BySenators Sheldon, Frockt, Brown, Conway, Wellman, Nguyen, Wagoner, Kuderer, Liias, Wilson, C., and Wilson, L.

WHEREAS, Jack Sikma was born in Kankakee, Illinois, and grew up in the rural Illinois town of Wichert; and

WHEREAS, Jack Sikma played college basketball at Illinois Wesleyan University, a small college located in Bloomington, Illinois; and

WHEREAS, During his four seasons at Illinois Wesleyan, Jack Sikma was a three-time NAIA All-American, and averaged 27 points and 15.4 rebounds a game as a senior; and

WHEREAS, Jack Sikma remains Illinois Wesleyan's all-time leading scorer and rebounder, averaging 21.2 points and 13.1 rebounds; and

WHEREAS, Jack Sikma was drafted by the Seattle SuperSonics with the eighth overall selection of the 1977 National Basketball Association draft; and

WHEREAS, When the then-unknown Sikma was drafted, the headline for a Seattle newspaper story about his selection read, "Jack Who?"; and

WHEREAS, Jack Sikma began the 1977-78 season as a reserve but was inserted into the Sonics' starting lineup after Lenny Wilkens replaced Bob Hopkins as head coach when the team began the season with a 5-17 record; and

WHEREAS, The Sonics' revamped lineup of Jack Sikma and John Johnson at forwards, Gus Williams and Dennis Johnson at guards and Marvin Webster at center helped spark an amazing turnaround that allowed the team to post a 47-35 regular season record and playoff series wins over the Los Angeles Lakers, the defending NBA champion Portland Trail Blazers and the Denver Nuggets before the Sonics lost in seven games to the Washington Bullets in the 1978 NBA Finals; and

WHEREAS, Jack Sikma became the Sonics' center during the 1978-79 season, averaged 15.6 points and 12.4 rebounds, and played in the 1979 NBA All-Star Game along with Dennis Johnson, one of the seven straight All-Star games in which Sikma appeared; and

WHEREAS, Jack Sikma, along with the rest of the team's core of Gus Williams, Dennis Johnson, John Johnson, Lonnie Shelton, Fred Brown, and Paul Silas, helped the Sonics return to the 1979 NBA Finals after defeating the Lakers and the Phoenix Suns earlier in the playoffs; and

WHEREAS, Jack Sikma and the Sonics avenged the previous year's heartbreaking loss to the Bullets, as Seattle defeated Washington in five games to win the 1979 NBA Championship, with Sikma scoring the final points in the Sonics' 97-93 series-clinching victory on the Bullets' home court on June 1, 1979; and

WHEREAS, The Sonics' 1979 NBA Championship was Seattle's first major sports title since the Seattle Metropolitans won the 1917 Stanley Cup; and

WHEREAS, Jack Sikma played with the Sonics for six more seasons, helping lead the team to four playoff berths during that period, before he was traded in 1986 to the Milwaukee Bucks; and

WHEREAS, Jack Sikma played five seasons with the Milwaukee Bucks, helping lead them to the playoffs in each of those seasons; and

WHEREAS, Jack Sikma retired in 1991, ending a 14-year NBA career that saw him average 15.6 points, 9.8 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game, and shoot 84.9 percent from the free throw line; and

WHEREAS, Jack Sikma returned to the sideline in 2003 as an assistant coach with the Sonics until 2007, followed by assistant coaching jobs with the Houston Rockets and Minnesota Timberwolves; and

WHEREAS, Jack Sikma's Number 43 jersey was retired by the Sonics, one of only six players to be so honored by the team; and

WHEREAS, It was recently announced that Jack Sikma is part of the 2019 class that will be inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Massachusetts, on September 6th;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, That the Washington State Senate congratulate Jack Sikma on his selection to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and thank Jack for his many seasons as a valuable and beloved member of the Seattle SuperSonics.