http://www.sacbee.com/content/sports/basketball/kings/story/14252426p-15068557c.html
Out with a clang
Offensive miscues, Parker's excellence end Kings' season
By Sam Amick -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PDT Saturday, May 6, 2006
There was no chaos or cheer this time, no Gavin Maloof dances or wild bounces or any shred of the suspense that had marked this phenomenal first-round series.
The silver and black were better. And it was black and white.
The Kings' season ended anticlimactically Friday night at Arco Arena, the San Antonio Spurs finishing the job just as they had started it.
With a bang and a blowout, 105-83 to win the best-ofseven series 4-2.
As predictions go, it was the forecast of Kings coach Rick Adelman that won out over that of his soothsaying small forward. Ron Artest - he of the original playoff prediction who later vowed the Kings wouldn't lose in the first round - limped across the finish line on a sprained right ankle that threw the mission off course in the second quarter.
But it was Adelman, who heard about Spurs guard Tony Parker and his thigh contusion, heard how he missed two consecutive days of practice as if that meant he would no longer be a threat.
No dice and bad luck.
Parker played better banged up than healthy, scoring a career playoff-high 31 points despite the thigh injury and a hip strain that hobbled him in the third quarter.
The Kings, meanwhile, received little from their biggest players, with center Brad Miller and Artest combining for 14 points on 3-for-17 shooting. Bonzi Wells, the virtual series MVP, mustered 17 points on 6-for-9 shooting.
Since the 2003-04 season, the reigning champion Spurs had been in position to close out a series on their opponent's floor 10 times. They won eight of them.
"Give the Spurs credit," said Adelman, the coach without a contract who left the discussion on his future for another day. "They're the world champs for a reason. We stumbled, and they took advantage of it. When you make mistakes and you open it up against a team like this, they're going to take advantage of it, and that's exactly what they did."
Yet the Kings weren't even supposed to be here. It could be argued that even being swept in the first round would have been a relative success. Some months before, when it looked as if the Kings would play out their schedule in March and April only because the league mandates it, the gas tank that is Arco Arena was virtually empty.
There was no less passion from Kings fans, just anew sort of passion. Boos became a regular occurrence along with lackluster performances. Midway through the season, even some people within the Kings' organization couldn't wait for the end, with hope already gone and the closest thing to promise a possible lottery pick in the draft.
Then came Artest. Then came Chapter Two.
But the hope began fleeting again with the Kingsdown 38-35 with 1:58 remaining in the second quarter, when a mixup between Artest and Robert Horry turned Artest's ankle badly enough to send him hobbling along the midcourt sideline, then summing up his frustration in one shouted word.
A fan near Adelman screamed, "Call timeout!" with the coach muttering for the fan to relax. The worry was warranted, as Artest quickly went to the locker room.
"He has set a tone for them physically, defensively, and I think a little wind did go out of their sails when he got hurt," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "It's tough to quantify that, but I thought it had an effect on the game because as soon as the third quarter came, we tried to get to Manu (Ginobili) to take advantage of that."
Adelman agreed.
"I think it definitely had an effect," he said. "But I don't think we can use it as an excuse. I give him all the credit in the world for coming out and trying to play."
And as if the series was suddenly back in Texas, it was - per San Antonio's home mantra - "Here come the Spurs."
They capped their 19-7 run over the half's final seven minutes with a 7-3 surge after Artest's departure, taking a 45-38 halftime lead. The energy inside the Kings' hallowed home quickly turned into collective concern.
And that was without most fans noticing the slight hobble of Wells just after that of Artest. The shooting guard winced in the final minutes, then had a healthy dose of a pain relief lotion applied to his strained hamstring just before the second half.
The pain only got worse in the third quarter, as San Antonio opened with a 14-1 run a la Game 1 - long-range damage. Ginobili opened with a three-pointer in Wells' face, followed by two three-pointers by Bruce Bowen that led Artest to wonder, "How'd he get open?" as he returned to the bench.
The Kings showed little ability to rally, rarely giving the Spurs cause for concern.
The rarity came with three seconds left in the third quarter, when Kevin Martin's threepointer cut the lead to 75-62. True to form,
Parker ran the floor, rose over Kings point guard Mike Bibby and hit a cold-blooded capper from more than 30 feet to answer.
"I'm really surprised there's not a Game 7," said Bibby, who had 19 points. "I thought we were going to come out and play way different than we did....We didn't play together."
NUMBERS
4-10: Kings' record in playoff elimination games since moving to Sacramento.
88: Games started by point guard Mike Bibby this season. He's the only King to start every game.
9.2: Points averaged by center Brad Miller in the playoffs. He averaged 15.0 in the regular season.
12.0: Playoff rebounding average by Bonzi Wells, tied for the lead in the first round.
5: Number of shots missed by Ron Artest to begin the game.
SOUND BITE
"This series was ours, but the better team won. We got a couple bad breaks. Who knows how it would have turned out if everything just kinda went our way."
- Ron Artest
About the writer: The Bee's Sam Amick can be reached at (916) 326-5582 or samick@sacbee.com.
