When the Sacramento Kings met up with the Atlanta Hawks on Friday at newly crowned Sleep Train Arena (sounds good to have Arena back in the name), a couple of goals must have been in mind. First, play better than they did the week before and second, hope Tyreke’s jumper was coming into form. I guess you could say they went one-for-two as they lost to the Hawks 112-96 in a game that had the loyal fans on their feet booing in the closing moments, but on the bright side, Tyreke Evans' shot is looking better one game at a time. THE PLAY Booing at the obvious lack of effort and an insufficient amount of offensive movement at times shows the fans in attendance (only 11,814 on a Friday) still

Photos by Ron Nabity Sacramento's James Johnson blocks a shot attempt by Portland's Nicolas Batum in the first period. Thomas Robinson watches his layup bounce on the rim. Sacramento's Jimmer Fredette tips a rebound in the first period against the Portland Trailblazers. Marcus Thornton collects a loose ball at the Trailblazers' end of the court. Thomas Robinson (right) and Jason Thompson sprint across court after Robinson scored in the second period. Portland's J.J. Hickson drives against the Kings' Thomas Robinson in the second period. Chuck Hayes directs his team during play against the Portland Trailblazers on Tuesday evening. Marcus Thornton drives the hoop during the third per

Second-year guard Jimmer Fredette is making the most of the limited playing time that he’s getting due to a deep Sacramento Kings bench. Fredette has seen his minutes cut down with the acquisition of point guard Aaron Brooks, who is now backing up Isaiah Thomas, a position Fredette assisted with last season. Fredette has appeared in three of the Kings five games, averaging just 8.3 minutes per game after averaging 18.6 minutes per game last season. Head coach Keith Smart understands the challenge ahead of him in trying to keep the guys pleased with their playing time. “It’s going to be a hard group to make sure everyone gets an equal time, and it’s not going to happen,” Smart said. “We’

It was one of the ugliest starts I’ve ever seen in a Kings’ game—regular or preseason. Less than five minutes into the game, the Kings’ starting center and point guard, DeMarcus Cousins and Aaron Brooks, had picked up two early fouls each that took the team completely out of their up-tempo game. The Sacramento Kings never could recover from—at one point—a 15-point deficit, and lost to its rivals the Golden State Warriors 98-88 at Sleep Train Arena on Wednesday, Oct. 17, in front of 10,708 fans. After closely watching the position battle at the small forward spot during the Monday, Oct. 15, contest against the Trailblazers, I thought I’d focus my attention toward what is quickly becoming

What has to happen for the Sacramento Kings to surprise everyone and make a playoff run this year? Does Tyreke Evans need to have the breakout year that everyone's been waiting for? Does the new, in-shape DeMarcus Cousins need to show he's as mature as he is talented? Or does Thomas Robinson need to prove he was worth a fifth overall draft pick? Perhaps all that, and a little something more. James Ham, a Kings beat reporter with the blog Cowbell Kingdom, said he thinks a playoff run from the Kings is unlikely, but possible. He thinks the deciding factor will be whether the players can "put aside the egos," come together as a whole and get on board with Coach Keith Smart's vision for the

Buckle up, ladies and gents, as it’s that time of the year again! The time to cheer like madmen and madwomen for your purple-and-black court warriors is just around the corner. The Kings kicked off their 27th season in Sacramento with their annual Media Day on Monday afternoon. The event saw many new faces in the royal purple, black and white, along with the returning core from last year, as they get ready for their second season under the leadership of head coach Keith Smart. With the influx of several new players — Thomas Robinson (first-round draft pick), along with Aaron Brooks and James Johnson (free-agent signees) — comes the chance to change up the starting rotation, or find a pu

Former Sacramento King Donte Greene is set to hold the second annual Goon Squad Classic on Aug. 10 at Cosumnes River College in Sacramento, Calif. Although it appears that Greene will not be playing for the Kings again, Greene wanted to give the fans another chance to attend his charity basketball game, the Goon Squad Classic. The game started last season during the NBA’s holdout, prompting Greene to want to give basketball to the Sacramento region, and benefit numerous charities with the money raised. “It was in high demand,” Greene said. “I got a great response from the fans, and they wanted me to do another game, and we planned it during the season to hold another one, thinking I will

