List of Seattle SuperSonics seasons

The final Seattle SuperSonics game at KeyArena during the 2007–08 season

The Seattle SuperSonics, also known the Sonics, are a former professional basketball team based from Seattle, Washington, United States, that played from 1967 to 2008. They were members of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1970 onward; the team played in the conference's Pacific Division from 1970 to 2004 and the Northwest Division from 2004 to 2008.Template:Efn The Sonics joined the NBA as an expansion team in 1967 and were named for the supersonic airliner under development by Boeing, which was later cancelled. They played for their first eleven seasons at the Seattle Center Coliseum, which was built for the 1962 World's Fair and had a seating capacity of 12,595. The team moved in 1978 to the Kingdome, a multipurpose stadium shared with other sports teams, and set NBA attendance records there during a seven-season stay. The Sonics hosted twenty Kingdome games with crowds larger than 30,000 and drew a league-record 40,172 spectators at a 1980 playoffs game.

The team returned to the Seattle Center Coliseum in 1985 as attendance at the Kingdome declined and the stadium's scheduling and layout caused issues for fans. A major renovation of the Coliseum began in 1994 and displaced the Sonics, who played for two seasons at the Tacoma Dome, a suburban arena that was expanded to 16,296 seats. The renovated Coliseum, renamed to KeyArena, had the NBA's smallest seating capacity at 17,072 and hosted its first regular season game on November 4, 1995. The team played their final home game at KeyArena on April 13, 2008. After the end of the 2007–08 season, the Sonics were relocated by its new ownership group to Oklahoma City. A lawsuit to halt the relocation and enforce the team's 15-year lease at KeyArena was filed by the Seattle city government but dropped as part of a settlement in July 2008. The team has played since the 2008–09 season as the Oklahoma City Thunder; as part of the settlement, the SuperSonics name and history was left with the city for use by a future team.

In their 41 seasons as an NBA team, the SuperSonics had an all-time regular season record of 1,745 wins and 1,585 losses; in the playoffs, they had 107 wins and 110 losses. They reached the postseason 22 times and played in three NBA Finals, winning one league championship in 1979. The Sonics were the first team from Washington state to win a major professional sports championship since the Seattle Metropolitans in the 1917 Stanley Cup. Their .524 winning percentage was also historically the best among professional teams in the Seattle area, surpassing the Seattle Seahawks and Seattle Mariners. The team's all-time points leader is Gary Payton with 18,207 points; he also holds the most assists in Sonics history at 7,384.

The Sonics had a 23–59 record during their inaugural season and finished with the NBA's second-worst record, narrowly ahead of fellow expansion team San Diego Rockets. The team were below .500 for their first four seasons and had their first winning season in 1971–72, where they earned a 47–35 record. The Sonics clinched their first playoff berth in the 1974–75 season, which was followed by consecutive NBA Finals in 1978 and 1979 against the Washington Bullets. Seattle lost the first final, but defeated Washington in the rematch after finishing first in the Western Conference. Lenny Wilkens, who led the team to both finals appearances, was replaced as head coach in 1985 after missing the playoffs by finishing with a 31–51 record, which his successor Bernie Bickerstaff equaled the following season. The Sonics made an unexpected run to the Western Conference Final in the 1987 playoffs, only to lose to the Los Angeles Lakers.

The 1990s brought more consistent success, including eight consecutive playoff appearances, with head coach George Karl and new players Shawn Kemp and Gary Payton, both acquired in the draft. The Sonics finished as the top seed in the 1993–94 season with a 63–19 record, but lost in a major upset to the eighth-seeded Denver Nuggets in the opening round of the playoffs. The team reached the 1996 NBA Finals—their third and final appearance—after clinching first in the Western Conference standings but lost to the Chicago Bulls in six games. The Sonics were eliminated in the conference semifinals two more times under Karl before he left the team along with Kemp by 1998. The team, now under coach Paul Westphal, missed the playoffs in the shortened 1998–99 season, but returned the following year as a seventh-seed. Westphal was replaced early in the 2000–01 season by assistant coach and former Sonics player Nate McMillan, who led the team through rebuilds and to their two final playoff appearances: in 2002–03 and 2004–05 as the Northwest Division champions with 52 wins. The team's final three seasons in Seattle all finished with losing records and no playoff berths under the three different head coaches. The Sonics had 20 wins and 62 losses during their 2007–08 season, their worst record in franchise history, shortly before moving to Oklahoma City.

