Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson and NBA Commissioner David Stern issued a joint statement today on the capital city’s effort to build a new arena.  Here is the statement in its entirety:

The City of Sacramento and NBA are continuing to engage in constructive discussions on the details of the proposed financing plan for the entertainment and sports complex.

In an effort to keep the public fully informed of the negotiating schedule, and ensure adequate time for public and City Council review of any proposed financing plan, both parties have mutually agreed to the following Work Plan for the next nine days:

• 2/22 – 2/25: City officials and City representatives continue to review terms with NBA officials and representatives.
• 2/26:  Mayor Kevin Johnson and select City Representatives to meet with Commissioner David Stern and NBA officials, and representatives of the Maloof family in Orlando during the NBA All-Star Weekend.
• 2/27 – 2/29:  Final discussions and briefings.
• 3/1:  If a plan has been agreed to, publicly announce in form of proposed “Term Sheet”
• 3/1 -3/5: City Council and public review of the Term Sheet
• 3/6: Formally present Term Sheet to the City Council for a vote

“Sacramento stands ready to meet the March 1 deadline,” stated Mayor Kevin Johnson, “Our approach makes good on the principles that have guided us throughout this process: protecting the taxpayers, creating jobs, and pursuing an open and transparent process.”

“We appreciate the work of the City of Sacramento and our discussions have been constructive,” said Commissioner Stern. “Our hope is that current momentum continues in a way that we’re able to reach a deal by March 1 that makes sense for all parties.”

At the March 6th meeting, the Mayor and Council will consider both the proposed term sheet and a companion plan to ensure no net impact to the City’s general fund.  Council will also consider parking public-private partnership options and other funding opportunities.

The City is being represented by its negotiating team, including Mayor Johnson, Council Member Rob Fong, Council Member Steve Cohn, City Manager John Shirey, City Attorney Eileen Teichert, City Treasurer Russ Fehr, Assistant City Manager John Dangberg, Sports Finance Consultant Dan Barrett, and Transaction Attorney Paul Jacobs.

H/T Rob McAllister

The Sacramento Kings play their final game before All-Star Break.  They try to end a season-high six-game losing streak against the Washington Wizards in our nation’s capital.

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Following their last practice before their current six-game road trip, Sacramento Kings head coach Keith Smart took some extra time off-the-court to work with Jimmer Fredette.

“Just talking about shooting percentages from different areas on the floor,” the Kings rookie said to me when I asked what he and Smart discussed.  “Kind of the stat chart of where you’re shooting the best and where you’re shooting worst and different types of stuff like that.”

Learning experiences like this can be just as important as floor time in a young player’s development.  Just look at Jeremy Lin.

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Two teams going in two different directions.  The Sacramento Kings try to avoid a season-high six-game losing streak, while the Miami Heat hope to continue a season-long win streak.  Tonight, the two teams meet in a squabble on South Beach.

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Riding their second-longest losing streak of the season, the Sacramento Kings visit Ohio for a match-up with the Cleveland Cavaliers.  Today’s game is the first and only meeting between the two clubs this season.

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Editor’s note: DeMarcus Cousins was originally ruled out of tonight’s game because of back spasms. He will now play reports Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee. This preview was written before that news broke.

In the third game of their longest road trip of the season, the Sacramento Kings will be without their young franchise center when they take on the Detroit Pistons.

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The Sacramento Kings big man will sit out tonight’s game against Detroit according to Jason Jones of the Sac Bee on Twitter.

DeMarcus Cousins (mid back spasms) will not play tonight at Detroit.

— JasonJones (@mr_jasonjones) February 17, 2012

Until tonight, Cousins has played in all but one game this season.  Due to disciplinary issues, he was sent home by former head coach Paul Westphal before a New Year’s Day win over the New Orleans Hornets.  Tonight will be the first contest Cousins misses due to injury.

The Sacramento Kings continue their six-game road trip in New York, where they’ll witness Lin-sanity for the first and only time this season.

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Updated at 4:32 PM PT

On two levels, Jimmer Fredette can relate to Jeremy Lin.

In Jimmer-mania, the former BYU superstar experienced a similar phenomenon to Lin-sanity. Fredette understands the adoration, adulation and admiration of an extremely rabid fanbase.

Now as a rookie, Fredette is enduring the same growing pains Lin experienced in his first NBA season. The Kings rookie earned his third career “did not play – coach’s decision” did not play last night due to illness last night against the Chicago Bulls, but has seen his minutes fluctuate due largely to the play of fellow rookie Isaiah Thomas. Last year, Lin appeared in only 19 games for the Golden State Warriors and spent stints in the D-League with the Reno Bighorns.

Watch the video after the jump.

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Updated: 10:20 am

The effort to build a new downtown arena took a small, but important step forward last night.  The Sacramento City Council unanimously approved the list of firms bidding for the rights to the city’s parking assets.

Fran Halbakken, downtown Railyards project manager at the City Manager’s Office, outlined the request for qualifications process in a presentation before the council’s vote.  She noted that Sacramento has never embarked on a transaction like this before.  So in due diligence, city staff conducted research and looked at cities that have monetized their parking assets in the past.  They explored both success stories and failures.

Their findings, according to Halbakken, concluded that Sacramento should privatize their parking using the following guidelines:

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