The Seattle Seahawks are moments away from kicking off against the Minnesota Vikings for their regular season home finale, and the team has quite a treat planned for those in attendance. The best pregame tradition in the NFL is the raising of the iconic 12th Man Flag in the south end zone, and to close things out, Seattle has brought out a special legend.
The honors for raising the 12th Man Flag fall upon SuperSonics legend Lenny Wilkens. One of the titans of professional basketball, Wilkens helped deliver the only NBA championship in city history when he led Seattle to the championship in the 1979 season. Wilkens was the coach of the Sonics from 1977-1985.
However, his legend isn’t just as a leader on the sidelines, but one on the court as well. Wilkens was also a player for Seattle from 1968-1972, and earned the All-Star Game MVP in 1971. His No. 19 jersey was retired by the Sonics, and when the day comes when the franchise is back in Seattle, it will hang from the rafters once more.
Kudos to Coach Wilkens, a perfect choice to end the regular season of football in Seattle.