Feb 28, 2002 12:12 PM EST
Mark Kreidler of the Sacramento Bee weighs in on the topic of the week -- did Michael Jordan make a mistake by coming back? Kreidler points out that there a vast number of positives he brought to the Wizards and basketball and very few negatives.
Some of Jordan's critics are now saying "I told you so" that a thirty-nine year old couldn't survive in the NBA and many are saying he's damaged the Wizards future. Kreidler, himself, admits he had doubts about the Airogant One's return but he now concedes he was dead wrong:
"As for Jordan's legacy, maybe it really is dent-proof. Players after coaches after executives this week have showered with praise Jordan's effort, even as they acknowledge that they wondered if its pace and demands might eventually overtake him.
'That's especially true if you had told me he was going to play the number of minutes he's been playing," said Kings coach Rick Adelman. "I thought he would've played more like 32 minutes a game, but he was playing in the upper 30s in minutes and with a lot of pressure on his shoulders for that team to do well. With this team, he had to play for them to win.'
And so Jordan did play and, for as long as he did, the Wizards won. It didn't last nearly long enough, but then most of the great acts don't.
If Michael Jordan reminded a few people along the way of why they started watching basketball in the first place, there undoubtedly are worse epitaphs.
And if he made mild fools out of a bunch of us in the process, well, that's par for the course."
Worth reading, if only to see an expert with some humility.
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Feb 28, 2002 11:57 AM EST
Kings coach Rick Adelman surveyed the Western Conference and had this assessment: None of the competition is backing away.
After Tuesday's victory over Utah, the Kings coach knew the Jazz was the only one of the conference's top eight teams coming off a loss.
In fact, the Lakers, Trail Blazers, Mavericks and Timberwolves have been playing exceptionally well. But Adelman's point was simple: So what?
The Kings coach said his team's goal is the same one he's been preaching all season -- improve daily.
"That's the only situation we can control," Adelman said. "We have to use this game as a building block and try to win games and see where we are at the end of the season."
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There's a new chapter to the saga of Jazz coach Jerry Sloan's battles with center Greg Ostertag.
Ostertag entered Utah's 107-81 loss at Sacramento on Tuesday night with four minutes and 45 seconds remaining in the opening quarter and the Jazz about to go down by seven points. Barely more than two minutes later, the Kings were up 16 and Sloan had to call a time-out because, he said, of Ostertag's play.
Sloan yelled at Ostertag as he sat on the bench, and Ostertag shouted back as the coach yanked the 7-foot-2 backup center from the Jazz lineup. Ostertag at first walked away from the Jazz huddle, then returned, saying, "It's my fault. . . . It's all my fault" loud enough for fans in the front row to hear. He sat all the rest of the first half and did not play again until garbage time late in the second.
"Same thing," Sloan said when asked what happened. "Greg got upset because I took him out; I got upset because he didn't seem to understand where he's supposed to go. You have to call a time-out to try to tell him sometimes."
It's not the first time the two have had a run-in.
Earlier this month, Ostertag was suspended one game because he bumped Sloan while angrily walking the sideline at Memphis. Ostertag, who refused comment after Tuesday's game, also was suspended for disciplinary reasons last season.
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Kings Feb 2002 Archive
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| Feb 27, 2002
The Jazz commit a season-high 27 turnovers.
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| Feb 27, 2002
Whizzzzzzzzz!
That's the written approximation of the sound of Kings, Indiana Pacers and NBA fans being jerked up and down on the TV yo-yo that is the league and NBC.
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| Feb 27, 2002
With his usual dry sarcasm, Utah Jazz coach Jerry Sloan described what was similar in each of his team's three blowout losses to the Kings this season:
"The score," Sloan said.
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| Feb 27, 2002
It turns out that all the semi-sickly Kings needed to get better was a visit from the Utah Jazz.
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| Feb 27, 2002
With his usual dry sarcasm, Utah Jazz coach Jerry Sloan described what was similar in each of his team's three blowout losses to the Kings this season:
"The score," Sloan said.
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| Feb 27, 2002
It turns out that all the semi-sickly Kings needed to get better was a visit from the Utah Jazz.
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| Feb 27, 2002
-- Just like their post-Olympics hometown, things appear back to normal for the Jazz.
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| Feb 27, 2002
The Utah Jazz looked worn out and woeful as they ended their 23-day road trip against the NBA"s best home team.
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| Feb 26, 2002
A 6-0 road trip stands on its own merit.
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| Feb 26, 2002
ARCO ARENA
TUESDAY, 8:30 p.
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| Feb 26, 2002
Kings coach Rick Adelman and his injury-plagued roster soon will receive a little support, because the team is expected to sign 6-foot-8 veteran forward Chucky Brown in the next few days.
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| Feb 26, 2002
Let's be real here, people.
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| Feb 26, 2002
Kings point guard Mike Bibby didn't have to look far for a reason his team has struggled in recent weeks.
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| Feb 26, 2002
The figure skating controversies have faded and the short-track speedskaters have packed up, but the Jazz have one last stop to make before reclaiming the Delta Center for themselves.
