WINNING STREAK SNAPPED AT ONE Statistics predicting a Sacramento win against the visiting Charlotte Bobcats Tuesday night were overwhelming. Consider this season: the Kings had never lost a home game following a road win (such as Monday’s win in Portland), while the Bobcats had never won the first game of a road trip beginning on a Tuesday. How compelling is that!?! Not very, as it turned out.  Another statistic proved far more relevant: since their coaching change in December, the Bobcats were 8 - 6. Were that .541 winning percentage in our Pacific Division, they would trail only the Lakers. The Kings lost by 5 points, 94 - 89. When one reporter asked Coach Paul Westphal after the game

Tyreke Evans is the 2010 T-Mobile NBA Rookie of the Year, a very different award than when Kings Vice President of Basketball Operations Geoff Petrie and coach Paul Westphal played in the '70s. "It was the can and string Rookie of the Year when we played," Westphal said. Yes, the world is different. The basketball world is different, but the game remains very much the same.  Petrie actually won the award (sharing it in 1970 with Boston's Dave Cowens) when there was no marketing arm attached to such things. Both Petrie and Cowens progressed to have solid NBA careers, although Petrie's career was cut short by knee problems. The level of hype with winning the award then is nothing like i

As the 2009-10 NBA Rookie of the Year, Sacramento Kings guard Tyreke Evans was presented the Eddie Gottlieb Trophy in an afternoon press conference today at Arco Arena. The press room was jam-packed with local and national media and applause for Evans' achievement. He received 491 points, with 67 first-place votes worth five points each, 50 second-place votes worth three points and six third place votes worth one point. A panel of 123 sportswriters and broadcasters throughout the United States and Canada cast their ballots, and Evans came out on top. Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry finished in second place with 391 points, Milwaukee Bucks guard Brandon Jennings finished in th

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

During an NBA season in which the positives for the Kings are more innate than tangible, rookie guard Tyreke Evans Monday night ensured his first professional season statistically will rank among the best in league history. That it came during a 117-107 defeat by the Houston Rockets and former Kings guard Kevin Martin before a supportive crowd of 14,549 at Arco Arena clearly had become a secondary issue before the game ended. Most of the fans came to cheer one of the few things enjoyable about the team's 25-56 mark with a season-ending game tonight in Los Angeles against the Lakers. Evans struggled through fatigue and nerves, but eventually scored 24 points to assure season game average

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 Sacramento Kings unveiled a new ticket package centering around rookie its phenom Tyreke Evans. The "Chasing History Ticket Package" is based on Evans trying to reach the milestone of becoming the fourth rookie in NBA history to average 20 points, five rebounds and five assists in a season. The first three were current NBA superstar LeBron James and basketball hall-of-famers Michael Jordan and Oscar Robertson. When a ticket worth $40.50 or higher is purchased, it will also include a Tyreke Chasing History 20-5-5 T-shirt. The package is available for only three games: April 3 against the Portland Trail Blazers, April 6 against the San Antonio Spurs and April 8 against the Los Angeles

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

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

With four games played in March, Sacramento Kings rookie guard Tyreke Evans is still producing, despite his team losing three of the last four games to playoff-bound teams. Evans put up 17.5 points, 4.75 rebounds, 5.75 assists and 1.75 steals per game since March 2. He had had a team-high 27 points, six rebounds, five assists and two steals against the Oklahoma City Thunder, a team that has the sixth-best record in the Western Conference.  The Thunder's defense tightened up late in the game, securing a 113-107 home win over the Kings. Oklahoma City's top two players, Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook, combined for 69 points. The next night, the Kings were in Houston to play the Rocket