Have a question for the rookie? Leave it in the thread and he may answer it after the Kings take on the New Orleans Pelicans tonight!

Today's Question of the Game is for Kings rookie Ray McCallum.

The Question of the Game thread allows Str readers to pose a question for a particular player during a home game. Based on which question gets the highest number of recs (and how reasonable it is), I will track the player down and ask them that question during the postgame. The answer will then be posted right here in the thread.

Make sure to keep it to one question unless you have two questions that tie in together.

McCallum has recently seen an uptick in his minutes in the guard rotation with the departure of Marcus Thornton and Jimmer Fredette. McCallum is averaging 3.5 points, 2 assists and 1.6 rebounds in his last eight games played. On Saturday against the Minnesota Timberwolves, the rookie out of the University of Detroit Mercy, scored 9 points, tallied 5 assists and grabbed 3 rebounds.

Over the summer, we did a feature on McCallum and his relationship with his father Ray McCallum Sr., who is the head basketball coach at the University of Detroit Mercy. McCallum seems like a good kid with a legit grasp on the fundamentals of the game, but he still has a lot to learn. The Kings are trying to get him as many minutes at they can in this final stretch of the season.

So you know the drill, leave your question for McCallum in this thread and start pressing those rec buttons!

A surprising 31 point outburst from the struggling Ersan Ilyasova helped Milwaukee get their second win over a Western Conference team.

Box Score

Just another typical blowout win, am I right? First it was a 20-point thrashing in Philly against the Sixers, and now a 114-88 beatdown of the Utah Jazz. You can't stop the post-deadline Bucks. You can only hope to contain them, and even that is becoming extremely difficult.

The Jazz, on the second leg of a back-to-back that started with a tough loss in Indiana, didn't pose much of a threat outside of Gordon Hayward (20p/4r) and Enes Kanter (27p/14r/11-12 from the line). The rest of the Jazz shot 17-48 (35 percent) and offered little-to-no resistance against the Bucks, letting Milwaukee shoot 56.8 percent from the field with a 46-36 advantage in the paint.Though the Bucks only led by seven at the half, the game was never really too close, and was definitely put out of reach when the Milwaukee outscored Utah 40-19 in the third quarter.

For the Bucks, this is their second win in a four game stretch, something that seemed pretty impossible before the trade deadline. Even if you are pulling out your hair over the Bucks ''falling back'' towards the ''hard-charging'' Sixers, it has to be at least kind of nice to see the Bucks put together a pretty complete performance, even if it came against an equally awful team. Maybe not. I can't remember what I'm supposed to feel.

Observations/Stats:

Move over LeBron, there's a new king of the court. Ersan Ilyasova went a typical 13-14 from the field and ended up with a standard 31 points, most of which came in three quarters. Thankfully Ersan showed some humility by letting up in the fourth quarter. The game was already out of question, so kudos to Ersan for showing some mercy. Seriously though, tonight was bonkers. Ilyasova hit shots from everywhere; from three, on drives, on midrange, on putbacks, from section 401, 405, and 415. It may be a little too early to say that the second half surge Ersan is known for is on its way, but I think we can put Hobo Ersan to rest, which is something I was not comfortable saying a few weeks ago.

Also, our pal Jon Hartzell put together this FANTASTIC photoshop of Ersan's legendary night. It may look a little familiar.

Another @jhartzell2 masterpiece pic.twitter.com/unBAFRyOMw

— Eric Buenning (@ericbuenning) March 4, 2014

Giannis Antetokounmpo had another coast-to-coast highlight play in the course of an 8p/4r/3a night. Did I mention how much I enjoy these? Hint: It is a lot. I enjoy them a lot.

In case you missed it, the Bucks signed Tony Mitchell to a 10-day contract. The back-to-back D-League Dunk Contest winner could potentially find himself on the end of these Giannis-led fast breaks. After some brief thought, I reckon that may be fun to watch.

Pachulia had a sneaky good 14p/6r/5a/8-8ft night. After looking quite sluggish the past few games, Zaza was much more effective tonight. A lot of it can probably be attributed to the lack of Jazz defense, but...well, we're just going to ignore that, okay?

The Bucks' starters shot 28-37 and 6-7 from three. Is that good?

The Bucks will try once again to collect their first winning streak of the season on Wednesday when they host the Sacramento Kings. Could Wednesday finally be the night they pull it off?

Jason Thompson stifled Anthony Davis throughout the night - Davis never got into much of a rhythm and had to get most of his catches far on the wings, where he wasn't able to drive to the basket and instead was forced to shoot contested jumpers.

Rohan and I were talking earlier this week about how Davis never seems to get easy looks anymore. It used to be that a good chunk of his offense came after a driving teammate forced Davis's man into help defense and Davis would sneak into the circle for an easy dunk. I tallied up the different places Davis got the ball while watching the game - I was distracted at times, but I think I got a pretty accurate count:

Wing - 8 times, all in the first half. Most of the time he was 16 feet from the bucket or so, once he was coming off a ball screen, but the vast majority of the time he was just isolated a long ways from the basket. He didn't make any shots from this position.

Elbow - 3 times. Davis got the ball a couple times off the curl, where he was much more effective - he got fouled twice.

Restricted area - 3 times. Once Davis got the ball while it was rolling around and then was blocked, one time he made a turn-around from the low block, and one time he got an easy dunk as a driving Evans drew Davis's man away from him.

The corner - Davis got an open look from the corner late in the fourth and drained it - kind of crazy that he could eventually have that kind of range.

I think the implication is clear - Davis shouldn't be getting the ball in isolation 16 feet from the basket and then asked to do stuff - it doesn't really end well, especially against elite defenders.

Tyreke Evans, by contrast, had a fantastic night in his old digs. He was consistently able to get to the rim, made some nifty passes to open men, and was even able to knock down a couple of threes - something we haven't seen from Evans this season at all. He finished with 27 points on 14 shots - a model of efficiency.

The story through the first half was definitely the physical dominance of DeMarcus Cousins, who couldn't be contained by Alexis Ajinca in the early going. He got most of the Pelicans' big men in foul trouble. At the end of the second quarter, he picked up two tough fouls and had to sit down. Early in the third, he picked up another and wasn't a factor again until midway through the fourth quarter. Stiemsma's ability to get him into foul trouble was critical, but Boogie should be commended for not lashing out at the officials after some questionable foul calls.

