Jonathan Santiago joins us to talk all things Kings!

The Sactown Royalty Show is back!  This week I'm joined by our friend Jonathan Santiago from Cowbell Kingdom.  If you've ever listened to the Cowbell Kingdom podcast, as you should be, you know Jonathan is  a great guest.

For it being the dead part of the offseason, we still managed to cover a ton of topics.  We discussed DeMarcus Cousins and Rudy Gay, and how they fit with Team USA.  We talked about the ever-evolving Kings roster, if Ray McCallum can take another step forward, if we'll ever see Jason Terry in a Kings uniform, and much, much more.  Be sure to give it a listen.

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As always, thanks for listening.

Team USA played their second exhibition game yesterday against former King Francisco Garcia and the Dominican Republic and dominated, winning 105 to 62.  It was DeMarcus Cousins' first game for Team USA as he missed the first exhibition against Brazil with a knee injury.

Kings forward Rudy Gay came off the bench to score 13 points on 5-9 shooting, tying him with DeMar DeRozan for the scoring lead.  Gay also tallied 3 rebounds, a steal and a game-high 3 blocks in 17 minutes.  Center DeMarcus Cousins played 16 minutes and only scored 2 points (1-1 from the field) but did lead the game with 8 rebounds.

Francisco Garcia and James Feldeine led the Dominican Republic with 14 points apiece.

Derrick Rose sat out of the game with knee soreness and Mason Plumlee got a DNP-CD.  Andre Drummond, another one of Cousins' competitors, did have a good game scoring 12 points with 5 rebounds, a block and a steal.

Team USA next plays on Friday against Puerto Rico in their last game before they travel to Spain.  It's likely that some cuts will be made after that game as they will play one exhibition against Goran Dragic's Slovenia in Spain before the tournament officially begins on August 30th.

Watch, enjoy, discuss.

Team USA is back in action Friday, facing Puerto Rico in a warm-up exhibition.  The Sacramento Kings are represented by DeMarcus Cousins and Rudy Gay.  Friday's game also represents the potential last chance to impress the coaching staff, as more cuts are expected on Saturday.  According to ESPN's Marc Stein, DeMarcus and Rudy seem likely to survive this rounds of cuts, but nothing is set in stone.  In Wednesday exhibition against the Dominican Republic Rudy Gay led Team USA in scoring, and DeMarcus Cousins grabbed a game-high 8 rebounds.

All eyes will also be on Derrick Rose, who sat out Wednesday's exhibition.  Rose cited fatiguie, which would make sense given that he's working himself back into playing shape at game speed.  But because of his injury history, there's speculation Rose'se knee may not be 100% healthy.

The game will be broadcast on ESPN2, beginning at 4:00 PM PT.  Use this as your live thread to discuss the game.

The Kings will be represented on Team USA for the first time in years as DeMarcus Cousins and Rudy Gay both made the final cut for the 2014 FIBA World Cup.

The speculation on whether or not the Kings would be represented on Team USA for the 2014 FIBA World Cup is officially over.  Jerry Colangelo announced the final roster last night after USA Basketball's 112-86 win over Puerto Rico and it was good news for Kings fans as both DeMarcus Cousins and Rudy Gay were named to the team.

Cousins and Gay join Stephen Curry, Anthony Davis, DeMar DeRozan, Andre Drummond, Kenneth Faried, James Harden, Kyrie Irving, Derrick Rose, Klay Thompson and yes, Mason Plumlee as Team USA went with a little more size than expected.  The final cuts included Damian Lillard, Chandler Parsons, Gordon Hayward and Kyle Korver.

This is Rudy Gay's second stint with Team USA, having played on the 2010 world championship team and winning the gold in that tournament.  Cousins has been in the program since he entered the league but this is the first time that he has made the final cut to play in the tournament itself.

Team USA now travels to Spain where they will play one more exhibition game on August 26th against Slovenia.  The tournament itself starts on August 30th.  USA is in Group C along with the Dominican Republic, Finland, New Zealand, Turkey and Ukraine.

As a Kings fan I couldn't be more excited to see the Kings and the city of Sacramento represented on the national stage by two of our players and think it will be a phenomenal experience for both of them.

Bring home the gold, guys!

Directing his teammates on the floor is something second-year guard Ray McCallum has been working on and expects to do more of next season.

There are a lot of positives about Kings point guard Ray McCallum - the Summer League performance, the basketball IQ, the ability to not turn the ball over. His well-rounded, smart game will likely result in a long NBA career. The long-term question is if the 2013 second-round pick eventually becomes a starter in the league or continues to be a reliable role player/backup guard. One of the short-term questions is if he can be more of a vocal leader on the floor, something McCallum acknowledges he is working on and thinks he is making progress in.

"I did feel like in Summer League that I was a lot more vocal this summer than I was during the season or last Summer League, and that's something I will continue to carry on during this season," McCallum told Sactown Royalty in a recent interview.

He certainly seemed right at home in that category in July's Summer League championship game, in which he led the team to a victory scoring 29 points on 9-15 shooting, earning him the MVP of the game award. McCallum was vocal and more animated than we have ever seen him as a pro in that title game.

"The more that you are out there, the more time you get and the more that your teammates see what kind of player you are, I think they build more of a trust with you. And then as a point guard, it's even easier to be more vocal and get guys in the right places," McCallum said.

Being more vocal is something one of McCallum's former teammates who shared the backcourt with him last season said he needs to work on. Isaiah Thomas, who is now a member of the Phoenix Suns, told Sactown Royalty in his sit-down interview with us last month, "The thing he [McCallum] needs to work on is being able to direct guys out there ... he doesn't voice himself enough out there on the floor because you have got to be the coach, you basically have to be the second coach out there."

Head coach Michael Malone acknowledged McCallum's progress in The Sacramento Bee:

"He's a lot more vocal than he was last summer, and that's something I keep imploring him to be - be vocal, be a leader, run your team and be a coach on the floor," Malone told Jason Jones.

McCallum averaged 12 points, 5 rebounds and 4.1 assists in Summer League. The 6'3'' guard has been working out in California since Summer League ended but was in his old stomping grounds on Friday when he gave away 400 backpacks filled with school supplies to members of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Southeastern Michigan. He said he plans to do similar events in Sacramento next year.

Outside of helping his community and aiming to be more outspoken on the floor with his teammates, McCallum has been working on the pick and roll, his jump shot, finishing around the rim and shooting floaters. He will back up recently acquired Darren Collison going into next season. He considers Collison to be a "great player" and thinks the team can accomplish the goal of the front office and coaching staff to push the pace of the offense more.

"We have a lot of athletic players on our team and a lot of guys who can score. I know our coaches want to play a lot faster this year and try and get up and down a little bit more ... as a whole group, everyone's got to buy in and I think that's something that we can definitely do this year," McCallum said.

Buying in may be a little easier this season as compared to last since things will probably be somewhat more settled with the roster. That, combined with a whole season of experience under his belt, may work in McCallum's favor.

"Last year it was new, new coaches, we had a lot of new things going on; a new system. I think it's just a matter of guys getting chemistry down and the more you are out there playing with each other, we can get a better understanding of everyone's game and I think this year we will have a lot better understanding of what's going on," McCallum said. "We want to win and that's something that this summer it was big for us. Even though it was just Summer League, we were going out there and competing and trying to show that the Sacramento Kings, you know, this is what we want to do, we want to be known as a winner and I think we've got a good team coming into this year and we're expecting to do big things."

