Sleep Train Arena, formerly known as ARCO Arena and Power Balance Pavillion, has served as the home venue of Sacramento's lone top flight professional team since 1988. It's tenure in that position came to an end on Saturday with the Kings pulling out a 114-112 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Over the arena's 28 years as Home of the Kings, I'm sure many fans and rivals alike have their share of memories and moments about this building. Today, I want to look at the best players to have played inside ARCO Arena. I'm sure a lot of the players that Kings fans remember fondly will find their way onto this list.
The two teams below are the best players - by Game Score - to have played for and against the Kings in all games at Sleep Train Arena. I'll call them All-ARCO teams for nostalgia's sake.
Today's throwback video takes us to November 11, 1990: An early season matchup between the New York Knicks and the Los Angeles Lakers from the Great Western Forum in Inglewood, California. This video features two legends facing off for teams that are in flux: one on its way in and one on its way out.
The New York Knicks entered the game 3-2, coming off of a win the night before in Sacramento. This was the second game of a 4-game west coast set. The Lakers were 1-2, playing their fourth game at a point in the season when most teams had played their fifth or sixth.
The Knicks won on the road 109-103 over the Lakers, making it their third straight. LA's loss fell to 1-3 on the young campaign. The game was a back-and-fourth shootout on both sides, but the Knicks were able to pull away with a 11-4 run in the final 3:47 of the game. Patrick Ewing led New York with 27 points and 14 rebounds despite being triple-teamed on multiple occasions. Kiki Vandeweghe added 22 points, scoring 20+ for the third straight game.
Magic Johnson led the Lakers with a triple-double: 24 points, 15 rebounds, 14 assists. Byron Scott added 24 of his own. Despite big performances from Magic and Scott, the Lakers bench was outscored 32-19, which made a difference in the long run.
While it seemed like the two squads were trending in certain directions (the Knicks on the way up, the Lakers on the way down), things soon turned in opposite directions for both sides.
The Knicks would split the final two games of the west coast trip with an overtime win at Seattle and a high-scoring loss at Portland. From there, however, they would have two wins bookend a five-game losing streak. GM Al Bianchi saw this as an opportunity to fire head coach Stu Jackson and replace him with John MacLeod, a man Bianchi tried to hire in 1987 after being his assistant coach for 11 years in Phoenix. Bianchi would be fired midseason and John MacLeod would leave for Notre Dame after the season. The Knicks would end the campaign 39-43 and was swept by the eventually champion Chicago Bulls. Former Lakers coach Pat Riley would step in the following season.
The Lakers were starting the season slowly as they adjusted to new head coach Mike Dunleavy, who looked to establish more set plays than the Showtime Lakers were used to under Riley. Los Angeles would start the year 2-5 before reeling off 8 straight wins. They'd go on a 16-game win streak in January and February and finish the year 58-24. The Lakers would take the Western Conference crown in six games over defending conference champ Portland. They would fall in the NBA Finals to Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls, four games to one.
It goes to show that the season is a marathon. Early returns - like a few weeks in - don't always foretell how things will turn out over the course of 7 months. The grind is real!
Video courtesy of NBAOLDTWO. Marv Albert and John Andariese are on the call for MSG Network, with a special appearance from comedian Richard Lewis in the third quarter.
Today is the 179th anniversary of Chicago's incorporation as a city. Happy Birthday, Chicago! To mark the occasion, I bring you this highlight video of the city's favorite basketball player scoring 61 over a division rival on its 150th anniversary.
March 4th, 1987, Pontiac Silverdome, suburban Detroit. Michael Jordan leads the Bulls to a 125-120 overtime victory over the Pistons. He scores 61 points on nothing but two-pointers and free throws, and neutralized a combined 63 points from Hall-of-Famers Adrian Dantley (32) and Isiah Thomas (31, along with 18 assists).
This video is 9 minutes of fun for any non-Pistons fan. MJ was a scoring machine, getting buckets in any way imaginable within the three-point line. He was en route to the highest scoring season of his career: 3,041 points in 82 games, and he only did it on 12 made three-pointers. MJ would go on to score 61 points again in the penultimate game of the '87 season. Unfortunately, there wasn't much else around him, and the team was swept in the First Round by the Boston Celtics. Those same Celtics would beat these Pistons in seven games in the Eastern Conference Finals.
Video courtesy of Balthus23. Jim Durham and Johnny Kerr on the call. Enjoy!
The Oklahoma City Thunder blew a 22-point lead to the Los Angeles Clippers in a 103-98 decision at Staples Center last night. That immediately made me think of a YouTube highlight clip I've watched a number of times over the last few years.
February 27, 1994: Seattle SuperSonics at the Los Angeles Clippers from the old Sports Arena.
On February 24th, Dominique Wilkins was traded with a first round pick from the Atlanta Hawks to the Los Angeles Clippers for Danny Manning. This was Wilkins's first game with his new team after and illustrious 11-and-a-half years in the ATL.