Let's go to the bullets:

• Eric Gordon had a rough night defensively trying to contain Ben McLemore - the rookie's speed really gave Gordon fits, and EJ seemed lost at times trying to stick with him. On offense, Gordon was able to hit some threes to keep the Pelicans in it late in the second, but otherwise wasn't particularly helpful.
• Jeff Withey had a great game on defense - his presence was really felt in the first several minutes he was in the game, where he notched several blocks and nabbed a good number of defensive rebounds. He was really great in secondary defense on Cousins, keeping Boogie from getting easy looks. As was noted in the comments, Withey's really good at going up vertical with both hands, which prevents easy shots but doesn't generate many fouls.
• Stiemsma and Ajinca were really outclassed by DeMarcus Cousins down low, unsurprisingly. They had to resort to hacking Cousins (Stiemsma fouled out and Ajinca got close) and DeMarcus made them pay from the foul line. On offense, neither Ajinca or Stiemsma could do much of anything productive - if we're going to be playing a big hulking 7 footer all the time, we really need a decent one at some point.
• The officiating was pretty poor throughout the game - it didn't really swing one way or the other, but the calls were pretty regularly wrong.
• Pelicans travel down south to Los Angeles to face the worst team in the Western Conference tomorrow - they'll need to clean up their act to try to at least get a win during the Mardi Gras trip.

The Kings pulled out a win in what started as an ugly game.

The first three quarters of the Sacramento Kings versus the New Orleans Pelicans was nothing to write home about, but the Kings came to life in the fourth en route to a 96-89 victory.  But even if the game was fun down the stretch, this should not be mistaken for a good win.  Both teams played horribly, the Kings just played a little less horribly at the very end.

The Kings shot 47% on the night, while the Pelicans shot 42%.  The Kings had 19 turnovers in the game, with just 11 assists.  Seriously, just ugly.

On some positive notes, DeMarcus Cousins led the team in scoring.  He finished with 23 points and 12 rebounds.  Isaiah Thomas had 22 points, five assists, three rebounds, and two steals.  Reggie Evans registered a double-double, yes that Reggie Evans, with 10 points and 13 rebounds.  Reggie Evans is one of those guys you only like when he's on your team, but he's on our team so I am loving Reggie right now.

Ray McCallum had a really nice night, finishing with eight points, three rebounds, and two assists.  He also played some very solid defense on Tyreke Evans down the stretch.

Tyreke led the Pelicans in his old stomping grounds, finishing with 27 points, 10 rebounds, eight assists and a steal.

For the opponents' perspective, be sure to visit our friends at The Bird Writes.

In the meantime, dance, you fools.

The Kings were able to turn a game around thanks to a spark provided by Ray McCallum.

With just about a quarter of the season left and the playoffs long out of reach, development has become the mantra, even over wins.  At some points, that focus on development leads to disappointing losses against the Lakers where it doesn't look worth it, but then you get games like last night where it all seems to come together.

Last night's game against the Pelicans was in itself a perfect embodiment of that feeling, as the first half was absolutely atrocious to watch, perhaps the least entertaining half of basketball this season.  The officials were blowing whistles left and right, but not with any type of consistency, and nobody on either team could hit a shot.  It was two bad teams playing poorly, and that's never fun to watch.

The third quarter started much the same, with the whole team coming out of the locker room seemingly lethargic and uninterested.  New Orleans even took the lead thanks to a trio of three pointers hit on consecutive possessions by former King Tyreke Evans (the only player who can say he had a great night all around with 27 points, 10 rebounds and 8 assists) and Eric Gordon.  Things were looking grim, until a Ray of sunshine appeared.

Ray McCallum hasn't gotten many minutes this year until the last few games.  He spent quite a bit of the first half of the season plying his trade in Reno or sitting on the bench.  Despite that, he's come along these past couple weeks, with last night probably being his best game as a pro yet.  Ray lit a fire under this team in the third quarter, scoring an and-one on a breakaway, playing tough defense, leaping high for boards and just being aggressive.  That's the mentality I love seeing from rookies.

Newcomer Reggie Evans deserves a lot of credit for changing the tone and energy as well.  Reggie's a guy that knows exactly what his strengths are and doesn't try to do more than that.  He reminds me a little bit of Scot Pollard in that way.  Evans is a monster on the glass, he brings a physical presence in the paint, and he even showed off a soft touch around the basket.  He and Cousins together were cleaning the boards on both ends of the floor, combining for 25 total (New Orleans had just 30 as a team) and 10 offensive rebounds.

Thanks to Ray and Reggie, the rest of the team seemed to come to life as well.  Isaiah Thomas started feeling it and Rudy Gay got going as well.  It changed the momentum of the game into Sacramento's favor and they kept that up through the final quarter to get the win.

As we head into this road trip, I expect to see more of Ray McCallum and Ben McLemore.  This period is crucial for their development, and if they can have more nights like they did tonight, they can solidify a place in this league and in this team's future.

Random Observations:

• Jason Thompson did a phenomenal job guarding Anthony Davis.  Davis wasn't able to get anything going in the paint, and instead settled for mostly jumpers.  He finished with 13 points on just 4-14 from the field with 4 rebounds and no blocks.
• Ben McLemore showcased some aggressiveness attacking the basket.  He scored 10 points on 3-4 shooting, 4-4 from the line.  His sole miss was his only shot outside of the paint.  He was decisive attacking the rim.  I thought he played pretty decent defense on Eric Gordon too, and had more trouble with Anthony Morrow.
• Speaking of Eric Gordon, what has happened to him?  This is a guy that looks like he just doesn't really care all that much.  I know he didn't want to sign in New Orleans in the first place, but he just seems like he's going through the motions.
• Turnovers continued to be a problem for the Kings.  I'm not as worried about the lack of assists (11) because the Kings got the line for 41 attempts, and you don't get an assist for those, but 18 turnovers total, with 15 of them coming from Isaiah, Rudy and DeMarcus.  Those are the three guys that have the ball the most, and they've all been sloppy lately.
• Austin Rivers is just not very good.  At one point the Kings even did "Hack-a-Rivers" because he had missed four free throws in a row.  He finished with 6 points on 2-9 shooting and 2-6 from the line.

The Kings may be embarking on a big road trip here, but after that there still are 9 home games left. The Kings have been kind enough to share special ticket rates and offers to Sactown Royalty members throughout this year, and they are doing so again with a special offer for the March 21st game against the San Antonio Spurs.

Through this ticket deal you can upper level tickets for as low as $20 and lower level for $52, all without additional fees. Just make sure to use the following link and insert the code KINGS.

PURCHASE TICKETS

CODE: KINGS

For fans of country music, purchasers will also be invited to attend a post-game concert by Love and Theft.

The first 200 purchases will also be entitled to pick up the following Kings T-shirt (one shirt per ticket purchased).

Thank you again to the Kings, and I hope to see many of you there!

!!! PRE-GAME VLADE UPDATE !!!

The Kings have just informed that people who purchase through this ticket offer will get a chance for a pre-game photo-op with Vlade Divac.  The photo-op will take place on the court at 6:15 p.m. before the game.

The Kings begin their season-long road trip against the worst team in the NBA.

The Kings are embarking on a season-long 7 game road trip, starting tonight in Milwaukee (5:00 pm on Comcast SportsNet California, NBA TV and KHTK 1140). The Bucks are a team that had been hoping to stay in the playoff race this offseason but instead hold the worst record in the NBA at 12-47. Milwaukee is coming off their biggest win of the season, beating the Jazz 114-88 on Monday.