Table key

Key to colors

Template:Dagger	NBA champions
Template:Asterisk	Conference champions
^	Division champions
¤	Playoff berth

Key to abbreviations

• Finish – Final position in league or division standings
• W – Number of regular season wins
• L – Number of regular season losses
• GB – Games behind first-place team in divisionTemplate:Efn
• DNQ – Did not qualify
• Conf. Semis – Conference Semifinals
• Conf. Finals – Conference Finals

Key to awards

• AMVP – All-Star Game Most Valuable Player
• COY – Coach of the Year
• CPOY – Comeback Player of the Year
• DPOY – Defensive Player of the Year
• EOY – Executive of the Year
• FMVP – Finals Most Valuable Player
• JWKC – J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship
• MIP – Most Improved Player
• ROY – Rookie of the Year
• SMOY – Sixth Man of the Year
• SPOR – Sportsmanship Award

Seasons

Seattle SuperSonics record by season, 1967–2008

Year	Season	Conference	Template:Abbr	Division	Template:Abbr	Regular season				Playoff results	Awards	Head coach	Template:Abbr
						Template:Abbr	Template:Abbr	[[Winning percentage|Template:Abbr]]	[[Games behind|Template:Abbr]]
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Template:Sort dash	Template:Sort dash	WesternTemplate:Efn	5th	23	59	Template:Winpct	33	DNQ	—	Template:Sort name
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Template:Sort dash	Template:Sort dash	WesternTemplate:Efn	6th	30	52	Template:Winpct	25	DNQ	—
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Template:Sort dash	Template:Sort dash	WesternTemplate:Efn	5th	36	46	Template:Winpct	12	DNQ	—	Template:Sort nameTemplate:Efn
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	8th	Pacific	4th	38	44	Template:Winpct	10	DNQ	Template:Sort name ([[NBA All-Star Game Most Valuable Player Award|Template:Abbr]])
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	6th	Pacific	3rd	47	35	Template:Winpct	22	DNQ	—
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	8th	Pacific	4th	26	56	Template:Winpct	34	DNQ	—	Template:Sort name (Template:Tooltip) Template:Sort name (Template:Tooltip)
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	6th	Pacific	3rd	36	46	Template:Winpct	11	DNQ	—	Template:Sort name
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	4th ¤	Pacific	2nd	43	39	Template:Winpct	5	Won First Round vs. Detroit, 2–1 Lost Conf. Semis vs. Golden State, 2–4	—
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	2nd ¤	Pacific	2nd	43	39	Template:Winpct	16	Lost Conf. Semis vs. Phoenix, 2–4	Template:Sort name ([[J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award|Template:Abbr]])
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	8th	Pacific	4th	40	42	Template:Winpct	13	DNQ	—
Template:Nbay	†Template:Nbats Template:Asterisk	†Western Template:Asterisk	4th ¤	Pacific	3rd	47	35	Template:Winpct	11	Won First Round vs. LA Lakers, 2–1 Won Conf. Semis vs. Portland, 4–2 Won Conf. Finals vs. Denver, 4–2 Lost NBA Finals vs. Washington, 3–4 Template:Asterisk	—	Template:Sort name (Template:Tooltip) Template:Sort name (Template:Tooltip)
Template:Nbay	†Template:Nbats Template:Dagger	†Western Template:Asterisk	1st ¤	Pacific	1st ^	52	30	Template:Winpct	Template:Sort dash	Won Conf. Semis vs. LA Lakers, 4–1 Won Conf. Finals vs. Phoenix, 4–3 Won NBA Finals vs. Washington, 4–1 Template:Dagger	Template:Sort name ([[NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award|Template:Abbr]])	Template:Sort name
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	2nd ¤	Pacific	2nd	56	26	Template:Winpct	4	Won First Round vs. Portland, 2–1 Won Conf. Semis vs. Milwaukee, 4–3 Lost Conf. Finals vs. LA Lakers, 1–4	—
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	10th	Pacific	6th	34	48	Template:Winpct	23	DNQ	—
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	2nd ¤	Pacific	2nd	52	30	Template:Winpct	5	Won First Round vs. Houston, 2–1 Lost Conf. Semis vs. San Antonio, 1–4	Gus Williams ([[NBA Comeback Player of the Year|Template:Abbr]])
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	4th ¤	Pacific	3rd	48	34	Template:Winpct	10	Lost First Round vs. Portland, 0–2	Template:Sort name ([[NBA Executive of the Year Award|Template:Abbr]])
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	5th ¤	Pacific	3rd	42	40	Template:Winpct	12	Lost First Round vs. Dallas, 2–3	—
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	10th	Pacific	4thTemplate:Efn	31	51	Template:Winpct	31	DNQ	—
