This is an accepted version of this page
84-725: Demps is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: Cody Demps (born 1993), American basketball player Dell Demps (born 1970), American basketball executive and former player Jeff Demps (born 1990), American track and field athlete and former American football player Marcus Demps (born 1983), American football player Quintin Demps (born 1985), American football player Tre Demps (born 1993), American basketball player Will Demps (born 1979), American football player Murielle Ahouré-Demps (born 1987), Ivorian sprinter [REDACTED] Surname list This page lists people with
168-863: A 135–122 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers witnessed by 10,289 at the Cleveland Arena two nights later on March 26. After moving to Kansas City, the Royals renamed themselves the Kings to avoid confusion with the Royals baseball team. Now dubbed the Kansas City–Omaha Kings , the team split its home games between the 7,316-seat Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City and the 9,300-seat Omaha Civic Auditorium . The Cincinnati Royals had been looking at Omaha as
252-539: A 31–51 (.378) record, as fans stayed away from Kemper Arena in droves, with average attendance of 6,410. Long-time ABA and NBA star, Don Buse , played his final professional season for the Kings. Ownership began looking for a new home for the team. Poor attendance and lack of sponsorship dollars (the team was third in sports market share by a significant margin behind the NFL's Chiefs (even though they went 14 consecutive seasons without
336-491: A 50% interest and real estate developer Gregg Lukenbill who was the managing partner. The new ownership group honored the remaining two years of the Kings' lease with Kemper Arena which expired in June 1985 but also had a five-year option that eventually was never exercised. A $ 12-million conversion of an 82,000-square-foot warehouse into what would become the first ARCO Arena was announced on October 15, 1984. The transfer of
420-610: A February 2001 Sports Illustrated cover story entitled "The Greatest Show on Court" with Williams, Christie, Stojaković, Webber, and Divac gracing the cover. That year, they went 55–27, their best in 40 years. In the playoffs, they won their first series in 20 years, defeating the Phoenix Suns three games to one, before being swept in the second round by the Lakers , who eventually won the NBA Championship. In July 2001, Jason Williams
504-739: A brief time and then resigned in May 1981 to take up the role of team president's assistant for the Cleveland Browns ). The Kings finally achieved some success in their new home when they hired Cotton Fitzsimmons as coach. Fitzsimmons won the Midwest Division in 1978–79 with rookie point guard Phil Ford , who was NBA Rookie of the Year in 1979. Kansas City was led by shooting guard Otis Birdsong , strong on both offense and defense, all-around shooting forward Scott Wedman, and passing center Sam Lacey , who had
588-540: A lawyer, jumped at the chance. They pooled money to meet the steep entry fee of $ 25,000 ($ 423,105 in 2023) and were granted an NBL franchise. Their team, the Rochester Royals, pushed the Seagrams out of their local facility, smallish Edgerton Park Arena . The best players were the returning Navy and Army players now being released from the war. There was no draft for the league in the selection of new players. So, Harrison
672-629: A market as early as 1968, playing twelve "home games" in Nebraska from 1968 to 1971. From 1972 to 1975 , the KC–Omaha Kings played a total of 42 regular season contests (but no playoff games) in Omaha. In 1975, the club became simply the Kansas City Kings (moving into the new 16,785-seat Kemper Arena the previous season ). The team did not abandon Omaha completely, playing several games there through
756-567: A playoff berth, covering the Kings' entire stay in Kansas City) and MLB's Royals were the main reasons. Also, Kansas City had a much stronger following for the Kansas Jayhawks and Missouri Tigers college basketball teams than they did the NBA's Kings. The franchise was sold for $ 10.5 million on June 8, 1983, to a six-man, Sacramento, California -based investment group led by Joseph Benvenuti who had
840-528: A purely-professional team in Rochester, New York , which came into existence in 1945, was two decades of a sponsored semi-professional team, the Rochester Seagrams. Canadian distiller Seagram was the team's main sponsor and received the bulk of what monies were made. One of the team's early stars was Lester Harrison , a local high school star of some publicity before joining the team. Harrison later became
