Source: http://www.sacbee.com/content/sports/basketball/kings/story/10882656p-11800255c.html
NBA Beat: Kings just can't stay healthy, but Webber, Jackson are OK
By Joe Davidson -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PDT Sunday, September 26, 2004
Doug Christie
About this time last year, Bobby Jackson pondered the question, smirked and exhaled.
Are the Kings jinxed health-wise, with some sadistic voodoo master twisting and jabbing a doll decked in purple and black? Jackson said that might not be far from the truth, with a room full of triage victims as proof - from players with bad knees to bad ankles to bad feet to bad backs to badly broken hands.
This year's Kings camp opens Friday, and there's already ill will on the medical front.
Doug Christie, the one man who has remained mostly upright during his Kings tenure, will miss camp and perhaps some early regular-season games. The veteran guard had an electronic procedure on his ailing left foot to ease the agony from plantar fasciitis, which feels as nasty and gnarly as it sounds.
Christie was bothered by the condition last season. All summer in Seattle, he rested - the best remedy - but when his foot still didn't feel right, Christie had shock treatment. He didn't require surgery, but for a man who knows only varying degrees of warp speed, he'll have to wrestle with his emotions while keeping things in idle through October.
The Kings didn't want this news, not after Chris Webber missed the first 50 games of last season while mending from knee surgery and Jackson sat out the final third of the season because of a lower abdominal tear.
Fortunately for the Kings, Webber and Jackson have looked active and crisp during summer workouts. Jackson reported Saturday that he's "100 percent" and ready to resume his rightful place as the team's tireless sixth man.
"Injuries happen, and no one is Superman," Jackson said. "I'm looking forward to getting back out there again and bringing the energy back to the Kings."
The Bobby Jackson Foundation Celebrity Golf Tournament, a fund-raiser to raise awareness of breast cancer, is scheduled for today at Morgan Creek Golf and Country Club. Jackson's mother, Sarah, succumbed to the disease in January 2003.
Depth woes
One of the quandaries Kings coach Rick Adelman faced last season was guard depth.
When Jackson went down, Christie stepped up his game, becoming more of a scorer, passer and leader, and he produced perhaps his best season. The Kings' bench included Anthony Peeler and Rodney Buford, both of whom have left via free agency, Peeler to the Washington Wizards and Buford to the New Jersey Nets.
The Kings drafted Kevin Martin and Ricky Minard for depth at shooting guard, and now the two will compete for preseason starting nods. It's a golden chance for two athletic players who aren't afraid to shoot or attack the basket.
Hometown hopeful
And there's Matt Barnes.A former Bee Player of the Year from Del Campo High School, Barnes played for the Los Angeles Clippers last season, offering long arms and versatility as a swingman. This year, he will be in Kings camp, hopeful he can make the team, perhaps even taking some of those preseason Christie minutes.
Barnes isn't a great shooter by any means - he's the first to admit as much - but on the Kings, he doesn't have to be.
Other invitees
The Kings have some intriguing camp invites, including Wei Lie, a 6-foot-3 Chinese National Team point guard who will be the second-most sought-after player when the Kings face Yao Ming and his Houston Rockets for two preseason games in China.Alton Ford will receive a look because he's a 6-9, 280-pound power forward who will at least crash into people during practice and leave welts they'll feel the next morning.
Ford was a second-round draft pick by the Phoenix Suns in 2001. He has played in 73 NBA games, including nine last season with Houston, and his 2003-04 season highs in points (seven), rebounds (five) and minutes (20) came against the Kings.
And one
Imagine how frantic Kings fans would be if Vlade Divac were still employed by the team and wound up with a herniated disc. Now with the Los Angeles Lakers, Divac could miss the bulk of training camp after hurting his back while doing a spin move during a recent workout.
"He was trying to move like James Worthy, and his body said, 'No,' " Lakers spokesman John Black told L.A. media.
* It's beginning to look as if Jamal Mashburn's NBA days are over. The one-time All-Star forward can't so much as walk without feeling pain in his knees, which he said are devoid of cartilage. With the New Orleans Hornets, Mashburn said during a visit to Arco Arena late last season that his knees are "bone on bone."
* Keon Clark, who spent the 2002-03 season with the Kings as a shot-blocking reserve center, was a no-show for a workout with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Ankle problems limited Clark to two games last season with the Utah Jazz, but he often didn't show up for rehabilitation assignments. He was traded to the Phoenix Suns in February but never reported.
* Running on fumes, bad toes and a great deal of wishful thinking: Dennis Rodman. The former NBA rebounding champion hopes to receive another workout with the Denver Nuggets after pulling himself out of a scrimmage last week because of ingrown nails on his two big toes, according to his agent, Darren Prince. Two other NBA teams have expressed interest in the 43-year-old Rodman, Prince said, declining to name them. * Calvin Murphy, a Hall of Fame guard for the Rockets and one of the shameless homers in NBA broadcasting, will not work as a color analyst for the team this season. He faces charges of sexually abusing five of his daughters more than a decade ago and has pleaded not guilty. Murphy was placed on request leave late last season when the charges were filed, and he remains on paid indefinite leave for the season. Murphy, who has fathered 14 children with nine women, said last spring he believes the allegations arose from a family conflict regarding money.
