Fantasy Team Preview: Sacramento Kings September 18, 2006 - 6:44 a.m. 2005-06 OVERVIEW With Chris Webber shipped off to Philadelphia late in the 2004-05 season, Sacramento’s 2005-06 season began with a new face of the franchise: Peja Stojakovic. The 6’10” sharp-shooting Serbian got his wish to become the leader of a Kings franchise looking to decorate the rafters of Arco Arena with a NBA championship banner. Well, Peja, be careful with what you wish for. After Peja’s bout with bum knees and the Maloof brothers realizing that one-dimensional scorers who shy away from the defensive side of the ball aren’t necessarily franchise players, it didn’t take long before the Kings sent the dismal Stojakovic packing to Indiana for everyone’s favorite “Tru Warrior,” Ron Artest. This was a risky move since most were certain that Artest would not be happy playing in Sacramento. Many were also concerned with Geoff Petrie pairing Artest with former “Jail Blazer,” Bonzi Wells, especially with Bonzi’s reputation for being tops in the “bad attitude” department. Bonzi’s issues, however, were with his inability to remain healthy. Bonzi played in only 52 games and averaged a fair 13.6 points per game. Not exactly what you’d want from a guy demanding $10 million per year. Sticking with the theme of Bad Knees, the Kings signed veteran Shareef Abdur-Rahim, a career 20 point per game scorer, to a six-year deal worth $40 million. Not bad for a former All-Star, right? Well, Shareef managed to post the worst numbers of his 10-year professional career by putting up lows in points per game (12.3) and rebounds (5.0). Brought in to fill the role that Chris Webber left behind, Abdur-Rahim only started 30 games in 2005 and lost the starting role (after suffering a broken jaw) to a solid power forward in Kenny Thomas. Kenny had a nice year with 7.5 rebounds and 9.1 points per game on 50 percent shooting from the field. Two bright spots for the 44-38 Kings were Mike Bibby and Brad Miller. Bibby continued to improve posting a career-high 21.2 points per game while making 192 three pointers, also a career-best. Miller, who has been one of the most consistent centers during the past five seasons, put up a solid 15 points per game while grabbing eight rebounds per contest. We also shouldn’t forget that Brad shot 82 percent from the free throw line, which is pretty impressive for a seven-footer. With the play of Bibby and Miller and 40 games out of Ron Artest in the second half of the season, the Kings were able to grab the eighth seed in the Western Conference. Though they lost in the first round of the playoffs to the San Antonio Spurs, a few minor tweaks to the roster, including the addition of John Salmons and Loren Woods in the off-season and a full year of Ron Artest alongside Bibby and Miller, could bode well for the Kings in the upcoming 2006-07 season. --

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