Peja
Bench
Peja's gone - then he's not
Kings forward's locker is cleared out before deal for Pacers' Artest collapses
By Sam Amick -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PST Wednesday, January 25, 2006
Story appeared on Page A1 of The Bee
PHILADELPHIA - For a little while, it was a normal day.
The Kings awoke at Philadelphia's Four Seasons Hotel, put their basketball gear on and headed to the nearby Wachovia Center for the morning shootaround, all part of the pregame routine on another day in the National Basketball Association.
Peja Stojakovic was there, practicing his jump shot while assistant coach Elston Turner told him how to guard his Philadelphia 76ers opponent, Andre Iguodala. Then it was back to the hotel.
Less than two hours later, the ordinary changed, followed by a day's worth of events regarding the possible trade of longtime King Stojakovic that may go down as the most bizarre in franchise history.
Oh, where to begin.
Two days after Stojakovic told The Bee of his desire to stay in Sacramento for the rest of his career, having just set the team record for most games played by a King in the Sacramento era, reports began spreading that Stojakovic had been traded to the Indiana Pacers.
In exchange? The Kings would welcome the most controversial figure in the league in Indiana's Ron Artest, who went from famous to infamous last season when he ran into the stands at the Palace of Auburn Hills, home of the Detroit Pistons, during a brawl some referred to as the "Throwdown in Motown."
In December, the Pacers deactivated Artest - meaning he gets paid but is no longer on the team - after he upset teammates and management by requesting a trade through the media.
By early afternoon Tuesday on the East Coast, an ESPN report said that the deal was as good as done, that league approval was the final hurdle to be cleared.
Not long before, Artest's agent, Mark Stevens, had told The Bee by phone that a deal was not close, but that the teams had talked. Even those involved couldn't keep up with the turn of events.
"As it stands, momentarily, there is nothing imminently being done with Sacramento on our part," Stevens said. "There have been flirts, with propositions. However, as of this moment, there's nothing imminent."
At about 3:30 p.m. East Coast time, it seemed imminent had arrived. Kings co-owners Joe and Gavin Maloof were being interviewed live on ESPNews, the timing peculiar and their message somewhat clear. They said they couldn't discuss trades until they were done. But when asked if they thought the troubled Artest needed a change of scenery, they were far from denying it.
"Whatever the negatives were, we're going to set them behind us," Joe Maloof said, speaking as if Artest was already in purple. "Put the negatives behind us, and go from there."
The brothers lauded Artest for his style of play.
"I think he's a terrific player, one of the top players in the NBA," Joe Maloof said. "He's very passionate about the way he plays. He's tough-minded. He's strong. He defends people. He's a wonderful athlete. He's a great player."
Come game time, Stojakovic's locker at the Wachovia Center was empty, while Kings players were telling reporters how much they would miss him.
"Man, Peja is a great dude," Kings backup point guard Jason Hart said. "I had just been getting used to him on a daily basis. A great dude. ... Sometimes a change will probably be good. He'll probably go over to Indiana, get rejuvenated and be playing good again."
By day's end, the deal did not go through. Artest indicated that he didn't want to come to Sacramento, leading Geoff Petrie, Kings president of basketball operations, to nix the trade.
Given the night's opponent, the irony was thick. This is the new land of former King Chris Webber, whose own Sacramento tenure began in 1998 after he resisted a trade from Washington.
"Webb and I looked at each other (when they heard of the Artest-Peja trade), and it was like, 'Man, they're really putting a new face on Sacramento,' " said Matt Barnes, the former Del Campo High School graduate who was traded to Philadelphia with Webber last February.
And in the stranger-things-have-happened category, the Kings still may add the troubled star. Artest, who has no official leverage except to refuse his current contract, which has two years remaining, said he is following the lead of his agent and wants to talk to Kings officials before he would come to Sacramento.
Whether Petrie would rekindle the talks is another matter.
"Yeah, there's no deal," Artest told the Indianapolis Star. "It's not that I don't want to play there (in Sacramento). ... I want to speak to the team that I go to first. I just want to meet with the team officials of whichever team I'm headed to."
For now, Stojakovic has had no say. While the Kings lost to Philadelphia 109-103, he was told at the last minute to skip his flight back to Sacramento when the trade fell through and instead prepare to join the team in New York for tonight's game against the Knicks.
In a telephone interview late Tuesday night, Stojakovic said: "I accepted it pretty good (after hearing he had been traded), but I feel even more disappointed now.
"I had my mind set (to be traded). I found out through the TV that I was traded, and then coach (Rick Adelman) called me, and Geoff (Petrie) called. I understand, and I had my mind set, had prepared myself, prepared my family for that. ... It's something I never experienced in my career, but I guess I have to deal with that."
"That's tough," Kings forward Shareef Abdur-Rahim said. "Everybody's human, but his feelings are going to have to be a little mumbo jumbo because it happened like that. He has to be a little confused, thinking, 'You tried to trade me.' It is what it is."
About the writer:
The Bee's Sam Amick can be reached at (916) 326-5582 or samick@sacbee.com.
