http://www.sacbee.com/content/sports/basketball/kings/story/11251160p-12166511c.html
Ailene Voisin: Healthy Jackson vows to speak up
By Ailene Voisin -- Bee Sports Columnist
Published 2:15 am PDT Friday, October 29, 2004
Bobby Jackson was a straight shooter long before he developed that audacious stroke from the perimeter, give or take a few off-
balance attempts. And after consecutive seasons fractured by injuries - a broken hand, a sprained foot, an abdominal strain that sidelined him throughout the 2004 playoffs - the veteran Kings guard is chirping at the mike.
He wants a contract extension.
He wants a championship.
He also wants his teammates to keep any "issues" inside the locker room, wants the most productive players to receive the majority of the playing time, and wants any potential defectors to slam the door on their way out of Arco Arena.
No doubt about it. Bobby's back.
But as he enters his eighth NBA season and fifth with the Kings, Jackson, who has a club option for 2005-06 remaining on his bargain-basement contract, is almost obsessed with regaining his health, which, under ideal circumstances, would enhance the team's prospects for a successful season and his pursuit of a long-term agreement.
"I have given my all to the Kings," he said bluntly, "and I want a four-five year deal for my family. But they (team officials) want to know if I can stay healthy, and I don't blame them at all. Why invest money in somebody that keeps getting hurt? The good news is that while I'm not shooting the ball well, I'm not experiencing the soreness in my abdomen anymore."
The impact of Jackson's absence late last season can't be overstated. When he is available and substituting for Mike Bibby or Doug Christie, the backcourt triumvirate is as potent as any in the league, with the three Kings complementing each other both in personality and playing style.
Bibby is a superior shooter and shrewd, clever playmaker whose laconic demeanor bedevils opponents, allowing for deceptive darts into the seams of the defense.
Christie, wiry and athletic, remains a harassing defender and creative passer whose greatest assets are his versatility - and until his current plantar fasciitis - his durability.
Jackson, who has nursed a bruised right hand throughout training camp, is the burst off the bench, the superb sixth man, predictable only in his
productivity.
A fan favorite because of his energetic, blunt-force fury, he is the rare King who can be found buried in a heap pursuing a loose ball or thrusting his body into a crowd for rebounds, and for someone once regarded as an erratic shooter, those off-balance, end-of-clock field goals have become part of his routine.
"Everything he brings in terms of energy and toughness is very important to our success," said assistant coach Elston Turner, "and if something needs to be said, he doesn't mind saying it."
While watching the Kings' late-season skid, Jackson, who felt uncomfortable speaking up while seated on the bench, almost bit his tongue to avoid a verbal mishap. Yet these several months later, he swears his days of silent observation are over.
Should similar circumstances arise - the Kings' on-court chemistry dissolving, the questions and finger-pointing in the locker room starting, the injuries mounting - the 6-foot-1, 185-pounder vows to insinuate himself into the situation.
"The stuff that went on late last year, heck, yes, I would have had something to say," insisted Jackson. "We did not play to our potential. When that happens, everyone looks for someone to blame. (Chris) Webb (Webber) was playing hurt and playing a lot of minutes, but that wasn't his fault. He doesn't make that decision. Peja (Stojakovic) started struggling for whatever reason. But when you have a teammate struggling, you figure out a way to lift him up, not tear him down. And if there are issues, instead of calling guys out in the newspaper, go and say it to their faces so we don't have a problem. If you have an issue, let's hear it, but leave it in the locker room.
"And like I said about Peja last summer; I love Peja like a brother, but if a guy doesn't want to be here, we don't want him here. I want to play with guys who want to be part of this. I've been through enough these last two years, man. I lost my mom ... all my injuries ... I just want to win."
In a quiet aside, Jackson notes that the onset of his physical problems coincided with the death of his mother, Sarah, in January 2002. Compounding his emotional state and recurring injury woes, he reveals, were the talk-show rants and inferences that he was being overly cautious and more concerned about his future earning power than the Kings' postseason.
Indeed, questioning the legitimacy of a player's injury and/or availability is the sports' equivalent of a low blow, and Jackson, of all people, would seem an unlikely target.
He has a history of playing hard and playing hurt. He also plays for a lot less than he's worth. He will earn $3.1 million this season, and assuming the Kings exercise the option, $3.3 million in 2005-06 - still far below the 2004-05 salaries of any of the Kings' starters.
At those prices, and after his one-game comeback (April 9) only aggravated the abdominal tear that had benched him for the previous 24 games, Jackson, 31, would have been foolish to jeopardize his career for a postseason cameo. And asking him to temper his movements in the heat of a playoff game? Forget it. Just wouldn't happen. Just isn't him.
"Me playing on cruise control would only have hurt the team," he said. "I kept working out, thinking I might play if we had reached the conference finals. But to be honest, I doubt I would have been physically able, probably would have torn it worse. That's why when I look at this year, when I say we can be really good, we have to stay away from all those injuries."
