ESPN NBA

Updated: August 27, 2009, 9:45 AM ET

NBA Offseason Buzz: Sacramento Kings

A new player could wear the crown as Kings' franchise player

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By John Hollinger & Ric Bucher
ESPN Insider

The NBA's worst team last season acquired third-string point guard Sergio Rodriguez, signed lottery-bust Sean May and hired Paul Westphal, who has been adrift in the NBA shadows for the last seven seasons, as its head coach. Not exactly the kind of moves that proclaim, "We're back, baby!"

What Kings' fans want to hear first, of course, is, "We're staying, baby!" That seems like a tough prospect, what with the only current option amenable to local politicians, ownership and the NBA is to have a developer with an extra half-billion dollars step up to build a new revenue-generating arena on the local fairgrounds.

So the Kings are going to be bad again. It's hardly consolation for their fans that they may not have to watch them being bad much longer.

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