STOCKTON – The numbers dazzled everyone but the player who put them up. Kevin Martin wanted to gloss over the debut showcase of his once-again-improved game and discuss the way his team lost in such sloppy fashion.

For much of Wednesday night at the Spanos Center, a 116-112 Kings loss to the Clippers was the last thing that looked likely. The Kings executed their running game to near perfection early, Martin scored at will before sitting for good just after halftime, and the Baron Davis-less Clippers found themselves down 17 points in the third quarter.

Then came the turnovers. The Kings had 13 in the second half as the reserves lost all measures of momentum that had turned a quaint announced crowd of 4,028 into quite the raucous bunch. Then came Clippers rookie Eric Gordon, who scored 21 of his 33 points in the second half. Then came the rare reality that they lost despite shooting 61.2 percent from the field and tallying 31 assists.

Martin, who scored 29 points on 9-of-11 shooting in 22 minutes and had four assists, wasn't interested in shrugging off the loss as a meaningless exhibition affair.

"We need to stop giving up leads," said Martin, who had played limited minutes because of knee soreness and a plan to ease some starters into the season. "I don't care if it's preseason, summer league or regular season. In this league, you give up leads, and (opponents) start to talk about what (they can) do to have the (Kings') second unit give up the lead. … We have to work on that."

Still, Martin's breakout performance left his teammates talking afterward. Kings swingman John Salmons had a prime seat, having sat out with forward Mikki Moore to open minutes for the rest of the roster. He saw Martin repeatedly score in transition and dunk an alley-oop from center Brad Miller to put the Kings up 15-11. He saw him hit two 20-footers from opposite wings and a three-pointer from the left corner to put the Kings up 48-44. He saw him hit 9 of 12 free throws and show once again why he's considered one of the most efficient players in the game.

"Kevin is special," Salmons said. "He's the best I've ever seen in my life at that stat (efficiency). You can't compare anybody to Kevin."

Martin wasn't the only one breaking out after playing the waiting game, although Kenny Thomas' waiting game was quite a bit different. His final game last season came Jan. 2, his absence having nothing to do with an injury and everything to do with his unofficial exile.

When the summer came and went without a trade he so badly wanted, Thomas entered training camp unsure what his future would hold. While that remains uncertain, he made the most of a rare chance to see the floor, with six points and three assists in 16 minutes. Asked if he enjoyed his outing, Thomas let out a heavy sigh and a smile.

"Yeah, actually, it was fun," Thomas said. "It's fun just being in the right situation. Beno (Udrih) gave me a nice pass. Reggie called a play for me, that post-up that Brad gave me for the (three-point play) … And then (Theus) called it again. I told him, 'Thank you. I appreciate (you) calling that.' "

The Kings' nine fast-break points in the first quarter qualified as progress in their attempt to become a running team. Clippers coach Mike Dunleavy said the early efforts impressed him.

"It was really good for me, because I can look at our guys and say, 'You think you're in shape and you complain about the level of running we do, but obviously it's not enough," Dunleavy said. "(The Kings) did a nice job. … They were consistent runners.

"Their bigs ran the floor really well, their wings sprinted, and they were able to get the ball and send it up the court and get a lot of easy scores."

Read the Kings blog at www.sacbee.com/kingsblog.