That will be his message. Stay healthy. Stay ready. Beware, Bobby's back.
Ailene Voisin: Healthy Jackson vows to speak up
By Ailene Voisin -- Bee Sports Columnist
Published 2:15 am PDT Friday, October 29, 2004
Bobby Jackson was a straight shooter long before he developed that audacious stroke from the perimeter, give or take a few off-
balance attempts. And after consecutive seasons fractured by injuries - a broken hand, a sprained foot, an abdominal strain that sidelined him throughout the 2004 playoffs - the veteran Kings guard is chirping at the mike.
He wants a contract extension.
He wants a championship.
He also wants his teammates to keep any "issues" inside the locker room, wants the most productive players to receive the majority of the playing time, and wants any potential defectors to slam the door on their way out of Arco Arena.
No doubt about it. Bobby's back.
But as he enters his eighth NBA season and fifth with the Kings, Jackson, who has a club option for 2005-06 remaining on his bargain-basement contract, is almost obsessed with regaining his health, which, under ideal circumstances, would enhance the team's prospects for a successful season and his pursuit of a long-term agreement.
"I have given my all to the Kings," he said bluntly, "and I want a four-five year deal for my family. But they (team officials) want to know if I can stay healthy, and I don't blame them at all. Why invest money in somebody that keeps getting hurt? The good news is that while I'm not shooting the ball well, I'm not experiencing the soreness in my abdomen anymore."
The impact of Jackson's absence late last season can't be overstated. When he is available and substituting for Mike Bibby or Doug Christie, the backcourt triumvirate is as potent as any in the league, with the three Kings complementing each other both in personality and playing style.
Bibby is a superior shooter and shrewd, clever playmaker whose laconic demeanor bedevils opponents, allowing for deceptive darts into the seams of the defense.
Christie, wiry and athletic, remains a harassing defender and creative passer whose greatest assets are his versatility - and until his current plantar fasciitis - his durability.
Jackson, who has nursed a bruised right hand throughout training camp, is the burst off the bench, the superb sixth man, predictable only in his
productivity.
A fan favorite because of his energetic, blunt-force fury, he is the rare King who can be found buried in a heap pursuing a loose ball or thrusting his body into a crowd for rebounds, and for someone once regarded as an erratic shooter, those off-balance, end-of-clock field goals have become part of his routine.
"Everything he brings in terms of energy and toughness is very important to our success," said assistant coach Elston Turner, "and if something needs to be said, he doesn't mind saying it."
While watching the Kings' late-season skid, Jackson, who felt uncomfortable speaking up while seated on the bench, almost bit his tongue to avoid a verbal mishap. Yet these several months later, he swears his days of silent observation are over.
Should similar circumstances arise - the Kings' on-court chemistry dissolving, the questions and finger-pointing in the locker room starting, the injuries mounting - the 6-foot-1, 185-pounder vows to insinuate himself into the situation.
"The stuff that went on late last year, heck, yes, I would have had something to say," insisted Jackson. "We did not play to our potential. When that happens, everyone looks for someone to blame. (Chris) Webb (Webber) was playing hurt and playing a lot of minutes, but that wasn't his fault. He doesn't make that decision. Peja (Stojakovic) started struggling for whatever reason. But when you have a teammate struggling, you figure out a way to lift him up, not tear him down. And if there are issues, instead of calling guys out in the newspaper, go and say it to their faces so we don't have a problem. If you have an issue, let's hear it, but leave it in the locker room.
"And like I said about Peja last summer; I love Peja like a brother, but if a guy doesn't want to be here, we don't want him here. I want to play with guys who want to be part of this. I've been through enough these last two years, man. I lost my mom ... all my injuries ... I just want to win."
In a quiet aside, Jackson notes that the onset of his physical problems coincided with the death of his mother, Sarah, in January 2002. Compounding his emotional state and recurring injury woes, he reveals, were the talk-show rants and inferences that he was being overly cautious and more concerned about his future earning power than the Kings' postseason.
Indeed, questioning the legitimacy of a player's injury and/or availability is the sports' equivalent of a low blow, and Jackson, of all people, would seem an unlikely target.
He has a history of playing hard and playing hurt. He also plays for a lot less than he's worth. He will earn $3.1 million this season, and assuming the Kings exercise the option, $3.3 million in 2005-06 - still far below the 2004-05 salaries of any of the Kings' starters.
At those prices, and after his one-game comeback (April 9) only aggravated the abdominal tear that had benched him for the previous 24 games, Jackson, 31, would have been foolish to jeopardize his career for a postseason cameo. And asking him to temper his movements in the heat of a playoff game? Forget it. Just wouldn't happen. Just isn't him.
"Me playing on cruise control would only have hurt the team," he said. "I kept working out, thinking I might play if we had reached the conference finals. But to be honest, I doubt I would have been physically able, probably would have torn it worse. That's why when I look at this year, when I say we can be really good, we have to stay away from all those injuries."
That will be his message. Stay healthy. Stay ready. Beware, Bobby's back.
