--While the Kings begin to implement their off-season plan to improve on the court, the discussions regarding a new arena will continue behind the scenes.

The organization's future in Sacramento still rests on the ability for local politicians and Kings co-owners Joe and Gavin Maloof to come to an agreement for a new facility, although the Maloofs have been mostly removed from the situation. The negotiations are being handled by NBA consultant John Moag, who is operating under the advisement of league commissioner David Stern in an attempt to avoid a Kings exodus.

With all involved agreeing that Arco Arena is outdated, the latest proposal centers around a state-owned location known as Cal Expo. After a public vote to raise funds via a quarter-cent sales tax failed miserably last year, this site could require far less public money and circumvent the voting obstacle. As yet, however, the talks appear to be slow and many hurdles remain. If a deal is not struck within the next two years, the Kings could certainly be on their way out of town.

--For the first time in three seasons, there is not expected to be a coaching change. Reggie Theus, who entered as unproven in every way after just two seasons as a college coach at New Mexico State, managed to maintain his locker room like former coach Eric Musselman could not. He will now enter his second season on the proverbial hot seat, as his three-year contract was only guaranteed for two seasons with a team option for the third.

Theus had his ups, none more so than showing an uncanny ability to weather numerous controversies with his own players. At varying times, he was publicly questioned for the way in which he used the likes of Kevin Martin, Mikki Moore, and Shareef Abdur-Rahim, but Theus managed to smooth the matters over and appeared to restore his relationships. He was dealt a challenging hand, with starting lineups seemingly changing every few days while the team's penchant for playing hard and staying together staying the same.

He had his downs as well, none more so than a stubbornness to improve the team's record at the expense of developing some of the team's younger talent. The classic example was in the case of Anthony Johnson, the point guard who is not part of the organization's plans but saw substantial playing time because Theus had far more confidence in the veteran than he did in second-year guard Quincy Douby. Kings co-owner Joe Maloof even called Theus out on decisions such as these, saying publicly late in the season that he wanted to see the younger players more. Yet as was the case with Theus and his players, he smoothed the matter over with his bosses and followed the directive in the final stretch of the season.

QUOTE TO NOTE
"We just talked about the things we accomplished in terms of us as a team, and I thanked them for playing so hard for me all year. We fought through a lot of adversity, a lot of injuries. The one thing I think they should be proud of, if they can continue for the rest of their careers, is that if you can get a reputation for playing hard, you get respect from everybody. Always." -- Kings coach Reggie Theus, on his final post-game speech of the season to his team.

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