I don't really care about all the reasons. All I know is that I'm afraid the 20+ year love affair (one-sided, I'll admit) I've had with the Kings may be coming to a close.
I feel - at times - like a wife caught in an unhappy marriage, sticking it out just for the children. But the children - in this case the players that such a short time ago were like part of my family - are leaving one by one and being replaced by strangers.
I'm tired of being lied to. I'm tired of having the neighbors gossip. I'm really tired of hearing about the infidelities on the news. (Oh, okay - that's stretching it. Grant Napear isn't exactly the news, but you get the idea.)
In 1999, the relationship really started to take off. We had so much fun together. We went places we'd never been before. We broadened our horizons and dared to dream bigger dreams. And, almost too good to believe, some of those dreams came true.
I'm not going to extend the metaphor, but I'm sure you all know what I'm talking about.
I wasn't too impacted by ticket prices because I can't get to games anyway. But I've been impacted by all the rest.
The whole Peja-Vlade-Webber thing was horrible. It nearly broke my heart. Watching Vlade decide to go to the Lakers was a lethal blow, but somehow I survived. Denial isn't just a river in Egypt.
Watching the team struggle when Webber came back was back enough, but seeing the mean, spiteful comments about someone who just wanted to win and was trying his hardest - albeit probably not enough - to accomplish that goal was not easy.
Learning via Voisin's column that Peja wanted a trade was also horrible. And, slowly but surely, I guess my heart was beginning to build scar tissue.
Then came the Christie trade. Seeing him gone was bad enough. Watching Mobley walk a year later for nothing was like rubbing salt in the wound.
Meanwhile, we had the clowns of the city council and the vitriol of the Sacramento Bee to wade through as we had to watch hopes of a new and much needed arena go down the drain.
Feb. 23, 2005 was arguably the worst day of my life as a Kings fan. The trade itself was bad enough. The rationalization just didn't feel right.
Since then, nothing has seemed to go right for the Kings. Bonzi, one of the few bright spots in recent memory, is out for an extended period of time. SAR, who gave a lot of people, had his jaw broken. The bad things just kept on happening.
Today, though, was possibly the last nail in the coffin. I don't know exactly what Grant Napear said on his show today nor do I know if any of it is true.
All I know is that somehow, reading about it, I felt as though someone had died. And, after thinking a moment, I believe it was my heart.
Yes, I am still a Kings fan but it's a hollow feeling right now. And, in all honesty, I don't have a clue on how to fix it.
I feel - at times - like a wife caught in an unhappy marriage, sticking it out just for the children. But the children - in this case the players that such a short time ago were like part of my family - are leaving one by one and being replaced by strangers.
I'm tired of being lied to. I'm tired of having the neighbors gossip. I'm really tired of hearing about the infidelities on the news. (Oh, okay - that's stretching it. Grant Napear isn't exactly the news, but you get the idea.)
In 1999, the relationship really started to take off. We had so much fun together. We went places we'd never been before. We broadened our horizons and dared to dream bigger dreams. And, almost too good to believe, some of those dreams came true.
I'm not going to extend the metaphor, but I'm sure you all know what I'm talking about.
I wasn't too impacted by ticket prices because I can't get to games anyway. But I've been impacted by all the rest.
The whole Peja-Vlade-Webber thing was horrible. It nearly broke my heart. Watching Vlade decide to go to the Lakers was a lethal blow, but somehow I survived. Denial isn't just a river in Egypt.
Watching the team struggle when Webber came back was back enough, but seeing the mean, spiteful comments about someone who just wanted to win and was trying his hardest - albeit probably not enough - to accomplish that goal was not easy.
Learning via Voisin's column that Peja wanted a trade was also horrible. And, slowly but surely, I guess my heart was beginning to build scar tissue.
Then came the Christie trade. Seeing him gone was bad enough. Watching Mobley walk a year later for nothing was like rubbing salt in the wound.
Meanwhile, we had the clowns of the city council and the vitriol of the Sacramento Bee to wade through as we had to watch hopes of a new and much needed arena go down the drain.
Feb. 23, 2005 was arguably the worst day of my life as a Kings fan. The trade itself was bad enough. The rationalization just didn't feel right.
Since then, nothing has seemed to go right for the Kings. Bonzi, one of the few bright spots in recent memory, is out for an extended period of time. SAR, who gave a lot of people, had his jaw broken. The bad things just kept on happening.
Today, though, was possibly the last nail in the coffin. I don't know exactly what Grant Napear said on his show today nor do I know if any of it is true.
All I know is that somehow, reading about it, I felt as though someone had died. And, after thinking a moment, I believe it was my heart.
Yes, I am still a Kings fan but it's a hollow feeling right now. And, in all honesty, I don't have a clue on how to fix it.