As for that long-term question of being a starter in the NBA - it isn't something that McCallum is concerned with.

"There are a lot of things in the NBA that you just can't control. You can just control trying to be the best player and teammate that you can be. Coming into this season, my focus is to just come in, compete every day, do what's best for the team and if I get my opportunity go in there and try to make the most of it," McCallum said.

Anthony Davis dominated Slovenia as Team USA finished their summer tour 4-0 prior to the start of the FIBA Basketball World Cup.

Team USA cruised to a 101-71 victory over Slovenia in its final tuneup prior to the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup in Spain. Team USA went 4-0 during its summer tour, winning all four games handily.

Anthony Davis dominated Slovenia, finishing with 18 points, 11 rebounds, four steals and four blocks, including this one, via @_MarcusD_:

Team USA was aggressive in the early going, getting to the line 15 times in the first quarter. Sacramento Kings teammates DeMarcus Cousins and Rudy Gay made an impact at the start, linking up on a nasty fast-break dunk, via Basket-Infos.com:

However, Team USA made just eight of those 15 first-quarter free-throw attempts, and Slovenia stayed close thanks to a string of hot three-point shooting.

Team USA led by six after one, and they used a 14-0 run early in the second quarter to create some separation. But Slovenia, and especially Zoran Dragic, caught fire to trim Team USA's lead to 10 at halftime.

As they did against Puerto Rico, Team USA blew things open in the second half, overwhelming Slovenia and taking full control of the game despite some continued struggles from the charity stripe. Team USA went 29 of 46 from the line for the game.

More importantly, Team USA got out of the game healthy, and now they have a few days to prepare before its World Cup opener against Finland on Saturday.

Let’s continue with our ranking of the top ten Sacramento Kings at each position.

Today we look at the power forwards. I must tell you, this list was a much bigger pain in the arse than the centers. Cousins notwithstanding, the centers list sort of fell into a natural order. No such luck here, especially when looking at 10 - 3.

A quick reminder about the criteria used here:

1.     50 game minimum.

2.     Overall contribution. A look at the numbers.

3.     Contribution beyond the box score. See Pollard, Scot for one example.

4.     Subjectivity rules. And as it is my list, it is my subjectivity that reigns supreme. Save your subjectivity for the thread.

5.     The selection of Joe Kleine cannot be argued...ever.

6.     Was really hoping for something here that would have excluded our #10 power forward...

10 - Kenny Thomas Woof!

I really would have liked to have slotted Michael Smith or Anthony Bonner or Keon Clark or Yogi Stewart (who would look great next to Cousins) or Darius Songaila here, but Thomas is the "choice" at #10. The per 36 tells the story when it comes to my beef with K-9 (woof!). In his 26 games right after being acquired by the Kings (along with Brian Skinner and Corliss Williamson for Chris Webber, Matt Barnes and Michael Bradley), Thomas averaged almost 17 and 10 for the Kings. Sacramento went out and signed Shareef Abdur-Rahim in the off season and the pout was on. Thomas' per 36 dropped to 12 and 10 the following year, then 8 and 10, then 4 and 8, then 4 and 9, then 5 and 10. His efficiency numbers dropped from 19 to 15 to 10 to single digits.

Had Thomas been able to maintain his play, his 5 year, $38m contract would not have been a big deal. That was Petrie's plan when he traded Webber - to break one massive contract into three smaller ones. The contracts of Skinner and Williamson never harmed the Kings, but Thomas' deal was a dagger due to his backsliding play.

I almost went with Songaila here, but Thomas edges him out. And now I feel unclean. Woof.

9 - Lawrence Funderburke Now we're talking. The anti-Thomas.

Fundy (or L-Funk, as I used to call him without ever gaining any traction whatsoever) logged six seasons in a Kings uniform, but his 6 and 4 numbers don't tell the story.

Funderburke was drafted with the 51^st pick of the 2^nd round by the Kings in the same draft that saw the Kings select Brian Grant and Michael Smith. Whether concerns about his knees were legitimate or he was plundered by bad intel (there was a rumor Bobby Knight sabotaged Funderburke's value to spite him for spurning Indiana and going to Ohio State), Funderburke spent his first three seasons playing in Europe, joining the Kings in 1997. He was a member of the Kings best teams, albeit usually in the 4^th or 5^th big man chair (behind the likes of Webber, Divac, Pollard, and Clark). Funderburke could go long stretches without real minutes, but would always produce when called upon. He was a pro's pro in the mold of Corliss Williamson and Ty Corbin. When people remember Lawrence Funderburke, they remember him fondly.

8 - Carl Landry The bottom portion of the power forward list is really funky. Carl Landry 8^th all time? Who's responsible for this drivel?

Landry has 99 games in with the Kings spread over portions of three seasons. He is averaging 12 and 5, though his per 36 would come to 16 and 7. He has been miscast and injured, but he has been fairly decent and at least somewhat efficient on those occasions when he has been healthy. The placement of Landry as 8^th on this list speaks more to the power forwards that the Kings have (or have not had) than it does to the magnificence of Top Hat.

7 - Shareef Abdur-Rahim Rod Thorn knew something about his knees. Apparently Geoff Petrie did not. After the Nets pulled their contract offer to Shareef, the Kings swooped in and offered him multi-year, multi-million dollar contract. Abdur-Rahim responded with two reasonably healthy seasons where he averaged about 11 and 5 overall. His highlight was playing with his broken jaw wired shut...and somehow picking up a technical foul. Knee injuries ultimately forced him to take an early retirement.

6 - Jason Thompson

I'll wait.

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OK then. Jason Thompson has 460 games under his belt as a King, averaging 10 and 7 along the way. He is currently 6^th in games played as a Sacramento Kings, 16 games out of 3^rd and 59 games from the #1 spot. 4^th in rebounds. Has never missed more than seven games in a season, and has suited up for an outstanding 97% of the schedule over his six years in a Kings uniform under five different coaches. He has been far and away a better contributor than anyone previously mentioned on this list. Jason Thompson deserves the coveted crown of 6^th best Sacramento Kings power forward of all time.

5 - Antoine Carr The Big Dog, and I don't mean "woof!". Carr was a King for half of Pervis Ellison's rookie year, and all of the four rookie draft of 1990 (Simmons/Mays/Causwell/Bonner). Those were miserable teams under the "tutelage" of Dick Motta. Carr arrived along with Sedric Toney for Kenny Smith and Mike Williams. Carr would average almost 20 and 6 in his 110 games as a King, putting up the best efficiency numbers of his career. He was not a great rebounder, but he was a fierce offensive player. Antoine Carr was one of the few good things to watch when the Kings played under Motta.

4 - Otis Thorpe Otis Thorpe had no nickname that I can recall. Not OT. Not "Otis - my man!" Not Friar Duck. In spite of this, I bestow the 4^th slot on the power forward list to him.

Thorpe had two stints with the Kings. His second was a 27 game cup of coffee when he was traded here in 1998 along with Chris Robinson for Bobby Hurley and Michael Smith. Thorpe would be dealt a few months later with Mitch Richmond for Chris Webber. His first stint was as one of the players that migrated from Kansas City in 1985. In his three seasons as an inaugural King, Thorpe averaged roughly 17 and 9, including a 21 and 10 campaign in 1987-88. Thorpe would have his off nights, but he was also pretty durable, playing in every game over his final two seasons in Sacramento. Thorpe was traded before the beginning of the 88-89 season for Rodney McCray and Jim Petersen.

