An optimistic outlook for the Kings. The question, JoMaL, do you agree?
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In one crazy year, Petrie rebuilds high-flying Kings into hard-nosed team
By GREG BEACHAM, AP Sports Writer
February 8, 2006
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) -- When Mike Bibby and Brad Miller show up for practice these days, they sometimes wonder if they've been traded to another team.
With one dramatic departure after another over the last two seasons, nearly everything has changed in Sacramento. Though the last-place Kings have reached the playoffs in seven straight seasons, they bear almost no resemblance to the club that showcased one of the NBA's most flowing offenses while earning two Pacific Division titles and falling a few missed free throws short of the 2002 NBA Finals.
"Change always happens in this league, but we made a lot of changes pretty quick," said Miller, the two-time All-Star center who joined the Kings in 2003. "I guess it's exciting. It is, but it's tough, too."
Sensing the decline of his masterwork before anyone else, Geoff Petrie embarked on a whirlwind of moves highlighted by high-salaried star Chris Webber's departure for Philadelphia last February. By trading Peja Stojakovic to Indiana last month, the Kings parted with the last holdover from the first edition of the perennial contender Petrie built in the late 1990s.
Petrie, the Kings' president of basketball operations, claims the trades were emotionally difficult, but it's difficult to tell whether one of the NBA's most secretive executives means it.
Though he had great affection for the departed Webber, Stojakovic, Vlade Divac, Doug Christie and Bobby Jackson, Petrie also seems to relish the challenge of building another winner from scratch.
"The team that we had could not continue to exist," Petrie said. "Because of age, injury, it could not get to that same level. It had to change. I wish this team could have been frozen in time for 10 years, but that's not the reality."
The speed of the demolition job was stunning, with four big trades and two significant free-agent signings in the last 14 months alone. But the bigger surprise is the Kings' new look: Petrie has rebuilt his high-scoring team into a veteran club with several strong defenders and a mix of volatile personalities.
The gamble suits owners Joe and Gavin Maloof. After being away from Sacramento for large parts of the season to tend to family and business matters, they were back on the sidelines Tuesday night when Ron Artest, Shareef Abdur-Rahim, Bonzi Wells and the reconfigured Kings played awkward offense and solid defense in a 98-91 win over Denver.
Bibby and promising second-year guard Kevin Martin were the only players in uniform who had been with the team for more than a calendar year. Miller, out with a broken finger, is the only other holdover from the team that finished 2003-04 with a seven-game loss to Minnesota in the conference semifinals.
The Kings' new look will take months to perfect, and some believe the transition won't be complete unless another coach replaces Rick Adelman, whose offense-first approach has been remarkably successful, but might not work with his current roster.
But Adelman believes he can adjust. Against the Nuggets, he put Artest in charge of his half-court offense -- one of many significant changes possible with his new roster.
Artest, with a long history of stellar first impressions, has been charming and charismatic since joining the Kings, his one-day hesitation on the trade notwithstanding. His hustle is thrilling to Sacramento fans who have watched their losing team trudge through this season.
Sacramento has enjoyed success with players who have been problems elsewhere, from Webber and Jason Williams to Vernon Maxwell and Jon Barry. Artest already can feel the love in Arco Arena.
"Sac is different. I love Indiana, but it's different out here," Artest said. "The crowd is unbelievable. When I was in Indy, the crowd fed off me. Here, sometimes I wasn't even in the game, and they were going crazy."
In his first three games with Sacramento, Artest repeatedly exhorted his teammates to talk more on defense. He also took Martin and rookie Francisco Garcia under his wing defensively.
"Young guys need to be reminded of what it takes to be a good defensive player," the 26-year-old Artest said. "I just try to help out and tell guys what other guys told me when I came in the league."
