August News and Rumors

Well, the wait for the season opener is slowly making its way to an end...thank goodness! August has been a pretty quiet month as far as moves goes.

Let me start off with the bad news...Tyreke Evans received a one game suspension from the league for his off court issues back in May. We all know what that was and know that I am not discussing it again. The silver lining to this is, our first game is against the Timberwolves who have landed themselves at or near the top of the "worst teams" lists published by numerous sources.

Better news: I have read numerous articles from different sources. Some of these articles are publishing their lists of the worst teams for next season. The Kings are nowhere to be found on these lists! YAY! The Top 150 Fantasy Value Player List held 5 current Kings players including rookie DeMarcus Cousins who has yet to play an official NBA game. Then there is the top 50 players article recently read, only one player landed on this list reigning Rookie of the Year, Tyreke Evans. The Kings are anticipated by many to be in playoff contention as early as this season!

Rumors: Now we all know that rumors are just that...but one that seems to have a little bit of weight is that of the potential trade with Denver Nuggets to acquire Carmelo Anthony. By weight I mean that it's technically possible and not a rumor like I am suiting up for the Kings next year. The Kings have been reported as one of the top three teams that the Nuggets (Not necessarily Anthony) are willing to deal with when it comes to trading Anthony. Now, the Kings would have to secure an extension prior to any possible trade being done for Anthony as his contract would expire after this season and we will be out a super star and a handful of young assets that are no doubt fan favorites. To make this deal even hypothetically happen, Anthony has to agree to an extension, how long no one knows, but one would have to believe it would only be worth it for a multi-year extension of 3-5 years. The Kings would have to give up the young pieces that we are so fond of. The key to the future of the Kings is this young up and coming lineup that is being created. It is also possible that the Kings could bundle expiring contracts of Dalembert and Landry along with some young players, future draft picks, and/or cash options for Anthony.

While picking up an All Star like Anthony is what Kings fans have been itching for, for years now, seems like a great idea, it makes me nervous. I am what I would refer to as a "nervous sports fan". I have a vested interest that goes beyond just knowing the sport and who is on the roster. I live for basketball season. I become attached to players and when they get packaged off for new ones, no matter who the new guys are, it still stings a little bit. Every year come off seasons, and trade deadlines I find myself holding my breath waiting for deadlines to pass, keeping my fingers crossed that I won't lose my favorite player in the swaps. I am worried about what players could possibly be lost if this trade were to go down! Either way, "In Petrie We Trust" right?

My "Must See Games"

October 27th @ Minnesota 5:00 pm

• It's been 6 long months without a regular season game and Kings fans NEED this!

November 1st -vs- Toronto 7:00 pm

• It's the home opener! ARCO Thunder returns for rekeROY and ROYDMC campaign begins!

November 2nd -vs- Lakers 7:30 pm

• All games against the Lakers are MUST SEE! Rumored to be ESPN broadcasted too!

November 25th @ LA Clippers 7:30 pm

• Kings fans first look at Blake Griffin who was favored last season to be ROY before injury.

December 8th -vs- Washington 7:00 pm

• Kings fans watch former teammates battle it out on the hardwood, see #1 overall pick John Wall at ARCO debut

December 11th -vs- Miami 7:00 pm

• Really, do you have to ask? Wade, Lebron, Bosh and the NWO.

December 14th @ Houston 5:30 pm

• Kevin Martin

December 17th @ Oklahoma City 5:00 pm

• Kevin Durant

January 17th @ Atlanta 1:00 pm

• NBA TV Marquee game

April 13th -vs- Lakers 7:30 pm

• Kings final game of the season "Fan Appreciation Night" and it's against the Lakers!

Now I didn't pick any games for February or March. This isn't to say that there aren't some great match ups in these months. I chose the big games to me this year or ones that hold significance to Kings Fans. I, for one, consider every game a MUST SEE game! Don't forget to join the Kings Faithfuls and Jason Ross for the live blog during the games. To join, just go to Kings.com during all games and click the upper right hand corner that says "Chat Live with Jason Ross" to discuss the game, players, and all things Kings related. We are a pretty fun group if I do say so myself!