3 - Brian Grant The #8 draft pick out of Xavier. This was Geoff Petrie at his best, selecting a small college guy when small colleges were still largely overlooked in the early portions of the draft (your occasional Scottie Pippen or Karl Malone notwithstanding). Grant was a 13 and 7 man during his three years in Sacramento, adding over a block per game. He was part of the 95-96 playoff team his rookie season, adding to the team's reputation for tough, bruising play. Grant would leave via free agency after his third season (old CBA rules, ya' know?), and he wound up playing 12 seasons in the NBA.

2 - Wayman Tisdale The late, great thumb-popper! Tizzy came to Sacramento during the 89-90 season along with that Bimbo Coles / Rory Sparrow pick for LaSalle Thompson and Randy Wittman. Six seasons and 370 games, averaging about 18 and 7 a game. The standard operating procedure seemed to be for Tisdale to get off to a hot start most games, as teams seemed surprised that he was left handed (advanced scouting had apparently not been invented yet). I also have fond recollections of Tisdale hitting the big shot late on a couple of occasions, his ginormous smile lighting up the arena. The Kings released Tisdale after the 1994 season, and he would finish his basketball career in Phoenix before embarking on a phenomenal career as a jazz bassist. Tisdale passed away in 2009, having achieved in two professions what most of us never attain in one. RIP, Wayman Tisdale.

1 - Chris Webber Surprise!

Chris Webber unwillingly arrived in Sacramento in 1998 in exchange for Mitch Richmond and Otis Thorpe. He was the best player on the best teams to ever play in Sacramento. Seven seasons and 377 games. 23.5 ppg, 10.6 rpg, 1.5 bpg, 1.5 spg, 4.8 apg (1.6/1 a/to ratio). Efficiency rating of 22.3. He was a tipped shot / better officiating / better team free throw shooting away from an NBA title, and a blown knee away from perhaps one or two more. At his peak, he was considered to be on a par with Kevin Garnett and Tim Duncan. For those that have become Kings fans during the Kevin Martin or Tyreke Evans or DeMarcus Cousins eras, it is difficult to comprehend the rock star status that Webber attained while in Sacramento.

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Commence strafing this list in the threads. You'll get little quarrel from me - I was pulling this list out of every orifice on my body.

Every.

Orifice.

A basketball fan struggles to articulate his most closely held, yet most irrational belief: The Sixers need more European players.

It's a running gag in the Liberty Ballers email thread that I'm crazygonuts for foreign players. I've agitated for two drafts in a row for the Sixers to draft Dario Saric, thrown shit when they took Michael Carter-Williams instead of Sergey Karasev in 2013 and threw a nutty when Alexey Shved was one of the pieces that came back for Thaddeus Young last week.

My throbbing, turgid hard-on for players born outside North America is mostly about players from Eastern Europe, though not entirely: In addition to gushing over every Ivan, Jakub and Sergei who comes over the Atlantic, I continue to carry an inexplicable torch for Matthew Dellevadova and am the last living defender of both Bismack Biyombo and Hasheem Thabeet.

Like most irrational positions, this one's not really easy to defend--you can't say "I like" something and be objectively right unless you're talking about Turkish food, which is the only thing I like more than Turkish basketball players. But like most irrational positions, it's got to have some empirical, historical root.

After he caught me chanting "SHVED! SHVED! SHVED! SHVED!" after the Thad trade, Jake Pavorsky challenged me to find and explain those roots. Because Alexey Shved, by any rational measure, blows at basketball. Last year, among 71 point guards listed by ESPN.com, Shved finished 62nd in PER and tied for 65th in true shooting percentage. And because Jake's a good editor, he wanted, I'm sure, to know why one of his writers is building a monument to a player who can best be described as "marginally better than 40-year-old Derek Fisher."

Here are my reasons.

Political

There's no thrill I have as a sports fan that's like watching the United States compete internationally in a sport that I enjoy and follow. As of this moment, there are only two routine best-on-best, high-stakes competitions that feature Americans competing against equals with national pride on the line: the Olympic ice hockey tournament and the FIFA World Cup. One day, Olympic basketball, or whatever NBA-sanctioned tournament replaces it when Mark Cuban's insistence on acting like he literally owns his players, might get there, but at the moment, there's not a nation in the world that can challenge the United States, routinely, when the Americans bring their best players.

They've been playing men's basketball at the Olympics since 1936. When 1) the head of FIBA isn't brazenly match-fixing from the sidelines of the gold medal game and 2) the USA isn't carrying the millstone of Oliver Purnell on its coaching staff, the United States has never lost. Not only has the United States won every gold medal, it's won every game.

And I'm sorry, that's boring. I'm all about American supremacy and exceptionalism, but I not only want my team to win, I want it to scare me a little along the way, to hide the fact that America is picking on an inferior class of nation-state through sport.

Only getting to feel the thrill of patriotic athleticism twice every four years has led me to get way too worked up about the Ryder Cup and America's Cup in recent years. I'm not proud of this, because golf and sailing are class warfare, and I don't countenance their existence because my name doesn't appear in the Social Register and my ancestors didn't own slaves. But until and unless international basketball gets competitive or the best players start going to the World Baseball Classic, that'll have to do.

We'll get to the point where basketball is as competitive as soccer when other nations start valuing it the way Americans do. And we've made tremendous progress in the past 30 years, thanks in large part to cultural exchange: European players holding their own against Americans in international competition and in the NBA. As that continues, the playing field will be come more level and international basketball will grow both in entertainment value and prestige.

Personal

My two favorite NBA teams of all time are the 2001-02 Kings and 2008-09 Magic. That Magic team in particular played an offensive style that I, to this day, consider to be the most beautiful I've ever seen, certainly in basketball, perhaps in all of sports. They ran the offense through Hedo Turkoglu, a 6-foot-10 point forward with lead feet and a good outsider jumper, and instead of a real power forward, they started Rashard Lewis at the 4, spacing the floor even further. Dwight Howard stood on the post and in the backcourt, they played Rafer Alston and a 3-and-D 2-guard (either Courtney Lee or Mikael Pietrus) who could stand in the corner and exert no energy whatsoever on offense, therefore saving himself to guard either Paul Pierce or LeBron James when the Magic lost the ball.

It was mesmerizing. Turkoglu would just stand there with the ball or work screens while three shooters tried to get open, and because their offensive roles were so abnormal, the Magic caused the other Eastern Conference teams fits. Turkoglu ran that offense like a very good playmaking midfielder, like a Zinedine Zidane, Andrea Pirlo or Mesut Ozil, never really breaking more than a brisk stroll, but somehow seeing the incisive last pass or making the crucial shot that unlocked the defense.

That Kings team also had a young Turkoglu, as well as probably the best pair of passing bigs in NBA history (Chris Webber and Vlade Divac) and Peja Stojakovic, another taller wing who could score enough to keep the pressure off Webber and Mike Bibby offensively. They too were a team that, despite having a good point guard, used the skill of their forwards to create mismatches and find the open man.

Linguistic

I like the idea of a multilingual, multicultural locker room--if basketball is a global game, let's have it represent a variety of cultures. Let Toni Kukoc teach Steve Kerr about a Croatian-style pregame meal.

