There are no bed checks in the hotel, no secret spies who follow the Kings through the streets or pore over their cell phone bills to find out if they talked on the team bus.
The "Reggie Rules," those strict player-conduct guidelines established by Kings coach Reggie Theus during training camp in October, are really more like suggestions now. In principle, the midnight curfew on nights before road games remains, as does the edict that players can't talk on cell phones while riding the team bus. In reality, Theus said the mere threat of penalty and his flexibility have made the rules effective.
"The rules are set in that, basically, if they do talk on the phone, they're quiet," said Theus, whose team finished its eight-day trip with a 3-2 record after its win in Milwaukee on Wednesday. "And if they do come in past 12 o'clock, then it (shouldn't be) past 1 o'clock. To me, if you come in after 1 o'clock, then I would consider that (an infraction)."
Theus said conduct on the road hasn't been an issue. He admitted that he has done very little – if any – investigative work as it pertains to upholding the sanctity of his sanctions.
"The guys have been pretty good," he said.
While on the team bus during the trip, Theus heard one of his players talking Spanish on his cell phone loudly enough to deduce it was Dominican Republic native Francisco García.
"I sent him a text (message) saying, 'Talk quieter or get off that phone,' " Theus said.
The cell phone rule, perhaps more than the curfew, irked some players who have grown comfortable with a routine that might involve talking to family or their agent before the game. Theus said he's no longer completely averse to those conversations taking place, and even mimicked the technique most often used by players who hold their phones discreetly while talking in a low murmur on the team bus. More often than not, he said, they're talking with each other just as was intended.
"I hear them speaking and talking to each other, hear them laughing, having conversations," he said. "And I don't hear a bunch of different conversations going on. If that is the case, then it's a good thing."
Relying on Ron – Before tipoff in Milwaukee, Theus said in his most distinct terms yet that his offense would be run through Ron Artest full-time.
"We've got to keep going to Ron Artest," he said. "We have to live and die by what he does offensively, and because he's the only one who draws a double team on our team. If teams try to play him single coverage, he's going to annihilate them, so they have to double."
He showed conviction in the notion late in the third quarter, pulling point guard Beno Udrih from the game when he didn't find a way to feed Artest in the post. The two exchanged words near the bench about the play, with Udrih arguing that Artest was too heavily guarded to make the pass. Udrih continued talking about the situation with the team's assistants while he sat.
"(Theus) thought I could pass, and I thought I couldn't pass, and that's sometimes how you have a misunderstanding," Udrih said. "We solved it. I didn't let myself get out of the game like that."
He certainly didn't. When Udrih returned with 8:10 remaining in the fourth and the Kings leading 76-75, the stretch began in which he scored 11 of his 24 points. He hit all four of his shots, including three three-pointers.
García in double double trouble – With less than two minutes left against Milwaukee, Brad Miller couldn't help but grin when García snatched a rebound that was coming Miller's way.
The Kings center needed one more rebound to reach his fourth double double in the past six games. Instead, he finished with 11 points and nine rebounds and missed the double double by one rebound for the second time in three games.
So, Miller was asked, was he aware of the numbers game when going for that rebound?
"Of course," Miller said. "I do all the work, and (García) gets one rebound for the game. Well, he got four (rebounds)."
Getting right on the road – Beyond the obvious progress of breaking their winless streak on the road, the Kings showed improvement on their 3-2 trip for another reason.
Last season's Kings never won more than one game on any of their five trips that were three games in length or longer. It was a major factor in their 13-28 road record, the worst by a Kings team since the 1998-99 campaign and tied for fifth-worst in the league.
Call The Bee's Sam Amick, (916) 326-5582. Read his Kings blog at www.sacbee.com/blogs.
