"Obviously, I thought we would have someone on there," said Kings Coach Rick Adelman. "Once Phoenix got three guys on the team it was going to make it difficult depending on who the coaches looked at and I definitely think one of our guys deserved to have that spot."

The All-Star situation provides some added motivation for Sacramento tonight, as if they needed any more after losing the first two games of the season series with the Sonics and dropping a hotly-contested game to their Pacific rivals, the Suns, on Tuesday when Amaré Stoudemire's block of Brad Miller's tying attempt at the buzzer was ruled a clean block and not a goaltend. (Miller's angry reaction to the call has earned him a suspension for tonight's game.) That was Sacramento's second straight loss, and, a curious thing - both came after Sacramento forwards Webber and Peja Stojakovic, both of them All-Star regulars before this year, returned to the lineup. The Kings went 3-1 without Stojakovic and Webber, losing only to the Sonics, and are 7-1 when Webber is on the sidelines this year. That can be written off to small sample size, but that the Kings have been better without Webber on the floor this season is a harsher indictment of his game. Might it have played a role when Western Conference coaches voted for the All-Stars?

Webber remains the Kings most potent individual weapon, but their offense can at times stagnate with him in the game because he ends up handling the ball so much. You know where the ball is with Webber, whereas without him Sacramento's ball movement improves, producing open shots for players like his replacement, second-year man Darius Songaila, who had 19 points against the Sonics. Given how many offensive weapons the Kings have - four of their five starters could make strong All-Star cases, and the fifth, Cuttino Mobley, has averaged nearly 17 points a game since being acquired in a trade with Orlando - Sacramento is at its best when the ball and shots are being shared in a highly egalitarian fashion. If Webber is dominating the ball and struggling - as he did during a 2-for-13 shooting outing against the Sonics in Seattle in November - that's ideal for an opponent.

After beating the Kings in Sacramento, the Sonics returned home to take care of business against a pair of the league's weaker clubs, Charlotte and New Orleans. Those hurdles out of the way, they now begin a difficult four-day stretch that features three of the NBA's top six offenses in terms of Offensive Rating - Sacramento (fourth, 106.7 points per 100 possession) tonight, Phoenix (first, 112.2) tomorrow and Dallas (sixth, 106.2) Sunday at KeyArena. The Sonics, themselves the league's second most efficient offense at an even 110.0 points per 100 possessions, have plenty of firepower to keep up, but they'll need to continue a recent trend towards improved defense. The Sonics are 3-1 against those teams this season, the only loss by two points to Phoenix, and are 7-2 overall against the NBA's top six offensive teams, who, not coincidentally, happen to also be the league's best six teams overall (Miami and San Antonio are the others), so confidence should not be an issue during this stretch.

G U A R D S
	While it's somewhat difficult to muster sympathy for Stojakovic and Webber missing the All-Star Game because both have several appearances during their careers, Mike Bibby has now emerged as one of the best players in the NBA never to be an All-Star. Bibby delivered a strong case to coaches with his performance in the absence of Webber and Stojakovic, including 40 points against New York last Friday and 35 points the next night at Portland with both players in the lineup. Bibby leads all Western Conference point guards in scoring and is second in assists, but the final West roster includes just one point guard, Phoenix's Nash. Gong head-to-head vs. Nash on Tuesday after the selections were announced, Bibby had 27 points and seven assists, but Nash trumped him with 33 and 17. Sonics point guard Luke Ridnour was announced today as a competitor in the Playstation Skills Challenge, where he'll battle Nash, Gilbert Arenas and Earl Boykins.
	The trade that sent Kings stalwart Doug Christie to the Magic for Mobley seemed to come as a surprise to the rest of the Kings, but Mobley is younger and a more skilled offensive player, while Christie's defense had slipped recently. Since acquiring Mobley, Sacramento is 9-5, but Mobley has averaged 16.8 points, more than doubled his Orlando assist average to 3.8 apg and has continued his red-hot shooting from beyond the three-point line (he's at 45.9% for the season, fourth in the league). While Mobley's defensive rep may understate his performance, he did give up 23 points to Sonics guard Ronald "Flip" Murray in Sacramento when Murray replaced an ill Ray Allen in the lineup. Allen has 51 points in two games since returning to the court.
F O R W A R D S
	Last Tuesday, Insider Preview broke down how Lewis' numbers this season are similar but superior to Stojakovic's, as both players have been lethal from three-point range (they rank sixth and seventh in threes and are both shooting around 39%), are scoring right around 20 points per game (20.3 for Lewis, 20.2 for Stojakovic), but Lewis is the better rebounder (5.4 rpg vs. 4.3) and has a higher field-goal percentage (46.4% vs. 44.5%). The coaches agreed, giving Lewis his first All-Star appearance and ending Stojakovic's three-year run as a Western Conference forward. Sidelined for six games by back spasms, Stojakovic has averaged 17.5 points in two games since returning and dropped three three-pointers on Phoenix Tuesday.
	All Webber's done in the two games since he joined Stojakovic in returning to the lineup (he missed four games with a sore left knee) is put up back-to-back triple-doubles: 20 points, 13 boards and 10 assists at Portland and 24 points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists against Phoenix. After posting relatively weak numbers in 23 games at the end of last season following knee surgery, Webber has returned to full strength this season. His three triple-doubles are topped only by Kobe Bryant and Jason Kidd (four apiece) and Kevin Garnett is the only forward or center with a better assist average than Webber. Sonics forward Reggie Evans has been on a rebounding tear and had 15 boards against the Kings last week.
C E N T E R
	The Sonics shut down Miller last Tuesday, holding him to 1-for-6 shooting, but he'll be even less of a factor tonight as he sits out because of suspension. Miller could be replaced by veteran Greg Ostertag, the only other true center on the roster, but when Miller had foul trouble in the last meeting with the Sonics, it was Michael Bradley who picked up most of the playing time in the middle. Bradley has played only 103 minutes this season, but is shooting 57.9% from the field. Sonics center Jerome James had a nice game against New Orleans, scoring eight points on 4-for-5 shooting and adding four rebounds in 16 minutes of action.
B E N C H
	The knock on the Kings this season was that their bench would be their downfall, particularly after former Sixth Man Award winner Bobby Jackson was lost, probably for the season, to wrist surgery, but - when two starters aren't out of the lineup - the reserves have been solid. Songaila (right) could probably start on some teams, but plays a limited role behind Sacramento's two All-Stars up front. He's got a soft touch and is shooting 51.0% this season. Maurice Evans, a veteran of just 45 NBA minutes entering this season, has shot 50.9% and provided good defense on the wing. Matt Barnes is another solid perimeter defender and a fine rebounder, though not the scorer Evans is. Eddie House, claimed off waivers last month, backs up the point and had 13 points against the Sonics last Tuesday. Vladimir Radmanovic (left) led the Sonics reserves with 18 points against New Orleans, hitting four three-pointers. Antonio Daniels scored nine points and Danny Fortson had five points and seven boards in just 13 minutes of action. Murray gave the Sonics a lift with six second-quarter points.

TEAM LEADERS ALLEN WEBBER Allen 24.0 PPG Webber 21.6 Evans 9.2 RPG Webber 9.6 Ridnour 6.1 APG Bibby 6.4 Ridnour 1.2 SPG Webber 1.6 James 1.3 BPG Miller 1.2 Allen 39.8 MPG Stojakovic 39.0