And I don't care if this sounds provincial, but Anglo-American names are boring. Here's a partial list of names that are more fun to say than, like, Kevin Durant or Jason Smith or whatever:

• Giannis Antetokoumnpo
• Drazen Petrovic
• Bostjan Nachbar
• Mickael Gelabale
• Sarunas Jasikevicius
• Detlef Schrempf
• Dino Radja
• Thabo Sefolosha
• Andrea Bargnani
• Peja Stojakovic
• Viktor Khyrapa
• Ersan Ilyasova
• Ricky Rubio
• Jorge Garbajosa
• Arvydas Sabonis
• Bogdan Bogdanovic
• Mirza Teletovic
• Zoran Dragic
• Goran Dragic
• Hedo Turkoglu

I think I'm in love with Hedo Turkoglu.

Stylistic

As much as I, as an awkward, hairy white guy, like seeing other awkward hairy white guys run house, and as fun as it is to say all those names, the truth is that I'm probably not as in love with European basketball players as I am in love with the stereotype of the European basketball player.

There are archetypes of basketball players that I love. The chucker, the leap-out-the-gym wing, the beanpole shot blocker, and you can find most of the players I identify as my favorites in one of those archetypes. But there are two I hold in the highest esteem: the point forward and the passing big.

And not all of those are Europeans. We think of point forwards as being guys like Turkoglu, Kukoc and, one day, Dario Saric, but Americans do this. The same with the passing big--there might not have been a better passing big man than Webber, who's as American as Ulysses S. Grant riding a bald eagle and singning "Born to Run." After Nowitzki came Durant, after Divac came Bosh, and so on.

What I love is less than the European player than the stereotype of the European player--the long, skilled stretch 4 with eyes in the back of his head and range out the building. In fact, my idealized basketball team would be, to revisit the soccer metaphor, a "Total Basketball" style, in which five men of relatively similar size, all of whom are capable of running, passing, shooting and defending, share the floor and the ball and run a fluid finesse offense. It is, I'm relieved to say, the kind of basketball to which the game seems to be evolving, particularly after the physical, iso-heavy American style was so entirely dismantled in international competition in the early-2000s.

What does that have to do with Shved? Shved, who's shot 35.8 percent from the floor in his career? Well, part of it is that I'm the kind of basketball fan who never gets over prospect crushes, and Shved averaged 11.4 points and 5.9 assists per game at the 2012 Olympics, including 25 and 7 in the bronze medal game, and I still have that box score taped to the inside of my locker, and whenever I look at it I hear "Stolen" by Dashboard Confessional and cry a little. It's weird, I know, but it's nowhere near as weird as Levin still not being over Joe Alexander.

The other thing is that apart from 80 games of Toni Kukoc and Marko Milic's car dunk video, the Sixers haven't had a big-time international star since I've been a fan, and I need something, anything to latch on to until Joel Embiid and Dario Saric become those stars four years from now.

It's something to hold on to, until the next Hedo Turkoglu comes along.

Everyone knows the Kings didn't star in The Negotiator. But this post wonders, maybe they did?

[Editor's Note: This is purposely written in the manner of a poor storyteller, even I'm not this bad]

DeMarcus Cousins walked into the bar,  stunned to see a collection of his friends and colleagues.  Everyone was clapping.  DeMarcus was a hero that day, having successfully negotiated his way out of a hostage situation.  DeMarcus had been a cop for a long time, and he was a very good Negotiator.  The best.  He smiled as he saw Mike Malone and Jimmer Fredette.  Good officers, better friends.  But Jimmer looked troubled.  After a few drinks and a bit of glad-handing with fellow officers, Jimmer and DeMarcus went out to the car.  Jimmer had a secret, something about dirty cops.  DeMarcus couldn't believe his ears.  And then his ears were ringing in the aftermath of a gunshot.  Jimmer was dead!

Cut to the funeral, and Whitney Fredette slaps DeMarcus across the face.  "You were supposed to protect him!  He was getting out!"  They had been friends for years, but she wanted nothing more to do with DeMarcus.  DeMarcus had never been so sad.  Until he got home, that is.  Because agents from internal affairs were raiding his house!  DeMarcus was angry, but smugly insisted that they were wasting their time.  Suddenly, an agent walked up with evidence.  "Look at this, chief, it's the missing pension funds, to an offshore account under DeMarcus' name!"  Cousins glared at the officer, a young punk by the name of Nik Stauskas.  "That shit was planted!"  But it was too late.

Later on DeMarcus was walking into the internal affairs office.  He burst into the office of Paul Westphal, head of internal affairs.  "You son of a gun, you've always had it out for me!"  Westphal glared back, telling DeMarcus that he did this to himself.  Meanwhile, a very confused Donté Greene sat in Westphal's office.  Greene had been promising at one time, but was under investigation for defrauding a Benihanas.

This escalated quickly, and before you knew it DeMarcus had a gun and had taken hostages.  Now the police were going to need a negotiator to deal with their best negotiator.  Oh how the tables had turned.  DeMarcus refused to work with the clumsly back-up negotiator, Sim Bhullar.  Cousins demanded to talk to one man and one man only, Rudy Gay.  But Gay was having problems of his own.

Rudy Gay stood outside a locked bathroom door, trying to talk his wife into going on a ski trip or something.  The phone rang, and he knew he had to get to work.  "Might be easier than dealing with this situation here at home", he muttered to nobody in particular.  "I heard that!" his wife shouted through the door.

Gay arrived on the scene and immediately took action.  Before long, he entered the building.  He was going to go face to face with DeMarcus.  Meanwhile, somebody behind the scenes was sending in a squad to take DeMarcus down.  He dove away from the bullets at the last second.  It was all very exciting.  But when the dust settled, Westphal had been shot.  Not just shot, assassinated.  Cousins and Westphal had never gotten along, but Westphal had just started cooperating.  Cousins knew he was in trouble.

Luckily, he was able to convince Rudy Gay that he was innocent.  "Now you have to deal with two of us," Rudy said into his walkie talkie (in the trailer, but not in the actual movie).  Oh snap.

After some more botched attempts to kill Cousins, Cousins and Gay knew they needed to get out of the building.  They snuck Cousins out but I can't really remember how, but anyway they ended up at a guy's house.  Cousins and Gay were at the house, but all the other cops showed up.  One of those cops was dirty.  But who???

They came up with a great plan, where Gay shot Cousins in the stomach after they talked about a western movie.  As Cousins lay bleeding, Gay pretended to be a bad guy who wanted in on the scam.  He was talking to Mike Malone.  Oh yeah it turns out Malone was the bad guy all along.  But Gay was tricking him.  He was holding a walkie talkie, and all the other cops heard Malone admit to the scam.

They arrested him, and Cousins' injury wasn't fatal.  Gay had saved the day, and he and Cousins had become friends.  And Jimmer was avenged.

Fin

The offseason doldrums are upon us, with the Kings reportedly looking at Russian guards and Greg writing DeMarcus Cousins fan fiction, but meanwhile the Kings players are hard at work getting ready.  We already know Cousins and Rudy Gay are doing their best to bring home the Gold for Team USA in Spain these next couple weeks and Jason Terry is even getting shots up in the Kings practice facility.

Rookie Nik Stauskas is coming off a Summer League Championship (almost quite literally it seems) but is hard at work perfecting his craft.  Stauskas became a bit internet famous in college for videos of him nailing three after three, and his latest video is no exception.

15 consecutive threes in 46 seconds.  That's obscene, and he already should probably be considered one of the better shooters the Kings have ever had.  He shot over 44% from three in both of his years at Michigan despite shooting almost 6 attempts a game.

Is it too early to start lobbying for Nik to get into the three point shootout?

USA! USA! USA!