Good Bye Sean, Good Luck!

Today it was announced that former Kings player, Sean May, would be signing with the New Jersey Nets for the 2010-11 season. I'm a little bummed! I know he didn't play a lot with us last year, but he was a classy, professional guy who gave his all when he was called upon.

Sean has been in the league since 2005, when he was drafted by Charlotte, after a great run with North Carolina. In his season with the Kings, Sean tallied the following stats:

G GS MPG FG% 3p% FT% OFF DEF RPG APG SPG BPG TO PF PPG

37 4 8.9 0.459 0.000 0.656 0.5 1.4 1.9 0.5 0.3 0.2 0.5 1.2 3.3

I do not know Sean, but he seems to be a great guy willing to interact with his fans via Twitter. So I will be the first to say, "Good luck in New Jersey Sean! Thank you for all the effort you put in last season. I for one will miss watching you play."

My One and Done of "The Incident"

Okay Kings fans, we all know that over 2 months ago Kings guard Tyreke Evans made a horrible decision. He was drive on California State Highway 80 going at speeds reported as high as 130 mph. I will be the first of Evans' fans to say, "What the $%*! were you [Tyreke] thinking?" Anyone who lives in the Sacramento area and drives on I-80 knows how dangerous it is at the posted 65 mph speed limit, and going as fast as he was in any circumstance was not smart. Those speeds are reserved for NASCAR races, and Tyreke is no NASCAR driver. Thankfully, not he or anyone else was hurt or killed in the incident. This is the only time I plan to fully offer my opinion for all to read about because the story needs to die.

Last night I was Tweeting with Doc Evans, Tyreke's older brother and legal guardian, this conversation on Twitter sparked numerous others that I began having last night. The majority of this story has been brought back up because Evans' NASCAR audition reel was released by the California Highway Patrol (bad move by the way). To add more fuel to the fire, Sacramento Bee "writer" Alien Voisin has written and article I refuse to support by linking you to. Check out anything she's written in the Sac Bee and you will see why. Voisin appears to have something against 20-year old Evans. She put him on blast in her recent article. What I don't understand, and there's a lot in this case, is this: 1: How can the Bee allow her to publish the articles she is posting that are clearly clouded by her personal dislike of Evans? 2: What is her problem with him? 3: How does his speeding incident affect his ability to lead, even play the game? I have a speculation on 2 of these questions. It is no surprise that in the 2009-2010 NBA Draft that Kings fans and area sports writers, including Voisin, wanted to draft Rubio. Well, I for one was not one of these people, but upon disregarding fans and reporters wants alike, the Kings took the best player in the draft, evident by his Rookie of the Year honors. It has been speculated that Voisin is taking her anger for snubbing Rubio out on Evans, and for what? I can honestly not see Rubio in a Kings uniform even if we had taken him. A better team drafted him, did he really want to play for the worst team in the league? He won't come in from overseas and has yet to play an NBA game. This season looks to be no different. So what, if the Kings had stuck with Voisin's choice and the fan favorite, we'd be lacking a guard for 2 seasons...and still sitting in dead last. As I told Doc Evans and other friends last night, "Tyreke revived Kings Fans, he saved this team and I will gladly take +8 in the win column and Rookie of the Year over a player who has yet to prove himself on any NBA team." So my advice to Voisin, who has to be the only one in Sacramento still upset about the pick of Evans, "GET OVER IT! WE STRUCK GOLD!" Now, her opinion that his lack of maturity in this incident somehow means he is no longer the 20-5-5 player he was just 4 months ago, cannot lead the team, and should be suspended. Well, I assure you that his incident has nothing to do with his basketball talent. Tyreke has demonstrated his will to improve his game, making the questions about his lack of a work ethic absurd. I know he made a mistake, he knows he made a mistake, everyone knows he made a mistake. He has apologized for his lack of judgement and as far as I know Kings fans have forgiven him. He has received his punishment legally and personally. But it's time to move on.

And that is my one and done on this incident. LET IT DIE!!!!!!