MATCHUP OF THE GAME

Isaiah Thomas vs. Brandon Knight

The Bucks don't have one star player, so picking a key matchup was kind of tough. I chose to focus on the battle of the Point Guards since Knight is Milwaukee's leading scorer and a guy who has filled it up on the Kings in the past. Isaiah shouldn't have any trouble with him, but he also can't let him get into a rhythm because he can score. If Thomas can hold Knight to his average or less, that will be great for Sacramento.

3 THINGS

1. The Bucks are miserable on both ends of the court. They're 29th in the league in offense and 28th in defense. If there is one thing that they do relatively well it's block shots, where they have the 9th most in the league. That's thanks to the length of guys like John Henson, Larry Sanders, Ekpe Udoh and rookie Giannis Antetokounmpo. Sanders and Udoh are both out with injuries however.

2. Milwaukee has some size, but DeMarcus Cousins should still be able to get whatever he wants. If he can play like he did against New Orleans, drawing fouls left and right, Milwaukee's lack of big depth will be exposed and it will give the Kings even easier scoring opportunities.

3. Can we see some consistency from our McRookies? Both had pretty solid games against the Pelicans, and it would be nice to see them do that in back-to-back games. McCallum is gaining a reputation for defense and aggressiveness, and even McLemore has started attacking the basket more.

PRE-GAME HAIKU

I have a feeling
Giannis Antetokounmpo
was made for haikus

PREDICTION

Kings 115, Bucks 101 as the Kings attack the Bucks with a vengeance for giving us John Salmons three years ago.

Link to The Leaderboard

Below are a series of prediction questions for tonight's game. The first four questions will be asked every game, while the 5th will change each game.

Point value for predictions are listed next to the questions. If you believe that more than one player will lead a category, you can vote for multiple players, and this is worth double points if you are correct, but zero if you are wrong. Alternately, if you only guess one player when multiple players are tied, you get zero points.

All submissions must be input before tip-off. Any submissions after tip-off will not count. You are allowed only one submission and may not change unless specifically stated.

Questions:

1. Who do you think will win the game, and what will the final score be? (1 point for guessing winner. 2 points for guessing winner and correct score of one team. 5 points for guessing winner and exact score)

2. Who will be the game's leading scorer? (1 point for guessing scorer, 2 points for guessing exact points scored)

3. Who will be the game's leading rebounder? (1 point for guessing rebounder, 2 points for guessing exact rebounds)

4. Who will be the game's leading assist man? (1 point for guessing assist man, 2 points for guessing exact assists)

5. Predict Ray McCallum and Ben McLemore's combined Points, Assists and 3PA (1 point for one right, 3 points for two right, 5 points for all right)

Ray McCallum and Reggie Evans are fitting in nicely as the Kings enter the final stretch of the season.

In a season that was never about wins to begin with, at least in the eyes of the Kings brass, and with the playoffs clearly out of sight, a couple of players are taking advantage of their chance to shine in the remaining games on the schedule.

We've already discussed the opportunity that Ben McLemore now has with Marcus Thornton in Brooklyn, but Ray McCallum and the newly acquired Reggie Evans are beginning to make the most of this final stretch.

Nothing illustrated that more than both of their performances Monday night against the New Orleans Pelicans. Evans, in only his fifth game with the Kings, scored 10 points, had 13 rebounds and a block. Though it is a small sample size of five games, Evans is currently averaging more points (6) and rebounds (8.8) than his career averages (4.1 points and 7.2 rebounds). McCallum scored eight points, grabbed three rebounds and tallied 2 assists to go along with one steal. But it wasn't just the numbers on Monday, it was the way in which he and McCallum outworked the Pelicans and sparked the Kings to victory.

For McCallum, the story of his opportunity is the payoff from a season-long effort of watching film, learning from teammates and focusing on what the team needs.

For Evans, it's the same story, different channel - this is what he does. Evans is a blue-collar type of worker and has been that over his decade-plus career with seven different teams.

Head coach Michael Malone said in the postgame press conference that he hopes the energy of guys like McCallum, Evans and Quincy Acy rubs off on the rest of the team, including the starters. There's no doubt that a team full of players with the determination that Evans and McCallum have shown in their short time with extended minutes would be advantageous.

Below are some comments from both McCallum and Evans made to the media, including Sactown Royalty and our friends over at Cowbell Kingdom, after Monday's game and other recent games.

Reggie Evans

What he can bring to the Kings: "Veteran leadership and just an attitude of just never quitting … understanding your role for the team and just doing it to the best."

On if he felt like he would have an impact like this so soon: "You always feel like you can have an impact when you work hard at your craft, you know. So one thing, I don't just sit on my butt and just wait for something to come to me. Even when I was not playing in Brooklyn, I still was grinding hard, grinding in practice, after practice, before practice, before the games…"

When asked if his offense is underrated, he had a pretty level-headed response: "I ain't going to say that because I've been more of a rebounder and defender than anything." "So I don't look at it being underrated or overrated or nothing, just look at it as in doing what it takes to get a win."

On setting an example for the young players: "That's the main thing, you know, not just on game day, practice also too; just how you approach practice. How you approach film sessions, you know, and those are the main things on an everyday basis. It's all part of being a professional and stuff like that. And just respecting the game of basketball. It goes by so quick, before you know it you'll be done playing and you want to look back at it just knowing that you went so hard and you gave it everything you had so, you know, hopefully that can rub off on the younger guys."

When asked what has been working in Sacramento, he didn't note anything different in his game, but did have this to say: "I know one thing, this crowd is amazing. You know, for us to be in this predicament they real loyal crowd, they want to win. And the support system is great, I love it. You know, so it don't get no better than that."

On his welcome to Sacramento: "When I got traded, you know, on my Twitter account and stuff, a lot of remarks from the Kings saying they was happy to have me here and stuff like that so that was great, you know, that was like my introduction showing they was happy to have me so I couldn't beat that at all."

On coming from a playoff team to a non-playoff team: "It's tough, but at the same time, the records ain't too far apart. You know, it's just that one team is in the East, one team is in the West. You know, but record-wise it's almost no different."

Ray McCallum

On what he focuses on in games: "Just being able to run the team; finding the hot hand; getting the ball inside; getting the ball to our shooters; just playing the strengths of our game; and just understanding the flow and tempo of the game; and just having composure out there; take care of the ball; be aggressive on defense."

On what has helped him on defense: "Obviously, I am guarding Isaiah Thomas every day in practice and that's definitely a tough matchup; guarding Jimmer [Fredette] earlier this year, guard Rudy [Gay] sometimes, Derrick [Williams] and Ben [McLemore]. Play a lot of one on one, a lot of three on three, maybe that's what it is. But also, all year I've just been watching. Sitting on the bench when I watch the game I kind of treat that as watching film and just kind of watch and learn how players play. And coming off the bench I kind of get some of their tendencies."

