Who we all posted at the same time.

Well, I guess TZ has a new colleague. I just really hate the fact that the Bee brass cannot keep talent around.

I see Peaches has ran off another good guy.

We’ll miss you a lot over at the Bee Sam.

(sniff)

You were the only reason I even read the bee anymore.

Sports reporting for the Sacramento Kings just took a major hit. We are all worse off for this.

reason to read the Bee anymore.

P.S. I loved the Ailene comment about Ricky Rubio.

I’m sure going to miss the focused coverage that only an excellent local reporter can provide.

Less suspensions!

The Lakers are taking over our newspaper too.

I’m disappointed Sam. In all seriousness Sam congratulations & godspeed. I hope you pop in from time to time here & maybe on the rise guys

Great beat writer. Whomever replaces him has some huge shoes to fill. And I now officially have no reason to read the Bee now. Apparently retaining talent is overrated.

I have no other reason to read The Bee now …. good luck Sam. Great job.

You were the lone voice of reason in the Bee’s Kings section. And let me add that no one could love Rubio as much as AV appears to without straining a muscle.

I’m pretty sad about these events. But Kudos to Sam for getting a better gig!

Gonna miss his honest approach and I think that’s why this all got started.

I don’t know why, but Sacramento and its teams have had an inferiority complex for years.

We can see this plainly going on within all this Sam/Peaches/The Bee nonsense. Even the Kings are pushing this ROY thing, because its seen as a way to impress the league, and earn some respect. See: Peaches.

Not shocked this happened, too bad it wasn’t Ricky Rubio’s columnist lover that’s leaving.

I need to go to strip club for a pick me up. Anyone coming with?

I am really going to miss his articles, which are the first thing I read every morning. He had a lot to do with turning me into a huge Kings fan. He was that daily connection to the team. I know that I will probably follow his writing at Fanhouse.

He has a great story, selling subscriptions to the Bee, learning to cover sports, and then becoming a beat writer. He worked very hard to prove himself to get that position. He earned the respect of a lot of readers. I am going to miss him. I will still keep my subscription to the Bee, but it won’t be the same. I wish the best of success in his new endeavor. May it be the stepping stone to even greater heights in his young career.

[gasping and sobbing…]

Its kind of what it would be like if Chuck Norris and Jack Bauer teamed up

Wow.

Sam did excellent work as a member of the Bee and I’m sad to see him go. I hope his new gig is better than the old gig.

Mighty fine writer, though.

And took the first gig he could find before getting the ax. The writing was on the wall after that dustup with Bradley over the story about Martin’s agent.

It could be worse as Fanhouse is in the top 2000 of all websites in terms of traffic. Good luck, Mr. Amick.

Hate to see him go, but good on him to get off that sinking ship.

Silver lining – I can remove the bookmark to the Sac Bee Kings blog – that’s one less website I have to check each day!

Either on his terms or someone elses. The Bee is a waste of space now, blah

This has been in the works for 4 or 5 months but this was the right time.
-Fanhouse does not have the constraints of a local newspaper bigger forum, less micromanagement.
-Sam will not be moving, he will be covering the Kings and W’s from here as well as the NBA as a whole.
-Jason Jones is now the Kings beat writer going forward.
-Sam’s last game is tonight as the Bee’s beat writer and he will be joining fanhouse April 1st for what he hopes will be 3+ articles a week, starting with playoff coverage.

Sam seemed pretty excited with the move. Reading between the lines, I could tell that the editors voice in his ear will not be missed. Kozimor actually asked some pretty interesting “who are you going to throw under the bus on your way out” questions and Amick kept his cool. He did add some insight into the Hawes situation and where he currently stands with the Kings brass (back in good graces?). He also said that his front office sources don’t believe that the current front line is a playoff front line so expect changes. Both Koz and Sam spoke about Jason Ross, his family situation and how good of a guy he is.

Overall, this could be a very good thing for Kings fans, Amick fans and fans of the truth. Amick will still be covering our Kings but without having an editor comb through his work for substantive changes and he can write without the fear of retribution from the Kings brass or Grant. Koz also alluded to the possibility of more air time on his show now that he is no longer a Bee writer and adding the entire NBA to his resume will also come in handy while the Kings remain a non-playoff team. In parting, Sam thanked everybody and when asked his opinion, he stated that the team is still probably 2 or 3 player and 2 or 3 years away from a playoff team.

I really liked having Amick around. He was kind of our inside guy to the team. Maybe we can get him to take part in more discussions now that he isn’t property of the man. When I got the news that he was leaving, I was out getting coffee with a good friend and we had a pretty good discussion on the evolution of news, just in our lifetime. Being a 1993 high school grad, I spent more time reading the newpaper than a lot of the younger guys here. There was no internet to run to for instant news- either you stayed up late to watch sports center or waited until the paper hit your drive way. Fantasy football, in these years was a way cool- everything done straight off a box score with a note pad and a pencil. Internet dating in it’s original form? Scary shit- none of that background checks and photo array stuff we see now. Just a bunch of anonymous chats and stranger hook-ups.

With information coming at us so fast, the newspaper business just has no chance. Even Amick’s blog is a paper killer because if you stay up late enough, you can read what is going to run the next morning and after the paper goes to press, the blog can be updated to reflect the most recent developments. It’s really a no win.

I for one am excited to see Sam land in such a good place. We will still get his insider information but without the forced upon agenda bullshit that has tainted his work the last few months. I don’t think that a writer needs to be in Chicago with the team to get a good read on what is happening with a team. I think his previous knowledge of player personalities and relationships will carry over and the new format will allow Sam to write from a more positive and open place.

Not a big admirer of Fanhouse either. Tastes like fast food sports journalism to me, the USA Today of on-line sports.

I am thinking of Captain Spaulding: Hello, I must be going. but in reverse. Sorry to see you go, can’t wait for you to arrive.

Sam, your work at the Bee has been thoughtful and informative. You have been able to make me feel connected to the team that I follow in a way that only a fan of the game can appreciate. You understand the vital difference between reporting the story and making the story. Thanks for all of your time, effort and diligence. You have done yourself and your newspaper proud.
It is an exciting time for you and as a fan of your work I look forward to seeing you in a new and expanded light. I hope FanHouse is all you want it to be.

… I’m stoked. Landing Amick is like hooking a shark at the neighborhood creek.

But obviously, the Bee losing its long-time beat writer will make Bee Kings coverage suffer, no matter how well Jason Jones adapts. We’re down to Jason and Ailene, two writers covering a major league team in print. Pretty shocking.

But Sam will still be writing Kings at FH, and Jason is really good, so it’s not all bad.

“Now that Sam is gone, I have a job for the Sacramento Bee. Just set it right below my perch. And would it kill you to get me an effing cracker?”

I look forward to reading you at Fanhouse, Sam. Thank you for the years of top flight reporting and writing. I admire, enjoy and envy your ability. Good luck!

It was great to have you cover our team and we will certainly miss you but I’m sure we’ll continue to follow you at Fanhouse. Hope you know that your hard hard never went unnoticed by hardcore Kings fans.

Hope you still stop by from time to time. Thanks again!