Kings Blog and Q&A

LAS VEGAS - The coverage continues here from summer league, where we've already discussed Spencer Hawes' decision to not take part and other news and notes from the first day.

Now The Bee has officially arrived on location as it pertains to the blogosphere. But before we get to first day video interviews with all of the team's draft picks, a few additional tidbits of relevance.

* Regarding Hawes, the reasons for him not playing that I've heard include a wedding he attended, a camp he had to make an appearance at, a groin that was bothering him and an abdominal strain that bothered him last year and was apparently a tad touchy again recently. I haven't spoken to Hawes, but Kings basketball president Geoff Petrie cited only a "family commitment" and coach Paul Westphal referenced something with his "leg" as well as other personal matters.

Petrie said he has not spoken directly to Hawes about the matter. And for the record, he said he was unsure whether Hawes might play when he arrives Monday. Westphal said he didn't expect Hawes to play, and that he was coming to offer his teammates support.

His longtime friend, former University of Washington teammate and new Kings teammate Jon Brockman, meanwhile, said no one should question how hard Hawes has been working on his game elsewhere.

"I've been working out with him almost every day in Seattle," Brockman said after Wednesday's second practice. "He just had some other stuff going on that he could not miss, and I think he's a little banged up just from - he's been working really hard.
"He's been working really hard in the weight room and on the court, so you know I'm a little disappointed (he's not here) but I think we'll get a chance to see him here at some point. I think he'll be down here in a little bit."

Now on to the videos...

Tyreke Evans, the former Memphis guard who was taken No. 4 overall by the Kings in the June 25 draft, discusses his first day on the job. That day included the signing of his contract.

Brockman, who was taken 38th overall and impressed in his first day, talks about how he went 7-0 in the day's scrimmages.

Omri Casspi, the Israeli small forward who was kept off the court because of red tape, talks about his anticlimactic start.

- Sam Amick

Led by unofficial tour director Rabbi Reuven "Bob" Taff, 21 members of Sacramento's Mosaic Law Congregation are en route to Israel for a 10-day trip that will include a visit with Omri Casspi's famiy at his home outside Tel Avis. Although the rookie forward is in Sacramento preparing to play for the Kings in the Las Vegas Summer League, with practices beginning Wednesday, his parents extended an invitation to the groups after learning of their plans through a mutual friend. "I have a friend over there who happens to be close with Omri's father," said Taff, "and he made the arrangements. Ilana (Casspi's mother) initially said she wanted to cook for us, but I said, 'no, no, that's too much trouble.' So we settled on light refreshments. We'll go over there after we land in Tel Aviv about 6. p.m., Tuesday. We asked everyone in our group to bring a Kings T-shirt. One family even designed their own T-shirts with a Kings logo intertwined with the star of David, and Omri's jersey number (18) in Hebrew. I also went to Arco Arena and had four shirts made - the ones they had at the rally that say, 'New Kings on the Block." We're going to present the shirts to Omri's parents (Shimon and Ilana) and his sister (Aviv) and brother (Eitan) when we get there. This is such a historic moment for the state of Israel. If Omri has an impact ... it would be incredible."

The rangy 6-foot-9 Casspi, a small forward who played for Maccabi Tel Aviv before the Kings selected him with the second of their two first-round picks (23rd overall) in the recent NBA Draft, will become the first Israeli to play in the NBA. Taff, who says the size of his bi-annual travel groups had been almost halved because of the economy, expects a sizable representation from the Jewish community at the Kings home opener. "I don't think there's any doubt about that," he added. "They take their basketball very seriously in Israel."

We'll catch up with Taff and the weary travelers after they meet with the Casspi family on Tuesday. Hopefully, we'll have some photos from the scene. Meantime, here's a quick glimpse of the Sactown adventurers. (Rabbi Taff is in the pink shirt).

