If you’ve been looking to get one of the Reke DMC or Donte Greene inspired “Go Greene” t-shirts or hoodies, now is the time. Spreadshop is offering free standard shipping this weekend by using the code “FREEWEEKEND” (without the quotes, obviously). Just thought I’d pass the info along.

Click here to get your shirts. If you want something custom, let me know by dropping me an e-mail via the contact page.

In the big scheme of things, this probably wont matter all that much. Probably.  We’ve still got training camp battles to go, but, I figured with King news so slow right now, it was worth the looking into.

The Kings rotation of big men is a welcome change from years past. Let’s not forget, only a few short seasons ago our big man hopes were on the shoulders of a Mikki Moore *shudders*. With Samuel Dalembert, Thompson, Landry, Cousins, and Whiteside all clogging up the lane – King fans might not recognize this so called thing of “defense” that we’ll be seeing nightly. I know, I know – it’s a mythical object – an elusive creature that hasn’t been seen in the Sacramento area since the early 2000’s, but its fought its way back from extinction.

So let’s start with what we do know. Kings second round draft pick Hassan Whiteside isn’t in the mix to be starting or even receiving any healthy playing time barring an injury. As much as I love the kid and think he’ll be an important cog in the Kings future, he still has a lot to learn about the NBA game. I’m sure we’ll see him take the Donte Greene route and spend a bit of time in the biggest little city in the world. In addition, one has to figure, at least to start the season, Samuel Dalembert will be the starting center coming out of camp. He brings the best defensive presence, he’s a vet, and he brings the most stability to the position (at least for now). Things could always change, but, I have a hard time seeing the Kings replace Dalembert at the starting five with Thompson or Cousins to start the season. Things could very well be different a few months into the season, but to start, I can’t see it.

With all of that said, we’re now left with Cousins, Thompson, and Landry to fight out the starting power forward position. Cousins certainly made a case with his summer league performance that he deserves a shot at the starting job, but his conditioning and foul tendencies would have to improve greatly before October for him to have a real chance. The Kings might feel letting Cousins slide into the role would be much more beneficial to the rookie, seeing as he was more than comfortable coming off the bench at Kentucky last season. The bench role will also give Cousins some versatility, being able to come in at the power forward or center, depending on the situation.

So that leaves us with Landry and Thompson. Landry, for all that he is, he is not a backup center on most nights. He simply doesn’t have the size needed. Thompson can play either the four or the five, and while he did play a touch better at center – it wasn’t dramatic.

As a center, Thompson averaged 35 minutes a game, shot 52% (5.9 of 11.2), grabbed 9.7 boards and put up 13.6 points.

As a power forward, Thompson averaged 32 minutes a game, shot shot 45% (5 of 10.9), grabbed 8.5 rebounds and put up 12.8 points a game.

However, there was one glaring difference between Thompson the power forward and Thompson the center. In 35 minutes a game at the center position, Thompson averaged 2.8 personal fouls. At the four slot, Thompson averaged 4.1 – more fouls in less time.

So that leaves us Carl Landry. It seems all but obvious now that Landry should start at the four, letting Thompson back up Dalembert at center being Thompson stays on the floor playing the five, right? Well…let’s look at Landry’s starter/bench splits:

As a starter, Landry averaged 37 minutes and shot at a 51.7% (6.9 of 13.4), grabbing 6.5 boards and putting up 17.8 a game.

As a bench player, Landry averaged 27 minutes and shot 55% (5.8 of 10.6), grabbing 5.5 boards and putting up 16.2 a game.

Both stat lines are impressive any way you slice it, but Landry does seem to be more effective coming off the bench. But somebody has to start at the power forward position, and it looks like Carl Landry defaults into that category.

So, with all of this said….who do you want starting come opening night for the Kings?

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As many of you have heard by now, former NBA big man Lorenzen Wright has been found dead. Wright went missing early last week, last seen leaving his ex-wife’s home after visiting her and his children.

Early reports say Wright was killed by a self inflicted gunshot wound, though, it makes little sense for anybody to speculate on what happened to the former King.

While Wright’s time in purple and black was short (5 games with 13 total minutes played), his charm and personality were anything but. Wright was one of the class acts in the NBA, a hard working, strong willed, gentle giant if you will.

Here is a short but worth while interview with Wright, conducted by Andrew Nicholson during Wright’s time in Sacramento:

What stood out to you about the Kings during your short time in Sacramento?
“I’ve only been here for a short amount of time, but I’ve seen the team really improve a lot. We really worked hard and came out playing together every night. The team’s gotten a lot better and I’m sure next year will be a whole lot better.”What is your goal for next season?
“My goal is just to win. I want to be winning on the court and helping somebody win.”