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Nothing really new here. But it's always nice to have an assurance on Webber and Bobby's status as the new season approaches.
NBA Beat: Kings just can't stay healthy, but Webber, Jackson are OK
By Joe Davidson -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PDT Sunday, September 26, 2004
Doug Christie
About this time last year, Bobby Jackson pondered the question, smirked and exhaled.
Are the Kings jinxed health-wise, with some sadistic voodoo master twisting and jabbing a doll decked in purple and black? Jackson said that might not be far from the truth, with a room full of triage victims as proof - from players with bad knees to bad ankles to bad feet to bad backs to badly broken hands.
This year's Kings camp opens Friday, and there's already ill will on the medical front.
Doug Christie, the one man who has remained mostly upright during his Kings tenure, will miss camp and perhaps some early regular-season games. The veteran guard had an electronic procedure on his ailing left foot to ease the agony from plantar fasciitis, which feels as nasty and gnarly as it sounds.
Christie was bothered by the condition last season. All summer in Seattle, he rested - the best remedy - but when his foot still didn't feel right, Christie had shock treatment. He didn't require surgery, but for a man who knows only varying degrees of warp speed, he'll have to wrestle with his emotions while keeping things in idle through October.
The Kings didn't want this news, not after Chris Webber missed the first 50 games of last season while mending from knee surgery and Jackson sat out the final third of the season because of a lower abdominal tear.
Fortunately for the Kings, Webber and Jackson have looked active and crisp during summer workouts. Jackson reported Saturday that he's "100 percent" and ready to resume his rightful place as the team's tireless sixth man.
"Injuries happen, and no one is Superman," Jackson said. "I'm looking forward to getting back out there again and bringing the energy back to the Kings."
The Bobby Jackson Foundation Celebrity Golf Tournament, a fund-raiser to raise awareness of breast cancer, is scheduled for today at Morgan Creek Golf and Country Club. Jackson's mother, Sarah, succumbed to the disease in January 2003.
Depth woes
One of the quandaries Kings coach Rick Adelman faced last season was guard depth.
When Jackson went down, Christie stepped up his game, becoming more of a scorer, passer and leader, and he produced perhaps his best season. The Kings' bench included Anthony Peeler and Rodney Buford, both of whom have left via free agency, Peeler to the Washington Wizards and Buford to the New Jersey Nets.
The Kings drafted Kevin Martin and Ricky Minard for depth at shooting guard, and now the two will compete for preseason starting nods. It's a golden chance for two athletic players who aren't afraid to shoot or attack the basket.
Hometown hopeful
And there's Matt Barnes.A former Bee Player of the Year from Del Campo High School, Barnes played for the Los Angeles Clippers last season, offering long arms and versatility as a swingman. This year, he will be in Kings camp, hopeful he can make the team, perhaps even taking some of those preseason Christie minutes.
Barnes isn't a great shooter by any means - he's the first to admit as much - but on the Kings, he doesn't have to be.
Other invitees
The Kings have some intriguing camp invites, including Wei Lie, a 6-foot-3 Chinese National Team point guard who will be the second-most sought-after player when the Kings face Yao Ming and his Houston Rockets for two preseason games in China.Alton Ford will receive a look because he's a 6-9, 280-pound power forward who will at least crash into people during practice and leave welts they'll feel the next morning.
Ford was a second-round draft pick by the Phoenix Suns in 2001. He has played in 73 NBA games, including nine last season with Houston, and his 2003-04 season highs in points (seven), rebounds (five) and minutes (20) came against the Kings.
And one
Imagine how frantic Kings fans would be if Vlade Divac were still employed by the team and wound up with a herniated disc. Now with the Los Angeles Lakers, Divac could miss the bulk of training camp after hurting his back while doing a spin move during a recent workout.
"He was trying to move like James Worthy, and his body said, 'No,' " Lakers spokesman John Black told L.A. media.
* It's beginning to look as if Jamal Mashburn's NBA days are over. The one-time All-Star forward can't so much as walk without feeling pain in his knees, which he said are devoid of cartilage. With the New Orleans Hornets, Mashburn said during a visit to Arco Arena late last season that his knees are "bone on bone."
* Keon Clark, who spent the 2002-03 season with the Kings as a shot-blocking reserve center, was a no-show for a workout with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Ankle problems limited Clark to two games last season with the Utah Jazz, but he often didn't show up for rehabilitation assignments. He was traded to the Phoenix Suns in February but never reported.
* Running on fumes, bad toes and a great deal of wishful thinking: Dennis Rodman. The former NBA rebounding champion hopes to receive another workout with the Denver Nuggets after pulling himself out of a scrimmage last week because of ingrown nails on his two big toes, according to his agent, Darren Prince. Two other NBA teams have expressed interest in the 43-year-old Rodman, Prince said, declining to name them. * Calvin Murphy, a Hall of Fame guard for the Rockets and one of the shameless homers in NBA broadcasting, will not work as a color analyst for the team this season. He faces charges of sexually abusing five of his daughters more than a decade ago and has pleaded not guilty. Murphy was placed on request leave late last season when the charges were filed, and he remains on paid indefinite leave for the season. Murphy, who has fathered 14 children with nine women, said last spring he believes the allegations arose from a family conflict regarding money.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Nothing really new here. But it's always nice to have an assurance on Webber and Bobby's status as the new season approaches.
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