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| Pictured in a Dallas uniform only because he won a title in it, and he deserves to go out on top. |
I would not be able to call myself a Kings fan if I did not take a chance to pay tribute to the man who was part of the reason for me being a fan of Sacramento in the first place. Back when I was a kid and the NBA was a relatively new concept to me, the Kings were the logical choice as they had two of my countrymen (Peja and Divac) on the squad. Although I grew to love the entire team, Peja and Vlade would always hold a special place in my heart because if it wasn't for them I might not be a fan of basketball today. Although the Kings teams with Peja on it never won the title (to be fair, we all know that game 6 against the Lakers was fixed and cost the Kings a title that year) the memories they brought to me as a fan will stay with me forever. My tribute to Peja is to share those memories with you.
Memory # 1
Peja winning the 3-point shootout in back-to-back years. This really established him as a premier shooter in the league, and he would go on to finish 4th all time in 3 pointers made. Having only played 13 seasons in the league this was pretty solid evidence that the shootout wins were no flukes.
Memory # 2
Holding it down without Webber. When Chris Webber collapsed in a heap against Dallas in 2003 and was ruled out for the series, no one gave the Kings a chance. Even though they did eventually lose to Dallas it was not without a fight. Peja stepped in and had some of his best games ever as Sacramento fought bravely to force seven games (Webber went down in game 2). It took a 141-137 win by the Mavs in game 3 and some ridiculous shooting by Nick Van Exel to finally put the Kings away, but I will never forget how Peja stepped it up.
