay Bennett's hometown as early as next season.

All that is contingent on resolving the lawsuit filed by Seattle, which has rejected a $26 million settlement offer from Bennett.

Stern directed his ire at Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels and former U.S. Sen. Slade Gorton, who is helping with the suit.

"I think that Sen. Gorton and the mayor are determined to exact whatever pound of flesh is possible here, and they will," Stern said. "And then the team will leave at the end of whatever period of time the court says it is required to stay for, and that will be it, period."

Stern said the league is prepared to play out the remaining two seasons in Seattle, but he cautioned that would mean a possible loss of $30 million a year for a team playing in front of reduced attendance.

"Right now, there's no speedy resolution on the horizon," Stern said. "There's a contested trial, a pretty hot atmosphere."

With the move, the Sonics would be the first NBA team to change cities since the Hornets went from Charlotte to New Orleans for the 2002-03 season.

That would delight one city.

"The vote further confirms that Oklahoma is in the big leagues and can compete with anyone," Oklahoma Gov. Brad Henry said in a statement.

But before the team can compete in Oklahoma City, it must settle the issue of the lease. Seattle's lawsuit is set for trial on June 16.

"Step one is I am hopeful that we can re-establish communications and some sort of platform to have a meaningful, principled conversation," Bennett said. "We are certainly nowhere near that today."

When asked during a news conference later Friday in Seattle if he was expecting a new, richer offer from Bennett, Nickels said, "I don't really care."

"We're going to go into court in June," Nickels said. "We are going to protect the interests of the people of Seattle."

Though Stern insisted it wasn't personal, he repeatedly criticized Seattle officials.

"The presentation from Washington is, 'We're going to kill you,'" Stern said.

When asked about "the shots you took today" from Stern and Bennett, Nickels said to consider the source.

"We're in litigation, and the other side has got to say what they think they have to say to punch holes in our case," he said. "I think it shows they have a pretty weak case. We are focused on June, on winning that litigation and keeping the team here."

Bennett defended his efforts to try to keep the franchise there. E-mails between Bennett and his ownership partners released recently as part of the city's lawsuit appeared to show they planned to move the team to their hometown all along.

Stern said the other owners never "questioned the good faith of Clay Bennett," and Bennett said his words had been misinterpreted. When he wrote, "I am a man possessed! Will do everything we can," he meant he was determined to find a way for the Sonics to remain in the city, Bennett contended. He cited at least 30 trips to Seattle and "millions of dollars" spent as evidence of his commitment.

"I also want to express my regret to the citizens of Seattle and the fans of the Sonics that I was unsuccessful in bringing forth a new building," he said. "We tried the best we knew how to try and did what we knew how to do and did the best job I could."

Stern warned Seattle isn't likely to land another NBA team anytime soon for the same reason the Sonics are leaving: the ongoing reluctance of state and local officials to help pay for a replacement for outdated KeyArena. Stern dismissed the idea that a group led by Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer would be able to find an arena solution and eventually purchase the team from Bennett to keep the Sonics in town.

Bennett is also facing a class-action lawsuit brought by season-ticket holders who say they were duped into buying tickets under the premise the Sonics wouldn't leave. And this week former team owner Howard Schultz announced plans to sue to get the team back, saying Bennett did not make a good-faith effort to secure a new arena deal as he promised when he bought the team in 2006.

Stern and Bennett said it had yet to be determined whether the franchise will carry the SuperSonics name, colors and history with it to Oklahoma City.

The rights to those could be a bargaining chip in Bennett's negotiations with the city, with Seattle possible retaining them for a future team. Stern suggested that calling the club Oklahoma, instead of Oklahoma City, might be desirable because it reflects the importance of other parts of the state such as Tulsa in the franchise's viability.

Of the two teams that voted against the move, Mavericks owner Mark Cuban has previously expressed concerns about the market size, and it also happens that Oklahoma City is just 200 miles from Dallas. Stern said the Trail Blazers, owned by Seattle software billionaire Paul Allen, didn't say why they voted the way they did.

Stern played down the fact that Oklahoma City is a much smaller market than Seattle.

"The judgment was that the prospect of continued further losses in Seattle without an adequate arena really rendered that discussion with no good answer other than the movement of the team to Oklahoma at this point," Stern said.

___

AP Sports Writer Gregg Bell in Seattle and Associated Press writer Tim Talley in Oklahoma City contributed to this report.

SEATTLE, Nov. 9 (AP) -- All those who thought Kevin Durant is already out of school haven't been watching the teenage star this week.

