Beno Udrih leaned over and knocked on the side of his locker, just for good measure.
"We're a good team, but we're always hurt," Udrih said.
And that was before the point guard learned the latest injury update: Francisco García will be out longer than expected, and Quincy Douby is sidelined with a sore ankle.
The Kings' medical staff said García would miss two to three more weeks with a strained right calf. Douby, who missed nearly all of the exhibition season after spraining his right ankle Oct. 3, sat out Friday night's game against Minnesota.
"I think I re-sprained it," Douby said. "I would have definitely gone (Friday), but I can't move. Moving laterally (causes) indescribable pain."
With García and Douby out, that will open up more minutes for Bobby Jackson, Donté Greene and other reserves. The Kings thought they'd have more minutes to share as Kevin Martin was listed as a game-time decision after spraining his left ankle. Martin opted to play, saying it was a statement of sorts on the importance of playing through pain.
"I was set this morning after talking with (Kings coach) Reggie (Theus) that I wasn't going to play," he said. "If I would have known that Quincy wasn't playing, then I probably wouldn't have played, because I would want to see if Bobby Jackson could wake his 35-year-old body up after playing 40 minutes."
Instead, it was Martin who logged 40 minutes, while Jackson played 16 in the Kings' second consecutive win. Jackson went 2 of 4 from the field and had five points. Greene scored his first NBA points late in the fourth quarter.
Love reunion – Minnesota rookie Kevin Love earned his first regular-season start Friday night, taking Ryan Gomes' spot at power forward and scoring a team-high 20 points.
Theus said he is familiar with Love's game, dating to what the coach called "the very, very beginning" of his coaching career.
"I actually worked him out when he was in eighth grade," said Theus, who coached the Southern California All-Stars, a 17-and-under Amateur Athletic Union team, before joining the college coaching ranks.
Asked what the 6-foot-10, 260-pounder looked like then, Theus said Love was a "big boy."
"He's just big-boned," Theus said. "I know a couple (similar) players. One that comes to mind is (Hall of Famer) Wes Unseld. He was a heck of a player, too."
Love was drafted fifth overall out of UCLA by the Memphis Grizzlies and then sent to Minnesota in an eight-player trade.
Call The Bee's Melody Gutierrez, (916) 326-5521. To get breaking news alerts and game scores sent to your phone, text KINGS to 72737.
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