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and
Milwaukee. There's a lot of $$$ at stake, as far as
the tv ratings are concerned, and as well as NBC'S
sponsors are concerned. Do you think Nestle would
rather their Shaq commercials run when Shaq is still
in the playoffs ? As far as Nestle is concerned, those
Shaq commercials won't have the same impact if its
Sacramento vs. Milwaukee in the finals.
I
imagine the media will be against us, as well as the
zebras, AND NBC's announcing crew.
I
live in LA, and I cannot stress enough how important
it is that our fans go crazy at Arco for games 3 &
4. When I'm watching the game on t.v., I want to see
50 people lined up behind the Fakers' bench banging
cowbells behind Phil Jackson. I'm SERIOUS.
Jackson
has made it explicitly clear that he wants to take
personal shots at JWill with his comments about "sniffing
luggage," so I say RIGHT BACK AT YOU PHIL.
Phil has been divorced twice and has five adult children.
NONE of his five children are on speaking terms with
him, according to an article published in the LA Times
last year. Certainly, there are some things that can
be said to Phil from behind the bench about his OWN
children not wanting anything to do with him.
Go
Kings.
I
am a Sacramento King
Josef
De Jesus
I
am a Sacramento King. Chris Webber said that. And
I am happy for I am a Sacramento Kings fan.
Since
I live in the land of the enemies, I heard a lot of
jokes about the coming series between Kings &
Lakers. Well, it's tough to take but somehow, they
made sense.
Number
1: That this series will be a good practice games
for the Lakers.
Number
2: That the Kings fans need to go to church frequently
to pray for a miracle.
Number
3: That the Kings acted like kids after winning the
series against the Suns.
Number
4: That the Kings will be Queens after the series.
Number
5: That the Kings are dreamers and will end their
run this year as a dreamer.
I
don't have to list everything I heard from my L.A.
friends. They are just too confident that this series
is over even before it starts.
As
a Kings fan, I realize that the L.A. Lakers (organization
& fans) do have a strong point in treating the
comeback Kings. Our Kings never showed yet the dexterity
to win it all.
Let
us face the facts.
We
should have won the Pacific title if we just pushed
it harder at the end of the season. But we didn't.
We
lost the 1st game against Phoenix, lost the home court
advantage, and scared all us Kings fans.
We
have the habit of allowing the opponent to be ahead
by more than so many points and always expect to remain
a victor at the end of the game. This is one habit
that can kill us finally if we still have it against
the Lakers.
But
after all these negatives, I am still very positive
that we have a
different
Kings that represent Sacramento and its fans at this
time. Peja, Pollard & Jason have stepped up their
level of play. Bobby & Doug are really awesome
for all of us.
We
just need C-Webb to recover his form. Vlade to have
more muscles under the basket. And our coach, Adelman,
to discover the magic of using the players that really
works in a game.
And
for the rest of the team, especially Jon & Lawrence
& Martin, I hope they could contribute in this
battle against the Lakers. It's time we beat the former
world champion.
Well,
I can't wait for the Sunday's game and beat the L.A.
(very confident) Lakers. The Kings just need to be
serious now and they can just do it. Am I dreaming?
Kings
Rule!
Uncle
Phil
kingme4
I
like Adleman's no-nonsense response to PJ's remarks.
Why does he feel mind games are so necessary to win?
Is he saying his team doesn't have the talent/desire,
and needs the focus shifted away from themselves?
I don't mind the psych-out on the court like Larry
or MJ used to do, but what Phil does off it is tantamount
to saying he's scared to death of the sacramento kings.
If I were him, I wouldn't give us the satifaction,
if you know what I mean. I remember before game 5
of the series last season when the Kings went down
to L.A., the Lakers or at least, Jackson, pulled the
old Celtics bit on them. I remember an angry Grant
Napear saying that they had jerked the Kings around,
telling them they had to practice at Staples Center
early in the morning because they wanted to practice
at 11:00 or something. Anyway, the Kings had to get
up really early in order to wrestle through that awful
L.A. traffic and when they got there, it was deserted!
No one was there,they finally found a janitor or somehting
to open up but there were no balls, no water, no towels,nothing!
The poor Kings! And then the Lakers never did show
up to practice later on. It was all one of PJ's tricks
to stress out the Kings and maybe it worked a little.
Anyway, Grant said that it was an incident that wouldn't
be forgotten by the Kings organization. Maybe someone
should remind the kings about that one again. I think
instead of getting upset about the hick references
we should have fun with it to show we're not sensitive
about it, and think it's ridiculous. In fact,I think
when the Lakers come to Arco, they should play the
theme from "Deliverance" over the PA system
when they come out for warm-ups!
