Kings v. Heat 12.27.13

I was feeling like having something different tonight, so before the game we went to Five Guys for dinner. The plaza close to Sleeptrain has a ton of places to eat, but we opted for quick because we wanted to get to the game early to see if any Heat players (namely LeBron) would be warming up before the game.

So we get to the game and there are people 20 rows back waiting to see if LeBron will come out and do some pre-game shooting. This is the most people I have ever seen come out to watch this early. I guess this LeBron character is supposed to be pretty good, eh?

Though we didn't see LeBron, we did get a glimpse of the mayor shaking hands and kissing babies (well, not the latter) on the sidelines. I've been impressed by how many games Mayor Kevin Johnson has been to this season. I love the support he has for the team!

Well, there he is... LeBron James! This is the first time I've seen LeBron live and in person. He seemed very happy and chipper during the official pre-game shoot around time. I bet he was thinking this was going to be an easy win for his team. Ray Allen and Dwayne Wade didn't play. No respect! When the Heat players were announced they didn't come onto the court... then in the 1st half the Heat took a 17 point lead! Guess they were gonna show us!!!

The Kings handed out these rally towels to all the fans in attendance. It's not my favorite thing they have given out this season. The towel itself is pretty cheap, and while I do like the cheeky rhyming 'Beat the Heat' saying, it's not like the Heat are a huge rival of ours. We only play two games against them! I guess they deserve to have a rally towel against them because they are the reigning NBA champs.

The Kings are really pushing to get fans to vote for DeMarcus Cousins to go to the All-Star game. I think he deserves a spot on that roster - his numbers definitely are good enough, but I just don't think he is very much liked outside of Sacramento. Can Kings fans pull off a crazy coup and get him into the game via the vote? I'm thinking not likely. But I voted for him!

Though the Kings were down by 17 at one point, they didn't give up. In fact, the Kings slowly chipped away at the deficit until they got a lead! Quincy Acy racked up a good amount of fouls tonight, but he definitely brought some energy to the game. I really appreciated his effort. After a horrible first quarter, a lot of players stepped it up big time to make this game competitive.

The half-time show was actually very exciting this time out. This older gentlemen stacked chair after chair up on top of each other until he reached this height. Then he did some balancing stunts. It was amazing to see. Well done, sir!

As the game got into the later stages, the Kings went back and forth against the Heat. The fans in the building were going bonkers. Towels were waving and fans were screaming very loudly. The excitement in the building was electric! It was an awesome feeling... so glad to be apart of it!

WOW, what a game by us!!! Leading by 98 points with less than two minutes to go! Haha... of course this is bogus, I guess there was a slight malfunction in the scoreboard for a few seconds. It's not something you see at every game.

And neither is this! The final score was Kings 108, Heat 103!!! The Kings beat the Heat in overtime in a hugely improbable victory. They had to overcome a 17-point deficit to do it too! This result was amazing, and I think everyone in the building was shocked at the outcome!

Because the Kings won, all fans got to go away with two free tacos! Thanks Kings for these delicious tacos from Jack in the Box!!! And thanks for a great night of exciting basketball! I can't wait until next game.

Holiday Photo Op at Sleeptrain 12.17.13

Tonight Cap City Kingdom (Season ticket holders) got an invitation to come to the arena for an on the court photo op. It's been a while since the last season ticket event, so I jumped at the chance to get in on it. I arrived to find complimentary hot cocoa! It was cold outside so the cocoa was a welcome sight. The Kings provided marshmallows and whipped cream to go along with the cocoa. I cannot tell a lie - I used A LOT OF WHIPPED CREAM.

After getting my cocoa I went into the near empty arena. It was quite a site to see all the seats empty. It's just a huge open space, and the openness is magnified more when nobody is there. I walked down the stairs and was greeted by my new ticket rep Derrick. It was cool to meet him and put a face to a name. I guess recently many ticket accounts had been switched around to make the load more even.

This camera man was the same one they used at the Winter Wonderland. I didn't recognize him, but he recognized me! Season ticket holders got to choose who they wanted to take a photo with. I just made it easy by asking everyone to take a photo with me - the SKD, Slamson, and the Kings Elf who has been running around the arena this past month.

After my photo I went to exit the floor. I was greeted by a completely deserted hallway. Hah, it was a little creepy. I made my way to the Kings store where they were giving Cap City Kingdom members 20% off. I almost bought another scarf, this time a retro one, but I held out. I'm probably going to end up getting it down the line.

Here's the photo I got from the photo shoot. Again, the photo was printed right then and there for easy pick-up. This will make a great keepsake! If I were one to send out Christmas cards, I actually might have used this. Thanks Kings for these nice little events for us to enjoy!

Kings v. Rockets 12.15.13

It was a great start to afternoon basketball as SKDs very own Isela sang the national anthem for us. I've seen Isela honor our country in this way a few times now. I've got to say this this time around was the best yet. She hit some pretty crazy notes - job well done.

