Kings Blog and Q&A

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Can you tell what kind of reading is going on in the Amick household these days?

Jackie MacMullan's compelling and controversial book on Magic and Bird (and Isiah Thomas, of course) is still sitting on the bedside table, while we continue to read "Where the Wild Things Are!" nightly and I'm actually upset that my three-year-old is too scared to see the movie. Man up, Red.

Anyways, there are plenty of Kings fans who may be afraid to watch the upcoming season too. Only time will tell if the fear is completely founded or if there will be enough entertainment along the way to at least get one thumbs up from whoever wound up replacing "Ebert & Roeper." With a little less than two days before the regular season tipoff at Oklahoma City, we offer a few tidbits to chew on like butter-bathed popcorn.

* While Kings coach Paul Westphal said at Monday's practice that he knew his starting five for the opener but didn't care to reveal it, I was told to expect to see the same lineup as the final two preseason games - Tyreke Evans, Kevin Martin, Desmond Mason, Sean May and Jason Thompson.

Unless Westphal changes his mind between now and then, he's obviously following his own instincts as they pertain to his roster and not about to let some preconceived notion of the team's frontline of the future deter him. Hawes won't like this move at all, as he made clear the other night. The question now is whether it inspires him or kills his confidence. We shall see...

* As Westphal points out in the below interview, it may not have been a great thing that the Kings waxed the floor with the Thunder last week. You get a sense from this well-done video recap by the Oklahoman that there will be a revenge factor.. He also discusses Omri Casspi, and there are some interesting comments that didn't make it in my piece for tomorrow's (today's) paper...

* I chatted today with Lakers.com reporter Mike Trudell about all things Kings. To listen to our 17-minute chat as I drove out to Arco Arena for Monday's practice, click here.

* MULTIMEDIA ALERT: Join me Wednesday for a Kings Live Chat starting at 4:45 p.m. with a 15-minute pre-game discussion, then share your comments during the game and I'll jump in and out as I can at www.sacbee.com/live.

We'll live chat from the Kings' first game at Arco on Monday as well, begininning at 6:45 p.m. Sign up now for your e-mail reminder at the above web site.

* I keep getting questions about the Kings' TV sked, so here's the deal: all the games will be on Comcast. End of story.

* There are less than 1,700 tickets remaining for the home opener on Nov. 2 against Memphis.

The Kings are reporting that their Sellout 2009 Campaign continues to make significant progress, and the following is from their release on the topic...

"It's a lot of fun to see the Sacramento community come together in support of the Kings," said Chevo Ramirez, Regional Vice President of Wells Fargo and Sellout 2009 Committee member. "I'm so proud to be part of this amazing effort that will help get ARCO Arena rocking again."

On Oct. 13, the Kings and Mayor Johnson announced an unprecedented community-based campaign to sellout the Kings first two home games - matchups against the Memphis Grizzlies on Nov. 2 and the Atlanta Hawks on Nov. 4.

In addition to Johnson, other members of the campaign Committee include: Bob Cook, Mike Daugherty, John Frisch, Matt Haines, Lloyd Harvego, Bobby Jackson, Gerry Kamilos, Sotiris Kolokotronis, Hayden Markstein, Arlen Opper, Randy Paragary, Chevo Ramirez, Tim Ray, Bruce Scheidt, Tim Stenvick and Allen Warren.

Fans can purchase tickets by visiting Kings.com, calling 888-91-KINGS or visiting the ARCO Arena Box Office today.

Speaking of bedtime stories, my morning flight comes early and I haven't even packed yet. - Sam Amick