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By Martin McNeal -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PDT Wednesday, October 6, 2004
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Just one day after talking about how well he felt, Kings forward Chris Webber missed practice Tuesday because of puffiness around his surgically repaired left knee.
Webber wasn't the only player ailing. Small forward David Bluthenthal missed his second day because of the flu, and shooting guard Courtney Alexander participated in a portion of the workout before sitting down because of a strained left thigh.
Coach Rick Adelman said all three players were day-to-day.
"Webb just had some puffiness, no soreness or pain or anything, and (trainer) Pete (Youngman) just felt there was no reason to push it," he said. "Just keep him out, and hopefully, he'll be back (today), and we can go from there."
Bluthenthal could need another day of rest.
"He's got a cold and a sore throat," Adelman said of the former USC standout. "It'll probably be (today) or maybe Thursday. We'll see how he feels. Courtney is probably the same way. He tweaked that thigh and practiced a little bit (Tuesday) but just briefly.
Kings say they'll eat money if necessary - Bluthenthal and Alexander are free agents who have received at least partial guarantees to come to camp. And in these days of luxury-tax payments, teams often hesitate to waive a player to whom they've already committed cash.
However, Kings owner Joe Maloof and president of basketball operations Geoff Petrie say the team will take the best players available from camp.
"If we have some guy in camp who can really play, then we have to sign him," Maloof said. "We've paid the luxury tax every year they have had it, so we're not afraid to pay players. If Geoff and Adelman come to us and say we need to keep these guys, then we'll keep them. That's how much faith we have in Geoff. We don't hesitate when Geoff asks."
Et cetera - Forward Peja Stojakovic returned to practice after biting his lip during Monday afternoon's workout.
* The stretch of the exhibition season the Kings can't wait to experience is coming home from an Oct. 16 game in Beijing, then flying to Fresno on Oct. 19 to face the Los Angeles Lakers.
* Another interesting quirk is the Kings play their next-to-last exhibition game at Dallas on Oct. 28, return home the next night to play the Phoenix Suns, then return to Dallas for the Nov. 2 regular-season opener.
By Martin McNeal -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PDT Wednesday, October 6, 2004
[/font]
Just one day after talking about how well he felt, Kings forward Chris Webber missed practice Tuesday because of puffiness around his surgically repaired left knee.
Webber wasn't the only player ailing. Small forward David Bluthenthal missed his second day because of the flu, and shooting guard Courtney Alexander participated in a portion of the workout before sitting down because of a strained left thigh.
Coach Rick Adelman said all three players were day-to-day.
"Webb just had some puffiness, no soreness or pain or anything, and (trainer) Pete (Youngman) just felt there was no reason to push it," he said. "Just keep him out, and hopefully, he'll be back (today), and we can go from there."
Bluthenthal could need another day of rest.
"He's got a cold and a sore throat," Adelman said of the former USC standout. "It'll probably be (today) or maybe Thursday. We'll see how he feels. Courtney is probably the same way. He tweaked that thigh and practiced a little bit (Tuesday) but just briefly.
Kings say they'll eat money if necessary - Bluthenthal and Alexander are free agents who have received at least partial guarantees to come to camp. And in these days of luxury-tax payments, teams often hesitate to waive a player to whom they've already committed cash.
However, Kings owner Joe Maloof and president of basketball operations Geoff Petrie say the team will take the best players available from camp.
"If we have some guy in camp who can really play, then we have to sign him," Maloof said. "We've paid the luxury tax every year they have had it, so we're not afraid to pay players. If Geoff and Adelman come to us and say we need to keep these guys, then we'll keep them. That's how much faith we have in Geoff. We don't hesitate when Geoff asks."
Et cetera - Forward Peja Stojakovic returned to practice after biting his lip during Monday afternoon's workout.
* The stretch of the exhibition season the Kings can't wait to experience is coming home from an Oct. 16 game in Beijing, then flying to Fresno on Oct. 19 to face the Los Angeles Lakers.
* Another interesting quirk is the Kings play their next-to-last exhibition game at Dallas on Oct. 28, return home the next night to play the Phoenix Suns, then return to Dallas for the Nov. 2 regular-season opener.