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| Feb 26, 2002
Tonight at Arco Arena, Sacramento, Calif.
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| Feb 25, 2002
Kings coach Rick Adelman was looking for something positive in Saturday's game against Dallas.
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| Feb 25, 2002
Bobby Jackson grew up like any other athlete in North Carolina.
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| Feb 25, 2002
That 12-game winning streak spanning December and January has been replaced by seven games of mediocrity.
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| Feb 25, 2002
And neither can remember the last time they were in a loud, playoff-like atmosphere like the one at sold-out American Airlines Center, or the last time they beat the best team in the league so convincingly with so many weapons – as the Mavericks did with their 111-97 victory over the Sacramento Kings on Saturday.
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| Feb 24, 2002
It takes a special front office to put one of its players on the rack and torture what few fans it has for four months just to end up with basically the same deal it could have had in training camp.
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| Feb 24, 2002
DALLAS -- At least there is no need to search for the problem.
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| Feb 23, 2002
Ya-Ya, we're not too sure that headline makes any sense either but in the crazy world of basketball shoe contracts you have to scratch your head a lot.
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| Feb 22, 2002
Forward Peja Stojakovic said he was not surprised by the deal that brought Nick Van Exel, Raef LaFrentz, Avery Johnson and former Kings first-round pick Tariq Abdul-Wahad to Dallas.
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| Feb 22, 2002
SAN ANTONIO -- The Kings send their apologies to cable network TNT.
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| Feb 22, 2002
"What we have to do," Popovich said, "is just figure out how to shoot the damn ball.
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| Feb 21, 2002
For Kings, success means no trade talk
By Martin McNeal -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 5:30 a.
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| Feb 21, 2002
Armed with the league's best record and one of its most prolific offenses, Sacramento will be looking to sweep the Spurs for the first time in the rivalry's 26-year history.
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| Feb 20, 2002
Lethargy had overtaken the Kings as they entered the fourth quarter Tuesday night, and a jump-start of energy was badly needed.
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| Feb 20, 2002
The story has it, one of the reasons the Vancouver Grizzlies struggled in British Columbia, especially later on, was the inability of point guard Mike Bibby and small forward Shareef Abdur-Rahim to get along.
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| Feb 20, 2002
This has gone far enough.
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| Feb 20, 2002
Jeff Denberg of the AJC reports that the Hawks' brief winning streak, which had been like a refreshing breath of spring in the dead of winter, was undone Tuesday.
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| Feb 18, 2002
So what's age?
On paper, it's numbers lumped together, according to Doug Christie, a man known to be a bit philosophical when he's not taking opponents to task with fast feet, quick hands and long jumpers.
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| Feb 18, 2002
In the end, the same lousy defense that placed the Kings in an abyss finished them Sunday night.
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| Feb 18, 2002
HIGHLIGHTS: The Sonics took a 16-10 lead after scoring eight consecutive points, four each by Brent Barry and Gary Payton.
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| Feb 18, 2002
The fans who make Arco Arena perhaps the most hostile place in the NBA stood up in the waning moments of last night's game.
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| Feb 17, 2002
When: 6 p.
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| Feb 17, 2002
Things are going well for the Kings these days, so one might think that coach Rick Adelman's worries are few.
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| Feb 17, 2002
It's common knowledge the Kings have been dominant at home this season with an NBA-best record of 27-1 at Arco Arena entering tonight's game against the visiting Seattle SuperSonics.
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| Feb 17, 2002
You can tell that what the Kings are in the midst of attempting is almost absurdly audacious, because no one speaks of it in concrete terms.
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| Feb 17, 2002
In case you haven't heard by now, Sacramento's Chris Webber went ballistic on the media for a story that ran in the local newspaper about his relationship with supermodel Tyra Banks.
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| Feb 16, 2002
Kings backup guard Mateen Cleaves felt a pop in his right foot with 3:53 left in Thursday's win over the Washington Wizards.
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| Feb 15, 2002
Kings coach Rick Adelman talked Wednesday about his coaching staff's assessment that the Washington Wizards set more illegal screens than any other team in the league.
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| Feb 15, 2002
The last time Michael Jordan lost a game in Sacramento, the Kings' Peja Stojakovic was a 9-year old who couldn't care less.
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| Feb 15, 2002
Sometime during the third quarter, the All-Star stood at about midcourt with his hands on his hips, the sweat pouring down his face in rivulets, and he shook his head.
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| Feb 15, 2002
Chris Webber and Mike Bibby were re-entering the game Thursday night with 4:02 left in the second quarter, and the Kings had only 33 points.
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| Feb 14, 2002
Yesterday, we headlined The Man With The Perfect Teeth and The Woman With The Perfect, uh, Personality's exposure in the Sacramento Bee's gossip column saying they were buzzing around Chris Webber and Tyra Banks like a "wasp in a wine bottle".
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| Feb 13, 2002
Two days after he joined Webber at the All-Star Game, Peja Stojakovic helped him light up the Spurs.
