Bee: 20 Most Memorable Kings Moments

VF21

Super Moderator Emeritus
SME
#1
This article has been mentioned in another thread, so I'm posting it here.

http://www.sacbee.com/content/sports/story/11365607p-12280164c.html

The 20 most memorable moments in Kings history

We mark the team's 20th year in Sacramento by counting down the good, the bad and the sometimes sad

By Joe Davidson -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PST Tuesday, November 9, 2004


Bent rims and broken hearts.


In their 20 seasons in Sacramento, that pretty much sums up the Kings and their ever-faithful fan following.

The Kings have run the full gamut here, their arrival putting a national sports face on a city that once boasted the Pig Bowl as the primary must-see athletic event.
There was hope in the beginning, despair in the middle, great promise in recent years and, always, the heartache.

Jerry Reynolds has been along for the ride for all of it, from assistant coach to two stints as interim head coach to multiple front-office duties. He has followed like the good soldier, helping bridge the transition from one ownership group to the next. He has been there through waves of players and coaches. He is the one beacon of stability.


"Wow, 20 years," Reynolds said. "I can't believe it. It makes me feel older than I already am.

"From the start, I knew this could be special here. I knew we could do what we've been doing in the past few years. I just didn't think it'd take so long. We had some tough times there."

Brutal might be the more apt description.

The 1980s and '90s Kings were among the worst in NBA history. More recently, the franchise has been noted for its fluke injuries and playoff frustrations.

A week doesn't go by that someone, somewhere doesn't mention Robert Horry's shot in 2002. You remember that one, the Western Conference finals Game 4 buzzer-beater that turned what would have been a 3-1 Kings series lead over the hated Los Angeles Lakers to a tie series.

Or the missed free throws days later in a Game 7 loss.

Months later, Kings owner Joe Maloof explained the failure as "the worst pain I've had. I don't know if you're supposed to feel that way ... sick to my stomach. Still not over it."

The Kings haven't been that close since.

Horry was approached the other day in San Antonio, where he is now employed by the Spurs. He was told that this was the Kings' 20th anniversary season. He knew what was coming. He started laughing.

"I always remember it because no matter where I go, someone will ask me about it," Horry said of his famous shot. "It could be a Kings fan who says he hated that shot. Or it (could) be some other guy who said I won him some money.

"I just don't think people will ever let me forget it. I get e-mails about it. Of course, it doesn't hurt that I have a (big) picture in my house of it."

All told, the Kings' list of grand moments is outnumbered by the dreadful. The Utah Jazz, for example, is celebrating 25 seasons in Salt Lake City, with two likely Hall of Famers in John Stockton and Karl Malone, two trips to the NBA Finals and 21 playoff berths among things to celebrate.

"We were never the worst team in the league, but we had some dog days," Reynolds said. "There was a two-to three-year period where I was just numb, like I had the walking flu."

So in honor of the team's anniversary, here are 20 notable events in Sacramento Kings history:

1. May 26, 2002; Horry for three - It's the second quarter of Game 4 of the Western Conference finals at Staples Center, and the Kings lead by 24 points. It's too good to last.

In the game's final furious seconds, Shaquille O'Neal's close-in shot hangs on the rim. Kings center Vlade Divac can't grab the ball, so he swats it hard like a volleyball, directing it away from the basket and hoping the clock runs out. At the top of the key stands Horry, a spectator away from the fray who suddenly finds the ball and the game's outcome in his hands.

No time to think, he just shoots. It's a straight-ahead swish as the horn sounds, giving the Lakers a crushing 100-99 victory and the peak on our Top 20.

"You don't need to have skills in that kind of situation, just throw it," Divac says then.

"What do you mean it was luck?" Horry responds the other day. "This is what I do. I hit shots like that all time. What, Vlade doesn't look at ESPN?"

2. May 28, 2002; Bibby shoots, Gavin goes air - Two days after Horry's heroics, it's Mike Bibby's turn.

With a shot that seals his $80 million contract extension later that summer, Bibby coolly hits a wide-open 22-footer with 8.2 seconds remaining for a 92-91 triumph at Arco Arena.

The lasting image is of Bibby walking back down the floor, yelling, clenching his fist, and of Gavin Maloof jumping on top of the scorer's table, celebrating a 3-2 series lead, one victory shy of the franchise's first NBA Finals berth since 1951.

