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Meet the Sonics: Brent Barry
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER STAFF
POSITION: Guard
HT / WT: 6 feet 6, 215 pounds
AGE: 31
ACQUIRED: August 1999 trade with Chicago when the Bulls took Hersey Hawkins and James Cotton and the Sonics landed Barry.
BOTTOM LINE: The final season of a six-year contract signed in 1999.
CAREER SKETCH
This is Barry's first full season as starting point guard. At age 31, he is the oldest Sonics player and was named co-captain after Gary Payton was traded to the Milwaukee Bucks.
He averaged 10.3 points last season, down from his career-high of 14.4 points in 2001-02. Barry played through tendinitis much of the season. He first told reporters of the injury before a December road game in Detroit, a good point of reference for showing just how much the injury affected him. Before that game in Detroit, he averaged 12.0 points and made 45.6 percent of his 3-point attempts. From that game on, he averaged 9.6 points and 37.9 percent of his 3-point attempts.
CHALK TALK
Coach Nate McMillan: "Brent can play with anybody. I think we want to make sure he's healthy. If he's healthy, it doesn't make a difference who's on the floor with him. He reads and understands the game well enough to defer his game or be more aggressive.
"He could play with Ray Allen, he could play with Ronald Murray, he could play with Antonio Daniels, he could play with Luke Ridnour. I think he could play with all those guys and be effective, productive, if he's healthy."
FULL-COURT Q & A
Have people said you look like Shaggy from "Scooby Doo?" "Yeah, that's what Rashard (Lewis) was saying. Then Ray was saying I looked like 'Salami' from 'The White Shadow.' "
What did you own first, a suit or a car? Suit. "I was a good Catholic kid, so I'm sure I had a suit for First Communion. That suit would probably fit Luke (Ridnour) right now."
Ever had a manicure? No. "But I know plenty of the other guys have, maybe even pedicures."
Bob De Niro or Al Pacino? De Niro, Barry's favorite role being in "Casino." Jack Nicholson is his favorite actor.
Do you know anyone else in the NBA who drives a Volkswagen Eurovan? "Nope." When told that MTV Cribs should come do a spot, his eyes lit up. "Yeah, just on my van."