Hedo Turkoglu is one of the most amiable, easy-going players you'll ever meet. He would be happy playing on Mars, Pluto or Saturn, which is why his decision to recant his verbal acceptance of a five-year, $50 million deal from the Portland Trail Blazers leads one to believe that his wife was a major factor in the about-face. ESPN's Ric Bucher is reporting that Turkoglu, who was very popular during his three seasons with the Kings, in fact reneged on his agreement with the Blazers because his wife, Banu, preferred that the couple relocate to Toronto, an international city with a sizable Turkish community. Plus, living in the East cuts the roundtrip visits back to Istanbul almost in half. While I haven't spoken to Hedo in a few weeks, when we chatted before his former Orlando Magic lost to the Lakers in the NBA Finals, he mentioned that family considerations would be a large factor in his free agency. His daughter, Ela, was born in February. I think Bucher is probably right. I feel badly for Hedo, though, because his reputation is going to take a hit for taking the Blazers for a ride. (Think Carlos Boozer). Well, at least he will be well-compensated. He is expected to earn an additional $3 million from the Raptors.

Ron Artest routinely had trouble defending Kobe Bryant during those heated Kings-Lakers meetings, especially when the Lakers superstar initiated his offense on the perimeter and utilized his quickness against his stronger, slower opponent. But based on numerous reports within the past few hours, Artest plans leave the Houston Rockets and sign a three-year deal worth approximately $18 million with his favorite L.A.team. For all the angst Artest experienced in the years preceding his free agency - remember, he was upset when the Kings refused to offer him an extension last summer - the situation couldn't have worked out any better. He will live in L.A., where he spends his offseasons anyway, and gets to play for the best team in the league. Can't imagine he has any complaints.

Interestingly, my sources in Houston are telling me that the Rockets' desire to re-sign Artest waned dramatically when it was learned that both Tracy McGrady (knee) and Yao Ming (fractured foot) will be sidelined with injuries for much of next season. Rockets officials viewed Artest as a second or third star - a complementary star to Yao and McGrady on a contender - but feared that he could become a disruptive force on a team that is rebuilding or, at the least, missing its two most dominant performers.

The fact that Artest was lobbied hard by Lamar Odom tells you that the Lakers have every intention of re-signing their versatile forward, and in essence, valued his talents over those of fellow free agent Trevor Ariza ... who is planning to sign with the Rockets.

Though he was laughing last week when he said he wanted Pete Carril to coach the Kings team in the Las Vegas Summer League, new head coach Paul Westphal was serious. "Coachie," who returns as a special assistant/consultant, will celebrate his 79th birthday on July 10 - but only after coaching the Kings in their opening game against the Detroit Pistons.
For those who follow this stuff closely, the Kings roster is pretty stacked, and includes recent draft picks Tyreke Evans, Omri Casspi and Jon Brockman, along with young veterans Spencer Hawes, Jason Thomas and Donte Greene. The complete list is as follows:
Robert Battle, F, 6-8, Drexel.
Jon Brockman, F,6-7, Washington.
John Bryant, C, 6-11, Santa Clara.
Pat Calathes, G, St. Joseph's
Omri Casspi, F, 6-9, Israel.
Tyreke Evans, G, 6-6, Memphis.
Donte Greene, F, 6-11, Syracuse.
Spencer Hawes, C, 7-0, Washington.
Marcus Landry, F, 6-7, Wisconsin.
Wes Matthews, G, 6-5, Marquette.
Jerel McNeal, G, 6-3, Marquette.
Brian Roberts, G, 6-2, Dayton.
Jason Thompson, F, 6-11, Rider.
Victor Stowes, G, 6-2, Reinhard College.
Ryan Toolson, 6-4, Utah Valley.

Longtime Kings assistant coach/advance scout Bubba Burrage, who was fired along with the team's other three assistants when Kenny Natt was relieved of his head coaching duties at the end of the season, has been rehired by incoming coach Paul Westphal. Burrage, who had been with the organization for 15 years, will be utilized strictly as an advance scout, according to team basketball president Geoff Petrie. He joins a staff that includes Jim Eyen, Mario Elie and Truck Robinson, and again will feature Pete Carril in the role of special assistant/consultant.

The Kings were impressed with Tyreke Evans willingness to discuss the shooting in Nov. 2007 in which he drove a sport utility vehicle that his cousin, Jamar Evans, shot and killed another man, Marcus Reason, from the passenger seat of the car.

