Reign Forecast for Seattle

As first reported by Brian Robinson at sonicscentral.com, Shawn Kemp will make a - albeit brief - return to KeyArena tonight at 7:30 pm as part of the 3BA basketball league.

Founded by AC Green, the league shrinks the team size from 5-on-5 to 3-on-3 in an attempt to provide fans with more offense and excitement.

(As I recall, this is similar to what happened when Alton Lister and the Sonics used to battle Moses Malone and the Hawks. Those big fellas would often gather for a little confab at one end of the court while the other four players on their respective teams would battle on the other. No sense breaking a sweat if you don't need to, right?)

Anyhow, as I was saying, Kemp will join the roster of the Seattle team tonight against Portland. Alongside the Reign Man will be, among others, Donald Watts and Jamie Booker, while Portland features David Lucas and CJ Miles (Gary Washburn has the full story here).

The game will also be broadcast on FSN on Sunday at 6 pm on a tape-delayed basis. Tickets are available at the stadium, or online here, and range from $4 to $23. Considering the situation, it is about 100% likely this is the last chance anyone will ever see Shawn Kemp play a competitive game in uniform in Seattle. That, to me, despite the odd style of play and the semi-pro atmosphere of the league, makes this a pretty big deal.