How are you able to maintain such a positive attitude?
“I try to be a professional. I want the young guys to see me acting right. You can always say that you want to be out there on the floor and playing, but when you’re not in the team’s rotation, there’s nothing you can do about it. You just have to keep a positive attitude about it until it’s your turn.”

Which teammate’s play surprised you most?
“I didn’t know Kevin could score as easily as he does. He can get to 20 points so quickly and easily. Mikki Moore comes out and works hard every night. I respect the way he plays a lot more since I’ve been able to be here and see him play. There’s a lot of good talent on this team and I’ve enjoyed my time here.”

RIP, Lo.

As was expected, Tyreke Evans along with O.J. Mayo, JaVale McGee & Gerald Wallace were all cut from the World Championships roster, according to John Schuhmann. Evans was a long shot to make the team had he stayed healthy, but the ankle injury early in camp all but sealed his fate from the start. And in all honesty, great as Reke is playing the NBA style game, I’m not sure how well his game would have translated into the more Euro/World style of ball. His strength and size would have dominated, but his lack of a consistent outside shot could have created some struggles for him, IMO – especially with the overload of talent on the USA roster.

I know I said it before, and it’s oh so very selfish of me as a King fan  – but I’d rather see Reke healthy and getting ready for the Sacramento Kings season than the World Championships. An 82 game grind is awfully rough, and even though he did so last year (and passed with flying colors) any added “downtime” will benefit him in the long run. His off-season training is more than enough to keep him in shape without getting too worn down come the grinds of a nightly 82 game stretch of double and triple teams.

[thinks out-loud]Huh. That last sentence sounds like the life of a pornstar…[/thinks out-loud]

With the popularity of the Reke DMC shirts, we’ve been getting a lot of requests for other players. We’ll roll out more as the season gets closer, but, our most recent offering will be on behalf of Buckets, also known as Donte Greene.

If you’re interested in getting a Donte Green, “Go Greene” shirt…follow this link.

The color options are variable – I’ve had a lot of requests for a purple shirt/green logo, etc…so mix and match away.

Yes, it’s still the end of July. That means we’ve still got nearly three full months until the purple and black take the floor for a meaningful game. Many things can and still will happen when it comes to Western Conference rosters, Kings included. But with so much change taking place in the 2010 free agency, especially in the Western Conference…it’s got me thinking, where exactly are the Kings going to land?

The Kings were 14th out of 15th in the West last year, but I’m not sure that matters so much since the 2009/10 opening night depth chart has been more or less completely overhauled. Let’s take a look at the changes:

2009/10 opening night starting lineup:

PG – Tyreke Evans

SG – Kevin Martin

SF – Desmond Mason

PF – Jason Thompson

C -  Sean May

By the end of the season, Tyreke Evans was the only constant in that opening night lineup. Mason was released. May was pushed to the end of the bench. Martin was injured and only played a handful of games before being traded to Houston. And Thompson was in and out of the starting lineup for most of the season.

Attempting to come up with the 2010/2011 Kings starting lineup right now would be nothing but speculation, so I wont attempt to try. But let’s look at the overhaul of the rosters from the start of last season to the start of the 2010/2011 season.

Incoming: DeMarcus Cousins (draft), Hassan Whiteside (draft), Samuel Dalembert (trade), Carl Landry (trade), Antoine Wright (free agent), and Pooh Jeter (free agent)

Outgoing: Spencer Hawes (trade), Andres Nocioni (trade), Kevin Martin (trade), Sergio Rodriguez (trade), Ime Udoka (free agent), Jon Brockman (trade)

Yes, you’ll notice I excluded a few players who played limited games/minutes since they weren’t really relevant to the conversation, but that’s a complete overhaul in a years time. Add into the fact that last years 25 win Kings:

A) had Kevin Martin miss half the season before being traded.

B) had Francisco Garcia miss nearly the entire season.

C) had two rookies, Tyreke Evans and Omri Casspi along with second year players Jason Thompson and Donte Greene playing heavy minutes.

Essentially, I’m saying while the Kings won 25 games last year, a healthy King team wins 30 possibly? Maybe 33? A year older, a year improved, much more depth and size – it’s impossible to say the Kings haven’t improved. It’s just a matter of how much.

Many teams in the West’s lower half all have huge question marks going into this season. Is Yao Ming going to be healthy in Houston? Not only that, will he be effective? Will Zach Randolph and Memphis return to reality and realize Zach Randolph is their best player? What happens with the Hornets and Chris Paul? Will the Clippers stay healthy? What in the world is going on in the Bay with the Warriors? And of course, I didn’t forget the KAHHHHHHHHHHNNNNN experiment in Minnesota.

Then when you examine the upper half, there are just as many question marks. How will Utah do with Al Jefferson replacing Carlos Boozer? What about the Suns replacing Amare and Barbosa with Turk, Childress, and Warrick? How will the Spurs be, another year older and some Tony Parker being unhappy turmoil thrown into the mix?

