The 1991–92 Seattle SuperSonics season was the 24th season for the Seattle SuperSonics in the National Basketball Association.
Season summary
Off-season The SuperSonics had the 14th overall pick in the 1991 NBA draft, and selected center Rich King from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln.
Regular season The SuperSonics won seven of their first ten games of the regular season, but then lost eight of their next twelve games. Head coach K. C. Jones was fired after an 18–18 start to the season; after four games under assistant coach Bob Kloppenburg as an interim coach, the SuperSonics hired George Karl, who returned after a four-year absence from coaching in the NBA. Under Karl, the SuperSonics held a 24–24 record at the All-Star break, and finished in fourth place in the Pacific Division with a 47–35 record, earning the sixth seed in the Western Conference.
Ricky Pierce led the SuperSonics in scoring averaging 21.7 points per game, while sixth man Eddie Johnson averaged 17.1 points per game off the bench, and Shawn Kemp played most of the regular season off the bench averaging 15.5 points, 10.4 rebounds and 1.9 blocks per game. In addition, Derrick McKey provided the team with 14.9 points and 5.2 rebounds per game, but only played 52 games due to a thumb injury, while Benoit Benjamin provided with 14.0 points, 8.1 rebounds and 1.9 blocks per game, only playing in 63 games due to a broken hand injury, and second-year guard Gary Payton contributed 9.4 points, 6.2 assists and 1.8 steals per game. Meanwhile, Michael Cage averaged 8.8 points and 8.9 rebounds per game, Dana Barros contributed 8.3 points per game, and Nate McMillan provided with 6.0 points, 5.0 assists and 1.8 steals per game.
During the NBA All-Star weekend at the Orlando Arena in Orlando, Florida, Kemp participated in the NBA Slam Dunk Contest for the third consecutive year. Despite a stellar season, Pierce was not selected for the 1992 NBA All-Star Game. Karl finished in 13th place in Coach of the Year voting. The SuperSonics finished 19th in the NBA in home-game attendance, with an attendance of 588,928 at the Seattle Center Coliseum during the regular season.
NBA playoffs In the Western Conference First Round of the 1992 NBA playoffs, the SuperSonics faced off against the 3rd–seeded Golden State Warriors, who were led by the trio of All-Star forward Chris Mullin, All-Star guard Tim Hardaway, and sixth man Šarūnas Marčiulionis. The SuperSonics managed to win Game 1 over the Warriors on the road, 117–109 at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Arena, before losing Game 2 on the road by a score of 115–101, as the Warriors evened the series. The SuperSonics won the next two games at home, which included a Game 4 win over the Warriors at the Seattle Center Coliseum, 119–116 to win the series in four games.
In the Western Conference Semi-finals, the team faced off against the 2nd–seeded, and Midwest Division champion Utah Jazz, who were led by the trio of All-Star forward Karl Malone, All-Star guard John Stockton, and Jeff Malone. The SuperSonics lost the first two games to the Jazz on the road at the Delta Center, before winning Game 3 at the Seattle Center Coliseum, 104–98. However, the SuperSonics lost the next two games, including a Game 5 road loss to the Jazz at the Delta Center, 111–100, thus losing the series in five games.
Draft picks
Round Pick Player Position Nationality College 1 14 Rich King C Nebraska
Roster
Regular season
Season standings
y – clinched division title x – clinched playoff spot
z – clinched division title y – clinched division title x – clinched playoff spot
Game log
