Chris Webber - NBA Career - Sacramento Kings

Sacramento Kings

On May 14, 1998, Webber was traded to the Sacramento Kings for Mitch Richmond and Otis Thorpe. Webber originally did not want to go to Sacramento, as they were a perennially losing team.

When Webber arrived, the Kings also signed small forward Peja Stojakovic, center Vlade Divac and drafted point guard Jason Williams. In his first year with the Kings (the lockout-shortened 1998–99 season), Webber won the rebounding title averaging a league high 13.0 rebounds per game. Under the guidance of Rick Adelman, the surprising Kings team made the playoffs, almost upsetting the veteran Utah Jazz. In years to come, Webber and the Kings became arguably the most exciting team in the league, and NBA title contenders. He was named to the All-Star team again in 2000 and 2001 while cementing his status as one of the premier power forwards in the NBA. For the 1999–2000 NBA season Webber was the cover athlete on NBA Jam 2000. Webber peaked in the 2000–01 season where he averaged a career-high 27.1 points. He also averaged 11.1 rebounds and was 4th in MVP voting. Webber was an All-NBA player five years in a row as a Sacramento King (1999–2003), making the 1st team in 2001 for the only time in his career. During the 2000 NBA Playoffs, Webber and the Kings were defeated by the Los Angeles Lakers in five games during the first round.

On July 27, 2001, Webber signed a $127 million, seven-year contract with the Kings. In the 2001–02 NBA season, Webber played in 54 games and helped lead the Kings to a Pacific division title and a franchise record (and league best) 61–21 season. He also made his fourth All-Star team and the All-NBA Second Team. The Kings reached the Western Conference Finals, against the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers. The Kings led the series 3–2 but eventually lost in 7 games. The 2002 Western Conference Final between the Sacramento Kings and Los Angeles Lakers was one of the most memorable in league history. The popular (though small-market) Kings led the two-time defending NBA champion Lakers three games to two heading into Game 6 at Staples Center, a game which would prove to be the most infamous of the series. The game, which the Lakers won by four, featured several disputable calls, including a late game foul on Mike Bibby--after he was bleeding from being elbowed in the nose by Kobe Bryant. This game was the epitome of the major issue in the series. Both teams complained about the officiating at different points in the series (the Kings in Game 6 and the Lakers in Games 2 and 5).

The Kings would go on to lose Game 7 of the series at home. Former NBA referee Tim Donaghy filed in court papers in 2008 said that Game 6 was fixed by the NBA. NBA Commissioner David Stern denied Donaghy's allegations. Lawrence Pedowitz, who led a review of the league's officiating following the outbreak of the scandal, concluded that while Game 6 was poorly officiated, no concrete evidence existed of it having been fixed.

The next season, Webber had another superb year, averaging 23 points and 11 rebounds per game. He was cited as a possible MVP candidate, and made his fifth consecutive All-Star team. In a bad sign of what was to come, Webber missed the All Star game with an injured knee. Nevertheless, he returned and the Kings were among the favorites to win the NBA Championship.

In the second game of the 2003 Western Conference Semifinals against the Dallas Mavericks, Webber suffered a career-threatening knee injury while running down the lane untouched that forced him to miss nearly a year of action. After microfracture surgery, he returned for the final 23 games of the 2003–04 season, but his athleticism, agility, and mobility were never the same. Because of this, the injury turned out to be the turning point in Webber's career in terms of statistics and he was traded a few months later.