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| Feb 13, 2002
The Sacramento Kings opened up the post All-Star period in fine fashion, easily topping the San Antonio Spurs for their 19th straight win at Arco Arena on Tuesday night.
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| Feb 12, 2002
Oooh, juicy! We interrupt the on-going soap operas of trade rumors and hissy fits between Peter Vecsey and anyone who dares write on anything other than newsprint to bring you really important news -- are Chris Webber and Tyra Banks an item?
The Sacramento Bee is buzzing around this subject like a wasp in an old wine bottle.
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| Feb 12, 2002
After a tough Eastern swing and the All-Star break, the Kings return home to the friendly confines of Arco Arena to face the San Antonio Spurs at 7:30 tonight.
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| Feb 10, 2002
PHILADELPHIA -- Into every All-Star event a King must pass, so they even get pseudo-representation on the East team today.
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| Feb 10, 2002
What was a whisper that became a conversation has finally led to outright shouting, which is another way of saying every second Expert in the land of the NBA has suddenly got the Kings stamped for the Western Conference title a few months hence.
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| Feb 10, 2002
Pictures of Hedo.
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| Feb 10, 2002
PHILADELPHIA -- Check out Kings rookie Gerald Wallace's dunking creativity when he's on the floor during games.
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| Feb 10, 2002
PHILADELPHIA -- Even before he was crowned the NBA's Three-Point Shootout champion Saturday night, Peja Stojakovic had been showered with reasons for feeling at the top of his game.
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| Feb 10, 2002
Richardson seems to be star-bound
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| Feb 8, 2002
WASHINGTON -- Kings coach Rick Adelman didn't have to think deeply to explain why his team's dinner was handed to it Thursday night at the MCI Center by the Washington Wizards.
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| Feb 8, 2002
WASHINGTON -- This is when it starts.
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| Feb 8, 2002
WASHINGTON -- Kings point guard Mike Bibby has an unabashed fan in Washington Wizards star guard Michael Jordan.
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| Feb 7, 2002
http://www.
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| Feb 7, 2002
BOSTON -- Kings All-Star forward Chris Webber might pull an anti-Shaq because of a troublesome stomach.
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| Feb 7, 2002
BOSTON -- Neither the unexpected absence of All-Star power forward Chris Webber nor the loudmouth with the good seat at the FleetCenter on Wednesday night could prevent the Kings from rebounding from their worst loss of the season.
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| Feb 7, 2002
The Celtics didn't merely reach the All-Star break last night at the FleetCenter.
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| Feb 7, 2002
he blue, white, and red vertical stripes of Yugoslavia and the crescent-and-star on red Turkish flags not only added color to the FleetCenter stands last night, they represented a basketball philosophy.
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| Feb 7, 2002
he image of stubble-faced Peja Stojakovic piling on the points might best capture the Kings' efforts last night.
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| Feb 5, 2002
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.
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| Feb 5, 2002
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.
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| Feb 4, 2002
MINNEAPOLIS -- Chris Webber just served a one-game suspension Thursday, and another one is lurking.
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| Feb 4, 2002
MINNEAPOLIS -- It wasn't supposed to be a preview of the Western Conference playoffs, not the first Sunday of February here at the Target Center.
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| Feb 4, 2002
He slashed, he leaned, then he acrobatically scooped a shot over several Timberwolves defenders that quieted the crowd and sealed the outcome.
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| Feb 4, 2002
A visit by the Sacramento Kings to Target Center generally has meant two things in recent years: enough scoring to test every bulb on the scoreboard and a Timberwolves victory.
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| Feb 3, 2002
These are grades of which every parent would be proud.
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| Feb 3, 2002
MINNEAPOLIS — Chris Webber had 31 points and 14 rebounds, and the Sacramento Kings defeated the Minnesota Timberwolves 112-107 Sunday for their 17th win in 18 games.
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| Feb 3, 2002
When the Timberwolves talked about objectives heading into the 2001-02 season, the Los Angeles Lakers always seemed to pop up in discussion.
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| Feb 3, 2002
Grant Sacramento's Geoff Petrie the right to smirk all the way through All-Star Weekend.
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| Feb 2, 2002
SACRAMENTO, Calif.
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| Feb 2, 2002
SACRAMENTO, Calif.
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| Feb 2, 2002
It's fairly easy to surmise there is a conversation in every NBA huddle before every game in which someone says, "Let's get off to a good start.
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| Feb 1, 2002
The guys have left the court.
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| Feb 1, 2002
SEATTLE -- The Kings have a well-earned reputation for being this pretty offensive machine capable of scoring from anywhere on the court.
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| Feb 1, 2002
In the fictional version of his life, Doug Christie would have gotten the offer he wanted, signed with the Seattle Sonics and been the homeboy in the backcourt for the rest of his professional life.
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| Feb 1, 2002
The Sonics have produced a winning record — and playoff hopes — with several players whose previous NBA experience amounted to watching it on television.
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