KingKong
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http://www.sacbee.com/content/sports/basketball/kings/story/11571518p-12469505c.html
Lakers center Vlade Divac (12) says he misses t
he Kings' fans: "I love Sacramento very much, and those fans ... the best."
Vlade is playing but not as a King
The center will embrace his former team from his new workplace
By Joe Davidson -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PST Friday, November 26, 2004
The colors don't look right, the jersey number is off, the sudden audience adoration odd.
But the bearded fellow encased in the yellow-and-purple duds is undeniable.
Vlade Divac.
He's a Laker now - and again - and even he finds that a bit peculiar to say. Tonight, he'll embrace members of the Kings instead of leading them out of the tunnel. Tonight, he'll flop to draw a foul, and a Kings player is liable to howl to a referee about the injustice, that it's all a sham.
"It is different being back here, with this jersey, and it took me a while to get used to it," Divac said by cell phone, inching up the 405 freeway after Wednesday's practice. "I never thought this would happen."
What happened was this: After six of his best NBA seasons in Sacramento - and the six best Kings seasons in Sacramento - as the face of the franchise and a global goodwill ambassador, Divac's contract expired. One of the best stories in the NBA club's history came to a close.
Emotions from a trying conclusion to last season and finances played a role in what he did next.
Divac soldiered on and kept a good leadership face when his role was diminished down the stretch of the regular season and at times in the playoffs as the Kings incorporated Chris Webber back into the lineup after knee surgery. Divac maintained then and now that Webber had to be in the mix in some context, that everyone had to sacrifice for the good of the team. But Divac wonders if the Kings sacrificed too much.
He fidgeted on his sideline seat when the Kings' offense lurched forward instead of producing that familiar hum with Divac massaging the controls. He wanted to be out there, his weary 36-year-old legs be damned.
And Divac smarted from a frustrating exit in the playoffs, a seven-game Western Conference semifinal encounter with the Minnesota Timberwolves. He was frustrated for his friend, Peja Stojakovic, who was frustrated in his role and with his own offensive struggles.
Still, Divac said he wanted to re-sign with the Kings, to retire a King, to long live and relish his role of being the king of Kings.
But in an instant in July, Divac was suddenly back with the Lakers, the club that employed him for his first seven NBA seasons. The Lakers paid him more money - $4.9 million this season and a $5.39 million player option next season - than the Kings were prepared to offer. The Kings had a bench to replace, re-signing Darius Songaila and bringing in five newcomers, all while not trying to balloon the team salary structure, all while hoping Divac's overall presence wouldn't splinter the group he left behind.
And Divac went south because he enjoys Los Angeles as much as Sacramento.
"He left because the Lakers gave him a better deal," Kings coach Rick Adelman said. "It's nobody's fault. We always knew Los Angeles was a threat. We miss him this year in a lot of ways. We can't measure what he did for us."
Said Jerry Reynolds, the Kings' director of player personnel: "No one can begrudge Vlade for going back there. It was a good move for him, and it might really help us in the long run now that we have Greg Ostertag and the things he can do for us.
"No question, Vlade's special, and having Vlade there makes hating the Lakers a little harder."
Divac said his decision to join the Lakers was quick, and it wasn't until he received bushels of fan mail that it really hit him. He was leaving a good thing.
"I love Sacramento very much, and those fans ... the best," said Divac, who also spoke about Stojakovic's trade request and his relationship with Webber. "I can never forget what they did for me, in 1998, my first year there, when I had so many bad things happening in my country, all the way to the end."
His wife, Ana, and three children are with Divac in Pacific Palisades, where he resided during his first Lakers stint. He has been well-received by those who booed him when he played for the Kings. And he vowed to come to work in shape.
But in an ironic twist, Divac - never known to be an offseason workout fiend - torqued his back during a voluntary session. The herniated disc sidelined him for the first 11 games of the season.
Divac's first action came Tuesday night against the Milwaukee Bucks at the Staples Center. He received a rousing ovation, although no one knew then that he had only arrived to the building barely an hour before tipoff. Divac was stuck in inch-along traffic. He also had to frantically search for his jersey that wasn't in his locker.
"I have to learn the traffic all over again," he said.
Divac played five minutes Tuesday. Against the Kings, he expects to play a little more.
"Five and a half," he said.
Divac was in good spirits, he said, because he's at peace with himself. He stressed that no amount of discord with Webber or Adelman, perceived or real, will tarnish his Kings stay. He will seek out both tonight before the game to catch up.
Divac doesn't fault Adelman for the Kings' 11-12 regular-season finish and playoff exit, saying the coach never has an easy gig.
And Webber?
"Oh, we're OK," Divac said. "It was never anything bad enough to ruin a friendship. I love Chris very much. We went through a lot together up there.