Meanwhile, the Sonics were 14 years away from moving to Oklahoma, and a little over two months away from being upset by the 8th-seeded Denver Nuggets in the playoffs. In the meantime the duo of Gary Payton and Shawn Kemp were tearing their way through the league.
This game is a fun one, especially in highlight form, and it ends with a close-but-high-scoring 122-118 result. But the reason I like this video so much is because of the greatness that is Sonics broadcaster Kevin Calabro. He has a smooth voice, an extensive vocabulary, and is great at keeping up with the pace of the action. It's exactly why he's one of my favorite broadcasters of all-time. I hope you enjoy him - and the game itself - as well.
Steph's 35-foot game winner over the Thunder on Saturday. There's a large contingent of former players that aren't all that impressed by feats like this. I discuss on today's podcast.
It's the debut of the Scenario Mode Podcast! The first topic is about Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors. Go figure.
I try to unpack my feelings towards old-school basketball players downplaying what the 53-5 Warriors are doing and the current state of basketball in this age. I find that while these guys are so defensive of the past, I'm defensive of the present. It's just so annoying to hear in almost every aspect of life (sports, music, culture) that my era sucks and theirs is better. But I'm seeking to learn more about the game and understand just how different or similar things are in this day and age to the past. I just wish former players would try to do the same. Click the play button on the audio player below to listen!
Ed. Note: If the embedded video above doesn't show up for you, here's the link.
Much of this Wednesday was spent video-browsing. I knew I wanted to bring you a full basketball game from YouTube, but I wasn't sure what kind. I thought about a throwback Raptors game with All-Star Weekend coming up. I thought about a full game with an announcer I liked such as Ian Eagle or Kevin Calabro. I thought about something with a lot of flash, like a game with a lot of dunks. Then I stumbled across a video and thought "Yes. This is The One".
I take you to January 3, 1987 for a tilt between the 11-0 UNLV Runnin' Rebels and the 5-4 UC Irvine Anteaters from the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. The game was the Pacific Coast Athletic Association opener for both teams, and the 114-72 victory for Nevada-Las Vegas was the first win en route to an 18-0 conference record. The Rebels would make it all the way to the Final Four before falling to Bobby Knight's Indiana squad 97-93 at the Superdome.
This video grabbed me for a couple of reasons. For one, legendary Lakers announcer Chick Hearn is on the call, bringing you fast-paced play-by-play and analysis solo with the same intensity he had for those Showtime teams of the 80's. The other reason are the commercials. They are exactly the way I would imagine Vegas commercials in the 80's. Advertisements for sports books, vault companies, and jewelers featuring graphics that looked "high-tech" then but are cheesy by today's standards. They're a cross between small-market cheese (The beginning of Vegas's population explosion was just a year away), Vegas glitz, and 80's zeitgeist. Let me know which ad was your favorite in the comments below. One interesting note is that Royal West Airlines, one of this broadcast's sponsors, would cease operations the month after this game aired after only being in operation since the previous June.
Christmas Eve Eve, 1988: Michael Jordan's first NBA game in the state of North Carolina.
The Wilmington native and North Carolina Tar Heel was drafted 3rd overall in the 1984 draft. Four years into his NBA career, the two-time scoring champion and reigning steals champion was already wowing fans across the league. However, for all of the highlights and milestones, MJ had yet to return to his home state.
The arrival of the expansion Charlotte Hornets provided that opportunity in 1988. In front of a national TV audience on TBS, the new teal-pinstriped outfit was able to show off their sparkling new hive and raucous sellout crowd for all of America to see. It also gave the expansion team the chance to prove themselves against His Airness.
The game came down to the wire, with the Hornets pulling out the close victory 103-101 on a Kurt Rambis layup at the buzzer. It's funny he's the hero in this win after he blew a layup early in the game that led to a Bulls score. Kelly Tripucka led Charlotte with 30 points. The team forced 23 turnovers while only giving up 14. The Hornets bench also outscored the Bulls 38-19.
Michael Jordan was fantastic, pacing his team with 33 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, and 6 steals. However, he also had 7 turnovers in the losing effort. It was amazing to watch how acrobatic and nimble he was throughout the game. When the curtain closed on MJ's career, he had played 37 games against the Hornets. He would finish with averages of 32.1 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 5.5 assists. Jordan was so good against Charlotte, he owns the team now!
Video courtesy of UndisputedGoldLion. Footage is from WFLD 32 Chicago (I wonder how a Bulls game would look now if they still did games). The late duo of Jim Durham and Johnny "Red" Kerr are on the call. Enjoy!
