Let me be point out something that would seem out of character for me—I hated watching the Kings beat the Lakers on Tuesday night. 

Don’t get me wrong. 

I loved seeing John Salmons control the game at both ends of the floor. 

I also loved Francisco Garcia playing on nothing but adrenaline in the first half. 

I was pleasantly surprised that they could hang with the Lakers without Kevin Martin, let alone beat them handily. 

What pissed me off was the fact that Gavin Maloof was screaming and jumping around as if this was a do-over for the 2002 WCF.  After every three, defensive stop, or big dunk, they would cut to Gavin Magoof out of his seat screaming and pumping his fists. 

If Gavin is reading this, the Kings never had a rivalry with the Lakers, so I’m wondering how something that never existed still is around in your mind. 

Don’t get me wrong—no team gave the Lakers more trouble during the Shaq/Kobe era, but they still never beat the Lakers.  It was as much of a rivalry as Bugs Bunny versus Elmer Fudd.  One party constantly getting the better of the other does not a rivalry make.

That frustrated me immensely, and getting wins against top-flight teams (Lakers & Hornets for example) should only serve to frustrate Kings’ fans even more.  Where is this effort in winnable games against Memphis or in blowouts against Denver or Utah? 

The other issue is that every win means the Kings are that much further away from landing Ricky Rubio.  No offense to some of the players currently on the roster, but Rubio may make being a Kings’ fan worth it again. 

He would bring back the days of Jason Williams but in a package that is younger and more in control offensively and defensively.  I’m not exaggerating when I say that within five years he will be one of the top three point guards in the league. 

Again, no offense to Beno Udrih, but the Kings aren’t blowing anyone’s doors off with him.  Let’s see some more last-second losses to get the Kings in a position for long-term success.

Who do the Grizzlies think they are, getting in the way of history?  They need to realize that the likelihood of a team with single-digits in the win column may never happen in my lifetime with how watered-down expansion has made the league. 

A game like last night only gives the Thunder hope that they can pull off 10 wins this season, and the first step to success is hope.  They may have even walked into a win. 

The next time these teams play, I want the Grizzlies to steam-roll them into oblivion.  That’ll break their spirits. 

I must say that no one thought that this historic match-up would be the best game of the night, but you learn to always throw the records out when Memphis and OKC face off.  Of course this was probably the Thunder’s best chance at getting a win this month, and they wasted it.  Maybe there still is hope for history this season.

I still disagree with Talkhoops Creator Zach Harper that Marc Iavaroni is on his way out in Memphis.  I just don’t see how the cheapest ownership in basketball would pay someone not to coach the team.  They certainly wouldn’t pay two different people to coach the club. 

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