He takes all of the roster changes this season as an opportunity to play with multiple players: "Being a young guy, each and every player whose, you know, been a part of this team and been one of my teammates this year, I try to pick their brains as much as I can and learn from them and watch and see everything that they have done to be successful at this level."

On his time with the Reno Bighorns this season: "I mean think it helped, going down there get the opportunity to play. That's what I think the biggest thing is, just getting on the court and playing. Going down there I got to play, you know, 30 minutes a game and just go out there and play free and with a lot of confidence and now I'm getting an opportunity..."

On being teammates with Jimmer Fredette: "Jimmer and I were good friends, he was a good guy and he was always someone easy to talk to. He helped me out a lot. You know, I used to pick his brain all the time. Ben and I would always sit down before games and talk about everything with him. He was a great teammate and a great guy and I wish him a lot of success." "Definitely learned a lot from him, how much time he put into his shot and he's a one-of-a-kind shooter, but hopefully one day just keep working and try to get close to that level."

On his relationship with fellow rookie Ben McLemore: "Ben and I are real close on and off the court so to have somebody, you know, we have such strong chemistry together it makes it that much more easier and that much more fun to play together at the same time on the court. Watching him play all year, I kinda can tell where and how he likes to get the basketball and what kind of shots he likes so it's easy for me to come in and try to find him and try to get him a couple of easy buckets to get going."

On the Kings' front office: "I feel like I have a pretty good relationship with everyone in the organization and one thing that they're giving me is making me feel more confident, just telling me to go out there and play my game, play through my mistakes, that's the only way you're going to get better by playing and learning."

And Michael Malone

On McCallum: "Obviously, he's a coach's son, his father did a hell of a job with him, but whether it's our system or somebody else's system, Ray McCallum is a good defensive player no matter what system you put him in."

On Evans: "Reggie Evans embraces his role. We don't call one play for him, but his best offense is a missed shot. Moses Malone, every shot taken is a pass to me, he goes and gets it. And then defensively, you know, he covers up for other people's mistakes."

We need your questions for this week's podcast!

The Sactown Royalty Show returns on Thursday, March 6th at 9pm PT.  Section214 is joining me this week, and we want to answer your questions!

Ask us about the team, about the arena, about the season, ask us anything you want to hear us ramble about.

Section and I love talking about the Kings, but without you guys we're just two idiots.  With you, we're two idiots with an audience!  Submit your questions in the comments section below, or you can send us your questions via email to asksactownroyalty@gmail.com

Standard reminder: You can subscribe to us on iTunes or on Stitcher! Leave us ratings, leave comments, let us know how we're doing. Ratings and comments on iTunes really help us out with promoting the show.

Sacramento makes the trip to balmy Milwaukee in hopes of spoiling both Nate Wolters poster night and the Bucks' hopes of winning two games in a row.

2013/2014 NBA Season
(21-39, 8-20 road)	vs.	(12-47, 7-24 home)
March 5th, 2014
BMO Harris Bradley Center | Milwaukee, WI
7:00 CT
FS Wisconsin | 620 WTMJ
Probable Starters
Isaiah Thomas	PG	Brandon Knight
Ben McLemore	SG	Nate Wolters
Rudy Gay	SF	Khris Middleton
Jason Thompson	PF	Ersan Ilyasova
DeMarcus Cousins	C	Zaza Pachulia
2013/14 Advanced Stats
94.4 (14th)	Pace	91.7 (26th)
106.6 (12th)	ORtg	101.0 (29th)
109.1 (24th)	DRtg	109.7 (28th)

On the Kings:Sactown Royalty | Cowbell Kingdom | A Royal Pain

The Kings are finding themselves in a spot Bucks fans are all too familiar with: not awful enough to be competing for a high pick in the upcoming draft, but not good enough (yet) to be a consistent playoff visitor. A 21-39 record would normally suggest that they are closer to the former rather than the latter, but wins in the brutal Western Conference are extremely hard to come by, even with good-to-very-good pieces in Isaiah Thomas, Rudy Gay, and DeMarcus Cousins. So as tempting as it might be to lock in a winning streak prediction, you may want to tread lightly.

Effort is Contagious. Much like the discussion surrounding the acquisition of Jeff Adrien and Ramon Sessions by the Bucks, the Kings are hoping that the recently-acquired Reggie Evans and Quincy Acy along with a more prominently-featured Ray McCallum (Evans and Acy via trade, McCallum getting more playing time with the Marcus Thornton departure) can rub some of their energy and enthusiasm off on the more tenured guys. Peep this excerpt from the Sactown Royalty article:

For McCallum, the story of his opportunity is the payoff from a season-long effort of watching film, learning from teammates and focusing on what the team needs.

For Evans, it's the same story, different channel - this is what he does. Evans is a blue-collar type of worker and has been that over his decade-plus career with seven different teams.

Head coach Michael Malone said in the postgame press conference that he hopes the energy of guys like McCallum, Evans and Quincy Acy rubs off on the rest of the team, including the starters. There's no doubt that a team full of players with the determination that Evans and McCallum have shown in their short time with extended minutes would be advantageous.

Sound a little familiar?

The Bucks haven't been that awful lately! Our own Dan Sinclair took a look at the Bucks recent ''hot streak.'' Climbing out of the cellar by a small margin isn't much to puff your chest out about, but maybe the tiny uptick in ratings is at least a little bit encouraging? Maybe it isn't? The point is, the article is very good and has cool charts and you should check it out.

Speaking of sad stuff, Steve von Horn recently broke down the ugly lineup stats on the Bucks this year. It shouldn't come as a surprise, but very few players came out positively in either offensive or defensive net ratings.

Poster Boys. Tonight is the fourth and final installment in the Bucks poster giveaway series, with the final edition being a terrific "Naters Gonna Nate" Nate Wolters joint. The posters, but more importantly the Bucks Marketing team, have been one of the few parts of the organization that have stayed consistently excellent the whole year. So many, many props to them.

4 posters. 5 players. 0 over the age of 25. #GrowBucksGrowpic.twitter.com/KTbupqKaRU

— Dustin Godsey (@dgodz) February 28, 2014

That's good, but...

Boogie With Us Tonight! Preview - http://t.co/EJGWP8y04B#MILvSACpic.twitter.com/rfHC6HVaP6

— Milwaukee Bucks (@Bucks) March 5, 2014

Boogie with us? For shame, Bucks. FOR SHAME.

The Kings dominated from start to finish and got a career-high from rookie Ray Mcallum.

The Kings started off their road trip the right way, taking care of business against the Milwaukee Bucks in a game that was never really in doubt.    Sacramento broke the game open with a 36 point 2nd quarter and never looked back, winning 117 to 102.

Sacramento was led in scoring by Isaiah Thomas, who scored a game-high 25 points on 9-16 shooting to go with 5 assists.  Isaiah was ejected with two quick techs in the fourth quarter, in somewhat surprising fashion as he wasn't really doing anything, but then again, Joey Crawford.  He outdueled Brandon Knight, who scored 25 points to lead Milwaukee.