In July 2015, NBA legend and TNT studio analyst Shaquille O'Neal posted the above picture on his Instagram of what he felt were the all-time starting fives for the Los Angeles Lakers and Chicago Bulls. O'Neal, whom put his self in the Lakers five, felt his squad could beat the Bulls five "by fifty". Once the debate was sparked, several YouTube videos were posted using NBA 2K15 to figure out who would win. While they're all good videos, I felt that not having a virtual Kareem Abdul-Jabbar available - forcing gamers to create or download their own - took away from the experience a bit. With Kareem being included in NBA 2K16, I decided to give this debate another look.
Here are the video highlights, our first video on the new Scenario Mode TV YouTube channel. Analysis and setup information is provided under the video:
I played a CPU vs. CPU game between the Lakers and Bulls with 12-minute quarters. Since Shaq started this debate, the Lakers are the home team. I used the following versions of each player for the starting fives:
BULLS
PF Horace Grant ('92 Bulls, 80 overall)
PF Dennis Rodman ('96 Bulls, 85 overall)
SF Scottie Pippen ('96 Bulls, 92 overall)
SG Michael Jordan ('96 Bulls, 99 overall)
PG Derrick Rose (Current player with attributes from his 2K15 MyTeam MVP card, 94 overall)
LAKERS
C Shaquille O'Neal ('01 Lakers, 96 overall)
C Kareem Abdul-Jabbar ('87 Lakers, 94 overall)
SF Elgin Baylor ('65 Lakers, 91 overall)
SG Kobe Bryant ('01 Lakers, 95 overall)
PG Magic Johnson ('87 Lakers, 97 overall)
The game was played on Superstar difficulty with simulation sliders. I wanted to see how this starting five would shake out over a full game, so I turned off fatigue and injuries and set the rotations so each player was set to play a full 48.
When this debate first came about, I set aside my Bulls bias and conceded that the Lakers definitely had the advantage in this scenario, though the Bulls wouldn't lose by 50. A lot of people pointed out that Artis Gilmore should have been put in at center for the Bulls, and I agree. Having hall-of-fame and hall-of-fame-caliber centers in the frontcourt are to trump two all-star power forwards over a 48 minute span. But switching out an all-star forward for a hall-of-fame center could change some things. But these are the ten that Shaq set forward, so we're going to roll with it.
Here are the results. As I thought, Shaq's Lakers didn't beat the Bulls by 50. They beat them by 5, 125-120. While I made sure that each player played the full game, I forgot about disabling foul outs. So when Derrick Rose picked up his sixth with 23 seconds in the fourth quarter, I had to cut the experiment short. Below are the stats:
In the end, it was the instigator of the Instagram debate that made the difference. Despite scoring almost exclusively in the paint and struggling at the line, the Lakers were able to pull out the narrow win thanks to one Shaquille O'Neal. Horace Grant gave a valiant effort, but Shaq was just too much for him, amassing 42 points and pulling down 11 boards.
I figured the difference would come down to the frontcourt, and that was the case here. Kareem and Shaq are two centers that were major scorers in their careers and know how to get to the basket. The duo combined for 54 points. Grant and Rodman were looked at for rebounds and rim protection. They finished with a combined 19 points. In the context of this game, that meant that the Lakers had five scorers on the floor the entire game, while the Bulls had three. Jordan, Pippen, and Rose were able to get their points through much of the game. But in the later stages, the Lakers were able to focus on those three defensively while pulling off a 7-2 run of their own to put the game away.
In the end, it was a fun game. Discussions about who is better and who is best make the basketball world go 'round. It's always good to watch it actually play out instead of just talking in hypotheticals. Let me know what your thoughts are in the comments below. Do you think these are truly the all-time starting fives for both teams? What other NBA team starting fives do you think could stand up to the Lakers or Bulls?
LeBron dunk's during the first quarter of his 2003 NBA regular season debut. Photo courtesy Washington Post
Times are scressful in Cleveland. The team is underperforming despite sitting atop the Eastern Conference at 31-12, and the front office fired the head coach in favor of the assistant that was more popular among the players. The Cavs are trying to find some cohesion so that they can make a title run and compete against the likes of the Warriors and Spurs.
The other night I was thinking about the current state of the Cavaliers and eventually started getting nostalgic. With all of the controversy happening right now, have you taken time out recently to remember where it all started?
October 29, 2003, Sacramento, California. I still remember this commercial coming out ahead of his regular season debut. I got a good laugh out of it back then, but I also noticed at the time that he's standing there for more than 24 seconds. I don't care if it is just an advert: that's a shot clock violation, refs! You gotta call that!
But yes, Sacramento, against the Kings. The Cavs weren't all that great, winning only 17 games the previous season. The Kings were all that great, winning a Pacific Division championship in '03.
With all the hype that came with LeBron since high school, he lived up to it in his first game: 25 points on 12 of 20 shooting, 6 rebounds, 9 assists, and 4 steals in a 92-106 loss. He lived up to the hype that season: 20.9 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 5.9 assists and Rookie of the Year honors on a not-so-great team that went 35-47 and missed the playoffs. And LeBron has lived up to the hype ever since.