Gasps a disheveled Maloof later, his hair a sweaty mess, "I was like, Jesus Christ! Let us win. Let us have this. It's our time."

3. June 2, 2002; missed free throws, fate sealed - Game 7 of the Western Conference finals at Arco will always go down as the game of missed chances.

It starts with O'Neal making his free throws, while the Kings miss. And miss. And miss. O'Neal makes 11 of 15 foul shots, the Kings just 16 of 30.

In a game that features 19 lead changes and 16 ties, the Lakers emerge the winners, 112-106 in overtime.

The Kings don't score in the final two minutes of overtime, with Doug Christie and Peja Stojakovic firing three-point airballs late. The Kings go 2 for 20 from long range.

"I felt really bad," Stojakovic says later. "For a basketball player who does this for a living, shooting an airball is not a good thing. At least you have to hit the rim."

Christie is more succinct: "I was scared to death. I let the whole situation, all the hype, get to me. But that's OK, because I can learn from it."

4. June 1, 1994; Petrie comes aboard - Since his hiring, Geoff Petrie has twice been named NBA Executive of the Year. He builds the Kings into contenders with a flurry of trades, draft selections and free-agent signings.

His biggest moves include signing Divac and Bobby Jackson as free agents, trading Mitch Richmond for Chris Webber, drafting Stojakovic (even though Kings fans booed the choice), trading for Christie and hiring coach Rick Adelman.

5. May 7, 1999; Maloofs take over - The Kings' fortunes take an upturn when the NBA Board of Governors unanimously approves the team's purchase by the Maloof family. They let Petrie run the team and pay big bucks for career contracts to Webber, Bibby and Brad Miller.

6. Oct. 25, 1985; farmers in tuxedos - The Kings' first game in Sacramento ushers pro sports into the River City. A rowdy 10,333 fans, many of them in tuxedos, squeeze into the old Arco.

Reggie Theus, Eddie Johnson, Mike Woodson and the rest of the Kings lose to the Los Angeles Clippers 108-104.

Gregg Lukenbill, the developer who brought the team from Kansas City, comments on the Sacramento enthusiasm, noting that in Kansas City the team was behind "the Royals, the Chiefs, golfer Tom Watson and indoor soccer."

The Kings go 37-45, reach the playoffs and are swept by the Houston Rockets.

7. Aug. 14, 1989; Ricky Berry's suicide - Berry could score, run and play multiple positions. He finished his rookie season as a starter, averaging 17 points down the stretch for a team that won five of its last eight games with Reynolds as coach.

Berry shot himself that summer for reasons Reynolds still can't fully comprehend.

"It still hurts, always will," Reynolds said. "I never saw it coming. I don't know what went wrong that made him do that. He was special. He was Peja before we had Peja. That had to be the lowest thing to hit this franchise, just an awful time. It made me wonder, man, is this ever going to change?"

8. Nov. 1, 1991; the Rock and a hard place - Billy Owens, the No. 3 pick in the NBA draft, says he won't play for Sacramento. He threatens to hold out.

In response, the Kings trade him to Golden State for Richmond. Turns out, Richmond isn't too keen on Sacramento, either. He considers retirement.

He finally comes. He averages 23 points over seven seasons as perhaps the best shooting guard in the league not named Michael Jordan.

"I remember the media crucified us across the country, thinking that Nellie (Warriors coach Don Nelson) had outfoxed us," Reynolds said. "I didn't think we were taking a chance. I knew Mitch was going to be an All-Star. He gave us a chance in games. He gave us a legitimate star in Sacramento."

Richmond, nicknamed "The Rock," didn't get a lot of national attention, leading the Phoenix Suns' Charles Barkley to say in 1993: "The guy plays in a (bleeping) ghost town. They don't even have TV in Sacramento."

9. Aug. 19, 1986; Derek Smith trade (and the knee for free) - Opening night 1985, and the Clippers' Derek Smith goes off for 35 points against Sacramento. It might have been the worst thing to happen to the Kings.

Team management falls in love with Smith, shipping guards Larry Drew and Mike Woodson and a 1988 first-round pick for Smith and Clippers mates Franklin Edwards and Junior Bridgeman, who never plays for the Kings.