Out with a clang
Offensive miscues, Parker's excellence end Kings' season
By Sam Amick -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PDT Saturday, May 6, 2006
There was no chaos or cheer this time, no Gavin Maloof dances or wild bounces or any shred of the suspense that had marked this phenomenal first-round series.
The silver and black were better. And it was black and white.
The Kings' season ended anticlimactically Friday night at Arco Arena, the San Antonio Spurs finishing the job just as they had started it.
With a bang and a blowout, 105-83 to win the best-ofseven series 4-2.
As predictions go, it was the forecast of Kings coach Rick Adelman that won out over that of his soothsaying small forward. Ron Artest - he of the original playoff prediction who later vowed the Kings wouldn't lose in the first round - limped across the finish line on a sprained right ankle that threw the mission off course in the second quarter.
But it was Adelman, who heard about Spurs guard Tony Parker and his thigh contusion, heard how he missed two consecutive days of practice as if that meant he would no longer be a threat.
No dice and bad luck.
Parker played better banged up than healthy, scoring a career playoff-high 31 points despite the thigh injury and a hip strain that hobbled him in the third quarter.
The Kings, meanwhile, received little from their biggest players, with center Brad Miller and Artest combining for 14 points on 3-for-17 shooting. Bonzi Wells, the virtual series MVP, mustered 17 points on 6-for-9 shooting.
Since the 2003-04 season, the reigning champion Spurs had been in position to close out a series on their opponent's floor 10 times. They won eight of them.
"Give the Spurs credit," said Adelman, the coach without a contract who left the discussion on his future for another day. "They're the world champs for a reason. We stumbled, and they took advantage of it. When you make mistakes and you open it up against a team like this, they're going to take advantage of it, and that's exactly what they did."
Yet the Kings weren't even supposed to be here. It could be argued that even being swept in the first round would have been a relative success. Some months before, when it looked as if the Kings would play out their schedule in March and April only because the league mandates it, the gas tank that is Arco Arena was virtually empty.
There was no less passion from Kings fans, just anew sort of passion. Boos became a regular occurrence along with lackluster performances. Midway through the season, even some people within the Kings' organization couldn't wait for the end, with hope already gone and the closest thing to promise a possible lottery pick in the draft.
Then came Artest. Then came Chapter Two.
But the hope began fleeting again with the Kingsdown 38-35 with 1:58 remaining in the second quarter, when a mixup between Artest and Robert Horry turned Artest's ankle badly enough to send him hobbling along the midcourt sideline, then summing up his frustration in one shouted word.
A fan near Adelman screamed, "Call timeout!" with the coach muttering for the fan to relax. The worry was warranted, as Artest quickly went to the locker room.
"He has set a tone for them physically, defensively, and I think a little wind did go out of their sails when he got hurt," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "It's tough to quantify that, but I thought it had an effect on the game because as soon as the third quarter came, we tried to get to Manu (Ginobili) to take advantage of that."
Adelman agreed.
"I think it definitely had an effect," he said. "But I don't think we can use it as an excuse. I give him all the credit in the world for coming out and trying to play."
And as if the series was suddenly back in Texas, it was - per San Antonio's home mantra - "Here come the Spurs."
They capped their 19-7 run over the half's final seven minutes with a 7-3 surge after Artest's departure, taking a 45-38 halftime lead. The energy inside the Kings' hallowed home quickly turned into collective concern.
And that was without most fans noticing the slight hobble of Wells just after that of Artest. The shooting guard winced in the final minutes, then had a healthy dose of a pain relief lotion applied to his strained hamstring just before the second half.
The pain only got worse in the third quarter, as San Antonio opened with a 14-1 run a la Game 1 - long-range damage. Ginobili opened with a three-pointer in Wells' face, followed by two three-pointers by Bruce Bowen that led Artest to wonder, "How'd he get open?" as he returned to the bench.
The Kings showed little ability to rally, rarely giving the Spurs cause for concern.
The rarity came with three seconds left in the third quarter, when Kevin Martin's threepointer cut the lead to 75-62. True to form,
Parker ran the floor, rose over Kings point guard Mike Bibby and hit a cold-blooded capper from more than 30 feet to answer.
"I'm really surprised there's not a Game 7," said Bibby, who had 19 points. "I thought we were going to come out and play way different than we did....We didn't play together."
NUMBERS
4-10: Kings' record in playoff elimination games since moving to Sacramento.
88: Games started by point guard Mike Bibby this season. He's the only King to start every game.
9.2: Points averaged by center Brad Miller in the playoffs. He averaged 15.0 in the regular season.
12.0: Playoff rebounding average by Bonzi Wells, tied for the lead in the first round.
5: Number of shots missed by Ron Artest to begin the game.
SOUND BITE
"This series was ours, but the better team won. We got a couple bad breaks. Who knows how it would have turned out if everything just kinda went our way."
- Ron Artest
About the writer: The Bee's Sam Amick can be reached at (916) 326-5582 or samick@sacbee.com.
