http://www.sacbee.com/content/sports/story/13758127p-14600346c.html
By Sam Amick
There was no love at the Rose Garden, where the name couldn't be less fitting these days.
The fans who wanted a moral makeover have it now, in the form of a happy and hapless Portland Trail Blazers squad that has given them new reasons to boo.
Saturday night at what could be dubbed The Stinking Rose Garden, one of the old reasons for rancor returned: Kings guard Bonzi Wells, the guest of dishonor who was less than beloved by the time his five-plus seasons ended in Portland in 2003. He sparked the boo-birds with every touch, grinning at most of the catcalls and even flashing one of his digits to a harping fan - a hearty thumbs up.
The only semblance of pleasantries went to Shareef Abdur-Rahim, who spent last season on the good side of Portland and drew a smattering of applause from the 17,613 fans every time he held the spotlight.
The preseason game itself? Kings 100-80. Halftime score: Kings 48-24. Portland shooting percentage in that span: 20.9 (9 for 43). Team resembling the newest National Basketball Development League addition: not the Kings.
Kings coach Rick Adelman pulled a surprise move at the start, going with Corliss Williamson at power forward after Abdur-Rahim or Kenny Thomas had started every game. Williamson, who was having a quiet preseason, exploded for 13 first-quarter points and finished with 18 in 26 minutes, scoring from every spot on the block.
With point guard Mike Bibby, small forward Peja Stojakovic, center Brad Miller, Williamson and Wells playing the entire first quarter, the Kings led 30-14.
Abdur-Rahim entered in the second quarter, driving hard with almost every touch and scoring 12 points in 22 minutes. The minute-less man was Thomas, who wasn't quite sure what to make of his absence.
"You've got to ask (Adelman) about that," Thomas said.
Adelman chalked it up to big-man logjam, saying his desire to give Williamson extended minutes made more sense against a more brutish Blazers front line than it did against tonight's more stealth opponent, Phoenix.
"I can't play everybody if I'm going to give Corliss a good run and give Shareef and Brad and Brian (Skinner) time," Adelman said. "And that's what's going to happen during the regular season. I don't know how you get guys enough minutes where you get quality minutes and play 12 people. It's just impossible to do. ... I didn't see any sense in playing (Thomas) five or six minutes."
As expected, the loss of backup point guard Jason Hart (hip pointer) meant more time for the No. 3 floor leader. Rookie Ronnie Price was on the floor for 23 minutes and struggled, hitting 1 of 6 shots.
The Kings treated the Blazers' front line as if it was invisible. In the second quarter, Abdur-Rahim blew by one Blazer and dunked over another in his most electrifying play yet as a King. Skinner, who had 11 points, dunked in the face of 7-foot-3 Ha Seung-Jin in the fourth quarter.
Despite the absence of franchise forward Zach Randolph (sore knee), the Trail Blazers (1-4) still qualified as horrendous. Their losses have come by an average of 20 points.
"Those guys probably don't even want to play," said Wells, who had 11 points on 4-for-10 shooting in 24 minutes. "They're probably calling their agents every day, like, man, is there any way you can trade me out of here?' "I feel sorry for them, because those are my friends. I'm just glad I got out of here, and I'm not one of those guys sitting around here going crazy."
By Sam Amick
There was no love at the Rose Garden, where the name couldn't be less fitting these days.
The fans who wanted a moral makeover have it now, in the form of a happy and hapless Portland Trail Blazers squad that has given them new reasons to boo.
Saturday night at what could be dubbed The Stinking Rose Garden, one of the old reasons for rancor returned: Kings guard Bonzi Wells, the guest of dishonor who was less than beloved by the time his five-plus seasons ended in Portland in 2003. He sparked the boo-birds with every touch, grinning at most of the catcalls and even flashing one of his digits to a harping fan - a hearty thumbs up.
The only semblance of pleasantries went to Shareef Abdur-Rahim, who spent last season on the good side of Portland and drew a smattering of applause from the 17,613 fans every time he held the spotlight.
The preseason game itself? Kings 100-80. Halftime score: Kings 48-24. Portland shooting percentage in that span: 20.9 (9 for 43). Team resembling the newest National Basketball Development League addition: not the Kings.
Kings coach Rick Adelman pulled a surprise move at the start, going with Corliss Williamson at power forward after Abdur-Rahim or Kenny Thomas had started every game. Williamson, who was having a quiet preseason, exploded for 13 first-quarter points and finished with 18 in 26 minutes, scoring from every spot on the block.
With point guard Mike Bibby, small forward Peja Stojakovic, center Brad Miller, Williamson and Wells playing the entire first quarter, the Kings led 30-14.
Abdur-Rahim entered in the second quarter, driving hard with almost every touch and scoring 12 points in 22 minutes. The minute-less man was Thomas, who wasn't quite sure what to make of his absence.
"You've got to ask (Adelman) about that," Thomas said.
Adelman chalked it up to big-man logjam, saying his desire to give Williamson extended minutes made more sense against a more brutish Blazers front line than it did against tonight's more stealth opponent, Phoenix.
"I can't play everybody if I'm going to give Corliss a good run and give Shareef and Brad and Brian (Skinner) time," Adelman said. "And that's what's going to happen during the regular season. I don't know how you get guys enough minutes where you get quality minutes and play 12 people. It's just impossible to do. ... I didn't see any sense in playing (Thomas) five or six minutes."
As expected, the loss of backup point guard Jason Hart (hip pointer) meant more time for the No. 3 floor leader. Rookie Ronnie Price was on the floor for 23 minutes and struggled, hitting 1 of 6 shots.
The Kings treated the Blazers' front line as if it was invisible. In the second quarter, Abdur-Rahim blew by one Blazer and dunked over another in his most electrifying play yet as a King. Skinner, who had 11 points, dunked in the face of 7-foot-3 Ha Seung-Jin in the fourth quarter.
Despite the absence of franchise forward Zach Randolph (sore knee), the Trail Blazers (1-4) still qualified as horrendous. Their losses have come by an average of 20 points.
"Those guys probably don't even want to play," said Wells, who had 11 points on 4-for-10 shooting in 24 minutes. "They're probably calling their agents every day, like, man, is there any way you can trade me out of here?' "I feel sorry for them, because those are my friends. I'm just glad I got out of here, and I'm not one of those guys sitting around here going crazy."
.............