Smith has knee surgery in his final Clippers season and never regains his form in Sacramento, averaging 13.8 points in 116 games. He's waived during his third season.

"I'm a free man," he says. "I'm free at last. They decided to get rid of the corpse. They decided to throw it in the river."

"That trade crippled the franchise," Reynolds said. "It took us 10 years to recover."
 

VF21

Super Moderator Emeritus
SME
#2
10. Sept. 17, 1998; the Adelman era begins - The Kings sign a coach who becomes the most successful in franchise history. Until Adelman's arrival, the Kings don't produce a winning record, win the Pacific Division or reach the conference finals. His team becomes a global fan favorite.

11. May 14, 1998; C-Webb comes aboard - Richmond helps the franchise twice, with his arrival and his departure.

Richmond is replaced by Webber, a big man with big-time talent, yet mired in off-court problems with the Washington Wizards.

He views Sacramento as NBA Siberia and doesn't want to come. His father talks him into it.

12. May 2, 2001; setting the Suns for history - The Kings make a breakthrough in the first round of the playoffs, beating the Phoenix Suns 89-82 to win their first playoff series since 1981. They are led by Stojakovic, who strikes for a career-playoff-high 37 points.

Kings players dance for the TNT cameras. Petrie calls Stojakovic "big time," and Peja vows many more similar displays.

13. April 27, 1987; Bill Russell and mothballs - Bill Russell is out of basketball for 15 years and decides he wants back in.

He charms the Kings' management during an in-home visit. He accepts a seven-year contract to coach the team.

While his team practices in front of him, Russell often sits in the arena reading the paper. He goes 17-41 and is bounced upstairs to vice president of basketball operations. He's relieved of those duties the following season.

Peter Falk of "Columbo" TV fame is the rare celebrity who attends Kings games then. It doesn't take a detective to sniff out the problem.

"Bill Russell was the greatest player there ever was," Falk says, "but he can't coach."

14. Jan. 4, 1990; a whole lotta Motta - Dick Motta could coach. He guided the Washington Bullets to an NBA title in 1978. When the Kings hire him, he's the third-winningest coach in league history.

But he's the wrong man at the wrong time for the Kings. He goes 48-113 in his Sacramento stint, clashes with young players, fails to inspire the veterans, and the team goes nowhere despite a league-record four first-round draft picks in 1990.

The drafted players - Lionel Simmons, Duane Causwell, Travis Mays and Anthony Bonner - continue the team's dreadful history.

Motta is fired on Christmas Eve. He now lives in blissful retirement in Idaho and Utah.

"It was the best Christmas present I ever had, still is," Motta says. "I lived through all of that. I'm not worried about my legacy. I know who I am."

15. Dec. 12, 1993; Bobby Hurley survives - One of the darkest days in franchise history happens almost in pitch darkness.

Barely a mile away from Arco, first-round draft pick Bobby Hurley has his Toyota 4Runner slammed into by a station wagon with the headlights off. He's hurled from the car.

Mike Batham happens to be driving by and hears the sickening thud of the crash. He pulls a limp Hurley out of the water, where he most assuredly would have died. Teammate Mike Peplowski consoles Hurley on the spot, assuring him he will not die.

"I grabbed that rosary and started to pray," Peplowski recalls last year. "And the reason was - and this sounds morbid - but I knew that whatever was going on at that scene, death was very present. It was very present."

Hurley survives and returns to play four seasons with the Kings, though it can be argued he was never the same.

16. May 21, 1989; Pervis Ellison, franchise savior (not) - More bad luck. The Kings win the draft lottery.

Following previous top draft picks David Robinson, Patrick Ewing and Hakeem Olajuwon, the best of 1989 is Pervis Ellison. He never comes out for a workout, but Russell loves the kid.

He lasts one injury-plagued season in Sacramento, averaging eight points in 34 games.

17. Dec. 27, 1988; Reynolds kisses the floor - A moment captures the Kings' fortunes of this era, and it comes at the expense of the team's resident funny man. Only it isn't so funny.

Reynolds is coaching a 5-18 Kings wreck against Portland when he collapses on the Arco floor. He's immediately assessed a technical foul. It's rescinded when he remains unconscious for several moments.

He's taken away by ambulance. Exhaustion and a sudden change of posture on the sideline are cited as the reasons for his falling over.