924-424: A rebound. He shook off the effects of the fall, even as he had briefly been unconscious. After Game One in the playoffs three days later, Stokes' head injury was greatly aggravated by airplane cabin pressure during the flight back to Cincinnati for Game Two. He suffered a seizure and was permanently hospitalized, a tragedy that greatly shook the team. Stokes, a tremendous talent who could play center, forward and guard,
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#17328524391211008-639: A strong college basketball fanbase then, and no NFL franchise to compete with (until the Bengals joined in 1970 after two seasons in the AFL ), was deemed the best choice for the Harrisons, who also considered other cities. The Royals name continued to fit in Cincinnati, often known as the "Queen City". During the team's first NBA draft in Cincinnati, the team acquired Clyde Lovellette and guard George King . They teamed with
1092-528: A trademark 25-foot (7.6 m) bank shot. They drew an average of 10,789 fans to Kemper Arena that season, the only time during their tenure in KC that average attendance was in five figures (the attendance at the peak was only two-thirds of Kemper's capacity). The Kings later played several home games in St. Louis during the early 1980s to large crowds. Most Kansas City sports fans preferred to spend their entertainment dollar on
1176-692: Is Love, a team founded by DeMarcus Cousins . Demps returned to the Stockton Kings to begin the 2019–20 G League season. On November 26, 2019, he posted 29 points, seven rebounds and five assists in a win over the Canton Charge . Demps averaged 14.4 points, 5.5 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game. On November 12, 2020, the NBA G League Ignite signed Demps as a veteran player to mentor the younger prospects. He averaged 5.5 points and 2.6 rebounds per game. On August 6, 2021, Demps signed with Hapoel Be'er Sheva of
1260-669: Is different from Wikidata All set index articles Cody Demps Cody Cooper Demps (born December 2, 1993) is an American professional basketball player for the Elitzur Netanya of the Israeli Premier League . He played college basketball for the Sacramento State Hornets . Demps grew up in the Sacramento, California , suburb of Elk Grove, California , and attended Pleasant Grove High School . He
1344-435: The 1966 NBA All-Star Game , with Smith scoring 24 points to be named All-Star MVP. As of 2021, it is the last time that the franchise has hosted an All-Star Game. In the summer of 1968, Owner Louis Jacobs died and ownership went to his sons Jeremy and Max Jacobs. New coach Bob Cousy traded Lucas in 1969. Robertson was traded to Milwaukee in 1970, where he immediately won an NBA title. Both transactions were unpopular with
1428-443: The 1977–78 season . For the next two seasons, they played several home games in St. Louis . The team netted a new superstar in point guard Nate Archibald , who led the league in scoring and assists in the 1972–73 season . While still in Cincinnati, the team introduced a most unusual uniform design, which placed the player's surname below his number. The design remained intact through
1512-405: The 1984–85 season to Sacramento. Between 2006 and 2022, the Kings had 16 consecutive losing seasons, the most in NBA history. The Kings also had the longest active postseason drought in the four major North American sports, which started in 2006 and lasted until 2023 . Thanks to these periods of futility and their historic age, the franchise has the most losses in NBA history . The basis of
1596-639: The Basketball Association of America , that later merged with the NBL to form the NBA. As the Royals, the team was often successful on the court, winning the NBA championship in 1951 . The team, however, found it increasingly difficult to turn a profit in the comparatively small market of Rochester and relocated to Cincinnati in 1957 , becoming the Cincinnati Royals . In 1972 , the team relocated again, this time to Kansas City, Missouri , and renamed
1680-529: The Hornets football team as a wide receiver while completing his degree in the fall of 2016. In his only season playing college football, Demps caught 15 passes for 158 yards. Demps signed with the Reno Bighorns of the NBA G League on October 30, 2017, following a successful tryout. In his first professional season, Demps averaged 7.4 points and 5.5 rebounds per game. Following the season, Demps played for
1764-687: The Israeli Basketball Premier League . On February 19, 2024, Demps signed with the New Taipei CTBC DEA of the T1 League . On August 10, he left the team. In October 2024, Demps joined the Elitzur Netanya of the Israeli Premier League . Demps' father, Chris Demps, played defensive end for Sacramento State's football team. Sacramento Kings The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California . The Kings compete in