Tyreke Evans testified he didn't know his cousin had a gun and was never charged with a crime.

Tyreke Evans said he didn't want to appear to be hiding anything so he discussed the incident with every team he met with starting with the pre-draft camp in Chicago last month.

"I started off telling them about me," Evans said Friday after his introductory press conference. "I told them what happened in that situation and they respected that. They knew I wasn't the type of guy to get into things like that. Like I said it was the wrong place, wrong time. It's something I learned from and I'm moving on from it.

Evans hadn't addressed the issue with local media before the draft. It came back to the forefront after Jamar Evans was sentenced to nine to 20 years in prison for third-degree murder and weapons charges from the incident.

Time to sell Tyreke

After today's press conference Tyreke Evans saw a preview of what will be a 25-foot billboard with Evans in his No. 13 Kings jersey with him promising to "Reke Havoc" this coming season.

Evans is the soft-spoken type. He didn't appear overly excited by the advertising campaign, but he understands his No. 13 jersey will be prominent as the Kings begin trying to lure many of the fans that stopped coming to Arco Arena back.

If the Kings wanted to take the road to easy marketing, they would have selected Ricky Rubio.

Rubio, who comes with a country (Spain) behind him, Olympic highlights and YouTube clips galore showing off his fancy passing.

"Absolutely it entered our mind," said Kings co-owner Gavin Maloof said of marketing Rubio. "But at the end of the day winning's going to sell more tickets."

Number games

Just in case you missed it, Omri Casspi will wear No. 18. Jon Brockman will wear No. 40.

And you can meet all three of the Kings draft picks tomorrow at the Bloc Party at Marshall Park (28th and J Street) in Midtown.

The event runs from 4 - 9 p.m. The rookies will be introduced at 6:30 p.m.

--Jason Jones

Kings coach Paul Westphal described the Kings draft "war room" - a term I detest, by the way - as a unified, cohesive place, even as Geoff Petrie, the scouts, the new assistant coaches, etc., waited to hear what the Memphis Grizzlies and Oklahoma City Thunder were going to do with their respective Nos. 2 and 3 NBA Draft picks. I heard the Kings were particularly concerned about the Grizzlies, whose owner, Michael Heisley, makes it clear every year that he makes the final decisions, and can trump the basketball people at a moment's notice. (As I frequently note, among intrusive NBA owners, the Maloofs are in the lower echelon). But this, from the new Kings coach: "It (the draft) always throws you a few curveballs. The first 15 minutes were the toughest. We were scared to death that something was going to happen that would change the scenario that allowed him (Tyreke Evans) to come to us. We sweated every second ... The final decision is always Geoff (Petrie), with a possibility the Maloofs deciding differently. That's the hierarchy. The good thing is, we were on same page ... and Geoff is really good at (sorting) through it and getting to the core part of what the decision should be.''

Not a stats freak, but still ...

As I wrote in today's editions of The Bee, I liked the selection of Tyreke Evans because he is considered such a major talent. My feeling all along has been that the Kings should draft Ricky Rubio because they desperately need a point guard and would benefit from his entertaining, flashy style - assuming his buyout situation was resolved, of course - or go with the physically gifted Evans, who is more of a combo guard. Every NBA type I've spoken with these past few days believes Evans is going to be a big-time player. Not everyone, however, is convinced he is going to be a big-time NBA point guard. Unlike Derrick Rose, Evans' predecessor at Memphis, his assist to turnover ratio gives one pause. In 29 minutes per game, the 6-foot-4 (without shoes) Evans averaged 3.9 assists and 3.6 turnovers. He attacks the rim, breaks down defenders (see his abuse of Stephen Curry in last Sunday's workout), can post up and draw double teams, and undeniably brings a physical toughness. But the best passer on this Kings roster is Spencer Hawes, the starting center, and so far, Spence is not Bill Walton or Vlade Divac. Who sets up Kevin Martin? Finds Jason Thompson and Hawes where they are most effective? The good news is, the Kings' talent level jumped appreciably. But the personnel has to fit. It will be interesting....

What of Rubio?