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	11th	Pacific	5th	31	51	Template:Winpct	31	DNQ	—	Template:Sort name
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	7th ¤	Pacific	4th	39	43	Template:Winpct	26	Won First Round vs. Dallas, 3–1 Won Conf. Semis vs. Houston, 4–2 Lost Conf. Finals vs. LA Lakers, 0–4	Template:Sort name ([[NBA All-Star Game Most Valuable Player Award|Template:Abbr]]) Template:Sort name ([[NBA Most Improved Player Award|Template:Abbr]])
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	7th ¤	Pacific	3rd	44	38	Template:Winpct	18	Lost First Round vs. Denver, 2–3	—
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	4th ¤	Pacific	3rd	47	35	Template:Winpct	10	Won First Round vs. Houston, 3–1 Lost Conf. Semis vs. LA Lakers, 0–4	—
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	9th	Pacific	4th	41	41	Template:Winpct	22	DNQ	—
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	8th ¤	Pacific	5th	41	41	Template:Winpct	22	Lost First Round vs. Portland, 2–3	—	Template:Sort name
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	6th ¤	Pacific	4th	47	35	Template:Winpct	10	Won First Round vs. Golden State, 3–1 Lost Conf. Semis vs. Utah, 1–4	—	Template:Sort name (Template:Tooltip) Template:Sort name (Template:Tooltip) Template:Sort name (Template:Tooltip)
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	3rd ¤	Pacific	2nd	55	27	Template:Winpct	7	Won First Round vs. Utah, 3–2 Won Conf. Semis vs. Houston, 3–4 Lost Conf. Finals vs. Phoenix, 3–4	—	Template:Sort name
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	1st ¤	Pacific	1st ^	63	19	Template:Winpct	Template:Sort dash	Lost First Round vs. Denver, 2–3	Template:Sort name ([[NBA Executive of the Year Award|Template:Abbr]])
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	4th ¤	Pacific	2nd	57	25	Template:Winpct	2	Lost First Round vs. LA Lakers, 1–3	—
Template:Nbay	†Template:Nbats Template:Asterisk	†Western Template:Asterisk	1st ¤	Pacific	1st ^	64	18	Template:Winpct	Template:Sort dash	Won First Round vs. Sacramento, 3–1 Won Conf. Semis vs. Rockets, 4–0 Won Conf. Finals vs. Utah, 4–3 Lost NBA Finals vs. Chicago, 2–4 Template:Asterisk	Template:Sort name ([[NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award|Template:Abbr]])
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	3rd ¤	Pacific	1st ^	57	25	Template:Winpct	Template:Sort dash	Won First Round vs. Phoenix, 3–2 Lost Conf. Semis vs. Houston, 3–4	—
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	2nd ¤	Pacific	1st ^Template:Efn	61	21	Template:Winpct	Template:Sort dash	Won First Round vs. Minnesota, 3–2 Lost Conf. Semis vs. LA Lakers, 1–4	—
Template:NbayTemplate:Efn	Template:Nbats	Western	9th	Pacific	5th	25	25	Template:Winpct	10	DNQ	Template:Sort name ([[NBA Sportsmanship Award|Template:Abbr]])	Template:Sort name
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	7th ¤	Pacific	4th	45	37	Template:Winpct	22	Lost First Round vs. Utah, 2–3	—
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	10th	Pacific	5th	44	38	Template:Winpct	12	DNQ	—	Template:Sort name (Template:Tooltip) Template:Sort name (Template:Tooltip)
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	7th ¤	Pacific	4th	45	37	Template:Winpct	16	Lost First Round vs. San Antonio, 2–3	—	Template:Sort name
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	10th	Pacific	5th	40	42	Template:Winpct	19	DNQ	Template:Sort name ([[NBA Sportsmanship Award|Template:Abbr]])
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	12th	Pacific	5thTemplate:Efn	37	45	Template:Winpct	19	DNQ	—
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	4th ¤	Northwest	1st ^	52	30	Template:Winpct	Template:Sort dash	Won First Round vs. Sacramento, 4–1 Lost Conf. Semis vs. San Antonio, 2–4	—
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	11th	Northwest	3rd	35	47	Template:Winpct	9	DNQ	—	Template:Sort name (Template:Tooltip) Template:Sort name (Template:Tooltip)
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	14th	Northwest	5th	31	51	Template:Winpct	20	DNQ	—	Template:Sort name
Template:Nbay	Template:Nbats	Western	15th	Northwest	5th	20	62	Template:Winpct	34	DNQ	Template:Sort name ([[NBA Rookie of the Year Award|Template:Abbr]])	Template:Sort name
Totals (41 seasons)						1,745	1,585	Template:Winpct	All-time regular season record (1967–2008)
						107	110	Template:Winpct	All-time playoffs record (1967–2008)
						1,852	1,695	Template:Winpct	All-time overall record (1967–2008)

See also

• List of Oklahoma City Thunder seasons