Kings forward's locker is cleared out before deal for Pacers' Artest collapses
By Sam Amick -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PST Wednesday, January 25, 2006
Story appeared on Page A1 of The Bee
PHILADELPHIA - For a little while, it was a normal day.
The Kings awoke at Philadelphia's Four Seasons Hotel, put their basketball gear on and headed to the nearby Wachovia Center for the morning shootaround, all part of the pregame routine on another day in the National Basketball Association.
Peja Stojakovic was there, practicing his jump shot while assistant coach Elston Turner told him how to guard his Philadelphia 76ers opponent, Andre Iguodala. Then it was back to the hotel.
Less than two hours later, the ordinary changed, followed by a day's worth of events regarding the possible trade of longtime King Stojakovic that may go down as the most bizarre in franchise history.
Oh, where to begin.
Two days after Stojakovic told The Bee of his desire to stay in Sacramento for the rest of his career, having just set the team record for most games played by a King in the Sacramento era, reports began spreading that Stojakovic had been traded to the Indiana Pacers.
In exchange? The Kings would welcome the most controversial figure in the league in Indiana's Ron Artest, who went from famous to infamous last season when he ran into the stands at the Palace of Auburn Hills, home of the Detroit Pistons, during a brawl some referred to as the "Throwdown in Motown."
In December, the Pacers deactivated Artest - meaning he gets paid but is no longer on the team - after he upset teammates and management by requesting a trade through the media.
By early afternoon Tuesday on the East Coast, an ESPN report said that the deal was as good as done, that league approval was the final hurdle to be cleared.
Not long before, Artest's agent, Mark Stevens, had told The Bee by phone that a deal was not close, but that the teams had talked. Even those involved couldn't keep up with the turn of events.
"As it stands, momentarily, there is nothing imminently being done with Sacramento on our part," Stevens said. "There have been flirts, with propositions. However, as of this moment, there's nothing imminent."
At about 3:30 p.m. East Coast time, it seemed imminent had arrived. Kings co-owners Joe and Gavin Maloof were being interviewed live on ESPNews, the timing peculiar and their message somewhat clear. They said they couldn't discuss trades until they were done. But when asked if they thought the troubled Artest needed a change of scenery, they were far from denying it.
"Whatever the negatives were, we're going to set them behind us," Joe Maloof said, speaking as if Artest was already in purple. "Put the negatives behind us, and go from there."
The brothers lauded Artest for his style of play.
"I think he's a terrific player, one of the top players in the NBA," Joe Maloof said. "He's very passionate about the way he plays. He's tough-minded. He's strong. He defends people. He's a wonderful athlete. He's a great player."
Come game time, Stojakovic's locker at the Wachovia Center was empty, while Kings players were telling reporters how much they would miss him.
"Man, Peja is a great dude," Kings backup point guard Jason Hart said. "I had just been getting used to him on a daily basis. A great dude. ... Sometimes a change will probably be good. He'll probably go over to Indiana, get rejuvenated and be playing good again."
By day's end, the deal did not go through. Artest indicated that he didn't want to come to Sacramento, leading Geoff Petrie, Kings president of basketball operations, to nix the trade.
Given the night's opponent, the irony was thick. This is the new land of former King Chris Webber, whose own Sacramento tenure began in 1998 after he resisted a trade from Washington.
"Webb and I looked at each other (when they heard of the Artest-Peja trade), and it was like, 'Man, they're really putting a new face on Sacramento,' " said Matt Barnes, the former Del Campo High School graduate who was traded to Philadelphia with Webber last February.
And in the stranger-things-have-happened category, the Kings still may add the troubled star. Artest, who has no official leverage except to refuse his current contract, which has two years remaining, said he is following the lead of his agent and wants to talk to Kings officials before he would come to Sacramento.
Whether Petrie would rekindle the talks is another matter.
"Yeah, there's no deal," Artest told the Indianapolis Star. "It's not that I don't want to play there (in Sacramento). ... I want to speak to the team that I go to first. I just want to meet with the team officials of whichever team I'm headed to."
For now, Stojakovic has had no say. While the Kings lost to Philadelphia 109-103, he was told at the last minute to skip his flight back to Sacramento when the trade fell through and instead prepare to join the team in New York for tonight's game against the Knicks.
In a telephone interview late Tuesday night, Stojakovic said: "I accepted it pretty good (after hearing he had been traded), but I feel even more disappointed now.
"I had my mind set (to be traded). I found out through the TV that I was traded, and then coach (Rick Adelman) called me, and Geoff (Petrie) called. I understand, and I had my mind set, had prepared myself, prepared my family for that. ... It's something I never experienced in my career, but I guess I have to deal with that."
"That's tough," Kings forward Shareef Abdur-Rahim said. "Everybody's human, but his feelings are going to have to be a little mumbo jumbo because it happened like that. He has to be a little confused, thinking, 'You tried to trade me.' It is what it is."
About the writer:
The Bee's Sam Amick can be reached at (916) 326-5582 or samick@sacbee.com.
