Your TOP 3 Kings? Why?

[Smills91]

1) Bobby Jackson
2) Spencer Hawes
3) Michael Smith

 

[Padrino]

Very nice write-up, Padrino. People who didn't actually live through those times cannot possibly understand the feelings, but you've given them a starting point.

thank ya.



its strange to look back to those years and put them in context, personally. i have less time to watch kings game now, as i begin to take steps towards earning a masters degree at chico state. and the kings have been very difficult to watch, in general, in recent years with the revolving door policy of players and coaches the front office seems to have instituted. but from 1998 (the year chris webber arrived in sacramento) to 2005 (the year chris webber was traded to philadelphia), the kings were such an important part of my life. i am a casual 49ers fan. i am a casual sharks fan. i hate baseball, so i don't bother with the giants. i still play basketball occasionally, and i definitely still watch it when i'm able, but its not as important a part of my life as it used to be. somewhere along the line, i discovered poetry, and that was a much more immediate, sensible, and reliable outlet for my troubles. but, as we approach the end of this first decade of the new millenium, it seems appropriate to take a quick look back at how special that kings team really was in the first half of the decade, and just how many smiles they generated, even in the most disappointing of moments...

its very, very easy to be cynical about professional sports as an entertainment industry in our current economic climate, but, just like those players whose intangible qualities on the court can't be measured across the breadth of a stat sheet, the entirety of the sport contains intangible qualities that can't be measured. there's something about being a fan that always sticks with a person, even when we don't want to admit it. in a recent thread about michael jordan's hall of fame speech, i said of great players that we're often forced to take the bad with the good in respecting those players' legacies as a whole. the kings, as a franchise, should be approached in the same way. recent years have tested my patience as a fan. they've most certainly been "bad" years. but i don't know that i'll EVER forget those good years...

and goddammit, they were good...

 

[bajaden]

Having also lived through the bad times before the good times I appreciate your post. I was going to ask where the hell have you been, but you explained. Please don't be a stranger. Drop in when you have the time. You've been missed....

 

[tyrant]

my faves are mike bibby, webber and christie.

kenny thomas stinks

for the 1,000,000,000 time, drawing fouls is not a skill. it has more to do with careless defenders, or players that dont give a crap if you get to the line. sorta like sweeping your grass onto the street instead of putting it in trash bags. if you take the time to do it right your roads would be cleaner

 

[dbfish]

top 3

Vlade

Webber

Peja

 

[TruckeeKingsFan]

My Favorite three:

1) Vlade Divac
2) Chris Webber
3) Doug Christie

Tied for 4th) Bobby Jackson and Mike Bibby

 

[Padrino]

Having also lived through the bad times before the good times I appreciate your post. I was going to ask where the hell have you been, but you explained. Please don't be a stranger. Drop in when you have the time. You've been missed....

i've poked my head in every once in awhile, but rarely felt like i had much to contribute. as we get closer to the preseason and regular season, i imagine i'll have a lot more to say. even in my most cynical and sarcastic of moments, i never have difficulty discussing basketball...

i'm lookin' forward to it...

 

[nickmcclure]

1. Tyreke Evans - Based on the fact that he could be the best player since Chris Webber to wear purple.
2. Bobby Jackson - Doesn't play basketball without understanding how to play and when to turn on the jets. High IQ
3. Webber/Vlade - They were retired together, why not group them here too.

Don't you think it's a little early to put Tyreke on that list seeing how he has never played an NBA game? No hate, I'm hoping he will be the next best thing.

 

[Ryan]

1) Mitch Richmond - What a stud. Never got the recognition he deserved. At least both Gary Payton and Michael Jordan said he was the toughest guy they ever had to guard.
2) Chris Webber - Do I really need to explain this one?
4) Doug Christe - Heart. Defense. Wish I could have played with him.

 

[Emma]

1) The Rock - Awesome
2) C webb - Awesome pt. II
3) Sarunas Marciulionis - First inkling of international fan fever. What nuts his fans were.