The Houston Rockets came into town to battle the Kings. I thought we'd see Jeremy Lin today, but he was injured and didn't play. That's really too bad as it would have been great to see him. My friends are all Lin fans. Hopefully next time Houston comes around he will be available. Still, the Rockets have some big names like Dwight Howard and James Harden to see.

Rudy Gay, Quincy Acy, and Aaron Gray had their first opportunity to be seen in Sacramento in this game. Gay started while Acy got some time off the bench. Gray didn't make an appearance today. I'm glad we finally got to see Rudy Gay on the court. It seems like this moment has been a long time coming.

Gay did not disappoint the fans in this game. He scored a team high of 26 points and brought a lot of energy to the team. He had been known as a high volume, low percentage shooter, but today he was around 50% shooting - that's good! After one home and one away game, it looks like Gay was a good pick up. Let's hope he pans out as the season continues.

Here's a shot I got of DeMarcus having a little 'chat' with one of the referees. Sometimes it really does seem like the referees have it in for us, but perhaps that is too jaded a view. I've got to say though, this year Cousins has looked a lot calmer and held in his emotions. I have been impressed with his growth in maturity this year.

There were many former Kings playing for the Rockets today. Aaron Brooks is shown here with Isaiah Thomas. Omri Casspi and Francisco Garcia were also in the house. They all got a decent amount of playing time this afternoon. Kings fans showed their appreciation for their stint with the Kings by giving them applause when they first hit the floor. Sacramento being classy!

The halftime show caught a lot of people's attention as it involved dogs running on the court. The dogs were very cute, and very fast. The fans were going nuts over the dogs' abilities. 

Scott Fresh and Slamson come out to encourage fans to make noise before the start of the fourth quarter. They call this a new tradition, but the last game versus the Jazz saw no such pep talk. Maybe we were just way too down on the scoreboard to do this. There was no problem with enthusiasm today as the Kings played very well and beat the Rockets. And a win means FREE TACOS from Jack-in-the Box. 

Today was a special game because of us who got in on season tickets for this year made it out. The way this happened was that the Downtown Plaza Kings store was running a promotion yesterday. Customers who spent $35 or more got a free pair or tickets to this game. I took advantage of the deal and gave the tickets to my fellow season ticket holder friends. We didn't get to sit all four of us together, but it was a great time out still. Be on the lookout for Kings special and promotions around the community! The Kings have been really on top of these things so far under the new management. Go take advantage of the opportunities and deals the Kings give you if you can!

Kings Winter Wonderland Event at Downtown Plaza 12.14.13

Today the Kings put on a Winter Wonderland event at Sacramento's Downtown Plaza. Downtown Plaza is an outdoor mall that occupies the space where the new Kings arena is planning on being built. I have fond memories of going shopping at Downtown Plaza when I was in college. Today the Kings took it over by filling it up with all sort of fun activities to do. There were bounce houses, craft making stations, and much more.

Kings signage was all over the place. I particularly noticed this banner though. If you look closely you'll see a photo me, my wife, and two of my good friends! I got a kick out of seeing that hanging up above all the activities. 

It was a chilly day, but it was gorgeous outside - a great Sacramento winter feeling. The Kings van was parked outside accepting toy and monetary donations. People who donated would get a wristband for a photo-op with one of the new Kings players. The elf near the back of the van has been running all over Sleeptrain Arena during recent home games. It was funny to see him out here today.

Horse-backed police officers were keeping an eye on things outside the mall area. I had almost forgotten that Sacramento does employ horses in their downtown police force. They were cool to see, especially for the kids. Kids would come up and pet the horses.

Snow sighting! Yup, even in Sacramento we have snow. Well, at least the kind that is specially brought in for events. I'm sure a lot of kids in Sacramento have never seen this cold powdery and wet substance. A lot of little ones had fun making snowballs and playing around the snow covered area.

Aaron Gray was one of the three players Sacramento got from Toronto this past week. He came to take photos with the fans. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to get a personal photo with him... but I did end up getting this paparazzi-type shot of him! Aaron walked past me as he was leaving - he is really, really tall.

Quincy Acy was the other player to come for photos. The biggest name of the three players we got, Rudy Gay, was not in attendance. Quincy was really nice about taking photos and saying hi. 

Here's the photo that I got with Quincy. It was pretty cool that the Kings had them printed out quickly and given out for free. What a great keepsake! I'm sure that everyone who had the opportunity to take a photo and go home with a picture was happy. I hope I'll get to meet Quincy in the near future and have him sign this photo of us.

The SKD were also available for photos. I got three photos with them! They were super nice and recognized me for the photos I always take. We got a chance to talk, and they even signed a couple of the photos we took today. Thanks SKD!

Kings v. Jazz 12.11.13

I went to tonight's game versus the Jazz with my friend Richard. I actually put this game up for auction at my church's fund raising event for the Philippines and he won it! I personally think he got a great deal for these tickets... I just wished the game could have been a better one. Things started off well enough though! The Kings were filming their pre-game show right outside our section again tonight. Here's a photo of us with one of the people who put the night together and make it run smoothly.