| 1 | November 1 | Phoenix | L 95–99 | Ricky Pierce (25) | Michael Cage (13) | Gary Payton (7) | Seattle Center Coliseum12,863 | 0–1 |- | 2 | November 3 | San Antonio | L 98–106 | Derrick McKey (23) | Michael Cage (9) | Nate McMillan (10) | Seattle Center Coliseum12,863 | 0–2 |- | 3 | November 5 | Sacramento | W 98–87 | Derrick McKey (20) | Michael Cage (16) | Gary Payton (9) | Seattle Center Coliseum9,343 | 1–2 |- | 4 | November 7 | @ Utah | W 103–95 | Benoit Benjamin (22) | Benoit Benjamin (13) | Gary Payton (5) | Delta Center18,700 | 2–2 |- | 5 | November 9 | Indiana | W 118–111 | Michael Cage (23) | Michael Cage (22) | Gary Payton (7) | Seattle Center Coliseum11,930 | 3–2 |- | 6 | November 14 | @ Cleveland | L 109-115 (OT) | Ricky Pierce (29) | Michael Cage (10) | Gary Payton (12) | Coliseum at Richfield10,838 | 3–3
| 7 | November 15 | @ Indiana | W 124–108 | Ricky Pierce (34) | Michael Cage (14) | Gary Payton (15) | Market Square Arena10,877 | 4–3 |- | 8 | November 17 | @ Minnesota | W 101–91 | Ricky Pierce (28) | Michael Cage (11) | Gary Payton (9) | Target Center19,006 | 5–3 |- | 9 | November 19 | @ Washington | W 113–106 | Gary Payton (22) | Michael Cage (20) | Gary Payton (7) | Capital Centre7,015 | 6–3 |- | 10 | November 20 | @ Detroit | W 91–86 | Ricky Pierce (18) | Michael Cage (9) | Nate McMillan,Gary Payton (4) | The Palace of Auburn Hills21,454 | 7–3 |- | 11 | November 22 | Chicago | L 109–112 (OT) | Ricky Pierce (30) | Benjamin,Cage (12) | Gary Payton (7) | Kingdome38,067 | 7–4 |- | 12 | November 24 | @ L. A. Clippers | L 86–89 | Ricky Pierce (28) | Benoit Benjamin (15) | Benjamin,McMillan (5) | Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena9,196 | 7–5 |- | 13 | November 26 | Golden State | W 136–130 (OT) | Eddie Johnson (29) | Derrick McKey (15) | Nate McMillan (9) | Seattle Center Coliseum11,743 | 8–5 |- | 14 | November 29 | @ Denver | L 90–101 | Eddie Johnson (20) | Michael Cage (13) | Gary Payton (4) | McNichols Sports Arena10,613 | 8–6 |- | 15 | November 30 | @ San Antonio | L 101–119 | Eddie Johnson (21) | Nate McMillan (10) | Gary Payton (5) | HemisFair Arena16,057 | 8–7
| 16 | December 3 | Washington | W 91–90 | Ricky Pierce (26) | Shawn Kemp (12) | Gary Payton (5) | Seattle Center Coliseum 10,957 | 9–7 |- | 17 | December 6 | Minnesota | W 96–94 | Ricky Pierce (29) | Michael Cage (23) | Payton,Pierce (5) | Seattle Center Coliseum9,796 | 10–7 |- | 18 | December 7 | Dallas | W 104–101 | Ricky Pierce (27) | Michael Cage (14) | Nate McMillan (6) | Seattle Center Coliseum12,313 | 11–7 |- | 19 | December 10 | @ Chicago | L 103–108 | Ricky Pierce (30) | Michael Cage (13) | Kemp,Payton (5) | Chicago Stadium18,061 | 11–8 |- | 20 | December 11 | @ New York | L 87–96 | Ricky Pierce (25) | Benjamin,Kemp (9) | Ricky Pierce (7) | Madison Square Garden14,934 | 11–9 |- | 21 | December 13 | @ Boston | L 97–117 | Ricky Pierce (21) | Benoit Benjamin (8) | Nate McMillan (8) | Boston Garden14,890 | 11–10 |- | 22 | December 14 | @ Philadelphia | L 95–104 | Benoit Benjamin (23) | Benoit Benjamin (9) | Nate McMillan (8) | The Spectrum12,395 | 11–11 |- | 23 | December 17 | L. A. Clippers | W 116–99 | Benoit Benjamin (20) | Michael Cage (13) | Nate McMillan (6) | Seattle Center Coliseum10,357 | 12–11 |- | 24 | December 19 | Denver | W 119–106 | Ricky Pierce (29) | Michael Cage (15) | McKey,McMillan,Payton (4) | Seattle Center Coliseum10,663 | 13–11 |- | 25 | December 21 | Golden State | W 120–112 | Ricky Pierce (34) | Gary Payton (11) | Gary Payton (12) | Seattle Center Coliseum14,180 | 14–11 |- | 26 | December 22 | @ Portland | L 87–96 | Benoit Benjamin (18) | Michael Cage (9) | Kofoed,Payton (5) | Memorial Coliseum12,888 | 14–12 |- | 27 | December 26 | @ Sacramento | W 115–106 (OT) | Ricky Pierce (27) | Benoit Benjamin (13) | Gary Payton (5) | ARCO Arena17,014 | 15–12 |- | 28 | December 27 | Boston | L 87–110 | Ricky Pierce (26) | Derrick McKey (7) | Gary Payton (4) | Kingdome37,175 | 15–13
