The Trade

When I was reading the paper today I read that the Kings are trading Kevin Martin, Sergio Rodriguez, and Hilton Armstrong. We are getting Carl Landry, Joey Dorsey, and Larry Hughes. I am really excited to see the new guys play, but I am also sad because of the guys we lost. I was stunned when I saw today's headline, and I want to take a minute to talk about these guys we lost in the trade.

I didn't know a lot about Hilton Armstrong, but at the most recent Phoenix Sun's game, my sister waved to Hilton who was shooting on the court and he waved back to her. That says a lot about him that he'd take the time to wave to a tiny Kings fan.

As for Sergio, I never met him, but on and off the court, whatever I've read about him he's been a real help to the Kings, and I'm proud he was on our team.

Last but not least, Kevin. I did meet Kevin last fall when I interviewed the Kings at media day. He was really nice to me. He's played great in all of the games he's played this season. I will be so sorry not to see him out there on the court in purple and not being able to go to his summer basketball camp. I'd still like to challenge him to a game of Madden NFL 10 on my new PS3. Good luck and I'll miss you.

I bet our new guys will do really well because I've checked out their stats, which are pretty good. They are going to be fun to watch for the rest of the year. GOOOOOOOOOOO Kings!

My Kings Report Card

Tuesday's newspaper had the Kings grades, and here is what I think of them. For the most part, I agree with Sam's grades, but I wanted to write my own thoughts too.


Tyreke Evans: paper grade A-, my grade A -- Tyreke's been really consistent with his scoring.

Kevin Martin: paper grade C+, my grade B -- Kevin's worked hard to get back to his old stroke, and he showed that last night in the game against Utah.

Jason Thompson: paper grade B-, my grade B -- He has given the Kings some quality scoring and rebounding, but he could improve.

Spencer Hawes: paper grade D+, my grade B -- He has been good on the three point shot, but he needs to drive to the basket and dunk it more.

Jon Brockman: paper grade B, my grade A- -- Jon fights for the rebounds and scoring, and he's been giving his full effort.

Omri Casspi: paper grade B+, my grade B+ -- Omri's been hitting some big threes and getting some nice inside shots, but he needs to be more physical inside.

Donte Greene: paper grade B-, my grade B -- Donte's been really physical inside and has been getting some easy shots, but he needs to work on his outside shot so he can hit it any time he wants.

Andres Nocioni: paper grade C, my grade B -- Lately, Andres has been hitting threes and driving, but he needs to figure out more tricks to fake out the defender.

Sergio Rodriguez: paper grade B-, my grade B -- Sergio has not hogged the ball a single bit and has had some great assists, but he needs to attack the basket and score for himself.

Kenny Thomas: paper grade B-, my grade B -- It's been great seeing Kenny on the court this year, and he's giving his full effort.

Ime Udoka: paper grade C+, my grade B -- Ime has seen quality minutes and has therefore shown what he can do. I like the way he plays.

Beno Udrih: paper grade B, my grade A- -- Beno has been scoring so consistently, passing and he's made me really happy to see him playing so well this year.

Hilton Armstrong: paper grade I, my grade I -- I don't enough about his playing to comment.

Sean May: paper grade I, my grade B+ -- I saw a half-time interview with Sean, and he said that he prepares himself for every game for when Coach calls on him. I see that as a sign that he's a real pro. This has shown in the last couple of games he's played in and done well.

Francsico Garcia: paper grade I, my grade B+ -- Even though he hasn't played due to his injury, I've seen him on the sidelines at every game, helping his team with advice and support. He's been especially helpful to Omri, which is really cool.


Wednesday night's win against Golden State shows that the Kings bench and starters are improving. I'd like to see the Kings get some more defensive stops and more scoring on the other end. Then we can see some more Ws.

Can't wait to see my Kings take on the Bobcats tonight. Gooooo Kings!

The Way I See It

I'm very disappointed in how the Kings season is going. It's been really hard to write about the team I love because it's no fun to write when your favorite team loses. What made me want to write today was that I read about how Kevin Martin went to Coachie for guidance, and it made me think that they really need some support and positive news.