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#17328524391211848-500: The Kansas City–Omaha Kings because it initially split its home games between Kansas City and Omaha, Nebraska ; the nickname was changed to avoid confusion with the baseball team dubbed the Kansas City Royals . After three seasons, the team truncated to Kansas City Kings , but continued to play several home games per season in Omaha, through March 1978 . The franchise again failed to find success in its market and moved after
1932-609: The NBA Executive of the Year Award twice. Led by new head coach Rick Adelman , and aided by former Princeton head coach Pete Carril , the Kings' Princeton offense impressed others for its quick style and strong ball movement. Some criticized the Kings for their poor team defense, Williams's "flash over substance" style with its many turnovers, and Webber's failure to step up in important match-ups. Still, they quickly garnered many fans outside of California, many of whom were drawn to
2016-669: The National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference . The Kings are the oldest team in the NBA, and the first team in the major professional North American sports leagues located in Sacramento. The team plays its home games at Golden 1 Center . Their best seasons to date in the city were in the early 2000s, including a very successful 2001–02 season when they had
2100-540: The Philadelphia 76ers , but won no titles. In the 1964 NBA draft the Royals drafted rookies George Wilson , Bill Chmielewski , Steve Courtin (later traded to 76ers), and Happy Hairston . The team's star players throughout the 1960s were Oscar Robertson and Jerry Lucas. Robertson met with individual success, averaging a triple-double in 1961–62 and winning the Most Valuable Player award in 1964 . Robertson
2184-588: The Sacramento Kings Summer League team. He returned to the team, now the Stockton Kings , for a second season. He averaged 11.8 points, 4.8 rebounds, 3.3 assists, and 1.1 steals in 50 games (42 starts) during the regular season. Demps was signed by the Sacramento Kings to a 10-day contract on March 22, 2019. The Kings assigned him back to Stockton the next day. He was recalled back to
2268-465: The Sacramento State Hornets , starting his final three years. He averaged 12 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 4.7 assists per game in his senior season. He finished his collegiate basketball career tied for fourth in school history in starts (86), fifth in games (114) played, and seventh in assists (286). After finishing two classes short of graduating after his senior year, Demps turned down an offer to play basketball professionally overseas and walked-on to
2352-463: The Toronto Raptors for shooting guard Doug Christie , a move made to improve the subpar defense. They also drafted Turkish power forward Hedo Türkoğlu , further improving their bench rotation. Stojaković moved into the starting small forward role, where he and Webber proved to complement each other extremely well, and as the Kings continued to improve, their popularity steadily rose, culminating in
2436-407: The surname Demps . If an internal link intending to refer to a specific person led you to this page, you may wish to change that link by adding the person's given name (s) to the link. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Demps&oldid=1175480900 " Category : Surnames Hidden categories: Articles with short description Short description
2520-625: The 1990 NBA Slam Dunk Contest ), Rodney McCray , Harold Pressley (selected by the Kings in the first round, 17th overall pick in the 1986 NBA draft ), Vinny Del Negro , Greg Kite , and Ralph Sampson played for the Kings. In 1990, Ainge was traded to the Portland Trail Blazers , Kenny Smith was traded to the Atlanta Hawks , and Rodney McCray was traded to the Dallas Mavericks . Lionel Simmons —nicknamed L-Train—was drafted by
2604-564: The 1–2 punch of Maurice Stokes and Twyman to produce a budding contender in the team's first season in the Queen City. But injuries and the loss of star guard Si Green , the #1 overall pick of the 1956 NBA draft, to military service dropped the team into a tie for second place in the NBA Western Division during the 1957–58 season's second half. In the season's finale, All-Pro star Maurice Stokes struck his head when he fell after pursuing
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2688-471: The Harrison brothers moved the Royals to Cincinnati , a city that was then trying to obtain an NBA expansion franchise. This move followed a well-received regular-season game played at Cincinnati Gardens on February 1, 1957. The change of venue had been said to have been partly suggested by Jack Twyman and Dave Piontek, who were two of several roster players on the new Royals from that area. Cincinnati, which had
