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Kings’ DeRozan jackpot marks promising beginning for Sacramento originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
In 106-degree weather on a beaming July evening, Kings fans paraded around the DoCo area just outside Golden 1 Center.
When the doors finally opened for the Kings’ California Classic game against the Chinese National Team on Saturday, so did fans’ eyes, ears and hearts.
There had been buzz around the city for more than 24 hours about the potential of landing a big-name star, but being a Kings fan means constantly having your guard up when it comes to any and all NBA rumors.
The “I’m hearing” and “so and so is expected to” ‘s have lost value in recent years around the 916, with players such as Pascal Siakam, OG Anunoby, Khris Middleton, Jarrett Allen and Andre Iguodala being the what-ifs that quickly became the what-could-have-beens.
But Saturday marked a new era in Sacramento. It was different this time, and you could feel it.
Due to it being a summer league game, the upper decks inside Golden 1 Center were closed off. But Kings fans didn’t care that it was “just” a summer league game in early July against a non-NBA team. Because it wasn’t.
The entire lower bowl was full. Full of passionate, anxious and jittery fans. The murmurs overpowered the shoe squeaks on the hardwood. The looks of yearning and hope took over fans’ faces. No purple lasers were shooting out of the Sacramento sky that night, but the amount of energy inside the building could have been enough to radiate a beam straight to Mars.
The awareness around the arena reached a new level. Some fans noticed and shared on social media that Kings owner Vivek Ranadivé, who was sitting courtside for the Charlotte Hornets-San Antonio Spurs game going on before Sacramento’s game, suddenly was missing from his seat.
And then, it happened. The notification happened.
The Kings acquired DeMar DeRozan via a sign-and-trade deal with the Chicago Bulls and San Antonio Spurs. An NBA superstar was joining Sacramento – willingly.
The blockbuster move first was reported by top NBA insiders Shams Charania and Adrian Wojnarowski, but the official…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/kings-derozan-jackpot-marks-promising-032656080.html
Author : NBC Sports BayArea
Publish date : 2024-07-08 03:26:56
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