The Seattle SuperSonics' second overall draft choice got a lesson Friday night in the ways the NBA is quickly adopting on how to stymie Durant: The more the lanky rookie stays outside, the more an equally tall defender jumps out to keep his nose in the skinny teenager's chest.

Utah defensive whiz Andrei Kirilenko used that approach to hold Durant to 7-for-21 shooting and blocked Durant's attempt at a game-tying shot in the lane with three seconds remaining to help the Utah Jazz hold on to beat the winless SuperSonics 103-101 on Friday night, Seattle's franchise record-tying sixth consecutive loss to begin the season.

"You need to be close to him. I tried to force myself into him, to make contact,'' said Kirilenko, who was named to the NBA's all-defensive team two seasons ago. "In the next few years, when he gains weight, it will be very hard to stop him. Right now, he's a little thin, and it's easier to hold him.''

Carlos Boozer scored the go-ahead basket over Durant on a pick-and-roll with 17.6 seconds left and finished with 27 points -- 22 in the second half. Boozer also had 15 rebounds for his sixth double-double in six games for Utah, which won for the third time in four games and now heads home to face Memphis and Sacramento.

Yet all Boozer wanted to talk about was Kirilenko, who had 11 assists plus 10 points to go with his pestering of Durant. Deron Williams, whose bounce pass led to Boozer's go-ahead shot at the end, also finished 11 assists and had 14 points.

"He was everywhere,'' Boozer said of Kirilenko, who at 6-foot-9 is the same height as Durant. "He made Durant take a tough shot.''

Kirilenko blocked four of Durant's shots. Twice in the third quarter Durant drove under the basket and had his layup stuffed by Kirilenko.

Durant finished with 20 points but is just 10-for-38 from the field in his last two games. For the second consecutive game, he didn't make his initial basket until midway through the second quarter.

Two nights after saying "I hate losing -- period,'' and adding he'd never lost five games in row in his life, the 19-year-old left the locker room without saying a word while flanked by a team spokesman.

Maybe Durant should adopt more of the approach of fellow rookie Jeff Green, though Green's relentlessly slashing style is not the game at which Durant is most comfortable right now.

Green, Seattle's fifth overall pick, had an early career-high 19 points off the bench while fearlessly banging into bigger bodies for the young, remade Sonics, who are starting their 41st and perhaps their final season in Seattle in a way that has many locals wishing they were already gone.

They must defeat rugged, playoff-tested Detroit at home Sunday night to avoid setting a dubious team mark to begin a season.

"They're an excellent basketball team,'' new Seattle coach P.J. Carlesimo said of Utah. "Hopefully we learned something from them tonight.

Carlesimo was pleased with his team's effort and overall improvement from previous second-half collapses against less-talented Memphis and Sacramento.

"Mostly, we learned something about our team, and it was very good,'' he said. "If we play that well in April, then I'll be proud.''

The Sonics rallied from an 11-point deficit to take an 83-80 lead early in the fourth. Durant hit a runner in the lane while getting fouled, a 3-point play that gave Seattle its first edge since 2-0. But Boozer banged for 11 of Utah's next 20 points to put the Jazz back up 97-93 with 4 minutes left

Durant missed 11 of his first 15 shots before that 3-point play. He began driving inside more, like Green, after that.

"He didn't shoot well at the beginning. If I was in his spot, I would drive more, too. He did right,'' Kirilenko said.

Durant blocked a follow shot by Boozer and then sank a shot in the lane to tie the game at 101 with 1 minute to go. But Boozer answered with his decisive drive at the end.

Note: Jazz coach Jerry Sloan mostly sat in his bench seat and was more quiet than usual -- the result of having a root canal Thursday. ... Carlesimo did not change his lineup, as he had promised. Durant, Chris Wilcox, Earl Watson, Damien Wilkins and Robert Swift started again. He said those promised changes will likely come Sunday against Detroit, when F-C Kurt Thomas (hamstring strain) may be ready to make his Seattle debut. Likely to go: Swift, who was in foul trouble again. The 7-footer finished with no points and four fouls in 17 minutes.


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SEATTLE, Nov. 8 (AP) -- Kevin Durant doesn't want to hear that nights like this are as a much a part of the NBA as pick-and-rolls.

The second overall pick in June's draft also wants none of the consensus that his remodeled, learning-on-the-fly SuperSonics are destined for a season like this. After all, he hadn't lost five games in a row in his life - until now.

Rudy Gay warmed from a cold start to score 25 points and determined Kyle Lowry hit a clinching 3-pointer as the Memphis Grizzlies overcame a 14-point deficit in the second half Wednesday night to beat the winless Sonics 105-98, sending Seattle to its worst start in 38 years.