DeMarcus Cousins put up 21 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists, and Rudy Gay had 22 points of his own, but perhaps the biggest bright spot for the Kings was the continued good play from rookie Ray McCallum.  McCallum scored a career-high 15 points on an efficient 7-11 shooting and no turnovers.

Speaking of turnovers, the Kings finally did a good job of controlling that, with just 9 total for the game and 20+ assists. I'd say exactly how many assists, but the online box scores appear to be all incorrect right now, probably because they're run by the laughably bad Milwaukee Bucks scoring table which was making mistakes all game long.

Sacramento has now won two straight and faces a much tougher test on Friday against the Raptors in Toronto.

For the opposing perspective, visit the great Brew Hoop.

Just like Santa, kids. The Bucks failed to get consecutive wins put together again as the Kings manhandled Milwaukee the whole night.

Box Score (probably)

Okay seriously, what does one have to do for their team to win consecutive basketball games in a season? What number do you have to call to make sure this happens? Do winning streaks cost money now? How much?

The Bucks failed to secure back-to-back wins for the first time this season, and looked pretty ugly trying to do so in a 116-102 loss to the Sacramento Kings. When Sacramento wasn't carving up Milwaukee for 50 points in the paint, they were knocking down jumpers or getting to the line, where they knocked down 26 of 32 attempts. The Kings were paced by their big three of Isaiah Thomas (25p/6a/4r), Rudy Gay (22p/8r/5a) and DeMarcus Cousins (21p/10r/5a), while being supplemented by Ray McCallum (15 points) and Reggie Evans (13p/5r/1 case of making Ersan go insane).

Tonight's game should slam the brakes on the idea that the Bucks were starting to play ''too good'' to finish outside anywhere but the bottom two in the league. After keeping the game kind of competitive for the first quarter, the Kings kicked it up a notch and began to attack Milwaukee's vulnerable interior and met little resistance. Even if the Bucks could present a decent initial challenge, the Kings would move it around and attack from a different angle. There was little the Bucks could do to stop the 12th-ranked offense, and eventually the struggles in the paint spread to all areas of the court, and so went the rest of the game.

Observations/Stats:

Brandon Knight (25p/6a/5r), Jeff Adrien (15p/5r), and Khris Middleton (11p/4r) were the only Bucks in double figures, and both Adrien and Middleton got over that threshold in the late minutes of the game. There just wasn't much clicking on the offensive end the entire night. The physicality of the Kings' bigs left the Bucks visibly frustrated most of the night, as nothing came as easy as they hoped it would. Yuck yuck yuck.

Not like it's breaking news to anyone, but the pairing of Zaza Pachulia and Ersan Ilyasova was abused defensively by the Kings frontcourt, and when they were catching their breath, John Henson stepped in and took a pounding as well. There just wasn't any way around it: the Bucks big men got straight bullied tonight. Let's move on to something else.

Ersan went bonkers on Reggie Evans. Though the league will probably take a look at it and leave a nice little message for Ersan, I can't help but laugh at how quickly Ersan flips his lid. Granted there was probably a lot that led up to that moment (I mean, come on. It's Reggie Evans), but look at it. Isn't it nuts?

More on Ersan in another post coming soon, though.

It just seems ridiculous at his point that Nate Wolters, Giannis, and John Henson can barely get more than 20 minutes a night. Again, how much do we have to pay to make this happen? Who will start the Kickstarter to get the ball rolling here?

The Bucks hopefully will return to a little more consistent form in their two remaining games this week. They visit the New Orleans Pelicans on Friday before returning home the next night to host the Washington Wizards. Now quick, erase this game from your memory.

The Kings could potentially have a good chance for a top-3 pick this year if they do poorly the rest of the way, but having a top-3 pick doesn't necessarily mean you're going to draft a good player.

Last night the Kings beat the league-worst Milwaukee Bucks in convincing fashion.  It wasn't too surprising of an outcome, but it was very nice to see Ray McCallum have another good game in a row; Consistency is something that we've sorely been lacking from our young players this year.

So with Milwaukee out of the way, how does the rest of the season shape up for the Kings?  As Tom discussed earlier this week, we know for a fact that this team is better than its record.  The fact that we don't have as many wins as we should is actually beneficial in the long run with such a deep draft coming.

Speaking of the draft, as of right now the Kings are 22-39, or 7th worst in the league, but they're also just a game away from 4th (currently Boston at 20-41).

The Kings have 21 games remaining.  12 of those come on the road, with half of them on this trip.  In terms of quality of opponent, this trip actually offers the best chance to get wins.  The only teams that are below .500 that the Kings will play from here on out are: Detroit, Philadelphia, Milwaukee, New York, New Orleans and the Lakers.  Every single other team is either a playoff team or one hoping to be (Minnesota).  To reach last year's record of 28-54, the Kings would have to go 6-15, or much lower than the .500 percentage they've been playing at with Rudy/DeMarcus/Isaiah healthy.

Some fans might be calling on the Kings to tank these games in favor of better lottery positioning.  But if there's one thing I've learned over these long years of rebuilding is that it's not always about where you draft, but who you draft.  The only Kings draft picks of the past 6 years, all of which the Kings have been in the lottery, that are still contributors on this team are Jason Thompson (drafted 12th in 2008), DeMarcus Cousins (5th in 2010) and Isaiah Thomas (60th in 2011).  The jury is still out on our most recent selections of Ben McLemore and Ray McCallum.  Along the way the Kings have missed out on drafting the following guys:

• Thaddeus Young (12th in 2007)
• Marc Gasol (47th in 2007)
• Roy Hibbert (17th in 2008)
• Serge Ibaka (24th in 2008)
• Nicolas Batum (25th in 2008)
• Nikola Pekovic (31st in 2008)
• DeAndre Jordan (35th in 2008)
• Goran Dragic (45th in 2008)
• Stephen Curry (7th in 2009)
• Jrue Holiday (17th in 2009)
• Ty Lawson (18th in 2009)
• Jeff Teague (19th in 2009)
• Wesley Matthews (undrafted in 2009 but played for Sacramento's summer league team)
• Paul George (10th in 2010)
• Kemba Walker (9th in 2011)
• Klay Thompson (11th in 2011)
• Kawhi Leonard (15th in 2011)
• Nikola Vucevic (16th in 2011)
• Tobias Harris (19th in 2011)
• Kenneth Faried (22nd in 2011)
• Nikola Mirotic (23rd in 2011)
• Reggie Jackson (24th in 2011)
• Literally anyone in 2012 but some notables are Damian Lillard (6th), Harrison Barnes (7th), Terrence Ross (8th), Andre Drummond (9th), John Henson (14th), Terrence Jones (18th), Jared Sullinger (21st), Miles Plumlee (26th)

That's a lot of misses for a team that has been as bad as we have been as long as we have been.  There are franchise changing talents in there, with one of them (Damian Lillard) being a guy that we were going to draft up until Thomas Robinson fell in our laps (for good reason).