Watching the young point guard's face when he fall when he wasn't drafted by the Kings at No.4 was revealing. Watching his reaction when he was selected by the Minnesota Timberwolves five minutes later was almost painful. He was crushed. He (and his agent, Dan Fegan) obviously wanted things to work out differently in Sacramento. That's why you have to remain skeptical when new Wolves boss David Kahn - former owner of the NBDL Reno Bighorns, by the way - says he plans on pairing Rubio and Jonny Flynn in the backcourt. Those phone lines to Mike D'Antoni's New York Knicks are probably buzzing as we speak ....

He will be missed

Word of Michael Jackson's passing cast an immense pall over Arco Arena in the hours preceding the draft. With the televisions inside the building turned to CNN, fans, journalists, Kings employees, etc., gathered around the sets, stunned by the news, eager for more information. As a New York native who spent her teen years in Las Vegas, I remember grabbing my fake I.D. and going with friends to see the Jackson 5 at the lounge shows on The Strip. How ridiculous was this? While The Osmonds were performing for megabucks in the main showrooms at places like Caesars Palace, us poor UNLV college students could walk into the lounge shows (free of charge), sip a single watered-down drink for about $2, and spend hours being dazzled by Michael and his brothers. Sad, tragic ending for an incredible entertainer ...

Pardon the delay regarding the last pick, but the Kings took University of Washington forward Jon Brockman with the No. 38 pick that they received from Portland.

We'll have more on him later (and in tomorrow's paper), but there is an introduction below in the meantime.

- Sam Amick

The Kings selected Israeli small forward Omri Casspi at No. 23, adding a versatile wingman to their roster who will become the first Israeli to play in the NBA.

We'll have more on him later, but here's my chat with Casspi from the predraft combine in Chicago last month.

- Sam Amick

By Sam Amick
samick@sacbee.com

The Kings selected Memphis' Tyreke Evans with the fourth pick of today's NBA draft in New York City, adding the 6-foot-5 guard to a roster so badly in need of more talent.

By many accounts, Evans was among the most talented - if not the most talented - player in the draft. And while he is not the conventional point guard the Kings sought, he is a dynamic scorer who led his University of Memphis team at the point guard spot last season and can also play shooting guard. After the Clippers selected Oklahoma forward Blake Griffin, Memphis selected University of Connecticut Hasheem Thabeet, and Oklahoma City took Arizona State guard James Harden, the Kings took Evans their other top candidates who were still available in Spanish point guard Ricky Rubio, Davidson guard Stephen Curry and Syracuse point guard Jonny Flynn.

Earlier today, the Kings agreed to terms with Portland to acquire Blazers point guard Sergio Rodriguez in exchange for their No. 31 pick, according to a source with knowledge of the situation. The Kings will also receive Portland's No. 38 pick and cash considerations.

Here's a video interview with Evans that took place after his first workout in Sacramento, followed by a highlight reel below.

The Kings have agreed to terms with Portland to acquire Blazers point guard Sergio Rodriguez in exchange for their No. 31 pick, according to a source with knowledge of the situation. The Kings will also receive Portland's No. 38 pick and cash considerations. - Sam Amick

Not to put a damper on the excitement of draft day, but it appears there's a grave element to the Kings' prospect evaluation process that had gone largely unnoticed among Kings fans and media in Sacramento until today.

Memphis guard Tyreke Evans, who is believed by many to be the leading candidate for the team's No. 4 pick in the draft that is just hours away, was the driver in a 2007 shooting in which his cousin, 18-year-old Jamar Evans, killed 19-year-old Marcus Reason from the passenger seat of the car. Tyreke Evans was not charged after a police investigation, but the story resurfaced Tuesday when Jamar Evans was sentenced to nine to 20 years in jail after pleading guilty to third-degree murder and firearm charges.

A league source who has spoken to the Kings regarding Tyreke Evans said they have been aware of the tragedy and the prospect's role in it throughout the evaluation process, so it seems certain that they have taken that into account regarding their pick. The Kings issued a short statement when contacted as well, by way of text message from Kings vice president of media relations/basketball operations Troy Hanson.

"We have conducted extensive background checks on all of the prospects we are considering." - Sam Amick