DeMarcus Cousins, Rudy Gay and the rest of Team USA made their debut in the 2014 FIBA World Cup, dominating Finland 114 to 55.  The game was so one-sided that the United States outscored Finland 29 to 2 in the 2nd quarter alone.

Rudy Gay and DeMarcus Cousins both played well coming off of USA's bench.  Rudy scored 10 points on 5-9 shooting along with 5 rebounds, a block and a couple steals.  James Harden and Rudy hooked up for a sick alley-oop early on in the game:

Cousins scored 9 points on 3-4 shooting and led all rebounders with 10.  Klay Thompson led all scorers with 18 points and Anthony Davis scored 17 to go with 4 rebounds and surprisingly no blocks or steals.

Also, it appears that Coach Michael Malone is keeping a close eye on his stars, traveling with them to Spain as captured by this photo tweeted by the Kings:

Coach Malone catches up with DMC and Rudy at the team hotel in Spain. #USABMNTpic.twitter.com/SRkKt8rO06

— Sacramento Kings (@SacramentoKings) August 30, 2014

Team USA doesn't get much of a break to relax, with their next game being today at 12:30 pm against Turkey for its second of fifth game in the group stage.

Rondo wants to be traded, but has made it known he will not re-sign with the Kings if traded to Sacramento.

Rajon Rondo has reportedly told the Boston Celtics that he will not re-sign with them next offseason, and would like to be traded. While this initially seems like good news for the Kings, who have been reportedly interested in the Celtics point guard, Rondo also indicated he would not re-sign with Sacramento if traded there.

This leaves the Kings in a difficult predicament.  The Kings could still trade for Rondo, and hope to sell him on Sacramento's future. The Kings used this same approach with Rudy Gay. While it remains to be seen if Gay will opt to stay with Sacramento long term, he opted to stay for the coming season. Of course, the cost to acquire Rondo is likely different than the Kings' cost to acquire Gay. Toronto took back players who Sacramento was happy to be rid of. Boston is likely to want young pieces with upside, such as Ben McLemore.

Acquiring Rondo always seemed like a longshot for the Kings, this simply makes it seem more unlikely.

Former Dallas Maverick shooting guard Jason Terry is apparently headed to Houston as the Rockets have traded with the Sacramento Kings.

One minute we were all watching Team USA locked in a battle with Turkey at the FIBA World Cup, and the next we see the Woj bomb to end all Woj bombs: Jason Terry is headed to Houston. The Rockets, according to Adrian Wojnarowski, have agreed to trade Alonzo Gee to the Kings in exchange for the former Rockets killer. Additionally, the Kings will give the Rockets a future second rounder to take on Terry's $5.8 million salary for 2014-15.

Realistically, this is nothing more than a salary dump for a team in luxury tax territory, but it is especially intriguing because of Terry's inclusion. Terry made a living in Dallas by blowing up the Rockets at every opportunity, and it will be interesting to see if he can rally from a bad year in Brooklyn with the Rockets. Lord knows he loves the Toyota Center.

With his $5.8 million expiring contract, Terry will also be an interesting piece to play at the trade deadline, so the Rockets have to hope he can play his way onto the roster. He struggled last year, but he can still shoot 3's at a decent clip, so if he can improve from the field the Rockets could use him.

The Kings are dealing Terry in what appears to be a salary-cutting move.

The Sacramento Kings are trading Jason Terry to the Houston Rockets, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports.

Sacramento is finalizing a deal to send guard Jason Terry to the Houston Rockets, league sources tell Yahoo Sports.

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojYahooNBA) August 31, 2014

Woj reports that Kings will also send a second rounder pick to Houston, and will receive a package of non-guaranteed contacts, highlighted by Alonzo Gee.

Houston will send package of non-guranteed contracts to Kings, including Alonzo Gee, sources said. Kings sending future second to Rockets.

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojYahooNBA) August 31, 2014

While we've long expected Terry to be traded without ever donning a Kings uniform, Kings fans were surely hoping that the Kings might use his $5 million expiring contract as part of a more exciting deal.  The Kings are unlikely to retain anyone received back in this deal, and it's disheartening to lose a second round draft pick in the process.

The cleared cap space may allow the Kings to spend elsewhere, but the plan remains unclear.  The Kings continue to publicly state their intention to improve the team, so this isn't the cost-cutting moves of the old regime, but the move appears questionable until we see what it might lead to.

Update: It just keeps getting better!

Sacramento will send Houston two second-round picks in deal, including one second via the Knicks, league sources tell Yahoo.

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojYahooNBA) August 31, 2014

The Kings are giving up not one, but two second-round picks.  This is especially baffling after the way the Kings publicly struck out trying to acquire a second round pick before this summer's draft.

In the ultimate troll move, Daryl Morey's Houston Rockets have traded for one of the Mavericks' all-time most beloved players.

It was a fairly innocuous Sunday afternoon, with everyone enjoying what was a much closer and more exciting than expected FIBA game against Turkey, until this happened to ruin everything:

Yahoo Sources: Houston acquiring guard Jason Terry in trade. http://t.co/jm13unlE3F

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojYahooNBA) August 31, 2014

Report: Kings trade Jason Terry and second-rounders to Rockets for non-guaranteed contracts, including Alonzo Geehttp://t.co/EFexgc8akS

— Hardwood Paroxysm (@HPbasketball) August 31, 2014

No this isn't a joke, and it isn't some horrible nightmare. The Houston Rockets have traded for Jason "JET" Terry. The trade is reportedly JET for Alonzo Gee, with some picks being swapped between the teams.

In the aftermath of the Dwight Howard sweepstakes, Morey appeared to gloat by proposing a trade for Dirk. Now this?We're all thinking the same thing here, right?

Excellent troll move by Morey to sign Terry

— Kirk (@KirkSeriousFace) August 31, 2014

At 37, JET wasn't likely to contribute significant minutes to whichever team he was on, so I think it is safe to say that this trade did not occur for basketball reasons. The rivalry between the Mavs and Rockets, and the feud between Mark Cuban and Morey, in particular, has turned fairly bitter in recent years. This seems just the latest in a series of off season blows between the teams.

But Terry has always been very vocal about his loyalty to the Mavericks organization and his disinterest in playing for one of Dallas's divisional rivals. So maybe this whole thing will blow up in Morey's face?

I hope Terry refuses to play in Houston.

— The Kobe Beef (@TheKobeBeef) August 31, 2014

As do we all, my friend, as do we all.

The Kings will use the stretch provision to create additional cap space.

The Sacramento Kings have waived Wayne Ellington using the NBA's stretch provision, according to ESPN's Marc Stein.  This move wasn't entirely unexpected, as Sam Amick introduced the possibility when the trade was first reported.  However, there was a camp that thought the Kings might keep Ellington for his outside shooting.  Ellington is a limited player, but has a career three-point average of 38.6%.

Ellington was acquired by the Kings from the Knicks along with Jeremy Tyler.  The Kings traded away Travis Outlaw and Quincy Acy in the deal.  The Kings also received a second-round pick, which they in turn sent to Houston in the Jason Terry deal.

The timing of Ellington being waived is important, as the stretch provision stipulates specific treatment for players waived on or before August 31.  According to NBA Salary Cap guru Larry Coon:

If the player is waived from July 1 to August 31, then his remaining salary is paid over twice the number of years remaining on his contract, plus one. For example, if the player is waived on August 1 with two seasons remaining on his contract at $10.2 million and $10.3 million, respectively, then his remaining salary is paid over five years (two seasons times two, plus one), in even amounts of $4.1 million per year.