2772-503: The Kings but was let go on Christmas Eve of 1990. Also notable that Bill Wennington was acquired from the Dallas Mavericks and played for the Kings for the 1990–91 season and after a successful career with the Chicago Bulls returned to the Kings for his final season in 1999–2000 . The early 1990s were difficult for the Kings. Sacramento was known for having strong fan support, and while they won over 60 percent of their home games,
2856-430: The Kings could have gone on to win a title, and debate would continue for many years after the events of the series. Later, due to allegations raised by former NBA referee Tim Donaghy , the NBA set up a review of the league's officiating. Lawrence Pedowitz, who led the review, concluded that while game 6 featured poor officiating, there was no concrete evidence that the game had been fixed. The Kings went 59–23 and won
2940-625: The Kings from the Boston Celtics for Joe Kleine and Ed Pinckney. In June of the 1989 off-season, Lohaus was then acquired by the Minnesota Timberwolves in the 1989 NBA Expansion Draft . In August of the 1989 off-season, Berry was found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound at his home in Fair Oaks, California, at age 24 following an argument with his wife. Following the loss of Ricky Berry , 1989–90 season featured Pervis Ellison , who
3024-579: The Kings in the 1990 NBA draft in the first round, 7th pick overall. In his first season, he made the NBA All-Rookie First Team . He would go on to play his entire career (1990–1997) with the Kings and had 5,833 career points. Antoine Carr (acquired from the Atlanta Hawks ) played for the Kings in the 1990–91 NBA season and then was traded to the San Antonio Spurs . Free-agent Leon Wood , who would later become an NBA official, played for
3108-544: The Kings lost in a seven-game series. Webber's knee required major surgery. He returned mid-season in 2003–04 a season in which the Kings were seeking another chance to avenge their playoff loss to the Lakers, but without his quickness and athleticism, which had been the focal point of his style of play, it was not the same. Despite that, the Kings still managed to defeat the Mavericks in the first round and after winning game 1 against
3192-461: The Kings to Sacramento was officially approved by NBA team owners on April 16, 1985, with the only contingency being the construction of an arena seating more than 16,000 . The Kings moved to their current home of Sacramento, California in the 1985–86 NBA season , with their first Sacramento season ending in the first round of the Western Conference 1986 NBA playoffs . The starting lineup
3276-403: The Kings, McCray made 1988 NBA All-Defensive First Team . It was the first season the Kings would play without Reggie Theus and LaSalle Thompson (both part in the original team from Kansas City) or Joe Kleine (selected by the Kings as first round, sixth pick overall in the 1985 NBA draft ). Thompson was drafted by the Kings in the first round, fifth overall pick in the 1982 NBA draft . It
3360-456: The NBA during the All-Star Game since 2006. The Kings had some decent players throughout. Tom Van Arsdale , the shooting forward, "Jumpin" Johnny Green, and Matt Guokas helped Archibald in the first year in Kansas City. Toby Kimball was a fan favorite. Jimmy Walker teamed with Archibald as the Kings made the playoffs the second year. Sam Lacey, an effective passing center, became one of
3444-544: The NBL and BAA/NBA from 1945 to 1954. The Royals won the NBA title in 1951 by defeating the New York Knicks 4–3. It is the only NBA championship in the franchise's history. The title, however, did not translate into profit for the Royals. The roster turned over in 1955, except for star guard Bobby Wanzer , who soon became the team's new coach. The team moved to the larger Rochester War Memorial in 1955. The NBA even agreed to host their All-Star Game there in 1956 . But
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3528-784: The Royals were now a losing team filled with rookies, and did not turn a profit. Meanwhile, the NBA was putting pressure on Harrison to sell or relocate his team to a larger city. With this in mind, the 1956–57 season was the Royals' last in Rochester. The Royals' stay in Rochester featured the services of nine future members of the Basketball Hall of Fame: Al Cervi, Bob Davies, Alex Hannum , Lester Harrison, Red Holzman, Arnie Risen , Maurice Stokes , Jack Twyman , Bobby Wanzer, while others proved prominent in other fields, such as Pro Football Hall of Fame member Otto Graham , Hollywood Walk of Famer Chuck Connors , and Jack McMahon . In April 1957,