"I hate to lose, basically. I don't care if it's an 82-game season and people say you have to lose - I hate to lose. Period,'' Durant said, in a quiet voice that matched the locker room vibe.

Lowry, who missed five of his first six shots, got a rebound off his missed layup and then swished a 3-pointer with 11.3 seconds remaining to clinch the first win of the season for the Grizzlies, in their first road game.

"I did not want to go into another town with zero victories. And I think the guys felt that way,'' said Memphis coach Marc Iavaroni, the former NBA player and then assistant coach who won his first game as a head man.

Durant, playing for the third time in four nights in a welcome-to-NBA-life stretch, scored a season-low 17 points and was a woeful 3-for-17 from the field for the Sonics, the league's only 0-5 team. After he missed his first four shots, including one that banged off the backboard about six inches to the left and below the rim, coach P.J. Carlesimo sat his franchise cornerstone for 10 minutes.

Durant finally scored midway through the second quarter.

The key to stifling the skinny, 6-foot-9 Durant?

"Getting into his body and try to alter his shot,'' Gay said.

With Seattle trying to rally from a 98-94 deficit with 2:14 left, Durant charged down the lane into Brian Cardinal for a key offensive foul. Durant pounded the floor with his hands and stomped away in protest of the call.

It was perhaps the first sign of outward emotion from the rookie who has been mostly quiet through this opening free fall. The Sonics play Utah, a playoff team last season, at home on Friday in an attempt to avoid tying their franchise-worst start from 1969.

Carlesimo, who called allowing Memphis 21 offensive rebounds "atrocious,'' again stressed patience. Yet he also said the status quo is a no-go.

"We're learning. It's a hard way to learn,'' he said. "We've going to start making some changes, looking at different rotations.''

Durant said fatigue had nothing to do with his night, but his coach thought it did.

"I think the three-in-four had something to do with it, the back-to-back had something to do with it. Some of it was the defense they played,'' Carlesimo said.

"I'm saying this all the time: He's 19. He's five games into his career. There are veterans that have nights like this.''

One night after blowing a 20-point lead and losing at Sacramento, Seattle pulled to 100-98 with 48 seconds left on Durant's fifth and sixth consecutive free throws in the last 2:14. But then they let Lowry get free - twice - on the decisive possession.

Mike Miller added 20 points for Memphis, which is playing three games in four days on its initial trip. The Grizzlies didn't always follow Iavaroni's pregame hope for smarter, simpler play on offense and often ran wildly down the floor into missed shots. But they erased a 14-point deficit early in the second half with a 23-8 run.

Gay, who made just three of his first 12 shots, ended the spurt with a fadeaway that put the Grizzlies ahead 74-73. Consecutive three-point plays by Gay, Pau Gasol and Lowry in the final 1:20 of the third quarter gave Memphis an 87-81 lead entering the final period.

Notes: One night after scoring 32 points in 31 minutes off the bench, Wally Szczerbiak scored just six for Seattle. ... Sonics C Robert Swift started for the second consecutive night, a milestone after a preseason of tendinitis in his surgically repaired right knee that caused him to miss all of last season. "Four (games) in five days is going to be another matter,'' he said with a smile. Then he looked tired, got in early foul trouble and finished with five fouls and four points. ... Grizzlies F-C Stromile Swift missed the game with a sore neck and shoulders. Iavaroni said he is day-to-day. ... Sonics F-C Kurt Thomas, who has yet to play a game this season, got his strained right hamstring tested and learned there is no structural damage.

SACRAMENTO, Calif., Nov. 6 (AP) -- Francisco Garcia's timely 3-pointer saved the Sacramento Kings from what would have been quite the double whammy in their home opener.

Garcia hit a go-ahead baseline 3 with 29 seconds to play, lifting Sacramento to a 104-98 victory over the Seattle SuperSonics and a win for new coach Reggie Theus in his Arco Arena debut.

Seattle rookie Kevin Durant shot an airball with about 7 seconds left, but still finished with 27 points, seven rebounds and four assists for the Sonics, who are 0-4 for the first time in 30 years.

It hardly mattered that the Kings also saw their sellout streak end at 354 games: The team avoided its first 0-4 start since 1997-98. The game drew 14,908 fans - 2,409 below capacity at one of the NBA's most imposing road venues.

Kevin Martin had 31 points, seven rebounds and five assists for Sacramento, which will have another tough test on its home floor Friday with LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Theus, dressed to the nines with a navy blue pinstripe suit for big the occasion, had his high school coach, Mike Sterling, in the stands to cheer him on after Sterling made the trip from Southern California.