The Kings are also expected to waive Jeremy Tyler, but have yet to officially make the move.  His salary does not become guaranteed until September 15th.

After waiving Ellington and trading Terry, the Kings have about $8.5 million worth of room under the luxury tax, assuming they waive all the players they receive from Houston.  The Kings also currently only have 12 players under contract (including Omri Casspi, who has yet to officially sign), so there will have to be at least one more official signing before the Kings are at the minimum roster size.  This could be where Dmitry Kulagin fits in, although there has yet to be any more information on that front.

The Kings have become an even more attractive trade partner after flipping Jason Terry for unguaranteed contracts.

Yes, this is purely speculative. I'm not going to waste your time by pretending to have inside knowledge. Good, glad that's out of the way.

There have been a few rounds of trade rumorsinvolvingJosh Smith and the Sacramento Kings, who seem to be interested in adding the athletic power forward to their strange brew of high-usage talent. There isn't a new percolating rumor but perhaps one will get bubbling as the Kings have made a few moves that seem to indicate another, bigger move on the horizon.

Specifically, the Kings traded a player they had no use for, Jason Terry, for contracts that they might find extremely useful. Even more specifically, the Kings traded an expiring contract for unguaranteed deals of Alonzo Gee ($3 million) and Scotty Hopson ($1.45 million) and/or Josh Powell ($1.3 million).

Prior to the trade, the Kings roster was at 17 players, though two of those players -- Deonte Burton and Sim Bhullar -- were undrafted rookies who are most likely training camp bodies who are establishing a connection with the NBA club before inevitably developing in the D-League.

The Kings then traded Terry to Houston and stretched/waived Wayne Ellington. So perhaps this bit of roster shuffling is all about needing roster spots and not wanting to pay Terry and paying a couple second-round picks for that right. But perhaps something bigger is brewing.

We know that the Kings were interested in a Smith trade if it meant the team could unload Jason Thompson in the deal. Reports also indicate that the Pistons were the team to ultimately walk away from the process. Presumably, the Kings weren't offering up an enticing enough package. As much as it makes sense to trade Smith for whatever you can get, Detroit isn't interested in just giving him away, especially if it means paying a guy like Terry $5 million when he has no real place on the team.

Now, though, the Kings can sweeten the pot with unguaranteed deals and a couple traded player exceptions that fit nicely with the Pistons' surplus players.

The Pistons have roster issues of their own as they have 15 players under contract and still haven't brought back Greg Monroe. It seems the Pistons would love to offload at least Will Bynum in any deal, and the Kings could use a little point guard depth. Luigi Datome, Tony Mitchell and maybe even Jonas Jerebko and to a lesser extent Kyle Singler could also be available.

Factoring in the unguaranteed contracts in to the equation, the Kings could offer up the ugly Thompson contract, the Derrick Williams deal that only has a qualifying option after this year and unguaranteed players who would immediately be waived or a TPE for Smith, Bynum and Jerebko.

The Pistons would be able to open up a roster spot for Monroe, add two backup power forwards and send out two backup power forwards while reducing their future salary commitment going forward by about $6 million per year through 2016-17. That's not a great return for Smith, but there's not going to be a great return for Smith.

The likelihood of this happening is pretty slim, maybe 10 percent. But from the Kings' perspective I'm not sure why you do this deal unless you have something larger in mind. The new ownership has made a lot of noise about competing in the West and adding talent and while Terry has no value to the team sending out picks for the right to not pay him doesn't seem like the Kings' MO. While they'd reportedly love to get Rajon Rondo, I don't think they have the pieces to pull that one off. And there are few other openly available players that could be actual difference-makers at a position of need except for Smith.

And from Detroit's perspective, there is a delicate balancing act the team must play. If Stan Van Gundy seriously believes he could rehabilitate Smith's game then this trade would be a pretty significant talent downgrade. And if Monroe still isn't interested in a long-term deal then the team has a pretty sizeable hole at power forward after this season. But even if the team thought that they could turn Smith back into a productive player, you have to ask yourself where the minutes are going to come from.

Van Gundy has indicated that the days of Smith playing small forward are all but over and there just isn't that many backup big man minutes behind Monroe and Andre Drummond. And if Smith plays all of them then the team can't open up playing time for Jerebko at all and he becomes a reasonably productive (and disgruntled) $4.5 million benchwarmer.

We'll see how it all shakes out. Only 38 days until the first preseason game.

With the recent rumors that the Miami Heat will be shaking up their coaching staff, are these moves reflective of the team's commitment to consistency or in anticipation of future changes?

The summer of the #hotsportstake has reinforced how dependent we've become on instantly breaking news; everyone has sources and claims to be plugged in to what's going to happen next. Still, the most dependable of these is usually the "WojBomb," that catchy name given to the news broken by Yahoo! Sports Adrian Wojnarowski. The "bomb" part is well-earned, as Wojnarowski tends to drop these announcements at any unsuspecting moment leaving basketball fans shellshocked in the wake of his high-artillery tweets.

But the summer is winding down and news is broken less and less frequently as training camp hovers in the horizon. With a few notable exceptions, free agency is nearly resolved and the last big-news shoe to drop - the Kevin Love trade to Cleveland - fell off anticlimactically weeks ago.

However, the Miami Heat were caught in a minor blast over the last few days, with Wojnarowski bringing light to rumors that head coach Erik Spoelstra is reshuffling his coaching staff.

If you haven't heard, the gist of it is this; longtime assistants Ron Rothstein and Bob McAdoo are being moved to other positions within the organization and, as per Tuesday morning's news, former NBA head coach Keith Smart is in discussions to join the staff in some capacity.

On the surface, this report might seem fairly innocuous, a harmless shift in the coaching hierarchy. But this is the Heat we're talking about and moves like these are pretty few-and-far between. Rothstein, of course, was the team's first head coach and has been part of the organization for decades. McAdoo had been part of Pat Riley's staff since 1995. When Riley retired from coaching in 2008, "Big Mac" stayed on as a valued part of Spoelstra's staff.

While the San Antonio Spurs are largely credited with being the pinnacle of stability - and deservedly so - it's time that the rest of the league recognize that same culture has defined Miami since owner Micky Arison took over and brought Riley on board nearly three decades ago.

So, why the changes and, if anything, what do they represent for this model of consistency in a perpetually changing NBA?

First of all, nothing's been finalized yet. Wojnarowski's reports, still unconfirmed by the team, are still classified as rumor until the Heat actually announces the changes. But Woj's track record is solid enough to consider this a matter of when - not if - this happens.

Secondly, it's important to note that Rothstein and McAdoo are being moved, not fired outright. Both have, as Wojnarowski's points out, "professional and personal ties" to Riley. And while nothing has been made public about McAdoo's future position, Yahoo! reports that "Rothstein, 71, had been nearing the end of a long coaching career and will likely move into a basketball operations job with the Heat."

Wojnarowski adds that David Fizdale, long considered a head coaching candidate, will remain with Spoelstra as his lead assistant and that Juwan Howard, formerly in a player development role, will slide over onto the bench as a coach.

That leaves Smart, whose undistinguished coaching career includes an interim head coaching post in Cleveland as well as the top job in Golden State and Sacramento. He amassed a 93-170 record over that time, leading rosters that had, at best, glaring deficiencies. It's also worth noting that Smart had been fired from the Warriors and Kings after new ownership groups took over each franchise; wanting to put their own stamp on the team, Smart was the obvious casualty.