This draft has a lot of hype, but there's really no great way of telling which of these players will be great and which will be failures, especially as fans.  Just look at last year's draft when we took Robinson.  Up until almost draft day it was assumed that he'd be 2nd or 3rd at the minimum, but instead he goes 5th and probably shouldn't have gone that high.  Drafting is guesswork, made easier through months and months of analysis by NBA Front Offices, and even they still get stuff wrong.

So I'm not too worried about the draft or where we'll end up.  Naturally I'd like to have a top-3 pick if we could because statistically speaking you find a lot of superstars come from those picks.  But so much of it is out of our control that I won't bother stressing about it.  The more important thing is drafting a good player wherever we may land and developing him as player that can be a valuable contributor for years to come.  Shoot, right now our 2nd round pick from this past draft, Ray McCallum, is looking better than our lottery pick Ben McLemore.  Nobody would have expected that going into the season.

So let the ping pong balls and lottery standings fall where they may.  Right now it feels good to just have a team in the first place, and I feel like we're closer to being a good team than we are to being a truly bad team, even though it's still a ways away, especially in the tough West.

Kevin Calabro talks about Seattle's future.

Kevin Calabro recently signed a 3-year extension with ESPN Radio to call their NBA games. Last week, he did a live chat with the Seattle Times and among the topics discussed were the Sonics (of course), the potential of the NHL coming to town, the arena, and more. Here are some of the highlights;

Do you think George Karl might get into the Hall of Fame one day?

Oh absolutely. I think he certainly has the wins, doesn't have the ring, but certainly has the wins to warrant being in the Hall of Fame.

Better Dunker; Blake Griffin or Shawn Kemp?

I think Shawn Kemp, but let me tell you about Blake Griffin. He's now developing a mid-range game and the ability to get to the free throw line. Shawn was a better player, better mid-range, shooter, but Blake is closing the gap in that area. Blake has unbelievable power at the rim. Shawn had power at the rim, but Blake has suddenness at the rim. Kemp was a great weak side shot blocker, too, which Blake doesn't do much of.

Are you still happy with your decision to not follow the relocated Sonics to OKC?

Yeah. That was a family reason. It would be impossible to move my family. The thought of commuting back and forth, and there's no commute, which meant seeing the families a couple times of month was not good. I had 21 years of NBA basketball so I knew I could freelance and do other projects so I don't regret that. Every year a club calls and checks on my availability. If I wanted to get involved full time with another club in another market I could do that.

If everything were perfect, it'd be perfect to see Kevin Durant and Westbrook work on the floor. What a thrill that must be. If you can't get jazzed up about that then you shouldn't be in the business.

How would Sonics basketball be impacted in the future if the NHL were to come to Seattle first?

I think it would energize the market if the NHL were here. Being a Seattle guy, it'd be great to get the NHL. Does it make it more difficult in terms of advertising dollars or fans, sure it'd make it more competitive. It'd be more competitive for the MLB, MLS and NFL. It's a big television market and that drives the bus. I think it would then, in my opinion, make the NBA take notice at what's going on here with NHL expansion. I think it'd be a stimulus to get a building done.

I definitely see it as a positive factor. It means another NBA competitor but that's fine. The positives outweigh the negatives. I'm a huge fan of the NHL in the arena. Can't say I watch much unless Doc Emrick is doing a game. In the arena, it's spectacular. The energy is phenomenal and it's a great buzz. In Key Arena, even with reduced seating, I think it'd be a hot, hot ticket for the first few years of existence. Maybe they can get a commitment for a building, too.

For the NBA, it's TV dollars. For the NHL it's about having seats, suites. That's what the NHL banks on.

After the major letdown last year with the Sonics/Kings situation, how optimistic are you regarding the return of the NBA to Seattle?

It's going to happen. Whether it happens in three or five years is up for conjecture. I happen to be an optimist and think they'll be here in three years. National TV contract is up in three years, and they're currently negotiating it. Sources tell me they may come to an agreement late this summer. Once the owners get a hold of those numbers and resolve what those numbers look like, then they'll start thinking expansion. Also, those teams not doing well will have a better gauge on their future. That means the Bucks, whose lease is up in 2017.

Once the owners know what the revenue stream looks like, then they can talk about additional revenue, which means expansion fees. It would be simply mind blowing if they didn't expand that has a building plan, politically is in agreement, a strong ownership group and 41 years of great history of supporting NBA basketball. Also, a great sports market in a top TV market. How they could ignore that and not take advantage is beyond me. I'm an optimist. It was a great trial last summer but it didn't work out, and that doesn't mean there won't be more chances.

You can read the whole interview here.

The mercurial forward is getting a trial run in the D-League.

The Kings have officially signed forward Royce White to a 10-day contract and as reported yesterday by Yahoo's Marc Spears, have assigned him to the Reno Bighorns.  This is essentially a test run of the mercurial forward, and as Spears reports, if it goes well, he will be signing a second 10-day contract and be moved onto the big club.

This is not White's first stint in the D-League.  Last year he spent 16 games with the Rio Grande Vipers and averaged 11.4 points, 5.7 rebounds and 3.3 assists in 25.6 minutes a game.

This doesn't affect Orlando Johnson, who signed a 10-day contract last Wednesday.  According to Larry Coon's CBA FAQ:

A team can't have more 10-day contracts than they have players on their Inactive List, except if a team has 13 players on its Active List, it can have one more 10-day contract than they have players on their Inactive List.

White's 10-day contract will expire as the Kings end their road trip, meaning if he does well in Reno, his next 10-day would be during Sacramento's 4 game home stand.  The Bighorns have six games in the next ten days so there will be plenty of opportunity for Royce to prove himself.  All D-League games are available to watch for free on Youtube, so check out the Bighorns schedule if you're interested.

Considering Royce White's history and future in the NBA.

The Sacramento Kings have signed Royce White to a 10-day contract, and I find myself filled with a variety of emotions and reactions.

White's time in the NBA thus far has been tumultuous, at best. The Houston Rockets spent a 2012 first round pick, the 16^th overall, on White. The Rockets stated that they were well aware of White's now-infamous anxiety disorder. White suffers from severe anxiety, and struggled with normal aspects of NBA life, such as air travel.

While a member of the Rockets, White encountered setback after setback. He appeared unwilling to abide by the team's directions, insisting that a team doctor was unqualified to assist with his treatment and amenities. He failed to show up for practices. He refused a D-League assignment, before eventually reporting to the Rio Grande Vipers. All of this occurred while White was lashing out regularly on Twitter. White referred any criticisms back to his disorder, the Rocket's alleged unwillingness to work with him, or the league's lack of proper protocol for handling mental illness.

After failing to work with the Rockets, White was traded to the 76ers. The same 76ers that are the second worst team in the league this year. They're horrible, and were searching for young talent as part of their rebuilding effort. Again, White didn't work out. He has never played in an NBA game.