What I can't believe about them being 15 and 28 is that they started out so good. The Kings rookies peformed beautifully. Tyreke is one of the two candidates for rookie of the year. Also, Omri Casspi has hit some clutch threes throughout the season. Jon Brockman's been brockin' it out on the court all year -- I love watching him give his full effort and make the other team frustrated. It gives me joy!

Hopefully tonight they can make their record 16 and 28. The Kings need to give a combined 100% effort. It can't be a one man show cause that doesn't work. Everyone who plays needs to score. Defensively, the Kings need to get some stops. They can't let Warriors get second chance points. At least three guys should be crashing the boards, and one or two should be going out for a fast breaks. That way it makes it harder for the Warriors to get the rebounds and it makes it easier for us to score on the other end.

I gotta go finish my mission project, so I can watch the game tonight. I'll be rooting for my team all night.

Goooooo Kings!

My Game

Yesterday I had my second basketball game and here is how it went. I scored 12 points,2 rebounds,and 4 assists. I would say it was my best game so far this season because I was really aggressive by attacking the basket and finishing at the basket. The rest of the team was on their feet when I scored. It really helped my confidence and energy when they cheered because it made me feel good. We won the game by 6 points, but I couldn't have done it without the help of my team. GOOOOOOOOO Fighting Irish!

Kings Still Improving

Last night, I was typing my saint report which is due Friday, so I missed the first quarter and part of the second quarter of the game vs. Phoenix. (My mom forced me to finish my report, and I was really annoyed by that since I wanted to watch the whole game!)

I got really into the game the second I turned it on because the Kings were down by a lot. I kept thinking, Let's break down Phoenix's lead by stopping them at one end and scoring on the other. And what I wanted came true. They cut down Phoenix's lead to 14 by the end of the half.

At half-time, I saw the funniest Kings commercial ever! I thought it was so funny that it should be on "America's Funniest Videos." Donte Greene, Jason Thompson and Jon Brockman dressed up as famous singers and sang a bunch of songs, pretending the songs were going to be on a CD collection. My favorite song was when the three of them sang "I Gotta Feeling" by the Black-eyed Peas. I was sort of wishing it wasn't a joke because I wanted to buy it!

In the second half, the Kings rallied and it was so exciting. They answered the Suns with a serious scorefest. I loved it when Omri Casspi hit big threes, and when Tyreke drove hard to the basket. Jon Brockman's skills were so good when he didn't let Amar'e Stoudemire score once in the third quarter. The game was so close in the 4th. I think the only reason the Suns won in the end was the late fouls that sent Steve Nash to the line. And, of course, he made all of his free throws.

The final heartbreaking score was 113-109. The Kings' record is now 14-20, and they're in 4th place in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference.

Even though the Kings lost and they're 14-20, they're still much improved from last year. The difference I think is they have more depth and versatility on their bench. Coach Westphal is rockin' it on the sidelines with all of his great plays and inspiring words to get his players back in the game. And then there's the rookie factor with Tyreke Evans, Omri Casspi and Jon Brockman. Really, everyone on the team is playing well. The one thing we still have to learn is how to close out ball games.

Goooo Kings!

King-sized Wishes

With how busy I've been, I haven't gotten to do many blog posts in the past month. But last year I did a post on my New Year's wishes for the Kings. I decided to make this a tradition, so here are my wishes for the guys:

For Kevin Martin that he'll be able to play soon.

For Francisco Garcia that his wrist will heal quickly, and I'll see him out on the court soon.

For Beno Udrih that he continues being an active and consistent scorer.

For Andres Nocioni tht he continues to hit big threes in games.

For Omri Casspi that he continues to grow as the great player that he is.

For Jon Brockman that he continues his "Brockness" in rebounding and scoring.

For Sean May that 2010 gives him more opportunities to show his great playing.

For Sergio Rodgriquez that he continues to be consistent with his great numbers off the bench.

For Tyreke Evans that he continue to "Reke" havoc and become rookie of the year.

For Donte Greene that he keeps playing his game and being awesome.

For Jason Thompson that he continues getting lots of boards.

For Kenny Thomas that he continue to make it tough for the other teams on the defensive end.

For Spencer Hawes that he continues hitting those awesome threes in close situations.

For Coach Westphal that he continues rockin' it on the sidelines.

The team is playing fantastic with a phenomenal record of 14-18. The record will soon be 15-18 after tonight v. the Mavs, where I'll be sitting and rooting for them.

