Late flurry propels Sonics to victory

Kevin Durant added to the litany of bad news coming from the Sonics when he walked out of KeyArena about an hour before Tuesday's tipoff complaining of flu-like symptoms.

Then the Memphis Grizzlies jumped on the Sonics in the first half before Wally Szczerbiak had an epiphany during a conversation with Luke Ridnour.

"It was at the start of the third quarter and said 'let's just go and win', " he said following a comeback 108-101 victory at KeyArena. "Try to focus on winning and play to have fun. All of this stuff going on with the lineup changes, with the rotations, with the minutes, with the coming off the bench, with starting, with the arena deal and with the trading deadline on top of everything.

"There's a bunch of stuff that can really skew your focus. I just made a point to go out and play to have fun and play to win and tonight we came away with the win."

In their only other game without Durant, the Sonics struggled offensively and managed just 90 points in an eight-point defeat to the Philadelphia 76ers on New Year's Eve.

This time the Sonics had no problems producing points without their star rookie, who leads the team in scoring at 19.4 points per game. That was because Szczerbiak and Earl Watson carried the scoring load and combined to score almost half of their points.

"A lot of guys played well," coach P.J. Carlesimo said. "Earl was exceptional. Wally struggled early, most of the first half, but then had a real good second half."

If Watson and Szczerbiak, whose names have been linked in trade rumors, are dealt before Thursday's deadline, then their final game with the Sonics was memorable.

Watson scored a game-high 26 points on 11-of-13 shooting and delivered nine assists, and Szczerbiak drained the decisive basket with 31.2 seconds left that unlocked a 101-101 tie and proved to be the game-winning points.

He finished with 24 points on 9-for-19 shooting, including three three-pointers.

"We got some guys that are professional and understand that stuff [trade deadline] is part of the NBA," Carlesimo said. "Some of them have been down this road before."

Inside the locker room, Watson acknowledged he might have played his final game with the Sonics, but said the thought never entered his mind during the game.

"If it is, you always want to make sure that you leave giving it your all and being a professional," Watson said. "So no one can say anything negative about you."

Watson has had played the best basketball of his career during the past four games, which has included a triple double and another game in which he had a season-high 14 assists.

"This year was just new to me," he said. "Everything was new.... And I'm a slow starter. I analyze everything. Think too much like how I can make my teammates better before making myself better. It's taken me some time to find out how I can score in this system."

Szczerbiak capped a 27-7 run with a three-pointer that put Seattle ahead 77-76 with 39.8 seconds remaining in the period and gave the Sonics their first lead in the second half.

In the final seconds, however, the long-distance sharpshooter drove baseline and sank a difficult off-balance short jumper despite being fouled.

Szczerbiak converted the ensuing free throw, which gave Seattle a 104-101 lead.

"I think tonight was one of those games where I got an opportunity to show what I can do down the stretch," Szczerbiak said.

Memphis (14-39), shot just 32.6 percent after intermission. Rudy Gay led the Grizzlies with 23 points and Hakim Warrick had 22. Mike Miller added seven before suffering from back spasms.

Seattle improved to 14-38.

Szczerbiak, the last Sonic to leave the locker room, said the time before the deadline will creep slowly.

"We'll see what happens," he said. "But for now, I'm here and I'll just enjoy this game."

Percy Allen: 206-464-2278 or pallen@seattletimes.com