Kings-Lakers
Regular Season and Now
Jeff
The
season series went 3-1 Fakers, but, Sacramento could
have won each and every one of the games they lost.
Game
1 in ARCO, Kobe passes the ball to himself (travel
not called) and then makes a three pointer to take
the game to overtime wich LA wins by 2.
Game
2 at LA, Lakers win by six but need 20 from Horry
and 13 from Greg Foster (they will be lucky to score
that many points in the whole playoffs) to win.
Game
3 in Sacramento, Kings lose by 12 after letting LA
go on 18-0 run in fourth. Likely Rick Adelman missing
the flu and not being there to make the appropriate
subs hurt the Kings.
Game
4 in LA, Kings win by 24. This game was never in question.
So,
yes, the Lakers took the season series, but it wasn't
like they rolled to do it. These two teams matchup
well. LA has come out with the upper hand the more
often than not, but when you play a team that provides
matchup problems, all they need is a few things to
click right, and Sacramento can cause some serious
trouble for LA.
Last
year, the Kings lost the LA series in large part because
of Glen rice's offense and Rick Fox's clutch shooting
off the bench. Without those two's contributions and
points, I don't think LA could have amassed enough
points to surpass Sacramento in the series. These
guys were able to exploit the Kings because the Kings
were running Corliss Williamson and an inexperienced
Peja out there against them. Both were pathetic defenders
and Corliss basically did nothing offensively. Well,
now Rice is gone, and Fox is going to actually play
against a much inproved Peja. Peja is a terror on
offense, and he is a much, much better defender.
It
is going to be really near impossible for Fox to make
up for the points LA lost with Rice. And covering
this years version of Peja is going to be much harder
for him than covering Corliss and a lesser version
of Peja was last season.
So,
really, Kobe and Shaq will probably combine for an
average of 70 points. But, if the Kings offense is
clicking, Fox is going to have to play out of his
mind on both ends of the court to make up for the
rest of LA's points.
Sad
to say, but this series goes as Rick Fox does. If
he comes up clutch, LA is looking good. If he chokes,
then La could have some serious problems.
Kings
in 6
Doc
My
prediction above was an optimistic view. The reality
is that the Lakers are the defending Champions, and
although they had some problems through the regular
season, they have returned to championship form and
appear to be ready for all comers. The Kings are much
improved over last season, but they have not proven
anything yet. We've seen some amazing things from
them this year from total domination of an opponent
(including the last match-up between the Kings and
Lakers), to phenomenal come-from-behind victories,
to heartless, lazy bombs. It is true that C-Webb has
not looked as confident on the court since his injury
in Utah and has, at times, looked awful, but his teammates
often step up when that occurs. So, what do we take
from this? This is going to be a great series. If
the Kings play "Kings" basketball, there
is nothing that the Lakers will be able to do about
it but start thinking about next season. If the Kings
don't bring their "A" game, the experienced
Lakers will push the Kings around and win some very
tough, close, physical battles.
Gut
Feelings
Bo
Kimble
Look
for Kobe to spend more time on Peja. PJackson might
try some cross-matchups like Nelson tries. Kobe is
his best on the ball defender, so look for him to
try to deny Stojakovic.
Hopefully
Peja can keep working him like he did Marion. I don't
think it will be as effective, because they can go
to Fox and George also.
Remember
last year they had Kobe on J-Will trying to slow him
down.
This
could be a chance for J-Will to shine. He must attack
the beast in the middle.
But
he can't leave Fisher. Fisher will kill them from
the 3 pt line.
I
think you've got to slide off of George, Horry, Grant
and Lue.
The
guys you can't leave are Fisher and sometimes Fox.
Kobe
and Shaq are givens.
I
might try to play Shaq one-on-one and see how much
damage he does. you know he's going to score, but
you want to make it somewhat difficult.
The
Lakers are tough when they get one of their scrubs
going. Kobe and Shaq won't usually beat you alone.
It's a Fisher or Horry 3 or a Grant O-rebound and
put back.
The
Lakers are good. Phil is a good coach.
They
are the defending champs.
That's
great, but understand that the goals for the Sac Kings
are on a different scale. But it's tough for front
running fans to think on those terms. The Kings have
never had much success, so shoot us for relishing
in some minor (when compared to LA) success. This
is uncharted waters for us and we're going to enjoy
it.
and
now... The
Truth
There
is a point that most fans of other teams don't get.
Especially Laker fans . . .
The
truth is that the Kings can lose this series and it
will still be a GREAT year. They have won more games,
won more road games, and advanced to the second round
for the first time in franchise history.
