All Time Favorite King

[jayfly]

obvious

Mark Olberding

 

[chrisnu]

Mitch Richmond for many reasons:

-He was a dynamite scorer.
-He rarely complained about being on some horrible Kings teams.
-He always worked hard.
-Tough.
-Almost never got hurt.
-Clutch.
-Michael Jordan called him one of the tougest defenders he's ever faced.
-If we never had him, we would have never had Webber, so he was mainly responsible for our best seasons as well.

Yes! All those things, and for showing perseverance and heart on Kings teams that didn't really have a chance of going anywhere.

 

[LPKingsFan]

This is like picking my favorite toe:

Mitch - for being a lone bright spot in years of darkness. Will always remember MJ's comment that Mitch was his least favorite match up.

Webb/Vlade - for providing a fresh, fun face for the franchise, and making Sacto matter again, not just nationally but internationally.

Barry/Pollard - for being the goofballs, coming off the bench, having a good time, and always mixing it up

BJax - for his passion, and willingness to come off the bench for the benefit of the team

Bibby - for his cold blooded shooting in the clutch. For hitting that shot against the Lakers.

And of course Doug, for punching Ric Fox

 

[BMiller52]

Webber and it's not close. He played his heart out every game, he battled back from injury after injury, and he was the best Sac era King ever. He actually made us matter.

 

[kingsfan916]

C Webb i mean he was great loved to watch him play

But Peja, Bibby, Christie and Vlade, Bobby i mean everyone from that team

 

[jon e]

1. Webber
2. Artest

 

[Gary]

1 Vlade
2 Webber
3 Richmond
4 Jackson

 

[upinsmoke]

I thought i would see some jason williams but guess not.

 

[kennadog]

If I have to pick one, then Vlade. Without him, I don't think that those individual players come together to be the team I loved.

Honestly, just seeing Vlade with his smile and warmth always makes me feel like the world is definitely a better place with him in it. I miss having here in Sacramento.

 

[Variant]

C-Webb for sure. I tend to really end up rooting for the "anti-hero" type...

 

[RIP miyagi]

I can't really think of just one. Peja was my favorite until webber came and ruined his mvp and our championship year. we had it that one year until he came back.

 

[BMiller52]

I can't really think of just one. Peja was my favorite until webber came and ruined his mvp and our championship year. we had it that one year until he came back.

LOL you got to be kidding me. That team didn't have the interior D to win a championship, had no post presence, and Vlade started to break down toward the end of the season also(IIRC his back problems effect him vs Dallas and his back exploded the next year when he signed with LA). Teams caught on to Peja's lack of ball handling skills and defended him better, he also acted like a sore loser when Chris came back and the team tried to adjust. Miller was also injured in the last 1/4th of the season. Peeler was suspended for that game 7 vs MN as well and he was 1 of our only bench threats. That team didn't have the depth, post scoring, or defense to win a title.

 

[upinsmoke]

Peja's most likely going left as we speak (type) LOL

 

[RIP miyagi]

that team was awesome, all they did was win until webber brought it down. down to the ground. Peja was a beast.

 

[BMiller52]

that team was awesome, all they did was win until webber brought it down. down to the ground. Peja was a beast.

I think that might just be the 1st time I've ever read Peja and beast in the same sentence.

Here I'll fix it for you: "that team was awesome, all they did was win until they ran into the tougher part of their schedule, their players got injured(Miller injured his elbow and missed 7-8 games IIRC, Bobby broke his wrist I think), guys got tired because they were playing so many minutes, they tried to integrate their best player back into the mix, and Peja went soft like he always does when it counts(as I type this he's probably throwing up an airball from the corner of NO's practice facility), etc.

That team won as many games as they did because of Rick.

 

[Warhawk]

Umm this is a tough one...For me,it's that starting lineup - Mike,Doug,Peja,Chris and Vlade.They were amasing in practically every way and they gave this team a whole new identity.Every future Kings roster will always be compared to those guys,their talent,results and chemistry.

Agreed. All of them formed an identity that I have a hard time breaking down into components to pick a favorite.

I do want to throw an honorable mention in to Scot, Brad, Jason, and Bobby.

Chris was the "star", but without Vlade and the rest none of it would have worked so well.

And BMiller52 is right - you have to include Rick in there.

 

[ZZE916]

1. The 2001-2002 Team (for obvious reasons)
2. Duane Causwell (for comic relief...and boy did we need comic relief during those Dark Ages)
3. Trevor Wilson (because my then-girlfriend adored his looks)
4. Brook Steppe (he was psycho)

But the award has to go to Vlade. If he hadn't signed, nobody else would have considered Sacramento a viable career option.

 

[ovrush]

can't really pick just one. I'll pick three.

1A. The Rock - Loved his all around game and toughness. Toiled for years on a bad team in a small market without ever complaining. Arguably the second best 2 guard of his era but never really had the support to shine or the market for it to be publicized.

1B. Doug Christie - Probly the King i enjoyed watching most during hte golden years. I definitely think he was the most underrated part of those teams. The fact that he was such an all around player helped to mask other players weaknesses. Also he played hurt, played with passion, and never caused any drama.