White is extremely talented. He is a very good basketball player. But whether he can ever be an NBA player remains to be seen. White began as an advocate for mental health, but soon became a hindrance to his own movement. His twitter outbursts and unwillingness to work with his employers do no favors to those who suffer from anxiety or other mental issues. They feed a stigma, rather than breaking it down as his career was expected to.

On the verge of joining the Kings, the perception of White is that he's not worth the trouble, no matter how much talent he may possess. I argue that perception has less to do with White's disorder, and more to do with his professionalism. International basketball leagues are littered with NBA-level talent that NBA teams didn't feel was worth the hassle. You don't have to have a disorder to be unprofessional or to be a headache.

White does have a disorder. Anxiety disorders are a very real thing. Thanks to White and the articles written upon his entry to the NBA, I myself came to realize I was struggling with anxiety issues. Not to the extent White does, but serious enough that I needed help and hadn't even realized it. White's courage against his disorder led others to speak openly about their issues, which in turn helped me recognize the problems I was having and get help. I now take medication, and my life is considerably better. I'm more productive at work, I'm dealing with far less stress, and I'm generally a much happier person. I owe that, however indirectly, to Royce White.

And from my own experience, I know that the way someone acted a year ago may not be how they'll act now. Dealing with any sort of mental disorder is an ongoing battle. Tinkering with medications. Undergoing therapy, perhaps. Adjusting to new stresses. Perhaps the transition to the NBA was just too abrupt for White. Perhaps he's just an asshole.

But this signing is a low-risk, high-reward venture for the Kings. Sacramento is in the midst of a lost season. A season of substantial turnover and change. The Kings are obviously using the remaining games to try out various players. They bought out Jimmer Fredette, creating an extra roster spot they can use to try various players. Orlando Johnson was the first signing, being added on a 10-day contract. Royce White appears is the second. 10-day contracts are low-risk. If a player doesn't work out, they're gone in a week and a half. If they work, you can sign them to another 10-day deal. If they really work out, you may find a talented player for your future.

With the trade deadline behind us, the Kings are showing that they remain committed to aggressively working to improve the team. And this move would fit with their previous approach of finding "another man's trash" and giving them a change of scenery. The acquisition of Rudy Gay was scoffed at, much in the same way this signing is. Obviously Gay was in a very different situation, but the theme is the same.

I'm ok with the Kings giving Royce White another chance. I'll be rooting for him to succeed. I'm just not going to get my hopes up. In other words, I'm viewing this the same as any other 10-day contract.

Welcome to Sacramento, Royce.

We are nearing the end, but the cuts and bruises keep on coming. We give you Week Seventeen of the Sonics Bruising League.

I've been called on the carpet. Check out the following quote from Sonics Rising editor, Waseca pastor, and baseball purist Chris Meirose.

"Three things. We need to get PAUL to do some work around here and get SBL done, the designated hitter position sucks, and don't even get me started on instant replay. It's not Biblical!"

Chris said that so politely. You should see how your writers and editors communicate behind the scenes on a regular basis. You would look at Kevin Nesgoda in a completely different light and, possibly, behind bars.

Meirose does have two valid points here. First, instant replay is, in fact, not found in the Bible, though time did stand still once (Joshua 10:1-15). Second, it is past time for this week's roundup of the Sonics Bruising League, so here goes.

I'll start with the huge news of the week. The juggernauts of the league, the Frozen Envelope (16-1), have FINALLY been handed their first loss of the season. It is only fitting that the loss came at the hands of Team Catdawg (15-2), the team's closes competitor all season long. Catdawg thawed out the Frozen ones 1853.5-1689.

Both teams have locked up their respective conference championships.

There are now two weeks left in the regular season, so it's time to start talking about the playoffs. In our league, there will be four teams who make it in - the two conference winners and two wildcards. There will be two one-week rounds.

If the tournament started today, two teams from the Paul Silas Conference would win the wildcards. Team Meirose (4th seed at 12-5) would face the Frozen Envelope (1st seed), while Phil's Radio Team (3rd seed at 13-4) would square off against Team Catdawg (2nd seed).

While the conference titles are on ice, the two wildcard spots are by no means secure. Paul Rogers and Cobra Kai are breathing down the necks of Phil and Meirose with 11-6 records. These last two weeks should prove to be competitive and bloody. Let's hope so.

HEAD-TO-HEAD

BAD BOY BONUSES

DeMarcus Cousins Suspended and Fined

Cousins punched a dude in the stomach. That's how we do things in the SBL. As a result, Seattle Glove and Hate benefits with 15 points from the resulting fine and another 75 from the suspension. The commissioner was starting to wonder if our players forgot how to properly express their anger.

NEW YORK, Feb. 27, 2014 - Sacramento Kings center DeMarcus Cousins has been suspended one game without pay and fined $20,000 for his actions in separate incidents, it was announced today by Rod Thorn, President, Basketball Operations.

Cousins has been suspended for punching Houston Rockets guard Patrick Beverley in the stomach with 9:44 remaining in the first quarter of the Kings' 129-103 loss to the Houston Rockets on Feb. 25, at Sleep Train Arena.

In addition, Cousins has been fined for verbally abusing a game official and failing to leave the court in a timely manner following his ejection with 8:21 remaining in the third quarter of the same game.

Cousins will serve his suspension on Friday, Feb. 28, when the Kings visit the Los Angeles Lakers at Staples Center.

STANDINGS

SMACKDOWN(Z) OF THE WEEK

DeMarcus Cousins vs Patrick Beverley

WEEKLY RODMANISM

"I don't trust what this life has given me. ~ Dennis Rodman"

Section214 returns to the show, and we're answering the questions you submitted.

The Sactown Royalty Show is back!  This week I'm joined by my friend Section214.  You submitted a ton of great questions, so we answered as many of them as possible.  Your great questions led to some great discussion.

We covered a wide range of topics, including the draft, free agency, Reggie Evans, Isaiah Thomas, Rudy Gay, DeMarcus Cousins, and where babies come from.  Be sure to check it out.

Like the show? Subscribe to us on iTunes or on Stitcher! Leave us ratings, leave comments, let us know how we're doing. Ratings and comments on iTunes really help us out with promoting the show. And of course, continue the discussion in the comments below.

And as you might have noticed, we have a new sponsor!  A big thanks to Audible.com for supporting us.  To get your free 30-day trial and a free audiobook, sign up here.  Using that particular link gets you the special offer, and let's them know you heard about them through our show.

As always, thanks for listening.

"The only true currency in this bankrupt world is what we share with someone else when we're uncool." - Lester Bangs in Almost Famous

I'm starting a new series called "CelticsBlog high five with _____" where I interview members of the media to get a deeper insight into the comings and goings around the Boston Celtics.  So of course I thought I'd start with my own personal Lester Bangs, Steve Bulpett.

You see, when I first started getting serious about blogging, I reached out to Steve and he was helpful, informative, and unflinchingly honest (not to mention hilarious with his dry wit).