The
rest is gravy.
The
Lakers on the other hand won't be satisfied unless
they win it all. And those SHOULD be their goals.
If
they lose this series, there will be all out despair
and shame. Plus most of their fans will be out buying
Tim Duncan or Allan Iverson jerseys, or worse, Jason
Williams jerseys.
This
is the difference. Kings fans (3,000 of them) will
fly to Phoenix to cheer for their team, while Laker
fans will pay a ton of cash for their tickets and
come late and leave early.
So
that is why we don't go to other boards with bravado
and that is why we don't talk smack.
We
are fans of our team good, bad, ugly. And it's been
ugly a lot.
So
will we beat the Lakers? I don't know. . . maybe.
But
it doesn't really matter.
What
that means is . . . if the Kings lose this series,
it doesn't matter because it's already the best year
in the history of the Sacramento Kings, and they aren't
supposed to win.
Do
I want them to win? Of course. Do I think they have
a chance? Hell yes. Are they SUPPOSED to win? No.
To
get to the root of it all . . . most of us watched
a team wearing freakin' powder blue uni's winning
20 gamea a year with guys named L-Train, Mays, Gillery
and Causwell.
A
pain no Laker fan can imagine.
But
we were there, got there early, left late. We were
there.
So,
will it ruin my season if the Kings lose this series?
C'mon.
And
as far as being happy with losing . . . man, we've
seen more losing than you could ever imagine and it
just makes the winning that much sweeter.
More
Truth
Bonsy
1999
playoffs, our "new" team took the Jazz,
who were still considered vital contenders, to 5 games.
Remember that team? Vernon Maxwell? Tariq? We took
the Jazz to five games and KNEW we'd had a major accomplishment.
2000
playoffs, our "improved" team took the NBA
champs to five games. That was a team with Corliss
Williamson and Nick Anderson as starters. We were
all dissappointed after that because we wanted to
take the next step and we ended up the same as the
year before.
2001
playoofs. Hmmm... now we have Peja and Doug Christie
in the starting line-up. Bobby Jackson is much better
than Delk off the bench. The other young players have
grown up a lot. And now, we've made the next step.
On to round two.
Now
we face the worried NBA Champs, coming off a not too
glorious season of internal strife. Have they really
got it together just in time for the playoffs? Will
they really be able to beat back the Kings?
Obviously,
any intelligent Laker fan is worried. Uncle Phil didn't
even wait 24 hours to start his smack talk. Fear?
Yes,
I can see the fear from our visitors today. I have
no need to talk smack on a Laker board. I don't have
fear.
The
Kings have already accomplished a wonderful season
and post-season and now the rest is with the pressure
off. All the pressure, as we can see, is on the Lakers.
We're
coming... starting Sunday. We may not win the series,
but we CAN win the series, and they know we can.
Wow
JB
I
love the Phil worship stuff. Method to the madness?
The more he opens his mouth, the more he proves that
he is concerned with the Kings. This guy is as deep
as the average guest on the Jerry Springer show.
I
suppose Laker fan is no longer worried about Kobe
and his me-first attitude. Right, he suddenly saw
the light and he's down with being Shaq's caddie.
He's a regular Scottie Pippen now - a real stand up
guy. I got some swamp land in Florida if you buy into
that crap. He still wants to be the man and that will
rear it's ugly head as soon as the situation gets
tight.
Kobe
won't be seeing much double teaming. Doug Christie
takes him all alone. Maybe if he gets to the basket,
Webber might step over on him. Vlade will get some
help from different guys since Shaq isn't real bright
and can be confused by mixing up where the extra defender
comes from. Most often though, I would think Webber
would have the duty since Ho Grant is more of a jump
shooter instead of a low post threat. The Kings really
thrive and push the ball off of turnovers - and this
is where the Lakers can get in trouble because the
Kings are one of the best at forcing turnovers. The
Kings can turn the ball over as well, but the Lakers
are not a pressing type defensive team so they have
to hope the Kings get too fancy with the passes. And
they likely will get too fancy early in the game.
I don't see the Lakers defense being as tough as the
Suns defense was and that may help the Kings. Jason,
Peja and the bench mob are huge keys since I don't
think Webber is going to lead them in this series
as well. Don't expect Chris to be a low post force.
The Kings will be happy if his jumper is falling,
plays defense and boards well. He really never has
gone inside on the Lakers when healthy anyways. It's
pretty tough to pick a winner, but I'll go convential
and say Kings win 4-2. I got the first round prediction
right as many others did, so why go against the flow.
It
goes seven...