Hey look! It's Katie from the Kings Community events! The Kings have been doing a lot of giving back activities recently, so she was featured in the pre-game show. The framed document that Scott Fresh is holding is our indoor noise setting record from the Guinness Book of Records. Why would he bring that out this game? Well, it turns out that the New Orleans Saints tried to break the record a few days ago. They couldn't beat us. Oh yea, We still hold the record!

I bring photos to the game in hopes of getting them signed. Since I've been able to get photos with some of the Kings' personalities, I've been really wanting to get them autographed... and hopefully personalized. Since I saw Scott Fresh before the game, I went and got him to sign this photo I took with him at the Dome Printing.

A choral group sang the national anthem tonight. They did a nice job, but I just really wanted to point out the really cool girl in the front row with the blue hair. She really stood out! I'm not sure vocally, but that hair is stunning.

Here are the Jazz being introduced. They look pretty hyped and happy here. Well, I'm sure they got progressively happier as the game went on. Though the Jazz are near the bottom of the conference like the Kings, they seemed like world beaters in this game. Every time they put a shot it seemingly went in. Their field goal percentage was around 60% for much of the game.

As good as the Jazz were, the Kings were the opposite. The shots just weren't going in for the Kings. It started early and continued throughout the game. Some of the shots they took looked good, but they ended up coming back out. 

It got pretty frustrating for the Kings. I was surprised at the total lack of energy in this game from the team. They had two very nice wins, but to have that little streak end like this was disappointing. I wonder if it would have been better if we had our new acquisitions play in this game. Grievous Vasquez did not make it in a timely enough fashion to Toronto so his physical was held up. Because of this, the guys we traded for were not able to play tonight.

The bright spot in the game had to be the SKD. They continued to bring energy and excitement to the crowd. The next home game will be this coming Sunday versus the Rockets. I hope we play a better game that day, and hopefully our new guys will shine!

Kings v. Mavs 12.9.13

Today was a pretty big day for the Kings as they pulled off a huge trade. Gone are Vasquez, Salmons, Hayes, and Patterson - they all went to Toronto. The Kings received Quincy Acy, Aaron Gray, and Rudy Gay. Wow. Huge move by the Kings front office. The new players arrived in Sacramento today, but they didn't dress for the game. This move definitely made waves around the city though, I listened to sports radio today and fans were abuzz talking about the trade.

Now that Vasquez is gone, Isaiah Thomas gets the starting role. He had been amazing coming off the bench to spark the team, but with the numbers that he has had this season, he was definitely worthy of getting the starting job. Too bad for Vasquez though, he seemed to genuinely want to be in Sacramento. And we just got him too! I'm also a bit sad to see Vasquez go because he just started following me on Instagram... the first Kings player to do so.

The Mavs came to town with a decent record. They are a team that definitely has some strong players, with the strongest being Dirk Nowitzki. With the Kings undermanned tonight, it could have been really bad for the home team. Well, it wasn't. The Kings played amazing tonight!

Jimmer came in to play some point guard. He struggled when he got into the game. I can't blame him for that as this was his first time back in a game in a while. I think he just needs to get more minutes to acclimate himself to NBA speed once again. 

DeMarcus Cousins had a very strong game tonight. He scored over 30 and was dominating on offense. There were a few errors, but nothing that cost the team big. One of my favorite moments in the game was at the end during garbage time. DeMarcus was standing and cheering for his fellow teammates. That's the kind of stuff we as Kings fans want to see from the big guy.

Derrick Williams had his biggest game as a King tonight... and perhaps of his entire career. He scored 30 in an impressive showing of athleticism. He was all over the court shooting threes and pulling off highlight reel dunks. I hope this is the kind of stuff we get to see from him in conjunction with Rudy Gay in the very near future.

Ray McCallum made it into the game at the end. I met Ray a little while back when he did a signing in El Dorado Hills. He's a really nice guy. I could tell that Ray must have been a little apprehensive tonight, but he did get his first points of his NBA career. Here's the shot that he took to get those two points. Welcome to the league!

Thunder swords rained from the skies tonight. Free throw distraction tools haven't been used much at Kings games this season. They are a fun part of the game that I would to see at every Kings game. Arnold went with me to the game tonight, and I know he wanted to get one. Our section is just outside the area where they came down. Too bad!

There was a lot of cheering going on at Sleeptrain tonight. The Kings blew out the Mavs in spectacular fashion. With all the recent close losses to good teams, getting a decisive win gives a little hope and happiness to a very patient fan base. Well, I can say I'm patient... not sure about others.

Here are our three new Kings! They watched the game from a suite tonight. Near the end of the game they all came down to the court. People were cheering and chanting for them. I heard that people were saying "Rudy, Rudy!" They should be available to play on Wednesday versus the Jazz. I'm very excited for that game.

Tonight I decided to snack on a pretzel during the game. I've been buying less and less food at the arena as of late... but I was hungry during the game so I went to the concourse looking for the perfect thing to get. As you can see, my pretzel had an uneven distribution of salt. Still good though. See you on Wednesday Sleeptrain!