As I sat in the Sacramento Kings media room at Power Balance Pavilion on Thursday afternoon, my heart sank when the Charlotte Bobcats took Michael Kidd-Gilchrist with the second overall pick of the 2012 NBA draft. A small forward that can score at the rim is a burning need for the team and I was really looking forward to watching this kid’s defensive and rebounding skills along with the motor he brings to the table. Guys like him don’t lower their level of play — they make the other players on the team raise their collective enthusiasm and desire for the game. But when Dion Waiters, a shooting guard out of Syracuse, was picked by the Cleveland Cavaliers with the fourth overall pick in th

When I ran into Tyreke Evans and his brothers, Doc and Reggie last week, the burning question I had was whether ‘Reke was going to start the season at the one or the three position. More importantly, would "Team Tyreke," the group of family members and friends that watch over him and his career, be happy if the guy who fell in love with the way Derrick Rose handled the rock had to start the season at the small forward spot? “Do I think that it’s his natural position? No,” Doc Evans said. “Do I think that’s a position that he could play as a relief? Yes. But I prefer him to be at the one and sometimes the two, because with the ball in his hands, it creates a mismatch for smaller guards.”

Team Tyreke. No, this is not a basketball rec league you can join or Evans’ fantasy league team either. It’s the ultimate story of “it takes a village to raise a child.” It’s a group of mainly family members that put everything they have to offer into helping a young man focus solely on basketball and charity in a world that demands attention at every turn. Team Tyreke seems to have covered the bases and consists of several important folks. Reggie Evans, 40, who already had a successful career with Communication Test Design Inc., was the first one to bring up the idea of the family taking charge of their little brother’s career. He handles most of the managerial aspects of Tyreke’s lif

Not all the Kings players are out of town. Not only is Tyreke Evans in town, but he’s here doing two of his favorite things — working out and working with kids. On Thursday, June 14, Evans teamed up with VSP Vision Care at the Dr. Ephraim Williams Family Life Center in the Oak Park section of Sacramento for his second annual free basketball camp for students in need. The kids were selected by the Family Life Center as well as by VSP partners Asian Resources and the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Sacramento. About 100 kids were able to shoot hoops, participate in a Q-and-A session and even get some classroom training alongside Evans and mentors from the Positive Coaching Alliance. Tomorr

The Sacramento Kings defeated their Pacific Division rival the Los Angeles Lakers 113-96 at Power Balance Pavilion Thursday night in the final game of the season. With the win, the Kings finished 22-44 for the season. The Kings were 16-17 at home and only 6-27 on the road, a number they will have to increase if they want to succeed in the NBA. Prior to the start of the game, Kings star DeMarcus Cousins came to center court and thanked the fans for being a great sixth man all year long, which brought a loud applause from the 16,281 in attendance. Though the Lakers sat all of their starters in anticipation for the beginning of the postseason on Saturday, the Kings began the game strong an

If it wasn’t enough that it was Grateful Dead night and fans that bought the special ticket package got to talk to the legendary Bill Walton, members of the band and got a special T-shirt to mark the occasion. Then, the only player in NBA history to average a triple-double for an entire season, former Kansas City Royal Oscar Robertson was being recognized. How about that it was Fan Appreciation Night at the ole barn and nearly half in attendance was rewarded with some kind of prize for being a loyal purple-wearing fan. And finally, outstanding Rookie-of-the-Year candidate Isaiah Thomas was honored as this year’s winner of the team’s Oscar Robertson Triple Double Award during the game. Oh,

