Not long after Isaiah Thomas was drafted by the Kings, Lorenzo Romar, his college coach at Washington, helped him acquire game video of his new teammates.
Thomas studied their tendencies, particularly how former Kings point guard Beno Udrih ran the team, so that he would be better prepared to play alongside them.
That's because, as the last pick in the NBA draft, Thomas wanted to do all he could to not be cut.
"I didn't know if I was going to make the team or not," Thomas said. "But now being the starting point guard and having my own night – it's something I never thought would happen."
It was Thomas' night Wednesday at Power Balance Pavilion. Arena employees and fans wore "I.T. Factor" T-shirts with the Twitter hashtag #IsaiahROY, part of the social network movement to garner Rookie of the Year votes for Thomas.
Thomas was sixth among rookies in scoring entering the game against the San Antonio Spurs, averaging 11.4 points per game.
Thomas won Western Conference Rookie of the Month in February and March.
Thomas is averaging 15.1 points and 5.2 assists in 32 games since becoming the starting point guard. Still, he said he was "surprised" to learn of the plans.
"Coming in as the last pick, coming into the season and no one really expected anything from me," Thomas said. "And toward the end of the year for the organization and for Reebok to set aside and do a night like this is big."
Injury update – John Salmons missed his 13th consecutive game because of a sore right hip. There is still no timetable for Salmons to return to the lineup, but with four games left in the season, it's looking unlikely that he will play again anytime soon.
Kings coach Keith Smart said last week that Salmons would need to be cleared and need time to get back in shape before he could play again.
Center Hassan Whiteside (sprained right ankle) missed his third game and is expected to miss the rest of the season.
Familiar visitor – Former Kings assistant coach and Basketball Hall of Fame member Pete Carril is visiting the team this week. Carril was on staff last season.
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