"What's funny is Adelman was an assistant coach with Portland and Petrie was doing color commentary for Portland then," Reynolds said. "Petrie thought I was dead. I told him later, 'I fooled you!' "

18. May 16, 2004; a win and a forearm - The Kings beat Minnesota 104-87 in Game 6 of the Western Conference semifinals. Glow sticks rain onto the Arco floor after Anthony Peeler is ejected. The Kings reserve is tossed for throwing a forearm into league MVP Kevin Garnett.

With Jackson out with an injury, Peeler suspended for Game 7 at Minnesota and the Kings making just 8 of 17 free throws, Sacramento succumbs 83-80.

19. May 8, 2003; Webber goes down - It's Game 2 of the Western Conference semifinals at Dallas. Hours before the game, Webber talks about playing in pain, both his knees in ice packs to ease the soreness.

He says he'll "rest when I'm dead."

Webber's left knee buckles, and he goes down. The Kings lose to the Mavericks in seven games. Webber misses 50 games the following season. He is still trying to regain his old form.

20. Nov. 23, 1991; at long last, a road brew - Right when it seemed the Kings would never win another road game, they did.

They go 1-40 on the road the previous season. The skid finally ends at Orlando after an NBA-record 43 consecutive road defeats. The score was 95-93.

Simmons scores 27 points, and Wayman Tisdale makes two late baskets and keeps the game ball.

"I remember Tisdale jumping and jumping and how excited we were to finally win a damn game," Richmond said. "And I remember Dick Motta. He was so relieved that he had the team bus pull over to a 7-Eleven, and he got everyone six-packs."

The Bee's Joe Davidson can be reached at (916) 321-1280 or jdavidson@sacbee.com. Bee Staff Writer Martin McNeal contributed to this report.
 

VF21

Super Moderator Emeritus
SME
#4
A part of me wonders if anyone outside the immediate Sacramento area will be able to see it if we are. :mad:

Sorry, I'm a tad torqued about the whole Comcast/DishNetwork/League Pass bull-crap...

This list brought back a lot of memories. Am I the only one who is beginning to think it was actually more fun when expectations WEREN'T quite so high? When the team could actually lose a couple of games without talks of firing Adelman or trading players most teams would kill to obtain?

We had a thread BC about what we thought were the most memorable events in Kings history and, I believe, most of these were mentioned.

I still think the singular most upsetting thing wasn't anything that actually happened on the court. It was, for me, hearing the news about Ricky Berry. The rest of them are about a game. This was a young man with a bright future - a young man who decided for whatever reason that dying was the best thing to do. It still upsets me.

The Kings have been through a lot in the 20 years they've been in Sacramento. For the most part, they've been good years with a couple of bumps... I hope the next 20 will be a little more full of highlights and a little less full of "rip your heart out" moments.

I may be mad at the television coverage situation right now, but I still love this team and it's articles like this that help me remember why...
 
#5
Likewise, VF, likewise.


The listed memories from 2002 and #19 are the ones I remember most vividly. Maybe because I'm not old enough to remember when a lot of them occured. For some reason #19 just sticks out to me, and stays/has stayed in my mind for a very long time. . .
 
#6
VF21 said:
A part of me wonders if anyone outside the immediate Sacramento area will be able to see it if we are. :mad:

Sorry, I'm a tad torqued about the whole Comcast/DishNetwork/League Pass bull-crap...

This list brought back a lot of memories. Am I the only one who is beginning to think it was actually more fun when expectations WEREN'T quite so high? When the team could actually lose a couple of games without talks of firing Adelman or trading players most teams would kill to obtain?

We had a thread BC about what we thought were the most memorable events in Kings history and, I believe, most of these were mentioned.

I still think the singular most upsetting thing wasn't anything that actually happened on the court. It was, for me, hearing the news about Ricky Berry. The rest of them are about a game. This was a young man with a bright future - a young man who decided for whatever reason that dying was the best thing to do. It still upsets me.

The Kings have been through a lot in the 20 years they've been in Sacramento. For the most part, they've been good years with a couple of bumps... I hope the next 20 will be a little more full of highlights and a little less full of "rip your heart out" moments.

I may be mad at the television coverage situation right now, but I still love this team and it's articles like this that help me remember why...
amen