3612-562: The Royals, who won the American League West division championship four times in five seasons between 1976 and 1980, and reached the 1980 World Series . The Kings made the playoffs in 1979–80 and again in 1980–81 , despite finishing the 1980–81 regular season at 40–42 (.488). The Kings made a run in the 1981 NBA playoffs , reaching the Western Conference finals; these were the franchise's first playoff victories since 1964, and their only ones ever in Kansas City. Ernie Grunfeld played
3696-574: The West Division for three years, denying the team likely visits to the NBA Finals. During the 1966–67 season , the Royals began playing some of their home games in neutral sites such as Cleveland (until the Cavaliers began play in 1970), Dayton and Columbus . This did wound their local fan base in Cincinnati, though, and fortunes for the team continued to steadily decline. That year, they would host
3780-469: The Western Conference Finals, regarded as one of the greatest playoff matchups in history. In a controversial series, the Kings lost in seven games, one game away from what would have been the first NBA Finals and a chance at the first professional sports championship in Sacramento history. This was a crushing blow to the Kings; after losing to their archrivals in a highly controversial series,
3864-605: The active roster after Stockton was eliminated in the G League playoffs but did not play in an NBA game before his 10 day contract expired. Following the end of the season, Demps was invited to participate in the 2019 G-League Elite Camp along with other top G League players and college prospects. Demps was named to the Indiana Pacers roster for the 2019 NBA Summer League . Following the end of Summer League, Demps participated in The Basketball Tournament for Loyalty
3948-507: The beleaguered team, Twyman was the second NBA player to ever average 30 points per game for an NBA season. Twyman and Stokes were later named Hall of Famers. In 1960, the team was able to land local superstar Oscar Robertson . Robertson led a team that included Twyman, Wayne Embry , Bob Boozer , Bucky Bockhorn , Tom Hawkins and Adrian Smith over the next three seasons. The Royals reversed their fortunes with Robertson and rose to title contender. An ownership dispute in early 1963 scuttled
4032-596: The best record in the NBA at 61–21 (a winning percentage of .744). The franchise began with the Rochester Seagrams (a semi-professional team) from Rochester, New York , that formed in 1923 and hosted a number of teams there over the next 20 years. They joined the National Basketball League in 1945 as the renamed Rochester Royals , winning that league's championship in their first season, 1945–46 . In 1948 they jumped with three other NBL teams to
4116-465: The career-altering car crash suffered by promising point guard Bobby Hurley in 1993, and the suicide of Ricky Berry during the 1989 off-season; some was attributed to poor management such as the long tenure of head coach Garry St. Jean and the selection of "Never Nervous" Pervis Ellison with the first overall pick in the 1989 NBA draft . Former Kings television broadcaster Jerry Reynolds (1987, 1988–90) and NBA legend Bill Russell ( 1987–88 ) were
4200-512: The division during the following season , seeking to avenge their playoff loss to the Lakers. After defeating the Stockton- and Malone-led Jazz in the first round and winning game 1 against the Dirk Nowitzki -led Dallas Mavericks in the second round, the Kings appeared to be on the brink of another Western Conference Finals berth. However, Chris Webber sustained a major knee injury in game 2, and
4284-500: The earliest head coaches. Ricky Berry was selected by the Kings in the first round, 18th pick overall in the 1988 NBA draft . He had a dazzling rookie year in the 1988–89 season shooting 40.6 percent from the three-point range. The Kings also drafted Vinny Del Negro (selected by the Kings in the second round, 29th overall pick in the 1988 NBA draft ) and acquired Rodney McCray from the Houston Rockets . In his first year with
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#17328524391214368-516: The fan base, resulting in a home attendance decline and eventually the franchise's move to Kansas City which was announced on March 14, 1972. The NBA Board of Governors voted 16–1 to permit the transfer nine days later on March 23. Before a crowd of 4,022, the Royals defeated the Baltimore Bullets 132–114 in its final home game at Cincinnati Gardens the following night on March 24. The team represented Cincinnati for one last time in
