A local hoop hero's plea to keep the team here

This past week, I was able to read up on most of the material in the newspapers in regards to the future of the Sonics. The discussion has been long-running and I would like to express my opinion and personal feelings, not as a current member of the Sonics staff, but as a committed and active member of this community. I was deeply saddened by what I read and I was almost resigned to the fact that we might actually lose the team.

My wife, Mari, then remarked on the absence of public support for the Sonics from people within our community who have deeply rooted connections to the Sonics and to the city of Seattle and its suburbs, which pointed directly to me.

She asked, where are the voices of the people whom the community can identify with? Why don't we hear from the people who know firsthand why this franchise is such an important element to our city and region? Mari challenged me to put up or shut up, and she is right. No matter what will happen, I want you, Seattle, to know what this city and this franchise have meant to me and to my family. I, for one, think it would be a huge mistake to let the Sonics depart.

Thank you for embracing me 27 years ago when I came to this area as a 6-foot 6-inch skinny kid from Germany and was welcomed to Centralia High School by Coach Ron Brown. Marv Harshman then gave me a chance to play for the University of Washington Huskies when no other school was interested in me. Many people have come up to me over the years and told me stories they remembered from those days in Centralia or at the UW.

To this day, I can't believe how fortunate I was to play for the Sonics in the city that I had chosen as my home. I played in the NBA for 16 years and I know how rare and special it is to actually play for the city you call your home. Not many professional athletes ever get that chance.

I've played in front of fans in cities all over the world and one thing is very clear to me: What sets Seattle apart is the loyalty of its people. When you embrace this city, the city embraces you. I probably know this better than anybody.

I feel a tremendous connection to this community. My wife and I have tried to show this through our foundation, which has raised more than $7 million for children's charities over the past 13 years, due to that same loyalty. Your support has kept us going long after my name was on a Sonics roster.

This is our home and the place where our kids are growing up. I have the same concerns as any other citizen, but I also had the privilege to be a pro athlete in this city and have witnessed the impact a player, a team and an organization can have on an individual and on a community.

This is about us, our city and our community. There are reasons why some people feel the Sonics are not relevant to our community, but I was privileged to have been part of something that cannot be measured by dollars and cents. It's very easy to become disinterested in the few — the millionaire players and the billionaire owners. The money in the game is threatening the relevancy of the game itself.

But, my interest — and appeal — isn't about the few on the floor, it's about how this team can energize a community. It's about a legacy, a tradition, a dream that started long before me with people like Spencer Haywood, Lenny Wilkens, Freddie Brown and Jack Sikma, and it needs to continue long after.

It is not about this year or this team, but it is about many other people: the fans, the 100-plus Sonics employees, all the volunteers, ushers and police officers who have attended and worked the games for many years. How awful would it be if we were unable to take our kids or grandkids to an NBA basketball game, or had to watch our Seattle team play for another city.

Many cities are lined up to take in an NBA franchise. They have good reasons to pursue a team. Like the other professional teams in Seattle, the Sonics have enjoyed some great years and some trying years. Those great years unite the community and create visibility for Seattle in a completely unique way. Just reflect back on the Mariners' "Refuse to Lose" season, the Seahawks' run to the Super Bowl or the Sonics' 1979 championship. Those times boost our community, our pride and our economy. What if we had let the Seahawks leave town before the new stadium was built?

I appeal to our business leaders to get involved, to our politicians to come together, and to the Sonics fans to keep showing their support. Once the team is gone, it will be impossible to get another franchise.

The Sonics have been a huge part of this community for 40 years. The Seattle area without the Sonics is something I can't and don't want to imagine. Be positive and speak up, because we can make this work!

Detlef Schrempf played for the SuperSonics from 1993 to 1999 and currently is an assistant coach with the team. The views in this guest column are his expressions as a private citizen only.