End of the Reign
Unfortunately, with the Kings' loss tonight, we may be seeing the end of one of the last great passing teams of the past decade.
What a shame because this really was one of the best teams since the reign of MJ finished up in '99. True fans know that the Kings should have won their ring in 2002 when the Kings beat the Lakers 5-2 ;)...Last year, their chances were crushed when Chris Webber went down with a season ending knee injury the playoffs...That same injury left them without Webber's top-shelf playing capabilities throughout the playoffs this year. The result is two conference semi-final losses and Western Conference championship loss. Tragic...because this team deserved better.
What will result from the end of their rise over the past five years? Who knows? The lack of team play has dwindled in the NBA, and the Kings ran an old-school philosophy that we may never see again with the rise of bad one on one play, bad jump shooting, and a lack of offensive movement.
However, the core of the team will stay intact for the Kings. Bibby, Peja Stojakovic, Brad Miller, Chris Webber, and Bobby Jackson should all be back...Yes, we have probably seen the end of Vlade Divac, which is a shame because he has been a tremendous offensive threat throughout his career. His combination of great skills around the center position that consists of a soft shooting touch, veteran play...even though they call it flopping and fouling...and beautiful passing is a dying breed of play in the NBA. Perhaps, they'll find a role for Divac to play as a bench-player, but this may be it for him...All I know is that I would sign him in a second as a veteran bench player...How about the Sonics?...
Hopefully, this won't be the end of the road for Chris Webber. He's a better player than people think, and it may be impossible to remember him as any thing but missed potential. However, I don't think he's going to go down softly. He'll have all summer and early fall to rest his knee, and he is 'only' in his early thirties. For some reason, I think he's going to get redemption for all of the incidents that have happened in his career. I just hope that we haven't seen the last of his great times or the last of the great scoring offenses.
Cut and Move,
BD
What a shame because this really was one of the best teams since the reign of MJ finished up in '99. True fans know that the Kings should have won their ring in 2002 when the Kings beat the Lakers 5-2 ;)...Last year, their chances were crushed when Chris Webber went down with a season ending knee injury the playoffs...That same injury left them without Webber's top-shelf playing capabilities throughout the playoffs this year. The result is two conference semi-final losses and Western Conference championship loss. Tragic...because this team deserved better.
What will result from the end of their rise over the past five years? Who knows? The lack of team play has dwindled in the NBA, and the Kings ran an old-school philosophy that we may never see again with the rise of bad one on one play, bad jump shooting, and a lack of offensive movement.
However, the core of the team will stay intact for the Kings. Bibby, Peja Stojakovic, Brad Miller, Chris Webber, and Bobby Jackson should all be back...Yes, we have probably seen the end of Vlade Divac, which is a shame because he has been a tremendous offensive threat throughout his career. His combination of great skills around the center position that consists of a soft shooting touch, veteran play...even though they call it flopping and fouling...and beautiful passing is a dying breed of play in the NBA. Perhaps, they'll find a role for Divac to play as a bench-player, but this may be it for him...All I know is that I would sign him in a second as a veteran bench player...How about the Sonics?...
Hopefully, this won't be the end of the road for Chris Webber. He's a better player than people think, and it may be impossible to remember him as any thing but missed potential. However, I don't think he's going to go down softly. He'll have all summer and early fall to rest his knee, and he is 'only' in his early thirties. For some reason, I think he's going to get redemption for all of the incidents that have happened in his career. I just hope that we haven't seen the last of his great times or the last of the great scoring offenses.
Cut and Move,
BD
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