A Miami Heat Fan's View on the NBA (from Kansas City)

The Sacramento Kings may not be the Western Conference powerhouse they were two short years ago, but they've been able to make a handful of great personel moves in the last two years to make their future much brighter.

This spring they dumped Chris Webber's bad knees and huge contract on the 76ers. They also were able to rid themselves of Doug Christie and his crazy wife, Jackie. Last summer, they also cut ties with the soon to retire Vlade Divac. Two years ago, they were able to acquire Brad Miller from the Pacers. Not to mention, they somehow acquired Mike Bibby in 2001 in exchange for Randy Moss's best white friend, Jason "White Choclate" Williams.

After coming out in 2002 like an All-Star, Bobby Jackson has been plagued by one injury after another for the past three years. He was only able to suit up for 25 games this season. Luckily, the team has the option to cut the 32-year-old loose this summer.

Hedo Turkoglu was said by some to be just as good as Peja Stoijakovic. While Stoijakovic isn't the all-around player you'd like him to be, he's clearly much better than having Turkoglu on the floor. The Kings decision to dump him on San Antonio last year in the Brad Miller trade continues to look better and better.

My only gripe with the Kings right now is there decision to sign Greg Ostertag last summer. Giving him a two year deal (or any deal for that matter) just boogles the mind. I know they were hurting for big men, but it's still a signing that makes no sense. They were, in the words of Neil Patrick Harris, "trippin' balls" when they decided to do this one.

Even if they decide against bringing back Jackson and Songalia (both with one-year options for next season), the team is still capped out for all intensive purposes until 2007. Despite that depressing thought, Kings fans have to be happy to see the roster moves paying off, while other teams have taken on their over-the-hill players.

David Stern will one day make a great socialist dictator.

Stern is blaming New Jersey politicians for the Nets' coming move to Brooklyn in either 2007 or 2008.

"New Jersey blew it," Stern said. "We practically begged them, and the New Jersey politicians did not step up."

Stern did concede that the New Jersey politicians did not want state taxpayers saddled with the debt of a new arena.

"That's a fair retort, but you have to make your choice," Stern said.

Hey Stern -- take your greasy business practices and shove them! You've almost managed to completely ruin what was once a great game and a good league. Maybe Shawn Kemp can take this pint size midget to jail with him soon.

Skip Bayless gives Manu props in his latest ESPN.com column.

On 610 AM Sports today, Randy Covitz and Neal Jones took turns kissing the butt of Mayor Kay Barnes. They both admitted to being possibly naive about the Sprint Center Arena issue, and went on to say that it may just take blind faith to trust Barnes and company to do the right thing.

Beautiful sentiments to hear coming from your city's prominent sports journalist/personalities.

Covitz's latest crappy report dealing with the Arena and yet to be determined tenants, names the Sonics, Kings, and Magic, as all being possible NBA franchises on the move. In the article, NBA commissioner David Stern jokingly says that KC maybe lucky to get a WNBA franchise (uuggghhhh).

Of those three teams, the Sonics are the only team with cap flexibility to give KC a winner by 2007 or 2008 when the arena is up and running. I've already detailed why the Magic are an awful franchise to acquire (you can read it here). I doubt the Kings are going to be heading back to a city they left 20 years ago.

Between Mark Blount and Raef LaFrentz's lackluster play and bloated contracts, the Celtics aren't going to be making the jump back into the Eastern Conference Finals anytime soon.

GM Danny Ainge foolishly gave Mark Blount big-time money to re-sign last summer, and traded Antoine Walker away in exchange for LaFrentz in the summer of '03. Although LaFrentz had the game of his life against the Pacers in game 1, he has since reverted back to his disappointing ways that have followed him since leaving KU's motion /post offense.

People are starting to drool all over Sonic's big man Jerome James.

This perennial underachiever had a good playoff series against the Kings, and now is the second coming of Moses Malone.

I pity the team that gets suckered into giving this guy a bloated free agent contract over the summer.

He reminds me a lot of Benoit Benjamin.