4452-523: The first several seasons of the team's run in Sacramento, even when the shade of blue on the road uniforms was changed from royal blue to powder blue, and the script '"Kansas City"' which adorned the road jerseys was scrubbed after the move in favor of a repeat of the "Kings" script on the home shirts. The Kings' back jersey template was later adopted by the WNBA and the NBA Development League , as well as
4536-462: The game. It gave me pause. How can you explain it? How can you explain a game where Scot Pollard fouls out when he's two feet from Shaquille O'Neal , or that Doug Christie is called for a ridiculous touch foul just as Chris Webber spikes Bryant's drive to the hoop, or that Mike Bibby is called for a foul deep in the fourth quarter after Bryant pops him in the nose with an elbow? The 2002 Western Conference finals left many fans wondering whether
4620-455: The game. Most notably, the New York Post ran a front cover with a headline entitled "Foul Play"; it also published a related article suggesting that the game was rigged. NBA analyst David Aldridge (then working for ESPN ) spoke on the game: There is nothing I can say that will explain 27 free throws for the Lakers in the fourth quarter – an amount staggering in its volume and impact on
4704-723: The history of sports to fail with the same franchise in four cities: Cincinnati, Kansas City, Omaha and Sacramento. He was not fired for good until he rehired coach Phil Johnson, whom he had fired in mid-season in Kansas City ten years before. The Kings also entered this period competing with the Kansas City Comets of the Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL) for the winter sports dollar, when the Comets were led by marketers—the Leiweke brothers. Their final season in 1984–85 resulted in
4788-454: The keys to finally achieving playoff success after so many seasons of mediocrity. The Kings drafted Jason Williams in the 1998 NBA draft , signed Vlade Divac , and traded for Chris Webber prior to the lockout-shortened season of 1998–99 . These acquisitions coincided with the arrival of Peja Stojaković from PAOK BC (Greece), who had been drafted in 1996 . Each of these moves was attributed to general manager Geoff Petrie , who has won
4872-401: The man who had previously traded Oscar Robertson, Norm Van Lier, Nate Archibald and Jerry Lucas, and used the third pick in the ABA dispersal draft on Ron Boone . Axelson stayed on after the Kings left Kansas City where, in their last game ever, fans wore Joe Axelson masks. Axelson later said he hoped his plane would never touch down in Kansas City. Axelson became the first general manager in
4956-424: The most dependable players in the league. Archibald became the first player to lead the league in scoring and assists in the first season in Kansas City. However, the management traded Archibald, and wasted high draft picks. Bob Cousy gave way to Phil Johnson , who was fired midyear in 1977 and replaced by Larry Staverman , a player on the team on two separate occasions when it was in Cincinnati (Staverman coached for
5040-416: The point in this run in place of an injured Ford, as KC used a slow half-court game to win the first two rounds. Power forward Reggie King had a remarkable series, dominating the opposition. After upsetting the Phoenix Suns by winning game 7 at Phoenix in the Conference Semifinals and becoming the second NBA road team to do so after leading a series 3–1, they bowed out to the Houston Rockets (also 40–42 in
5124-452: The regular season) in five games in the Conference Finals. Lacey, the last remaining Cincinnati Royal to play for the Kings, could not keep up with Rockets superstar center Moses Malone . (The Kings did not win another playoff series for two decades.) However, a series of bad luck incidents prevented the team from building on its success. Cleveland Cavaliers owner Ted Stepien lured Wedman and Birdsong away with big contract offers. In 1979,
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#17328524391215208-418: The roof literally fell in at Kemper Arena because of a severe storm, forcing the team to play most of the 1979–80 season at the much smaller Municipal Auditorium. The ownership group sold the team to Sacramento interests for $ 11 million. The general manager was fired in a scandal in which he was found to be reusing marked postage stamps. When the Kings rehired Joe Axelson as general manager, they brought back
5292-419: The same Western Division as the Minneapolis Lakers. Of the two best teams in professional basketball, only one of them could play in the league finals from 1949 to 1954. Minneapolis, with George Mikan , was almost always better during playoffs than the Royals. With their smallish arena and now-limited schedule, the Royals became less profitable even as the team finished no lower than second in its division in both