Cat
Man
It's
easy to be down with the Lakers, Spurs or Jordan's
Bulls. There's no disappointment. You're on top every
year and win all the bar bets. But try being a 49ers
fan in the 1970s and be reminded of Preston Riley
every 10 minutes. Try wearing your Giants jacket to
school and have some jock yell, "Hey, Lemaster!"
And try having to choose between pulling for a Kings
win on closing day or a loss to get into the lottery.
Not
saying we're martyrs. But for all the Duane Causwells,
Pervis Ellisons, Derek Smiths and Ralph Sampsons,
we reserve the right to toss our purple shirts in
the trash after every loss, only to bring them out
the next day when it's another game, another chance.
Besides,
it ain't life and death. It's basketball. It's Jason
Williams going Shiekh of Araby on the bench. It's
about the laughs.
Here's
one schmoe's observation, position by position:
Center,
Vlade Divac vs. Shaquille O'Neal: C'mon, who are we
kidding?
Power
forward, Chris Webber vs., um, who plays the four
for L.A.?: Webber isn't right these days, but he's
better than whoever the Lakers will run out there.
Small
forward, Peja Stojakovic vs., again, who is it for
L.A.?: The kid's in a zone. And he washes his hair
at least once a week more often than Rick Fox. But
Fox barely edges Peja in the worst beard contest.
Off
guard, Doug Christie vs. Kobe Bryant: Kobe's a cold-blooded
killer, even against second-team all-defense. Plus
he can marry any high school cheerleader he wants.
Point
guard, Jason Williams/Bobby Jackson vs. Derek Fisher:
Ask Jason Kidd who's better.
Bench:
This is where it gets interesting. If Scot Pollard
and Jackson play like they did against Phoenix, watch
out. Lakers have a lot of soldiers, but not as much
heart.
Said
it the other night: COULD be Kings-Mavericks. Probably
won't, but it shouldn't surprise anyone. What the
hell, Kings in seven (does that count as "smack?").
How
it could Go
Hallama
The
bottom line is the Lakers are expected to win. The
pressure is on them. As we are learning by head games
from their coach, and to a much, much, much lesser
extent, their "die-hard" fans.
This
will be a good series for basketball fans everywhere.
Game
1: Lakers win. Confidence is high and they were well
rested. Kings come out nervous.
Game
2: Kings win. We all know this team is helter-skelter,
it'll be fun watching the Lakers finding this out.
An eye opener for them.
Game
3: Lakers win. Yes, at ARCO. Again, jitters get to
the Kings in the 4th and Webber tries to do too much
with too little left in the tank.
Game
4: Kings win. See Game 2.
Game
5: Kings win. Surprise, surprise, Peja lights up the
LA night.
Game
6: Lakers win. What? You think the Kings can close
it out so easily. Kobe explodes. Can't keep him under
wraps forever.
Game
7: OT.
Breaking
Down the Lakers
Laker
Prophet
While
maybe I shouldn't speak for Shaq and Kobe's confidence,
they look on top of the world right now. Shaq has
this look in his eye which says to me, give the next
48 minutes and I'll show you. If the Kings did nothing
special, he'd have 40 every night, and wants it too.
He
will have to stay out of foul trouble. Unlike against
Sabonis, I don't see him being drawn out of the key
on defense as much. Kings will have trouble getting
him out of the game, especially if someone else takes
fouls between him and C-webb on a double down.
The
backcourt is the key to this series though. Can Kobe
and Fisher play as they did agains Portland? If the
keep distributing the ball and not turning it over
as they have, and if Fish can play some kind of the
same defense and keep finding his outside shot, then
the Lakers are looking a lot more balanced than the
team that started the season with a post-championship
hangover/malaise.
Horace
Grant too will have to keep stepping up. In fact I
freely admit that with the return of Fisher the Lakers
have really changed, and any fan should be sceptical
about such a change on such short notice.
To
my eye the Lakers have looked deep in these playoffs
because at least two other guys after Shaq and Kobe
have stepped up really well each night.
The
Lakers aren't going to run like the Kings, although
for his size Shaq never looks lost when he does have
the ball in the open court. Watch him dribble.
I
think another key will be second chance points, points
in the paint and offensive rebounds. Shaq can control
the tempo of the game by working the offensive end.
The Lakers have to watch there own boards as well.
I'm
sceptical about Christie as well. I think he will
cause anyone trouble, but is he really any more troubling
than Pippen and Smith were on Kobe last year in the
WCF? I think that's one are where Doug will have to
prove what all the hype is about, not Kobe. He's rested
and tested.
One
thing that has been mentioned is that these two teams
have not played regularly at full strength on both
sides. Now is the time to see what happens.