He also happens to be hands down one of the best beat writers in the business.  So here's five questions (Get it, high five? I kill me.  So original.) Steve.  The bold questions are from me, obviously.

1. Birthdaygate was something else wasn't it? To quote Anchorman, "that escalated quickly." I think enough has been said about the subject itself but I did find it interesting that some of the assumptions that I made about how the story broke were incorrect. For instance, you pointed out on twitter that it wasn't leaked to you and Ainge couldn't have squashed it. Can you take us through the process you went through? How did you even know to ask about him? Who do you reach out to for comment, the player himself or his agent or what?

It feels a little odd to still be discussing this, but when your request arrived I sort of figured you wouldn't be asking about my R&B vinyl collection. So...

The most glaring thing I noticed missing from the Celtics that Saturday night in Sacramento was a defensive clue (Kings shoot 52 percent, score 105 points). I also hadn't seen Rondo around before the game, but he could have been in the trainer's room or elsewhere in the building. When I didn't see him afterward, I simply asked a few questions around the locker room. In progression: Was he here? Was he back at the hotel? Did he make the flight up from L.A.?

Upon further discussion, it was clear that, while the answers to the above were all "no," the issue had some complexity. So, with Herald deadlines bearing down because of the time difference, I stored what I had and went to work on it again the next day. The important thing with any story is, of course, to get it right, and in this case there were some mixed messages. The Celtics had an off-day Sunday following the back-to-back, but after reaching out to a number of people by phone, putting that together with the initial information and getting the basic timeline of what had taken place, I came to the conclusion that a.) some people were truly bothered by Rajon's choice and b.) others weren't fazed by it at all.

But there were still discrepancies to resolve, and the story lacked the needed context. When those issues were cleared on Monday, the next step was to make sure Danny Ainge and Rondo had an opportunity to comment.
And, no, Ainge could not have killed the story. If he'd said nothing had taken place and that there was no issue between the team and Rondo, his denial would have run beside the contradictory facts as they had been learned. Danny is very tight with information (dammit), and he's not above using semantics to throw a reporter off the scent (the re-acquisition of Antoine Walker comes to mind -- dammit), but this was a simple case of telling him the story that was running and asking if he wanted to be included.

In the end, I didn't believe the matter was worth the level of attention it received, but we don't get to decide those things. So why did so much work go into something that rated nine paragraphs at the top of a gameday notebook? Because we were still determining the depth of the story as the process unfolded, and because you need to present readers with the proper perspective.

2. The trade deadline ended up being much ado about nothing (hey nonny nonny). I always assumed that Rondo being moved was a long, long shot but we've heard conflicting reports on how seriously he was discussed in trade talks. Sometimes I wonder how much of that is semantics ("hey, we'll always listen to everything") and how much of it is outright lies (people with agendas putting out misinformation). I respect your information as much as anyone in the business. So without revealing too many trade secrets (pun intended) how do you go about staying on top of rumors?

You talk -- to everyone. The only way I know how to get through a trade deadline is to enter into a committed relationship with your phone. During the rest of the year, it is on the table at night. During that last week, it is on the adjacent pillow. (But it doesn't get weird. I swear.)

In that the Celtics are always on the road for deadline, it can be a rather disorienting experience. You're juggling calls, begging for the phone to ring and surviving on the extra muffin from the continental breakfast in the concierge lounge. And when you return to the hotel after the game, you're sometimes forgetting your room number. (Just walk to the front desk and hand them your ID. There's no dignified way to do this or cool excuse you can offer that won't make them believe you're not the utter imbecile you are.)

Over time, you grow a fairly strong network of people in the league you can trust, and you become an information broker of sorts. There are times you'll know a certain player is available because someone from another team will ask about him -- what kind of guy he is, strengths and weaknesses, how long he stays after practice to work on his game, etc. The best GMs are the ones who leave the fewest stones unturned and who are best able to understand the situation around a player when judging how he might do elsewhere.

As you've seen, there are some misleading and a few simply false reports that arise, and you have to check these out, as well -- even the ones that make no sense. There are sources who appreciate you calling for verification/debunking. There are others who wonder why you're wasting their time with this junk. I swear you can hear their eyes rolling on the other end of the line. Just like the front desk people.

3. "Tanking" is an easy topic for fans to compartmentalize in their heads, but the players and coaches have a very different perspective. Winning is still a priority every single game and many of these guys are accustomed to success in the past (either in the League or in college). What's it like covering proud, competitive athletes that lose 67% of the time?

Sort of like being a Democratic legislative campaign strategist in Texas.

OK, not really. Writers have no stake in the outcome.

In all sporting cases, you're reporting what happens and trying to give the readers access to information they might not get elsewhere. But the points of emphasis certainly change when you go from covering a team expecting to make a deep playoff run to one in full rebuilding mode. You focus more on how players are developing (Sullinger's return from surgery, Olynyk's court sense, Rondo's jump shot) than on what one game might indicate about a team's ability to win next week or in the postseason.

The players? They understand what's going on. They may get bold at times with some "we're not out of this yet" quotes, but these are smart men. They know that management is more rightfully concerned with what will make this a better team down the line, not what will squeeze out five more wins now.

4. I know how much of a grind it is to come up with material to write about every day. That said, I have it easy because you and the rest of the beat writers are the ones putting in the work to get the quotes and track down stories. For the future sports writers out there (or perhaps just the fascinated general public) take us briefly through the glamorous life of a beat writer.

I would need a book to properly answer this one, but there's the small and rather inescapable matter of no one giving a rat's [expletive]. Having worked loading trucks out of a refrigerated warehouse, as a bouncer and on a landscape crew, I find it a little unseemly to whine about the obstacles one encounters on this job -- e.g., you get to go to a lot of great cities, but because of the work, you don't have the time to truly explore and enjoy them. I figured out a long time ago that there are good and bad parts in every line of work, so you enjoy the former, deal with the latter and move on.

I will say the in-season physical toll of strange sleep patterns, poor eating habits, cholesterol spikes and travel is greater than most people would think. (My primary care physician wants me off the beat even more than that readers do.) But indigestion from airport food isn't exactly an industrial accident. And if you're lucky enough, as I am, to work with and for good people, it's a damn good gig. Trust me, I appreciate the hell out of it.

5. Crystal ball time: If you had to guess, what do you think is coming this summer? Major upheaval or minor tweeks? Swing for the fences or further selling off? Going for it next year or kicking the can down the street another season? (And yes, I'm totally trying to get you quoted out of context on HoopsHype so that another firestorm of rumors will take off because of you.)

OK, ya little bastid, why don't we just move straight to religion and politics? I don't need your help to make a fool out of myself, Clark.

But I digress.

In truth, none of these questions can be addressed in any meaningful way until the evening of May 20th following the NBA lottery. At that point, the Celtics will know what they have in 2014 draft currency and whether they can accelerate the reconstruction.

And I trust that will give you better and more pressing things to do than interviewing the likes of me... If not, we're all screwed.