Sacramento Bee Editorial: "[Webber] is gone..."

<a href="http://www.sacbee.com/sports/kings/articles/2001/may/20010513kings2.html" target="_blank">Ailene Voisin: He's gone ...</a>

Chris Webber is leaving.

Get used to it. Get over it.

As the Kings' season nears its final hours, the best player in franchise history, the power forward who dropped in for the best three seasons of his NBA career but never really unpacked his bags, is already gone.

Mentally he checked out months ago.

He hasn't said any of this, of course, nor does he need to. And never mind the cowbells. You would need earplugs to muffle the sounds of his silence.

As the Kings stumble toward the inevitable conclusion, Webber, who has faded badly, even mysteriously, has never said he wanted to return. He has said he would consider re-signing. He has said the Kings are among his choices. He has said, as recently as Saturday, that he has made no decision.

But when asked his reaction to a sign that read, "Stay," during Friday's defeat, Webber was again foiled by his own body language. He shrugged. That was it. He shrugged.

"I'm not thinking about that right now," he continued, in a voice so soft it was almost impossible to hear. Prodded by New York-based reporters who wondered whether he was privy to all the East Coast musings, Webber nodded. "But I'm really not paying attention to it," he insisted.

Yet what he really meant to say, what he really, deep down wanted to say, was that he was not thinking about which of his three leading candidates -- Orlando, New York and Houston -- ultimately would prove to be the best fit. Orlando, with Tracy McGrady and Grant Hill. Houston, with Steve Francis and Cuttino Mobley. New York, with his good buddy Spree.

Sacramento is not even on the map.

Honest. No one within the league, or even the Kings' front office, for that matter, believes Webber intends to return. Given all the hints he has dispensed, you'd have to be from a foreign country to believe the Kings have a prayer to go with their $120 million offer. "I think Chris is coming back," insisted Hedo Turkoglu, the rookie from another country (Turkey). "You'll see."

Offered Kings co-owner Joe Maloof, "We're going to do everything we can to keep him. If he played like he did in the beginning of the season ... he was just tremendous. But if he decides to leave, then Geoff (team president Geoff Petrie) is going to have to work some magic."

Better start waving that wand.

Webber, 28, has revealed his intentions, with his sporadic and increasingly puzzling performances. With the blank stares, flat emotions, dark moods. With his perplexing demeanor. Often he has appeared distracted or even depressed, creating a What's-Wrong-With-Webber buzz that has dominated the local airwaves and infiltrated the locker room.

Even allowing that his mobility is somewhat hampered by sore ankles, this clearly is not the same MVP-caliber player whose all-round skills fueled the Kings' first-half start; who this season became a much-

improved defender by contesting jump shots; who blistered Vlade Divac for not providing an all-out effort during a midseason practice; and whose active, emotional offense blended an almost perfect mix of jump shots, low-post moves and creative passes.

And those classic duels with Tim Duncan?

No, not the same guy.

Not a happy guy, at all.

Asked why he would leave teammates he enjoys and fans who have embraced him, Webber shook his head. He had no answer. Perhaps he really has no answer. Maybe he has merely allowed others to convince him that he should leave, or that an evolving team comprised primarily of finesse players infatuated with jump shots -- himself among the culprits all too often -- is incapable of winning a title.

So, for all concerned, the best-case solution has the Kings and Webber parting ways, with both getting what they want in a sign-and-trade deal: Webber, a place where he wants to live and play; the Kings, quality players to help fill his void.

Hey, this is a free country, and this is free agency. Webber did his time. The only troubling aspect of this entire situation has been his failure to finish his Kings career with a flourish.

Before he arrived, he was known as a troublesome major talent who produced big numbers. In his three seasons in Sacramento, he became known as a major talent who produced big numbers, but more importantly, winning numbers. He hasn't done much of that lately.

Not since he checked out.

------------------
NOTHING BUT .NET
CLUTCHCITY.NET