Talk about Sacramento, Seattle and the future of the Kings dominated the yesterday's joint press conference held by commissioner David Stern and deputy Adam Silver. Stern said that he doesn't believe the tug-of-war between Sacramento and Seattle will ultimately come down to money, as Tom Ziller of Sactown Royalty notes, but the Bee's Ailene Voisin believes Stern made it clear that economics are at the heart of the matter. Here's more about whether players or the team itself will soon be departing Sacramento:
- The team has the second-worst record in the Western Conference, at 19-35, but Kings GM Geoff Petrie said "it's very unlikely" he'll trade away any of the team's top players, as Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee notes.
- The NBA vetted Sacramento's arena plan last year, and mayor Kevin Johnson believes that, coupled with a lack of pending lawsuits, gives the city an advantage over Seattle, as Cowbell Kingdom's Jonathan Santiago observes, via Sulia.
- Mike Monroe of the San Antonio Express-News compares the small-market Spurs and Kings, noting that while San Antonio's newer arena has helped keep the Spurs in town, its isolated location on the east side of the city could cause trouble in the future.