The Kings will be better than the 14th seed in the West this year, but, how far do they take it?

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Well so much for the Chris Quinn idea. Today the Kings announced that they not only signed Antoine Wright (as mentioned below and broken by Tim Cowlishaw and Sactown Royalty), but they’ve also signed point guard Pooh Jeter to a one year deal. Inside Hoops was first to break the story.

Jeter has played for the Kings previously, although only as a 2006 summer league invite. The Kings reportedly have always had a bit of an eye on Jeter and he was a rumored summer league invite for this season, but ended up playing for the Cavs summer squad where he averaged nearly 15 points a game and 5.4 assists.

Pooh Jeter has spent the past four years playing overseas and also played for the D-League Colorado 14ers in 2006-2007.

No word on if the contract is fully guaranteed (doubtful) or if this Jeter could play shortstop for the Giants.

Update:

Looks like the contract is guaranteed according to DraftExpress. Thanks to khoffman3113 for the tip.

Also, the very gracious Pooh posted this on his twitter:

God is good all the time and All the time God is good. Dreams come true yall. Always Believe. And thanks for the messages. Tears of Joy!!

So um, how bout the Kings take a look at, uh…*looks down at the ground*…*mumbles*…Chris Quinn?

I know, I know. Stop rolling your eyes and trying to vomit. Put the pitchforks down for a few moments…

The Kings seem to need two things – another ball handler and a perimeter shooter. Two things that really don’t have much availability on their lonesome, and appear downright impossible to find at a discount rate for the Kings.

Chris isn’t anything special nor am I touting him to be. He’s not the biggest guy in the world at 6′2/175. He’s not a great scorer. He lacks a lot of physical gifts that many point guards have. And I’d say he’s a below average defender. Sounds fantastic so far, yes? But for all of his short comings, he’s a very solid offensive point guard in terms of running the show. He’s an extremely smart player who sees the floor well. He has a microscopic turnover rate, 2.1/0.6 career average and most importantly he boosts a career 39% 3pt shot (one that was even higher prior to his poor season in 2009-10).

In 26 career starts, the 26 year old Quinn has averaged nearly 12 points a game, 5 assists to 1.5 turnovers, all on 40.4% from the arc. He produces quality when given the time. I think he’d be a solid backup at discount price and help bring a sense of calm to the second unit for 15-20 minutes a game.

And oh. You can raise the pitchforks again. Just try not to mess up my hair. I’m stylin’ like a mutha today.

As first broken yesterday by Dallas’ own Tim Cowlishaw and then confirmed by Sactown Royalty, the Sacramento Kings have indeed signed former Net, Maverick, and Raptor small forward Antoine Wright to a one year contract. The move all but ends the short Ime Udoka era in purple and black.

Wright was the 15th selection in the 2005 draft by the Nets and departed Texas A&M as the 10th leading scorer in school history despite leaving after his Junior season. Unfortunately, his collegiate success hasn’t translated as well into the NBA as he’ll be playing for his third team in three seasons and his fourth overall.

He’s certainly not the marksmen most King fans were hoping for, but he is a solid (and at some points, even better than that…) defender. And when given ample floor time, he’s been prone to some very solid offensive outbursts.

My feelings on the deal? Meh. It’s not what the Kings were in need of, but, they needed to replace Ime as it seems he wasn’t returning. They also needed to add salary to meet the minimum requirements and needed another body on the roster. Wright fits all of those needs and he’s a decent defender. It’s maybe not what we were hoping for right now, but, it gets the job done. And on a one year contract, you can’t really complain too much.

I don’t think the Sacramento Team Store needs to worry about stocking too many Wright jerseys though.

According to the Star Tribune…

On being something of a youtube sensation for a contentious NBA TV interview with Chris Webber from NBA Summer League last week: “He’s kind of a schmuck, isn’t he? Methinks that he spent a lot of time on NBA TV with a former Timberwolves person and he seemed to come into the interview with an agenda. Tough questions are fine, but I felt like was a little defensive about some of the  things.”

Via AlexKennedy

I’m not even sure where to go with this. I’m really not. A schmuck? Really?

I don’t know about you, but, I pretty much picture David Kahn running around his house wielding a light saber (without batteries, of course), shirtless in his Care Bear under-roo’s, making zoooooooooorm noises as he attempts to annihilate the arm on his chair that he dressed up as a Storm Trooper. That of course after he spent about 15 minutes making failed trades on NBA 2k10 and then asking his magic 8-ball if Wesley Johnson is a better small forward than Larry Bird.

The most ironic thing about this is how much he slobbed Christ Webb’s knob on the NBA TV interview.

The laughing stock of the NBA just continues to pile up ammunition that even North Korea is jealous of.