| 29 | January 2 | Miami | W 113–109 (OT) | Ricky Pierce (34) | Benoit Benjamin (15) | McMillan,Payton (4) | Seattle Center Coliseum10,787 | 16–13 |- | 30 | January 4 | Philadelphia | L 93–112 | Derrick McKey (24) | Cage,Kemp (7) | Gary Payton (7) | Seattle Center Coliseum14,166 | 16–14 |- | 31 | January 7 | @ Denver | W 106–99 | Ricky Pierce (28) | Shawn Kemp (11) | Gary Payton (4) | McNichols Sports Arena8,877 | 17–14 |- | 32 | January 8 | Orlando | L 103–104 | Benoit Benjamin (24) | Shawn Kemp (8) | Gary Payton (9) | Seattle Center Coliseum9,958 | 17–15 |- | 33 | January 10 | @ Dallas | W 94–82 | Eddie Johnson (19) | Shawn Kemp (13) | Gary Payton (9) | Reunion Arena | 18–15 |- | 34 | January 11 | @ Houston | L 115–119 | Eddie Johnson (28) | Benjamin,Cage (7) | Nate McMillan (8) | The Summit15,458 | 18–16 |- | 35 | January 13 | @ L. A. Clippers | L 94–98 | Eddie Johnson (20) | Benjamin,Johnson,Kemp (10) | Gary Payton (8) | Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena10,087 | 18–17 |- | 36 | January 14 | Charlotte | L 116–117 (OT) | Ricky Pierce (20) | Shawn Kemp (12) | Bart Kofoed (9) | Seattle Center Coliseum9,132 | 18–18 |- | 37 | January 16 | L. A. Clippers | W 101–98 | Ricky Pierce (26) | Shawn Kemp (19) | Gary Payton (6) | Seattle Center Coliseum10,408 | 19–18 |- | 38 | January 18 | L. A. Lakers | W 112–108 | Ricky Pierce (28) | Michael Cage (10) | Benoit Benjamin (4) | Seattle Center Coliseum14,533 | 20–18 |- | 39 | January 20 | @ L. A. Lakers | L 110–116 | Eddie Johnson (29) | Shawn Kemp (15) | Gary Payton (6) | Great Western Forum17,236 | 20–19 |- | 40 | January 21 | Atlanta | L 119–128 | Ricky Pierce (29) | Shawn Kemp (13) | Gary Payton (10) | Seattle Center Coliseum11,436 | 20–20 |- | 41 | January 23 | Portland | L 109–113 | Shawn Kemp (26) | Johnson,Kemp (9) | Ricky Pierce (8) | Seattle Center Coliseum14,457 | 20–21 |- | 42 | January 25 | Utah | L 103–104 | Benjamin,Pierce (22) | Shawn Kemp (12) | Gary Payton (8) | Seattle Center Coliseum14,084 | 20–22 |- | 43 | January 28 | @ Orlando | W 102–97 | Eddie Johnson (39) | Eddie Johnson (11) | Gary Payton (7) | Orlando Arena15,151 | 21–22 |- | 44 | January 29 | @ Miami | L 114–119 | Ricky Pierce (28) | Shawn Kemp (16) | Gary Payton (11) | Miami Arena14,728 | 21–23 |- | 45 | January 31 | @ Charlotte | W 122–105 | Eddie Johnson (30) | Shawn Kemp (21) | Nate McMillan (8) | Charlotte Coliseum23,698 | 22–23
| 46 | February 2 | @ Milwaukee | L 106–122 | Benoit Benjamin (19) | Benoit Benjamin (13) | Tony Brown (4) | Bradley Center17,832 | 22–24 |- | 47 | February 3 | @ Atlanta | W 112–110 | Ricky Pierce (26) | Shawn Kemp (15) | Gary Payton (12) | Omni Coliseum9,951 | 23–24 |- | 48 | February 5 | @ New Jersey | W 95–85 | Ricky Pierce (19) | Benoit Benjamin (10) | Nate McMillan (4) | Brendan Byrne Arena9,328 | 24–24 |- | 49 | February 11 | Houston | W 105–99 | Ricky Pierce (31) | Shawn Kemp (10) | Johnson,McMillan,Payton (4) | Seattle Center Coliseum12,676 | 25–24 |- | 50 | February 14 | San Antonio | W 108–91 | Ricky Pierce (23) | Michael Cage (10) | Nate McMillan (8) | Seattle Center Coliseum12,126 | 26–24 |- | 51 | February 15 | @ Golden State | L 122–140 | Eddie Johnson (28) | Benoit Benjamin (11) | Gary Payton (10) | Oakland-Alameda County Arena15,025 | 26–25 |- | 52 | February 17 | Phoenix | W 98–96 | Shawn Kemp (24) | Shawn Kemp (14) | Gary Payton (8) | Seattle Center Coliseum11,144 | 27–25 |- | 53 | February 20 | L. A. Lakers | W 105–103 | Eddie Johnson (24) | Michael Cage (14) | Gary Payton (7) | Kingdome30,847 | 28–25 |- | 54 | February 22 | Portland | W 113–104 | Eddie Johnson (29) | Benoit Benjamin (13) | McMillan,Payton (8) | Kingdome38,610 | 29–25 |- | 55 | February 24 | @ Minnesota | W 106–91 | Eddie Johnson (26) | Shawn Kemp (15) | Nate McMillan (8) | Target Center18,082 | 30–25 |- | 56 | February 27 | @ Utah | W 130–124 (OT) | Eddie Johnson (32) | Shawn Kemp (9) | Nate McMillan,Gary Payton (7) | Delta Center19,911 | 31–25 |- | 57 | February 29 | @ Sacramento | L 110–115 | Eddie Johnson (21) | Benoit Benjamin (8) | Gary Payton (7) | ARCO Arena17,014 | 31–26
| 58 | March 1 | Cleveland | W 113–107 | Johnson,Pierce (22) | Benjamin,Cage (14) | Ricky Pierce (6) | Seattle Center Coliseum13,647 | 32–26 |- | 59 | March 3 | Denver | W 111–92 | Shawn Kemp (21) | Shawn Kemp (13) | Gary Payton (9) | Seattle Center Coliseum9,865 | 33–26 |- | 60 | March 5 | @ Phoenix | L 105–118