"It was tough for Rick to get Chris back involved, hard decisions. We all knew that with Chris, we were a championship team. Without Chris, in my opinion, we were a good team and our championship chances were smaller. When we were winning, we all had fun. When we struggled, no one has fun. That's the way it is."
Said Webber: "Vlade is missed. It's not the same anymore."
Stojakovic said he is looking forward to the reunion. But hugging a Laker?
"Weird," he said.
Divac said he keeps a close eye on the Kings, peeking at the nightly highlights, scanning the box scores on the team flight. And he keeps in contact with Stojakovic, whom he mentored throughout his Sacramento tour.
Their relationship remains sacred because it was deeper than any brother-brother type of thing.
"That's not his brother," Kings center Brad Miller cracked earlier this season. "That's his daddy."
Divac was with Stojakovic throughout the summer, to run fund-raising basketball clinics in Folsom that aid children from the civil unrest across the globe or in Serbia. Stojakovic's offseason included serving in the Greek Army, not playing for a Serbian Olympic team that dearly missed him and the arrival of a baby boy.
"And I left him," Divac quipped.
And Stojakovic asked for a trade, suggesting that change can be good for all parties.
Did that surprise Divac?
"In some ways," he said. "Obviously, Peja feels that in some ways, the Kings are his team, the leading scorer, maybe the best player, that he should be the (No. 1 option), that he wasn't treated right."
Stojakovic hasn't stressed any desire to be relocated during the season. He said he would honor his contract and play hard - and he has. And any anticipated friction between Webber and Stojakovic never materialized, with both men working well together on the floor and hamming it up on the team bench, on the team plane and at functions away from the court.
None of this surprises Divac.
"He's made good decisions, he's doing the best he can, playing hard," Divac said. "He has a good heart. He's very professional. He's learning the NBA life. People say he learned a lot from me. I learned a lot from Peja, too."
With his incomparable passing and leadership skills, Divac plans to boost the Lakers, a shell of their former selves with Shaquille O'Neal in Miami, Phil Jackson pushing his new book and a host of others elsewhere. He said he's amazed at the drive, determination and work ethic of Kobe Bryant.
And clearing the air about what happened with the Kings late last season is only one part of the cleansing.
In the back rooms of Staples Center, the walls still include press clippings detailing the often-bitter Lakers-Kings playoff duels, including quotes of Jackson saying the Kings required sniffing dogs to check luggage after the team was especially giddy after a playoff series victory over Phoenix.
"I'm going to get rid of that stuff," Divac said. "It's a new era now." For both teams.
Lakers center Vlade Divac (12) says he misses t
he Kings' fans: "I love Sacramento very much, and those fans ... the best."
Vlade is playing but not as a King
The center will embrace his former team from his new workplace
By Joe Davidson -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PST Friday, November 26, 2004
The colors don't look right, the jersey number is off, the sudden audience adoration odd.
But the bearded fellow encased in the yellow-and-purple duds is undeniable.
Vlade Divac.
He's a Laker now - and again - and even he finds that a bit peculiar to say. Tonight, he'll embrace members of the Kings instead of leading them out of the tunnel. Tonight, he'll flop to draw a foul, and a Kings player is liable to howl to a referee about the injustice, that it's all a sham.
"It is different being back here, with this jersey, and it took me a while to get used to it," Divac said by cell phone, inching up the 405 freeway after Wednesday's practice. "I never thought this would happen."
What happened was this: After six of his best NBA seasons in Sacramento - and the six best Kings seasons in Sacramento - as the face of the franchise and a global goodwill ambassador, Divac's contract expired. One of the best stories in the NBA club's history came to a close.
Emotions from a trying conclusion to last season and finances played a role in what he did next.
Divac soldiered on and kept a good leadership face when his role was diminished down the stretch of the regular season and at times in the playoffs as the Kings incorporated Chris Webber back into the lineup after knee surgery. Divac maintained then and now that Webber had to be in the mix in some context, that everyone had to sacrifice for the good of the team. But Divac wonders if the Kings sacrificed too much.
He fidgeted on his sideline seat when the Kings' offense lurched forward instead of producing that familiar hum with Divac massaging the controls. He wanted to be out there, his weary 36-year-old legs be damned.
And Divac smarted from a frustrating exit in the playoffs, a seven-game Western Conference semifinal encounter with the Minnesota Timberwolves. He was frustrated for his friend, Peja Stojakovic, who was frustrated in his role and with his own offensive struggles.
Still, Divac said he wanted to re-sign with the Kings, to retire a King, to long live and relish his role of being the king of Kings.
But in an instant in July, Divac was suddenly back with the Lakers, the club that employed him for his first seven NBA seasons. The Lakers paid him more money - $4.9 million this season and a $5.39 million player option next season - than the Kings were prepared to offer. The Kings had a bench to replace, re-signing Darius Songaila and bringing in five newcomers, all while not trying to balloon the team salary structure, all while hoping Divac's overall presence wouldn't splinter the group he left behind.
