Sacramento Kings head coach Keith Smart led his team to victory against the Golden State Warriors at the Power Balance Pavilion on Saturday. The Warriors started the first quarter off strong. Shooting guard Dorell Wright scored 14 points versus center DeMarcus Cousins’ and shooting guard Marcus Thornton’s eight points each. By the end of the first half, the Warriors made eight of 12 3-pointers and maintained the lead at 54 points, putting them one point ahead of the Kings. Thornton, who had trouble shooting in the first half, made his comeback in the third quarter. He made four 3-pointers and scored 18 of the Kings’ 34 points, putting his team eleven points ahead of the Golden State War

"If we didn't need that game so badly I could talk about what a great game it was, but I'm not going to do that," Kings Head Coach Paul Westphal, addressing the media following Tuesday night's game. This is why we love sports. Because at any given time, on any given night, you may witness something incredible. A few years ago, the NBA had a slogan: "Where Amazing Happens." Tuesday night, amazing happened, all over the Kings’ collective faces. On Tuesday night, a bad (9-18 record coming in, having lost 14 of their last 16 games) and beat-up (missing their starters at point guard and center, Stephan Curry and Andres Biedrins) Golden State Warriors squad came to Arco for a tilt against y

With the Kings down Beno Udrih and Samuel Dalembert out and the small forward position up for grabs, Coach Paul Westphal is still searching for a winning starting lineup. The Golden State Warriors held it close for three quarters Tuesday, but it was the Kings who secured their second preseason win by pulling away in the final period to win 116-97 at Arco Arena. The Kings had six players scoring in double figures and a balanced rebounding effort making for a solid fourth quarter. A three-point lead at the beginning of the fourth quarter turned into a 22-point lead late in the game thanks to a strong defense and converting turnovers into points. Both teams had stretches of sloppiness, eac

After a historic season averaging 20.1 points, 5.3 rebounds 5.8 assists and 1.5 steals per game, Sacramento Kings guard Tyreke Evans will be named the 2009-10 NBA Rookie of the Year (ROY). The 20-year-old Chester, Pa. native became the first Kings player to win a postseason award since Bobby Jackson won the Sixth Man of the Year award in 2003 and the fifth rookie in franchise history to win the ROY award. Maurice Stokes of the Rochester Royals, Oscar Robertson and Jerry Lucas of the Cincinnati Royals and Phil Ford of the Kansas City Kings were the first four. Evans is the first of to win the award in the Sacramento era. He also became the fourth rookie to average 20 points, five rebound

 It's Tuesday, April 27 and I don't know if Kings rookie guard Tyreke Evans has been voted the 2009-10 Rookie of the Year. And I don't care. The announcement likely will come within the next few days. And then what? The state is no longer bankrupt? Thieves no longer will steal? The Kings no longer finished with 25 victories in 82 games? I don't think so. It's an individual award in a team game. It's so so-what. Yes, Tyreke Evans deserves the Rookie of the Year in my opinion. He's a bad boy who will turn 21 Sept. 19. That means he'll likely improve immeasurably over the next few years. So check him out four years from now when he matures into a 25-year old man. Imagine this young fella

While 16 teams battle to reach the NBA Finals, nine awards are handed out during the playoffs. So far, six awards have been given out, but fans of the Sacramento Kings, Golden State Warriors and Milwaukee Bucks ask the question: When is the Rookie of the Year (ROY) award going to be announced? When the award was given out last year, it was given to the Chicago Bulls’ Derrick Rose one day before Game 3 at Chicago in the first round of the playoffs. Although ROY contenders Tyreke Evans of the Kings and Stephen Curry of the Warriors aren’t in the playoffs, Brandon Jennings’ Bucks have already played Game 3 in Milwaukee. Unlike Rose last year, Jennings didn’t get a trophy. This seemingly

If making history wasn't enough, Tyreke Evans may not be done making accomplishments this summer. The Sacramento Kings rookie guard is one of three players confirmed by Team USA Basketball's Managing Director Jerry Colangelo to receive invites to its mini-camp, according to the San Jose Mercury News' Tim Kawakami. The mini-camp will take place in Las Vegas this July. Evans, along with Golden State Warriors rookie Stephen Curry and Oklahoma City Thunder forward Jeff Green are set to be invited. "We want to get them into the system and get them ready to play," Colangelo said. "Whether it's this cycle or the next." Kawakami hinted, via Twitter, that the decision came due to a roster expa

At the end of every season, the NBA Rookie of the Year (ROY) Award is awarded to the best rookie of the season. Don Meineke was the first to win the Eddie Gottlieb Trophy in the 1952-53 season. Of the 56 ROYs, 21 basketball hall-of-famers, from Oscar Robertson to Michael Jordan, have emerged. More than 53 percent of retired ROYs were voted into the hall of fame. The next trophy could be coming to Sacramento as Kings guard Tyreke Evans tries to make history becoming the fourth rookie to average 20 points, five rebounds and five assists for a season. The first three were Robertson, Jordan and Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James. Portland Trail Blazers Television Analyst Mike Rice kn

