Homecoming for ‘Most Likely to Rebound’ : Cage, Now Employed by SuperSonics, Returns to Court of Alma Mater

The last time Michael Cage played in the San Diego Sports Arena, the night was in his honor.

That was more than four years ago, when San Diego State retired his No. 44 jersey at his last college home game.

Cage returns tonight to the Sports Arena, but this time he is doing the honors.

He is back to play in the Seagram’s Coolers All-Star basketball game at 7:30 p.m. Proceeds from the event will benefit the San Diego Area Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society and the minority scholarship fund of the Aztec Athletic Foundation.

“This is a chance for me to give something back to the community that helped me so much for four years,” Cage said in a telephone interview from Palos Verdes earlier this week. “San Diego State gave me a scholarship. This is my shot to help pay it back.”

Cage is one of 24 NBA players scheduled to play in the game. Among those also committed to play are Karl Malone of the Utah Jazz; Cliff Levingston, formerly of Morse High School and now with the Atlanta Hawks, and several of Levingston’s teammates, including Spud Webb.

“I was excited about the game when I first heard about it,” Cage said. “I’ve spent the past few months talking to players, trying to get them to come. Now I’ve got too many. I’m going to have to do some shuffling.

“It’s a great chance for me to come back and play in San Diego as a professional.”

Funny how the NBA works that way. Once Cage thought he was going to spend his professional career in San Diego. Now he has to help organize a charity game to do just that for a night.

Cage, who finished his college career as the leading scorer and rebounder in Aztec history, was selected by the Clippers in the first round of the 1984 draft. But soon after, the team moved from San Diego to Los Angeles. For Cage, it was never the same.

The move was only the first in his wild and sometimes depressing four seasons with the Clippers, which came to an end June 28 when Cage was traded to the Seattle SuperSonics as part of a three-way draft-day deal.

When they traded Cage, the Clippers gained the right to draft guard Gary Grant of Michigan in the first round. The deal brought Cage something different--the chance to join a team that knows what the playoffs are about.

In his last two seasons with the Clippers, the team was 39-135. The SuperSonics were 83-81 over the same period. That may be far from the Lakers’ two championships, but it is a lot closer than the Clippers ever got.

“I thought the trade was the best move for my career,” Cage said. “The Clippers are fighting a battle they will never win--trying to compete in the same city with the Lakers. The four years I was there, the Lakers won three championships. I got sick of all that. It was like I was playing with a triple-A team.”

Cage said he also grew tired of the constant front-office turmoil that resulted in the Clippers having three coaches in four seasons and spilled over into several personal contract disputes.

“It was one bad situation after another,” Cage said. “Those four years were not the most pleasant time.”

His problems started shortly after he was drafted. Unhappy with the Clippers’ offer, he decided to play in Italy. He later changed his mind, but the Italian team sued Cage and the Clippers. Cage said the suit was settled out of court last summer when the Clippers agreed to pay the Italian team $20,000, but not before he and the Clippers bickered over legal fees.

Then came the protracted contract talks of last season. Cage, a free agent, did have discussions with Detroit. But the Pistons did not present an offer sheet and, after missing all of training camp, Cage eventually agreed to return to Los Angeles. His four-year contract pays him $800,000 per season, Cage said.

“Most guys, if they are bitter, say bad things about the organization,” Cage said. “But I just kept my mouth shut and played ball. The result of that was a great year. Even though we didn’t have a good year with wins and losses, personally, I played like a champion.”

Cage, a 6-foot 9-inch power forward, had his best season as a pro. He was second on the team in scoring (14.5 points per game) and led the league in rebounding (13.03 per game). His competitiveness was clearest in the season-ending game against Seattle. Needing a career best to pass Charles Oakley for the NBA rebounding title, Cage had 30 to edge Oakley by a fraction.

After such a strong season, Cage said he never imagined he would be traded. He had no hint of the deal until he received an early-morning call on draft day from Elgin Baylor, the Clippers’ general manager.

Coach Gene Shue said at the time that Cage did not fit into the more up-tempo style he preferred.

“It was a shock,” Cage said. “I heard no rumors. It happened at a time when I am strong in my career. My best basketball is ahead of me.”

So Cage is happily off to Seattle--a city he calls “a San Diego without the weather.” He plans to rent a home in Seattle and is making plans to sell his house in Palos Verdes and move back to San Diego, his adopted hometown since he came to SDSU from West Memphis, Ark.

“I lived in L.A. because that was where my job was,” Cage said. “It was a great team, a fun city, a big city. There is a lot of great entertainment and big-time sports, but San Diego is more my style. There is a calmness there. I can kick back and enjoy myself. I don’t have to be in the limelight.”

That was never a problem when Cage played before modest SDSU crowds at the Sports Arena and later in Los Angeles, where the Clippers are a distant second to the Lakers in popularity. The situation could change in Seattle, where the SuperSonics have traditionally received strong community support.

After so many years of playing in relative anonymity, Cage said he might not mind the change.

“It will be great to not labor in obscurity anymore,” Cage said. “Players all wonder what it would be like to play for the Lakers or the Celtics. Could we fit in with the 76ers? We’ve all dreamed about that.

“But we all realize we can’t play for those teams. I just have to make the best of the situation. I helped give the Clippers some degree of credibility. Now it’s on to Seattle. I figure I’m young, and the best is yet to come.”

Notes

Atlanta’s Dominique Wilkins will not play in tonight’s game, as previously announced, because of commitments in Canada, according to game organizers. Teams were drafted at a news conference Thursday at the San Diego Marriott. Michael Cage won the toss and selected Benoit Benjamin first for his team. The first selection for Cliff Levingston’s team was Spud Webb. Cage’s team will wear red tonight, Levingston’s white.