5376-405: The spectacular pairing of Williams and Webber. In 1998–99, they went 27–23, their first winning season in nearly twenty years and their first since moving to Sacramento. The new arrivals Webber, Williams, and Divac all played key roles in this resurgence; Divac ranked near the top of the team in most statistics, Webber led the league in rebounds and was named to the All-NBA Second Team , and Williams
5460-402: The team became much more effective and disciplined with Bibby at the helm. They finished with a league-best record of 61–21, winning 36 of 41 at home. After easily winning their first two playoff matchups against the Stockton and Malone-led Jazz and the Dirk Nowitzki -led Dallas Mavericks , respectively, the Kings went on to play the archrival and two-time defending champion Los Angeles Lakers in
5544-521: The team in the wake of Stokes' tragic injury. The Harrisons, wanting out at this point, sold to a makeshift local group, headed by Thomas Woods, Cincinnati Gardens management, and a number of local businessmen. Jack Twyman came to the aid of his teammate, and even legally adopted Stokes. Raising funds for Stokes' medical treatment, Twyman helped him until his death in April 1970. The 1973 feature film Maurie , which co-starred actors Bernie Casey and Bo Svenson , dramatized their story. Shooting often for
5628-441: The team played over 300 total games, hosting most of them. The Royals defected to the NBL's rival, the Basketball Association of America (BAA), in 1948 along with the Fort Wayne Pistons , Minneapolis Lakers , and Indianapolis (Kautskys) Jets . A year later, the BAA and the NBL merged to become the National Basketball Association (NBA). The move to the BAA took away Rochester's profitable exhibition schedule and placed it in
5712-422: The team struggled on the road, going 1–40 on the road in a single season. But prayers were answered when they acquired Mitch Richmond , who previously played for the Golden State Warriors . The former NBA Rookie of the Year was selected as an All-Star six times while making the All-NBA Second Team three times. Garry St. Jean was chosen as new coach in 1992 and coached the team all the way through 1997, where he
5796-406: The team would begin to decline and age in the years that followed. Many commentators and journalists would question the decisions made by the referees during game 6, specifically that the Lakers were awarded a staggering 27 free throws in the fourth quarter, many of which came from what were in retrospect proved to be no-calls. Following game 6 even print newspapers began to question the legitimacy of
5880-505: The team's captain, coach, manager, and chief scout over the next two decades. Among visitors to Rochester to play the team were the Original Celtics , the New York Rens , and the Harlem Globetrotters . With news that World War II was approaching its end, the National Basketball League (NBL) announced that it was expanding, and Harrison was approached for interest in a franchise. While the sponsored semi-professional team balked at additional expenses involved, Harrison and his brother Jack,
5964-439: The team's playoff chances when new owner Louis Jacobs booked a circus for Cincinnati Gardens for the week of the playoff series versus the champion Boston Celtics . The Royals' home games were at Xavier University 's Schmidt Field House . In late 1963, another local superstar, Jerry Lucas , joined the team. The Royals rose to the second-best record in the NBA. From 1963 to 1966, the Royals contended strongly against Boston and
6048-429: Was Reggie Theus , LaSalle Thompson , Mark Olberding , Terry Tyler , and Mike Woodson , with Larry Drew , Eddie Johnson , Otis Thorpe , and Joe Kleine coming off the bench. However, despite fan loyalty the Kings saw little success in subsequent seasons, and the team did not make the playoffs again until the 1996 NBA playoffs in the 1995–96 NBA season . Some of their failure was attributable to misfortunes such as
6132-486: Was 2nd in the NBA in rebounds and 3rd in assists, a double-feat only Wilt Chamberlain has matched for a full season. The impact of losing Stokes was such that the team nearly folded. Six of the team's shaken players simply retired on the spot. Fellow All-Star Twyman rose to All-Pro level over the next two seasons for Cincinnati, even as the team posted two 19-win seasons. The 1958–59 Cincinnati team featured five rookies, with Lovellette, King and other key players having left