The Kings currently have a 25-54 record and had won their first game since March 21 last night at Arco. At first you would think this is a negative – which for the present it is, and nobody likes for their team to lose – but if you are looking at the future, this should be seen as a positive. Last month was a great time for Kings fans and basketball fans alike. We were able to watch the NCAA tournament. If you watched enough games, you would have been able to see that there are two great prospects coming out. The consensus is that John Wall of Kentucky and Evan Turner of Ohio State are two difference makers who will be leaving college and entering the 2010 draft. If you are unaware of

Kings rookie guard Tyreke Evans was playing the best basketball of his rookie season, but his it took a bad turn during last Friday's game against the Milwaukee Bucks. Late in the fourth quarter, Evans was hit by Ersan Ilyasova while he was swinging his elbows. As a result, Evans sustained a slight concussion, a bruised jaw and two cracked teeth. A fractured jaw was feared to be the diagnosis, and it would have been a horrible end to his spectacular first season in the NBA. He'll miss at least a week, which includes games against the Los Angeles Clippers, Memphis Grizzlies, New Jersey Nets and possibly the Boston Celtics. In the last two games played until his injury, Evans chalked up 2

Without a doubt, this has been the best basketball Tyreke Evans has played in his rookie season for the Sacramento Kings The Kings’ 20-year-old guard has averaged 19 points, 8.75 rebounds, 7.75 assists and 0.75 steals per game since March 9.  Since then, the Kings have played the Portland Trail Blazers in Portland and home games against the Toronto Raptors, the Blazers and the Minnesota Timberwolves. In that span the team has a 2-2 record. Evans posted 18 points, six rebounds, six assists and a steal in the 88-81 loss in Portland.  The Kings were within three points of the Blazers late in the game, but the experience of the Blazers overtook the Kings – the least-experienced team in the N

Wednesday night was Tyreke Evans' night at ARCO Arena. The Sacramento Kings rookie guard had limited-edition T-shirts and printouts of his face on sticks handed out on a night that was used to promote his rookie of the year campaign. His choice of music was played during warm-ups before the game. There was a special introduction, which included pyrotechnics and a banner rising in honor of his night, for him. An announced crowd of 13,412 was introduced to the rookie of the year chant, "R-O-Y." By the end of the game, RekeROY night was more than a success. It sealed the award for him. Evans, the frontrunner for the NBA's Rookie of the Year award, notched his first career triple-double wi

Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson – a three-time NBA all-star point guard for the Phoenix Suns – shared his thoughts on Sacramento Kings Rookie of the Year candidate Tyreke Evans Tuesday morning at a press conference. Johnson officially endorsed Evans last week, and came before tonight’s rally to support Evans. "He's doing some amazing things," Johnson said about Evans' performance this season. "He's on pace to do something only three other (rookies) in the history of the NBA have done in the past – averaging 20 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists (per game)." The three players who Johnson talked about are LeBron James and hall-of-famers Oscar Robertson and Michael Jordan. Currently, Evans is

Despite the Sacramento Kings going 0-4 since the All-Star break, Tyreke Evans is performing consistently. The rookie guard from the University of Memphis averaged 17.8 points, 5.5 rebounds, 6.8 assists and one steal per game since the break. For the week, his shooting percentage was 51.9 percent. Evans is ranked first among rookies playing 36.9 minutes per game and is No. 24 in the NBA The year before at Memphis he was playing 29 minutes per game. Having extended playing time isn't the only change Evans has encountered since joining the Kings. His body has taken a beating with injuries as well. He's fought with a nagging ankle injury throughout the season and suffered a hard fall on hi

 When a struggle turns into a victory, it doesn't seem as things went as badly as they appeared.  So the Kings took their 99-96 victory over the Golden State Warriors Tuesday night at Arco Arena before 14,522 fans and went home happily.  Well, most of them could tolerate ineptitude when coupled with the end of a seven-game losing streak. Certainly Kings coach Paul Westphal could tolerate the victory no matter how it was produced. A KIngs Sac-era high 68 rebounds helped comfort the coach as well. "I'm not going to lie," said Westphal, whose team improved to 16-28. "It feels good to get a win. Obviously, it wasn't the prettiest win anybody ever (has) see in this league. We shot 38 percen

A character test awaits the Kings and follows a huge wasted opportunity. That's life for the Sacramento Kings. A crowd of 18,327 at Oracle Arena cheered as Sacramento wasted an 18-point third quarter lead Friday falling 108-101 to the Golden State Warriors. When the Kings weren't shooting jumpers during the second half, they were committing 10 of their 17 turnovers on the way to their fifth consecutive defeat. Moreover, the Kings (14-21) had difficulty slowing the Warriors' dribble-penetration. Golden State took over the game by scoring from both the field and the foul line. The Warriors (11-24), led by guard Monta Ellis' game-high 39 points, made 19 of 23 free-throws in the second hal