Finally, there's an investor whom Lehane described as a "whale," but whom he would not identify because he has had only preliminary discussions with the mayor.

"It's like a first date," he said. "You have a nice bottle of wine and drop them back at the house.

The Maloofs are finalizing an agreement to sell the Sacramento Kings to the Hansen-Ballmer led Seattle group, sources tell Yahoo! Sports.

So I hear that the Seattle Kings is officially a done deal! The Maloofs finally sold the ailing Sacramento team. #NBA

"According to the Commercial Appeal, no trade involving Rudy Gay is "imminent."
The Grizzlies have reportedly engaged the Suns in trade talks and have also been linked to the Warriors and Kings. They're trying to dump Gay and his $37 million contract over the next two years in exchange for cap relief. The Commercial Appeal also notes that "there also is a growing belief within the organization that Gay's on-court performance doesn't justify his maximum salary." Expect talks to heat up around the Feb. 21 trade deadline.
Related: Suns, Kings, Warriors
Source: Memphis Commercial Appeal Jan 8 - 5:00 PM E.T."

Not much here but still its exciting thinking juuust maaybe the Maloofs will spend some money for a legit star

"Dirty player? Not at all," Villanueva said. "He saw an open lane, I tried to block the ball and he’s 4-foot-11, a 100 pounds wet so he looks bad. I’m not a dirty player. I didn’t try to hurt him at all."

Via Twitter:
Marc J. Spears ‏@SpearsNBAYahoo
Nets have requested waivers on forward Josh Childress.

Who Cares What You Guys Want

I’m working on a story for PBT along the same lines, but I pledge my allegiance to you guys first and them second but I’ll break the news here (and bury it in the middle of my column). Sources close to the Kings players told me a few days ago that most of Isaiah Thomas’ teammates want him to be starting and playing heavy minutes. According to the source, "they don’t have any idea what Keith Smart is doing" and they wonder if he is even making the call.

This of course, begs the question of whether Geoff Petrie has issued the directive to play Aaron Brooks, and multiple sources have told me that Jimmer is getting additional playing time for marketing reasons. The source tells me that the frustration amongst the players over this playing time issue is palpable, and one of the reasons that DeMarcus Cousins came out wearing an IT jersey after his big game. The situation in Sacramento is coming to a head, as local blogs and media outlets that aren’t the Sac Bee or team-sponsored radio station are going in heavy on the decision to play Brooks and/or Jimmer at the expense of IT.

How this all plays out in the short or long-term is anybody’s guess, but this is Isaiah’s team inside the confines of the locker room as far as the point guard position goes. I added IT as a flier in one deeper big money league that operates like a 14-teamer, and I wrote the blurb that said he was a unique stash for those with an iron clad stomach. For a team that needs a solid on- and off-the-court persona to rally around, and a playmaking presence that can distribute the ball in Smart’s no-concept offense – Thomas could be the guy that brings it all together for the fans, the players, and an abused city.

Thomas isn't outpacing Brooks by any significant stretch. Fredette can't stay in front of a discarded bathrobe. Still, given the Kings' rebuilding circumstances and the fanbase's familiarity with both, even after merely a truncated rookie season, why all the hope in the journeyman Brooks?

Especially when it means you could be losing a chance to develop two solid young NBA guards?

No. 1 is Sacramento, although it would appear that the horse already has left the barn. Seattle is waiting with open arms for the Kings to replace its beloved SuperSonics, and it's difficult to imagine anyone being empowered to stop it from happening. Frankly, outside of Sacramento, there's no motivation to stop it. The most interesting thing that Stern said during his quasi-farewell address last week was this: "Sacramento is a great NBA city, and a great potential NBA city. And I would urge them to continue supporting the team and hope the efforts don't go unrewarded." A great potential NBA city? That would suggest that it's a foregone conclusion that the Kings are gone, and that Stern hopes to move another team there in the future. So Silver will inherit the sad state of franchise musical chairs that has resulted from overexpansion. His biggest challenge will be to make the NBA work as a 30-team business. If it doesn't work, I don't want to hear that the collective bargaining agreement and new revenue sharing plans are to blame. I want someone to be honest and admit the following: There are too many teams, and some of the teams are in markets where they have no business being.

Finally, Cousins on his three attempts from three-point range:

"Coach wanted me to extend my range. So if y'all complaining I don't care because that's what coach wants."