6216-457: Was a league-leading scorer and passer each season. Lucas was Rookie Of the Year in 1964, led the league in shooting, and later averaged 20 rebounds per game over four seasons. Both were All-NBA First Team selections multiple times. The team failed to keep some promising players, though, and played in the tough NBA East division, dominated by the Boston Celtics, even as a Baltimore team played in
6300-545: Was a playoff appearance in 1996. The series was lost 3–1 to the Seattle SuperSonics who, led by Gary Payton and Shawn Kemp , finished as that year's conference champions. They did not make a playoff appearance again while Richmond was still on the Kings. He was soon traded along with Otis Thorpe to the Washington Wizards for Chris Webber in May 1998. Although Richmond was lost, this trade proved to be one of
6384-588: Was a two-sport star for the Eagles, as a forward in basketball and in football as Pleasant Grove's starting quarterback. As a senior, Demps completed 67% of his passes for 1,794 yards and 22 touchdowns, and was named the Delta River League's co-Offensive Player of the Year. In basketball, Demps averaged 15.6 points per game, and was named first team All-Metro by the Sacramento Bee . Demps played four seasons for
6468-462: Was able to scoop up several name stars for his new team, among them Bob Davies , Red Holzman and William "Fuzzy" Levane, as well as NBL free agents like George Glamack and Al Cervi . The result was a strong league champion in their first season of existence as the Royals during the 1945–46 season. The team had two more seasons of success during their NBL years, which permitted the team to play non-league opponents. During all three years, 1945–1948,
6552-462: Was also the last year that Michael Jackson (selected by the New York Knicks in the second round, 47th pick overall in the 1986 NBA draft but who played his entire career with the Kings) and Ed Pinckney (selected 10th overall by the Phoenix Suns in the 1985 NBA draft and played for the Kings from 1987 to 1989) played for the Kings. On February 23, 1989, Brad Lohaus and Danny Ainge were traded to
6636-510: Was first overall pick in the 1989 NBA draft by the Kings, and acquisition Wayman Tisdale (from the Indiana Pacers , second pick overall in the 1985 NBA draft ). An injury kept Ellison on the sidelines for 48 of 82 games of his rookie year, after which he was traded to the Washington Bullets . Tisdale would go on to play for the Kings for five years. It was the last season that Danny Ainge , Kenny Smith (who had an impressive showing in
6720-519: Was named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team . In the playoffs, they were matched up against the defending Western Conference Champions, the Utah Jazz . After winning game 1 by 20 points, the Jazz surrendered two consecutive playoff games to the Kings. They would turn the series around, however, and win the last two to keep the Kings from advancing in the playoffs. In 1999–2000 , the Kings' only notable transaction
6804-470: Was replaced by Eddie Jordan. During the 1990s, Sacramento had other stars like Spud Webb , Kurt Rambis , Wayman Tisdale , Walt Williams , Olden Polynice and Brian Grant , but they only lasted with the team for a few years. After the 1992–93 season , Rambis was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers . After the 1993–94 season , Tisdale was traded to the Phoenix Suns . After the 1994–95 season , Webb
6888-457: Was traded to the Atlanta Hawks for Tyrone Corbin . Midway through the 1995–96 season , Williams was traded to the Miami Heat for Billy Owens (who was drafted by the Kings in 1991, and traded to Golden State for Richmond). After the 1996–97 season , Grant became a free agent and signed with the Portland Trail Blazers . One accomplishment the team achieved under St. Jean during their tenures
6972-638: Was traded, along with Nick Anderson, to the Vancouver Grizzlies for Mike Bibby and Brent Price . Despite Williams's often spectacular play, the Kings had grown tired of his recklessness and turnovers; Bibby would provide much more stability and control at the point guard position. This move was complemented by the re-signing of Webber to a maximum-salary contract, securing their superstar long term. With Bibby taking over for Williams, they had their best season to date in 2001–02 . Though not as exciting or flashy as they had been in previous years with Williams,
7056-515: Was trading shooting guard Tariq Abdul-Wahad to the Orlando Magic in exchange for veteran shooting guard Nick Anderson . They finished eighth in the Western Conference with a 44–38 record and were matched up with the Los Angeles Lakers in the first round of the playoffs. Once again, however, the Kings failed to advance, losing the series 2–3 against the Lakers. The following season , the Kings traded starting small forward Corliss Williamson to
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