And Divac went south because he enjoys Los Angeles as much as Sacramento.
"He left because the Lakers gave him a better deal," Kings coach Rick Adelman said. "It's nobody's fault. We always knew Los Angeles was a threat. We miss him this year in a lot of ways. We can't measure what he did for us."
Said Jerry Reynolds, the Kings' director of player personnel: "No one can begrudge Vlade for going back there. It was a good move for him, and it might really help us in the long run now that we have Greg Ostertag and the things he can do for us.
"No question, Vlade's special, and having Vlade there makes hating the Lakers a little harder."
Divac said his decision to join the Lakers was quick, and it wasn't until he received bushels of fan mail that it really hit him. He was leaving a good thing.
"I love Sacramento very much, and those fans ... the best," said Divac, who also spoke about Stojakovic's trade request and his relationship with Webber. "I can never forget what they did for me, in 1998, my first year there, when I had so many bad things happening in my country, all the way to the end."
His wife, Ana, and three children are with Divac in Pacific Palisades, where he resided during his first Lakers stint. He has been well-received by those who booed him when he played for the Kings. And he vowed to come to work in shape.
But in an ironic twist, Divac - never known to be an offseason workout fiend - torqued his back during a voluntary session. The herniated disc sidelined him for the first 11 games of the season.
Divac's first action came Tuesday night against the Milwaukee Bucks at the Staples Center. He received a rousing ovation, although no one knew then that he had only arrived to the building barely an hour before tipoff. Divac was stuck in inch-along traffic. He also had to frantically search for his jersey that wasn't in his locker.
"I have to learn the traffic all over again," he said.
Divac played five minutes Tuesday. Against the Kings, he expects to play a little more.
"Five and a half," he said.
Divac was in good spirits, he said, because he's at peace with himself. He stressed that no amount of discord with Webber or Adelman, perceived or real, will tarnish his Kings stay. He will seek out both tonight before the game to catch up.
Divac doesn't fault Adelman for the Kings' 11-12 regular-season finish and playoff exit, saying the coach never has an easy gig.
And Webber?
"Oh, we're OK," Divac said. "It was never anything bad enough to ruin a friendship. I love Chris very much. We went through a lot together up there.
"It was tough for Rick to get Chris back involved, hard decisions. We all knew that with Chris, we were a championship team. Without Chris, in my opinion, we were a good team and our championship chances were smaller. When we were winning, we all had fun. When we struggled, no one has fun. That's the way it is."
Said Webber: "Vlade is missed. It's not the same anymore."
Stojakovic said he is looking forward to the reunion. But hugging a Laker?
"Weird," he said.
Divac said he keeps a close eye on the Kings, peeking at the nightly highlights, scanning the box scores on the team flight. And he keeps in contact with Stojakovic, whom he mentored throughout his Sacramento tour.
Their relationship remains sacred because it was deeper than any brother-brother type of thing.
"That's not his brother," Kings center Brad Miller cracked earlier this season. "That's his daddy."
Divac was with Stojakovic throughout the summer, to run fund-raising basketball clinics in Folsom that aid children from the civil unrest across the globe or in Serbia. Stojakovic's offseason included serving in the Greek Army, not playing for a Serbian Olympic team that dearly missed him and the arrival of a baby boy.
"And I left him," Divac quipped.
And Stojakovic asked for a trade, suggesting that change can be good for all parties.
Did that surprise Divac?
"In some ways," he said. "Obviously, Peja feels that in some ways, the Kings are his team, the leading scorer, maybe the best player, that he should be the (No. 1 option), that he wasn't treated right."
Stojakovic hasn't stressed any desire to be relocated during the season. He said he would honor his contract and play hard - and he has. And any anticipated friction between Webber and Stojakovic never materialized, with both men working well together on the floor and hamming it up on the team bench, on the team plane and at functions away from the court.
None of this surprises Divac.
"He's made good decisions, he's doing the best he can, playing hard," Divac said. "He has a good heart. He's very professional. He's learning the NBA life. People say he learned a lot from me. I learned a lot from Peja, too."
With his incomparable passing and leadership skills, Divac plans to boost the Lakers, a shell of their former selves with Shaquille O'Neal in Miami, Phil Jackson pushing his new book and a host of others elsewhere. He said he's amazed at the drive, determination and work ethic of Kobe Bryant.
And clearing the air about what happened with the Kings late last season is only one part of the cleansing.
In the back rooms of Staples Center, the walls still include press clippings detailing the often-bitter Lakers-Kings playoff duels, including quotes of Jackson saying the Kings required sniffing dogs to check luggage after the team was especially giddy after a playoff series victory over Phoenix.
"I'm going to get rid of that stuff," Divac said. "It's a new era now." For both teams.