1C. JWill - Gotta love a guy who had as much fun as he did out there. Its kind of sad to see the older more responsible JWill who got the happy task of playing point for Fratello/Brown/Riley. I don't think anyone in NBA history brought out more "no no no YESSSSSS" moment than JWill in his first couple years pulling up for 3s on breakouts.

(apologies to Vlade who would be here if he didn't redonn the purple and gold)

 

[Peja]

http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=aNF2xh7TqSI

This never gets old

 

[chrisnu]

1C. JWill - Gotta love a guy who had as much fun as he did out there. Its kind of sad to see the older more responsible JWill who got the happy task of playing point for Fratello/Brown/Riley. I don't think anyone in NBA history brought out more "no no no YESSSSSS" moment than JWill in his first couple years pulling up for 3s on breakouts.

The old J-Will shows up every now and then. A while back, I was watching a Heat game on TNT. I forget who they were playing, but Miami had a 3-on-1 fast break, and Williams shoots a 3. Airballed it!

 

[Oscar]

Bobby Hurley

 

[Circa_1985_Fan]

Mark Olberding

Nice! What, no love for Rich Kelley or Martin Nessley??

 

[Elektrik]

Doug Christie

For being the soul of the defense on an "all-offensive" team.

For more than making up for Bibby's lack of defense for years without anyone really noticing.

For being the player that pushed the team from "entertaining" to "elite" when he came over from Toronto for Corliss.

For punching Rick Fox in the mouth.

For bringing intensity and hustle to every game and, at the risk of being cliche', doing the little things that don't show up in the box score.

For not letting his bizarre relationship with his overbearing wife ever affect his game.

But mostly, for being Artest without the issues.

I agree. Great post!

 

[Lawrence Funderburke]

1 jim les - used to watch him sink 20 3's in a row during warm ups. almost won the three point shootout one year.

2 Jason - made the team waaaaay exciting. Held my breath everytime he got the ball. imo, teamed with vince carter to modernize/repopularlize the NBA after the lockout.

3 the causinator - duane bricked so many dunks and blocked so many shots. he was also nice when i met him at the gas station and banana republic.

4. Peja - that game when he hushed the toronto crowd??!! amazing!
5. spud/ tyus edny
6. randy brown -- massively dunked on jordan and ho grant one year

and on and on... i love the kings and love thinking about my favorite players and moments!!

 

[Circa_1985_Fan]

1. The 2001-2002 Team (for obvious reasons)
2. Duane Causwell (for comic relief...and boy did we need comic relief during those Dark Ages)
3. Trevor Wilson (because my then-girlfriend adored his looks)
4. Brook Steppe (he was psycho)

But the award has to go to Vlade. If he hadn't signed, nobody else would have considered Sacramento a viable career option.

HAHAHAHA!!! Brooke Steppe! I remember him from our first season! He used to come off the bench with the redhead Johnny Rogers. Trevor Wilson had hops, too! I remember him playing on the Wayman Tisdale/Mitch team that one year that also had 'Superman' Rambis and Rod Higgins.

 

[upinsmoke]

Bobby Hurley

You have to be kidding me.

 

[AriesMar27]

jwill and webber.... bibby is right there too... but jwill is the reason i became a kings fan... the dude was crazy unpredictable.... on one play he'd throw an amazing pass for a alley oop or easy basket... then the next play the ball would go into the stands or he'd shoot a 3ball with 15 secs on the shot clock....

webber was just webber.... that one is easy....

bibby was probably the only player on the team with a killer instinct... he wanted that last shot everytime... and he owned steve nash, derek fisher and the entire clippers team.... owned.... probably still does own the clippers...

 

[MassachusettsKingsFan]

Ive been reading this thread for a few days now and i finally had the time to chime in ..

how i actually became a kings fan here in MA is a pretty funny story, i dont know if ive told it before but i think i'll save that for some kind of "how did you become a kings fan.." type thread...

it started with Divac, who is my number 1 favorite player of all time. he was straight up entertaining AND a class act. Ive always been a huge fan of the euro players ( im 1/2 greek ) and he was just awesome.. dont really know what else to say .. i loved watching him play and he started what was the greatest moments in kings history.

close second is mike, after vlade retired mike became my favorite player/king, he was CLUTCH, no doubt about it .. his D wasnt good but i looked passed that with mike because of how good those teams where, and he was the point guard of those teams.

a little off topic, but now that mike is gone my favorite current kings player is garcia .. he brings a ton of energy and plays some real good defense at times .. he's been making big shots this year and he can shoot out of his mind when he gets hot, heres to hoping he's starting SF next year.

 

[Peja]

4. Peja - that game when he hushed the toronto crowd??!! amazing!

Which one was that?

 

[chelle]

I've thought about this a lot. I was actually torn between a few. I could have gone back further, but decided to limit it to the teams that brought the most joy and excitement. With that criteria,

Vlade Divac ranks as #1 for me. (His "character" on the court and his CHARACTER in real life.)
Chris Webber would be #2. (His play and that darn smile!!)
Doug Christie would be #3. (His passion, commitment, and love of the game)
Mike Biibby is #4. (His dedication to the game and team. I LOVED when he would make the big shots that would lead to his crab dance!)