Lastly,
I give the Kings credit for their outside shooting,
but unless the Lakers shoot 35%, and unless the Kings
are also doing something in the middle, I don't think
that is going to beat the Lakers.
A
lot of Kings morale in Staples is going to ride on
the calls, and how easy a time Shaq has, although
I don't expect the Kings to have a T-fest like the
Blazers did. Still, Vlade does get frustrated playing
Shaq, and Pollard is not top grade, so you have to
hope those guys don't get into foul trouble themselves.
Kiz-ow
Tiz-own
jsotelo
You
know what I think is the funniest thing? Sac-Town
is called a cow town by freaks in LA.. WTF, I have
lived here all my life and you know what? I don't
see cows often. It's not like there are pastures Downtown
ya know? In fact the last time I saw a Cow was probably
in infamous Rio Linda or maybe even out in the sticks
near Elk Grove.
The
thing that just kills me is we are so apathetic about
it. I love it! Okay great you call us a cow town,
yipee kayay. It's not even an insult. Hell most of
us don't want anyone else from the bay or L.A. moving
up here! We don't care what L.A. thinks about us.
Is that the L.A. nightmare? To live within a 50 square
mile radius of a cow?
The
best part is to show how little we care about it there
will be more cow bells in Arco when the Fakers are
in the house. I have a line on some tickets and I
will have to buy a cow bell.. Anyone know where I
can get one? It's not like they are a common find.
Maybe Arco should sell them!
Flopping
Tariq
With
PJ's comments reducing Vlade to just a flopper, I
think it's important to note that Vlade isn't really
a good flopper. The refs know his act too well, and
I rarely see him get flop calls. On the other hand,
Derek Fisher is, IMO, the best flopper in the league
outside the Jazz. He flops more than any other player
in the league, and he's a good actor. He gets calls
with it often, 'cos he's quick, and despite being
stronger than most other pgs, he crumples back like
he was shot with a rifle. BJ especially will have
to be careful about charges with Fisher. Also, Horry
likes to flop w/ Webber, and he likes to play the
refs in other subtle and not-so-subtle ways. Remember
in the first Laker game this season when he pushed
Peja into BJ as Jackson was going in uncontested.
That missed call was one of numerous calls that went
the Lakers way as they forced it to overtime.
What
a Crackup
Reno
Lady
The
more I read the more I realize that most Laker fans
are carrying a picture around in their minds (?) of
that last regular season game between the Lakers &
Kings at Staples Center - you all know the one I mean,
the one where the Lakers played like the Sparks and
looked like the Warriors, the one where the Kings
kicked their butts from Sunday clear through Saturday,
the one where Shaq was so upset he wouldn't even talk
with the media afterwards. THESE GUYS ARE SCARED!
Plain and simple, no two ways about it. Even Jackson's
scared of what the Kings might do and that's why Phil,
the Zen Disaster, has his mouth working overtime even
though it's obvious his brain isn't working at all.
Phil,
the Zen Disaster! Now that's a sign I'd like to see
at ARCO when the Laughers, I mean Lakers, come to
town - several of them as a matter of fact. Kind of
catchy isn't it!
There
is an answer for Shaq - you run his big butt right
into the ground, you run him and run him and run him
- and the Kings have the guys who can do it. Jason,
Peja, Hedo, Scot, Bobby, Barry, Doug,Fundy - everyone
one of them can run circles around Shaq all day long
and go out dancin' that night. Don't be surprised
if you that happening either. The other thing people
need to start doing against Shaq - when he starts
backing into them just move away-he travels all the
time and if no one's close to him the refs will have
to call it (may take most or all of one game but it
will be obvious enough that they'll be too embarrassed
to not call it).
Rick
Fox & Defense?
An
oxymoron if I ever heard one! Actually Fox is a moron
but we'll get to that later. Fox doesn't play defense,
he plays thug - and there's a difference. Christie
plays a guy close & hard but never dirty and
when he fouls he knows it and you rarely see him argue
about it. Fox thinks and acts like a thug, the Karl
Malone of the Lakers, and when he gets called for
a foul he whines and cries like a 5 year old. Actually
I hope he trys something with Peja again; I doubt
he's smart enough to have learned his lesson the first
time and Peja's a VERY bright kid with a lot of heart
and let us not forget the shooting talent. For all
we know Peja's still mad at Fox's last attempt on
him and will go off on another tear against Ricky
Icky. As for Fisher I think Jason will do the same
thing to him he did to Kidd; take him out of his offensive
game by going at him on the defensive end and making
Fisher wear himself out trying to find Jason and keep
him from going to the basket (2 chances there, neither
of them good for Fisher).
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