Honorable mention: Scoreless Corliss Williamson. For proving to critics his blue collar game was worth a damn.

 

[Circa_1985_Fan]

<Disclaimer: I'm sorry, I have to take this shot.>

You mean, so he can throw up an airball at a crucial moment? When did Peja ever do something positive at the end of a game? <edit: Besides making his free throws>

Mike Bibby was probably the most clutch King of the past decade easily.

Peja was clutch...in ONE game...Game 3, 2004 Playoffs against the Wolves. THAT was one of the most incredible games I've ever watched! But he missed 2 crucial free throws that cost us the game in OT. But he did bring us back from 24 down in that game, so I'll give him that. Other than that, he was Mr. Invisible in the clutch.

 

[Circa_1985_Fan]

My Top 3:

1)Chris Webber
2)Mitch Richmond
3)Vlade Divac

 

[kennadog]

First, I must say, I wasn't payiong a whole lot of attention to the Kings until around 1998. It didn't have as much to do with the Kings themselves as the fact that I was just too tied up in single-motherhood and wor with a lot of overtime. I just didn't have the time to watch TV, listen to radio and barely time to read a newspaper. My choices for my favorite Kings reflects that.

1. Vlade - I just loved him on and off the court. Still love him off the court. An amazingly humble, caring, generous and funny human being, who could pass like a wizard. A true leader in every good sense of the word. When you got a chance to be near Vlade, you could just feel the power of that big, open heart.

2. Doug - In the dictionary, his picture must appear next to heart. He was tough, determined and didn't back down from anyone. What a defender. I loved his pinpoint passes to Peja at the basket, too. I'll never forget Doug coming back onto the court, bad ankle and all, in the Mavs playoff series. You never questioned if Christie was giving all he had and finding just a little more to give.

3. This is a little harder, but I will go with Bibby. I loved the no fear, ice-in-his veins PG. I'll love him forever for that one basket. I'll never forget that. Yes, it all went for naught in the end, but he gave us that one shining moment and night, when the Lakers were beat and the fans could briefly dream of Championship. What a night to be a Kings fan.

Honorable mention: Webb, Bobby J

 

[Elektrik]

No love for Scot Pollard? The hair alone should be a qualifier .

I loved Pollard till he took offense to a joke being played on Jon Barry and then proceeded to diss the Kings fanbase on live television. That was when the love disappeared. Never did get it back.

 

[Elektrik]

Chris Weber-the greatest Sacramento King that ever played
Vlade Divac-The classiest Sacramento King that ever played
Bobby Jackson-The biggest heart that ever played for the sacramento Kings

(Honorable mention Doug Christie and Mitch Richmond)

 

[kennadog]

I loved Pollard till he took offense to a joke being played on Jon Barry and then proceeded to diss the Kings fanbase on live television. That was when the love disappeared. Never did get it back.

You know, I was a bit angry at the time, but understand that he was hurt for his best friend, not himself.

Actually, it was the suggestion to boo Barry that was the joke. I think a lot of people were taken back a bit when so many fans actually did boo Jon. I was there and couldn't believe so many fans really did that. It was embarassing. And since Jon was clearly not in on the "joke" you could see the hurt in his reaction. So I can't hold a grudge against Pollard. I thought the fans were dumb, too.

 

[pdxKingsFan]

Webber, Vlade, Mitch. No order. I don't think I appreciated Vlade as much until he left. Mitch was the only thing worth cheering for consistently for a long stretch of time. Yeah he always had a few complimentary guys that we as Kings fans put more stake in their worth but Mitch was a legit all-star, and not a flash in the pan here today gone tomorrow guy. When he finally had enough he got us Webber. The best player to wear a Kings uniform in Sacramento. 'Nuff said. Vlade because he was the first big-name free agent that really wanted to come here and he set the tone for the glory years.

Honorable mention: Bibby. Finally had that elite PG we all craved. He won a national championship at my favorite hoops school so that was a plus coming in. Hit some of the biggest shots in my memory as a fan.