But the question posed in the headline is why the shuffling is taking place, whether it's change for its own sake or if its part of a bigger picture.

The answer is both, and it's perfectly consistent with how the franchise has operated under Riley over the past 29 years.

Little that the front office does is haphazard; there have been few knee-jerk reactions in the team's history. Of course, even well-executed plans don't always pan out, as this past season's decisions to bring aboard reclamation projects Michael Beasley and Greg Oden were mostly unsuccessful.

But Spoelstra, like Riley before him, sees the writing on the wall even before the first brick has been laid. Rothstein and McAdoo are at the end of their careers and they're not going anywhere; Fizdale's days with the team, however, are numbered.

Whether he takes the successful route of a Kevin Ollie or is eventually hired elsewhere in the NBA, Fizdale will be a head coach someday soon and Spoelstra's plans, both short- and long-term, depend on stability. Rothstein and McAdoo provided that when the transition took place from Riley-to-Spoelstra in 2008.

Smart, Howard and Assistant Coach Dan Craig will be there once Fizdale moves on.

Vrtually every other team in the NBA (except the Spurs, of course) seems to go through changes in the coaching staff and front office on an annual basis. Meanwhile, the Heat makes moves quietly, consistently, and with on eye on both the present and the future. If the moves made this summer should help ease the transition for when Riley eventually retires in the next five years - and if Spoelstra fills in admirably - no one would be surprised.

It will surely be a disappointment this season to look over at the bench  and not see Rothstein leaning over and whispering something to Spoelstra that only his decades of coaching might have noticed. Or that, during a crucial timeout, McAdoo won't be there to get in the face of Mario Chalmers or James Ennis and offer his sage advice and enthusiasm.

But the moves are necessary, even if they provide some disruption over the next few months.

With the Heat, a master plan is always in the works and having the right personnel to implement it is crucial to continued excellence.

Looking at the logjam at the four.

The Kings have an embarrassment of power forwards on the roster, so figuring out who might be the starter amongst them is a difficult question.  The question also remains relatively undefined.  When are we answering this question?  Given the Kings' history, it seems unlikely that the starting power forward on opening night will remain the starter throughout the season.  But let's dive in and evaluate the candidates.

Current power forwards on the roster include Carl Landry, Jason Thompson, Reggie Evans, Derrick Williams (a combo forward, but one who seems more often used at the 4, so we'll include him here), and Eric Moreland.  I'm also going to include Omri Casspi in this discussion, as he's seen a fari number of minutes as a small-ball 4 in recent seasons.  Although he's not officially on the Kings roster yet, his signing is just waiting on him to return to Sacramento.

Reggie Evans finished last year as the starting power forward, providing rebounding, hustle, and facial hair to the roster.  I was pleasantly surprised by Evans once he joined the Kings, and wouldn't be terribly shocked to see him starting again to open the season.

Carl Landry received a significant contract from the new regime last summer, only to lose last season to injuries.  If Landry is healthy, it wouldn't be surprising to see him slide in next to DeMarcus Cousins.  Landry excels off the bench, though, and didn't exactly thrive next to Cousins in his first stint in Sacramento.  While I don't think Landry is an ideal starting 4 next to Cousins, I'd put good money on the odds that he starts at least a handful of games this year.

Jason Thompson is the most tenured power forward, the most tenured King actually, on the roster, but he seems to clash with Cousins from a personality standpoint.  From a talent perspective, I think JT is the team's best power forward, but he's also the best back-up center, and seems to enjoy his time in the court better when it isn't shared with Boogie.  I think JT will mostly serve with the second team this season.

Derrick Williams as your starting power forward means something else has gone terribly, terribly wrong.  Let's not dwell on this.

Eric Moreland is the darkhorse.  He still needs to make the team's opening day roster, but his specific skill set makes us believe he has a chance.  He's an active defender, solid rebounder, and a most importantly, a rim protector.  I don't think he'll start anytime soon, but if his Summer League play can translate against pros, he might be by the end of the year.

Omri Casspi has played the 4, and will see some time at the 4 in smaller line-ups, but he shouldn't start there ever.

***

So, to the original question, who will be the Kings starting power forward?

Josh Smith, obviously.

Point guards. Pass-first, shoot-first, turnover-first point guards.

The fifth and final segment of our five-part, coma-inducing series looks at point guards. From 5-6 to 6-7, we've got ‘em all

A quick reminder about the criteria used here:

1.     50 game minimum. I was going to go with 75, but that's really just over a season when you consider the average number of games missed to injury. 50 is enough to make your mark (as the lists will prove).

2.     Overall contribution. A look at the numbers.

3.     Contribution beyond the box score. Though that wasn't enough to vault Jon Barry into the top 10.

4.     Subjectivity rules. And as it is my list, it is my subjectivity that reigns supreme. And subjectivity is the rule for the day as I go through this list.

5.     The selection of Joe Kleine cannot be argued...ever.

6.     No one forgets the Yeti!

Some good ones that just missed the cut: Randy Brown (great defensive guard!), Bobby Hurley (what might have been), Jim Les (our first 3-point specialist!), Ronnie Price (take that, Carlos Boozer!), and Rory Sparrow (who was once a Sports Illustrated Sportsmen of the Year).

10 - (Tie) Jason Terry &Sam Cassell

I keed, I keed. I just wanted to make sure that you were still paying attention.

10 - Tyus Edney

Tyus Edney was one of those magical things that came out of nowhere to help the Kings to their first playoff series in ten years. He was the 47^th pick of the 1995 draft (a pick that came to the Kings along with Mitch Richmond back in 1991). Edney could not have been drafted into a better situation. The team had only one point guard on the roster, and that was post-accident Hurley (Spud Webb had been traded in the off season, and Randy Brown left for Chicago and three straight NBA championships).

Edney would wind up starting 60 of 80 games in his rookie season, trailing only Mitch Richmond in minutes. Edney led the team in assists (his 491 almost doubled silver medalist Richmond's 255). His 6 assists per game also came with a 2.5/1 assist/turnover ratio, and he added almost 11 points and 1 steal per game.

The following season, the Kings obtained Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf, and he and Richmond became the primary starting back court, with Richmond running the offense. Edney's numbers dropped, the Kings missed the playoffs, and he signed with Boston as a free agent in the off season. Edney would be out of the league a year later, a victim of consistent injuries.

Edney compiled numbers of 9 and 5 (assists) plus a steal during his time as a Sacramento King, with a per 36 of 13 and 7.

9 - Larry DrewTo the way-back machine, again!

Like Mike Woodson (see yesterday's shooting guard list), Drew only played one season for Sacramento, arriving here from Kansas City in 1985. As a member of a core rotation of three guards along with Reggie Theus and Woodson, Drew averaged 12 (on 49% shooting) and 5 assists, adding a steal per game. He was a point guard that deferred largely to Theus - he had once averaged over 20 ppg while in KC.

Drew was traded after one season in Sacramento, with Woodson and a 1^st round pick that would become Hersey Hawkins, to the L.A. Clippers for  Derek Smith, Junior Bridgeman and Franklin Edwards. As mentioned yesterday, it stands today as the worst trade in Sacramento Kings history, one that set the franchise back for years.

8 - Beno UdrihOne man's trash is another man's treasure.

After three years (two championship seasons) in San Antonio, Beno Udrih was traded along with cash to Minnesota for a 2^nd round pick that never materialized. The Wolves waived Udrih, who then signed with the Kings for a little under $800k, leaving the Wolves to cover a little under $2m in salary with the cash that they had received from the Spurs. Yep, the 2007-08 Kings were so bad at guard behind Mike Bibby and Kevin Martin that they had to reach into the dumpster to sign a guy that neither the Spurs of Wolves wanted.