Goooo Kings!

Giving Thanks

I know this is sort of late to do this, but I've been really busy. Here are the sports things I'm thankful for this season:

1. The Kings being 7-8
2. My football team went 6-0 this year
3. Running the 5K for Run to Feed the Hungry
4. Basketball season starting at my school and my dad coaching my team
5. My new, cool basketball shoes

What are you thankful for?

Kings First win in 09-10

On Monday night, the Kings beat the Grizzlies in over time 127-116. Now they are 1-3. Kevin Martin led them to that win by scoring 48 points.

At the beginning of the game J.T. came to center court and at first I thought he was going to sing the national anthem, which would have been really funny. But instead he got us pumped up.

In the first quarter, they got themselves in a slump, but in the second quarter they really came alive. They tied it and then they led the Grizzlies, and then the Grizzlies tied it again, and that was pretty much the story of the game -- well, in regulation, of course.

During the timeouts, I really liked watching the break dance crew. I also liked the "Mystery Karaoke" with Jon Brockman and Spencer Hawes. It was really funny! And I saw some of the Grizzlies watching it, too, and they liked it.

Then in overtime, in the first two to three minutes, nobody really scored, but in the last two minutes, they Kings really came alive. Once the Kings had the game pretty much wrapped up, the Grizzlies hit two shots. In the last two minutes you could feel the vibration of people clapping and cheering. There was not one person sitting -- everyone was on their feet. In fact, I had to cover my ears, it was so loud!

It was a wonderful game and I was glad I was there to see it. Now let's get the next win on Wednesday v. Atlanta at home.

Goooo Kings!

Kings vs. Warriors

On Saturday night, I went to the Kings v. Warriors game. Our seats were in a suite, which was pretty sweet. It was a great experience because I've never been in a suite before. The Kings had the lead for almost of the whole game and they beat the Warriors, 101-94.

I was really impressed with how good Tyreke Evans did, passing-wise and shooting-wise. He had a lot of assists, and he scored 16 points. Jason Thompson had a double-double, scoring 20 points and a WHOPPING 20 rebounds. Kevin Martin also did exceptionally well, scoring lots of threes and faking out guys.

The highlight of the whole night for me was when Spencer Hawes hit a three-pointer in the first quarter. Usually the big guys are in the paint, so it was cool to see Spencer hit one from the outside.

I'm also posting a couple more photos from my interviews from media day. Enjoy these photos of Tyreke and JT.

I'm looking forward to going to the season opener at ARCO on November 2. Gooooo Kings!

Kings Media Day, Part 2

So this is part two of my first post, which had two interviews from Kings Media Day. Visit The Sacramento Bee's website to see a short and long video of my interviews with the Kings players and Coach Westphal.

Kevin Martin

Q: What did you do this summer?

A: I went to Hawaii with my fiance.

Q: I heard you play video games. What's your favorite?

A: I have PlayStation 3 and my favorite game is Madden NFL 10.

Q: Did you like hosting a kids basketball camp this past summer?

A: Yes.

Q: In high school, besides basketball, what other sports were you good at?

A: In high school, I only played basketball. Before that, I played football, baseball and basketball.

Q: What do you like most about the new guys?

A: Their work ethic. They're all working really hard.

Spencer Hawes

Q: What is it like being 7 feet tall?

A: It's inconvenient most of the time. But it helps me do what I do on the court.

Q: What do you like to do when the team is on the road.

A: I like to sight see in the cities we visit.

Q: Besides center, what is your favorite position?

A: Center is my favorite position.

Q: Who is the toughest player you play against in the NBA?

A: There are a lot of tough players, like Yao Ming, Pau Gasol, Dwight Howard and others. Yao is the toughest.

I was at the Kings Open Practice last night. They scrimmaged each other, and it was really fun. It was so interesting how they practiced. Everyone watching was so excited when they dunked! I got to see the new Kings players play, like Tyreke Evans, Jon Brockman, Sean May, Desmond Mason, Sergio Rodgriguez, Omri Casspi, Lenny Smith and Melvin Ely. Look for my upcoming posts for interviews with the new players and the rest of the team.

I think we'll have a great team this year! Gooooooo Kings!