As the season winds down, the challenge becomes: How do you keep a 20-41 team still yearning for more wins and team cohesion? How about play the San Antonio Spurs (45-16) in front of a nearly packed house and learn from the seemingly simple way the team from Texas goes about its everyday business? The plan worked for 24 minutes. After halftime, the Spurs decided to lay the smackdown and really show the Sacramento Kings (20-42) how the formula translates on the floor by outscoring the home team 69-42 in the second half on way to a 127-102 rout at Power Balance Pavilion Wednesday evening. The good news was that the Kings took an early 6-0 lead on the backs of Tyreke Evans and Jason Thomps

The Sacramento Kings dropped their fourth straight game as they fell to the Houston Rockets 104-87 at Power Balance Pavilion Sunday night. Sacramento came out with little energy, and it showed as the Rockets jumped to a quick 10-2 lead and never trailed the rest of the game. “We just didn’t have a lot of energy tonight, and that’s something we’ve got to work on,” Kings guard Jimmer Fredette said. “We’ve got to continue to get better at that and come bring it every single night so we are disappointed with ourselves.” After scoring at least 99 points in their previous 12 games, the Kings have been held to under 85 points in their last three games. Coach Keith Smart attributes this to the

One would think, in a game billed as the “Throwdown Showdown,” a battle between a couple of the game’s best dunkers in Donte Greene and DeMarcus Cousins for the Kings and DeAndre Jordan and Blake Griffin for the visiting Clippers, that there would be a ton of action at the rim. Not the case, as Sacramento’s front line did a solid job of protecting the paint against the bigs from Los Angeles. Unfortunately, it was the guards of the Clippers who did the damage in the key on various drives to the basket by Chris Paul, Randy Foye, Nick Young and Eric Bledsoe. Each of them scored in double figures and constantly pushed the ball into the lane as the Kings lost 93-85 Thursday evening at Power B

The Sacramento Kings were unable to achieve back-to-back wins as they fell to Steve Nash and the Phoenix Suns for the third time this season Tuesday night at Power Balance Pavilion. DeMarcus Cousins did all he could, leading all scorers with a career-high 41 points en route to the 109-100 loss. Cousins also hauled in 12 rebounds and shot 16-25 from the field. “He had a career night taking advantage of their interior,” Kings coach Keith Smart said. “We had him posting up in different areas on the floor, so he had both baseline- and middle-drive. Then they started doubling, and that’s something that’s going to happen to him as he grows as a pro.” But not even Cousins’ monster game could o

GAME RECAP At first glance, Saturday’s game between the Sacramento Kings and the New Jersey Nets was a match up between two equally struggling teams. The Nets carried an 18 - 35 (.340) record into Power Balance Pavilion, while the Kings, last in the Pacific Division, were 18 - 33 (.353). But, the Kings play better at home so, Advantage: Kings? Not necessarily. The New Jersey Nets are one of only two teams to play better on the road than at home, and the only team to play substantially better. So it was that the Nets left town with a 111 - 91 win, and remained undefeated on their current swing west. The home team started well. Playing crisply, the Kings led throughout the first quarter.

In a tit-for-tat, intense game, the Sacramento Kings lost on Thursday at Power Balance Pavilion by one point to the Utah Jazz with a final score of 103 to 102. Both teams had won their last three games, so the pressure was on the Kings to keep it up. After the game, Kings Head Coach Keith Smart said, “Overall I thought (the Kings) did a good job … (The Jazz is) a good quality team, good quality pro big men. They made some plays that they’re accustomed to making, but yet our group was right there, one rebound away from winning (the) game.” Al Jefferson of the Jazz made the first two points, but Jason Thompson’s layup evened things out 30 seconds later. The first quarter moved at this po

In this year of ups and downs, consistency has been the Sacramento Kings missing piece.  After losing two games that the Kings should have won against lesser opponents last week, the team then beat two upper-echelon teams with relative ease. A win would give the team three in a row and would seem to have them on track in digesting and displaying coach Keith Smart’s system. A loss, and the roller coaster ride would continue. So when the Memphis Grizzlies came to town Tuesday evening, the question was, which Kings team would show up? The short answer: the good one. The Kings took over in the first quarter by scoring 37 points and never looked back in downing the Grizzlies 119-110 at Powe