Udrih wound up being a nice find that season, as he started 51 games for an injured (and ultimately traded) Bibby, averaging 13 points on only 11 shots a game. This was the beginning of a consistent run for Beno, who averaged between 11 and 14 ppg (never taking more than 10.6 shots per game) and 4-5 assists over his four year run with the Kings. He was basically a 13 (on 10 shots) and 5 guy overall. He was also the last King to possess anything resembling a consistent mid-range game.

Udrih was dealt to Milwaukee along with the #7 pick in the 2011 draft for John Salmons and the #10 pick, which would become Jimmer Fredette, the 2^nd worst trade in Sacramento Kings history (see #7 for details).

Fun fact: Udrih is the 2^nd greatest NBA player of all-time with a last name starting with the letter "U," trailing only Wes Unseld. Apologies to Ime Udoka.

7 - Spud Webb Before 5-9, there was 5-7. And before C-Webb wore #4, S-Webb wore #4.

Rumor has it that when Webb was traded in 1991 along with the draft pick that would eventually become Lawrence Funderburke to Sacramento from Atlanta for Travis Mays, Mitch Richmond welcomed him with a hearty "Welcome to hell!"

Webb would prove to be pretty durable during his four years in Sacramento, playing in 92% of possible games and averaging almost 34 minutes a night. His numbers of 14 and 7 (assists) were highly respectable, and his assist/turnover ratio of 2.6/1 was solid. He also added better than a steal per game. Webb led the NBA in free throw shooting in 1994-95 with a percentage of 93.4%.

The Kings traded Webb back to Atlanta in 1996 for Ty Corbin, a curious move considering that the Kings really only had Hurley and rookie Edney at point guard at the time. He would really only play one more NBA season.

6 - Kenny Smith Kenny Smith was drafted with the 6^th pick of the 1987 draft. Kevin Johnson went with next pick. Mark Jackson (my personal favorite at the time), went 18^th. The selection of Smith over Johnson hurt the Kings in the long run, but Smith himself was a solid pick - he was probably a top 6-7 player from that draft.

Smith would play about two and a half seasons in a Kings uniform, averaging 16 and 7 assists and better than a steal. His best season was 1988-89, his second with the Kings, as he averaged 17 and almost 8 assists.

Smith wasn't the problem for the Kings that went 24-58 and 27-55 in his two full seasons in Sacramento, but he wasn't the cure, either. The Kings shipped Smith to Atlanta (the early day Houston, apparently) along with Mike Williams for Antoine Carr and Sedric Toney.

5 - Isaiah Thomas (You are allowed to substitute Alex Oriakhi and a player trade exception in this spot if you so desire...but I'm not bitter, and that's the important thing.)

Thomas was selected with the 60^th and final pick of the 2011 draft, obtained a year earlier along with Darnell Jackson when Jon Brockman was dealt to Milwaukee (the Bucks would get even with us later...see #8).

Thomas was drafted into a situation where Tyreke Evans appeared to be the incumbent point guard under head coach Paul Westphal, and Jimmer Fredette, drafted 10^th, had the inside track on being the backup point guard. Thomas was fighting for one of the last chairs on the bench, or so it seemed at the time.

Westphal was fired seven games into Thomas' rookie season, and new coach Keith Smart began giving Thomas legitimate burn almost immediately. Thomas took over as the starting point guard 29 games into the season, and wound up winning Rookie of the Month honors twice and securing a spot on the NBA all-rookie 2^nd team.

Thomas would show improvement over his following two seasons, with his 2013-14 season being his high water mark, posting 21 ppg and adding almost 7 assists, though his 2.1/1 assist/turnover ratio was sub-standard. Thomas proved himself to be a big shot taker and maker, and a very efficient offensive player. He was traded to Phoenix after signing a 4 year, $27m offer sheet. The Kings received a $7m player trade exception and Alex Oriakhi in return.

4 - Bobby Jackson Isaiah Thomas, v1.0, but bigger and playing for a much, much, much better team.

For the money (5 years, $13.5m), this may have been Geoff Petrie's greatest free agent signing. Jackson had just wrapped up his 3^rd NBA season. After a promising rookie campaign in Denver, B-Jax backslid a bit in his two seasons in Minnesota. Petrie brought him to Sacramento in the hopes of fortifying the bench. Jackson responded by becoming one of the best 6^th men in the game, winning the award in 2002-03. He was also a very capable spot starter when Mike Bibby was injured.

Jackson's numbers - 11, 3, 2, 1 (per 36 of 17, 5, 4, 2) - don't begin to tell the whole story. He was fearless. He would drive up Shaq's chest without hesitation. This was not always to Jackson's benefit, who missed several games due to various injuries. But he was the fiercest competitor on the Kings best teams.

Jackson was traded to Memphis along with Greg Ostertag for Bonzi Wells in 2005. He would return to the Kings in 2008 as part of a trade with Houston that would also net the Kings Donté Greene and Omri Casspi in return for Ron Artest, Sean Singletary and Patrick Ewing, Jr.

3 - Jason Williams Smoke ‘em if you got ‘em!

Three seasons. An 11 and 6 man with a tepid 2.2/1 assist/turnover ratio. He would get you better than a steal per game. But he helped to usher in the Kings golden era, and his value netted the Kings Mike Bibby.

Williams was drafted with the 7^th pick of the 1998 draft. Would the Kings have been better off with Dirk Nowitzki (drafted 9^th) or Paul Pierce (drafted 10^th)? Hard to say, as that would have changed everything, impacting the Bibby trade, Peja Stojakovic and perhaps even Doug Christie. Williams was named to the NBA all-rookie 1^st team.

Williams was the just what the franchise needed. He woke up the fan base, energized Chris Webber, and made Kings basketball something other than a punchline.

Williams was traded to Vancouver along with Nick Anderson for Mike Bibby and Brent Price in 2001.

Statistically, Williams could be placed on the lower half of this list. But for who he was and what he did and when he did it, I'm giving him the #3 spot.

2 - Reggie Theus

Reggie Theus came to Sacramento when the team moved from Kansas City. In his three seasons in Sacramento, Theus played in 95% of possible games. This includes when he face planted the hardwood floor and broke his jaw. If memory serves, Theus was back the next night.

20 ppg (before the 3-point shot was in vogue). 8 assists per game (before assists were a bit easier to attain via the 3-point shot and relaxed statistical standards).

Theus was traded to Atlanta in 1988 for Randy Wittman and the draft pick that would become Ricky Berry.

1 - Mike Bibby And Team Dime rejoices.

His shot in game 5 of the 2002 Western Conference Championship may be the biggest shot in Sacramento history (it's my favorite). And his numbers are excellent: an 18 and 5 man as a King, adding a steal and 3 boards. 3^rd all-time in 3-pointers made by a King, 3^rd in games, 1^st in assists.

And he adjusted his game when he came to Sacramento, as he had been a more traditional facilitator while in Vancouver. Petrie did a masterful job of recognizing Bibby's potential, as well as understanding that a point guard that was a bit less ball-dominant would benefit the movement-oriented offense and players. Bibby probably could have been an all-star for a lot of other teams that would have been more dependent on him to handle and dish. But he adjusted to his role here, and both he and his team flourished.

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There you have it. A week of the off-season is burned beyond recognition, and my work here is done.