1996–97 Seattle SuperSonics season

The 1996–97 Seattle SuperSonics season was the 29th season for the Seattle SuperSonics in the National Basketball Association. The SuperSonics entered the regular season as runners-up in the 1996 NBA Finals, having lost to the Chicago Bulls in six games. During the off-season, the SuperSonics signed free agent center Jim McIlvaine to a 7-year $33.6 million contract, which was controversial as McIlvaine previously played a reserve role for the Washington Bullets in his first two seasons of his NBA career; he only averaged 2.3 points, 2.9 rebounds and 2.1 blocks per game during the previous season. The team also signed other free agents, Craig Ehlo, and Larry Stewart, and then later on signed former All-Star forward Terry Cummings in January.

With the addition of McIlvaine, the SuperSonics posted an 11-game winning streak after losing two of their first three games of the regular season. The team posted a nine-game winning streak in January, and later on held a 32–15 record at the All-Star break. The SuperSonics posted a seven-game winning streak in February, and won their third Division title in four years, finishing in first place in the Pacific Division with a 57–25 record, earning the second seed in the Western Conference, and qualifying for the NBA playoffs for the seventh consecutive year. The SuperSonics had the sixth best team defensive rating in the NBA.

Gary Payton averaged 21.8 points, 7.1 assists and 2.4 steals per game, contributed 119 three-point field goals, and was named to the All-NBA Second Team, and to the NBA All-Defensive First Team, while Shawn Kemp averaged 18.7 points, 10.0 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game, and Detlef Schrempf provided the team with 16.8 points, 6.5 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game, but only played 61 games due to a foot injury. In addition, Hersey Hawkins contributed 13.9 points and 1.9 steals per game, and led the SuperSonics with 143 three-point field goals, while off the bench, sixth man Sam Perkins provided with 11.0 points per game and 122 three-point field goals, Cummings averaged 8.2 points and 4.1 rebounds per game in 45 games, Stewart provided with 4.3 points per game, and McIlvaine, who was the team's starting center, contributed 3.8 points, 4.0 rebounds and led them with 2.0 blocks per game. Defensive guard Nate McMillan only played just 37 games this season due to a torn right abductor muscle, as he averaged 4.6 points, 3.8 assists and 1.6 steals per game.

During the NBA All-Star weekend at the Gund Arena in Cleveland, Ohio, Payton, Kemp and Schrempf were all selected for the 1997 NBA All-Star Game, as members of the Western Conference All-Star team; it was Schrempf's third and final All-Star appearance. Meanwhile, Perkins participated in the NBA Three-Point Shootout. Payton finished in sixth place in Most Valuable Player voting, and also finished in second place in Defensive Player of the Year voting, behind Dikembe Mutombo of the Atlanta Hawks, while Kemp finished tied in sixth place, and Perkins finished tied in fifth place in Sixth Man of the Year voting.

In the Western Conference First Round of the 1997 NBA playoffs, the SuperSonics faced off against the 7th-seeded Phoenix Suns, a team that featured Kevin Johnson, Rex Chapman, and All-Star guard Jason Kidd. The SuperSonics lost Game 1 to the Suns at home, 106–101 at the KeyArena at Seattle Center, but then won Game 2 at home by a 44-point margin, 122–78. The SuperSonics faced elimination after losing Game 3 to the Suns on the road, 110–103 at the America West Arena, as the Suns took a 2–1 series lead. However, the SuperSonics managed to win Game 4 on the road in overtime, 122–115 to even the series, and then won Game 5 over the Suns at the KeyArena at Seattle Center, 116–92 to win in a hard-fought five-game series.

In the Western Conference Semi-finals, the team faced off against the 3rd–seeded Houston Rockets, who were led by the All-Star trio of Hakeem Olajuwon, Charles Barkley and Clyde Drexler. Despite both teams finishing with the same regular-season record, and with the SuperSonics winning the Pacific Division title, the Rockets had home-court advantage in the series. The Rockets took a 3–1 series lead over the SuperSonics, defeating them in Game 4 at the KeyArena at Seattle Center in overtime, 110–106. However, the SuperSonics managed to win the next two games to even the series at 3–3, but then lost Game 7 to the Rockets on the road, 96–91 at The Summit, thus losing in a hard-fought seven-game series.

The SuperSonics finished 13th in the NBA in home-game attendance, with an attendance of 699,952 at the KeyArena at Seattle Center during the regular season. This season was Kemp's final season with the SuperSonics, as he was traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers in a three-team trade the following year. Also following the season, Cummings signed as a free agent with the Philadelphia 76ers, while Stewart was released to free agency, and Ehlo retired.