Wally Szczerbiak scored 32 points for the Sonics and Nick Collison added 12 points and seven rebounds. Szczerbiak scored 18 of his points in the second quarter as Seattle built a 61-48 halftime lead before shooting 7-for-20 in the third quarter.

John Salmons added 23 points for a Kings' lineup missing point guard Mike Bibby, forward Ron Artest and rookie center Spencer Hawes. Salmons' driving layin with 1:02 to play pulled the Kings within 98-97.

"They're twice as athletic as we are,'' Theus said.

Bibby is expected to be sidelined for at least the first six weeks of the season with a torn ligament in his left thumb, while Hawes is recovering from arthroscopic surgery on his left knee. Artest is suspended for the first seven games.

Sacramento opened the third period with a 7-0 spurt to get back in the game as the Sonics came out cold. The Kings tied it on Martin's layin with 3:02 left, then went ahead on Quincy Douby's basket the next time down before a three-point play by Szczerbiak.

Theus wasn't worried about whether the game sold out.

"Every team goes through periods of time when things are not great,'' said Theus, who took over after Eric Musselman was fired following only one season as coach. "What you do in the interim determines how long that lasts. .. We have a lot of die-hard fans.''

Robert Swift earned his first start for the Sonics, playing for the second time this season after recovering from ACL surgery on his right knee that caused him to miss all of last season. First-year Seattle coach P.J. Carlesimo was considering playing Swift in back-to-back games if all went well.

Notes: Hawes, the Kings' top draft pick selected 10th overall out of Washington, was scheduled to begin practicing Wednesday. "He's so excited,'' Theus said. "He was bouncing around. He was on a pogo stick today.'' ... Durant and Hawes are good friends and got together Monday night in Sacramento. ... New Cincinnati Reds manager Dusty Baker attended the game and sat courtside with wife, Melissa, and 8-year-old son, Darren. Baker, who recently built a home in the area, received a warm reception when introduced and shook hands with referee Ron Olesiak during a second-quarter timeout. Darren got to dribble the game ball during that break and later had a jersey signed by Bibby.

LOS ANGELES, Nov. 4 (AP) -- Corey Maggette scored 27 points and Tim Thomas made three 3-pointers during a one-minute span late in the fourth quarter to lead the Los Angeles Clippers to a 115-101 victory over the Seattle SuperSonics on Sunday.

Thomas finished with 20 points, Cuttino Mobley added 17 points and Chris Kaman had 15 rebounds for the Clippers, who were coming off a season-opening 120-114 win against Golden State on Friday night. They started out a franchise-record 6-0 at home last year before the Sonics snapped that streak with a 95-85 victory.

Kevin Durant scored 24 points to lead Seattle, which is 0-3 for the first time since 1985-86. Durant is averaging 23 points and 36.3 minutes.

The Clippers used Quinton Ross, Mobley and Maggette at different times to try and defend against Durant's perimeter shooting. The rookie was 10-for-19 from the field, hitting three 3-pointers.

The Clippers entered the fourth quarter with a two-point lead and stretched it to 94-82 with 6:60 remaining. Mobley and Dan Dickau drained 3-pointers 31 seconds apart during the 16-6 run, which Mobley capped with a dunk off an offensive rebound. Seattle had only six points in the first 6:12 of the final quarter, all by Wally Szczerbiak, who finished with 13.

Thomas, who set a franchise record last season with 356 3-point baskets, hit his third in a row to make it 109-92 with 2:43 to play and put the game out of reach.

Kaman, who had a career-high 26 points along with 18 rebounds against the Warriors, picked up his third foul with 2:53 left in the second quarter. It forced coach Mike Dunleavy to go with a smaller lineup, and the Sonics capitalized on the 7-foot center's absence by outscoring the Clippers 14-4 the rest of the half and tying the score 52-all. Damien Wilkins capped the rally with a 12-foot running jumper with 1.3 seconds on the clock.

Notes: Seattle's worst start was 0-6 in 1969-70 under player-coach Lenny Wilkens, who would end up as the winningest coach in NBA history. ... P.J. Carlesimo, in his first season as Seattle's coach, spent three with Portland and never started 0-3. But in his three seasons with Golden State, the Warriors opened up 0-9, 0-5 and 0-4. ... Durant, the first freshman honored as national college player of the year, has a chance to become the first player in the Sonics' 41-year history to be named NBA rookie of the year. Gary Payton lost out to New Jersey's Derrick Coleman in 1990-91. ... Seattle C center Nick Collison missed all six shots, playing 23 scoreless minutes with 10 rebounds.