House knows how to raise the roof
The backup Kings guard settles in and begins shooting the lights out.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. - When an exciting play goes the Kings' way, it probably won't be difficult to locate backup guard Eddie House.
He'll be jogging off the bench and leaping to body-bump a teammate.
House will be in familiar territory tonight, when the Kings face the expansion Charlotte Bobcats at Charlotte Coliseum to try to extend their winning streak to three.
House began the season with the Bobcats, playing 13 games. He was waived Dec. 14, one day after Charlotte acquired guard Kareem Rush from the Los Angeles Lakers. House signed with the Milwaukee Bucks on Dec. 18 and played five games with them before being waived Jan. 5. Two days later, he signed with the Kings.
House struggled early with Sacramento, making only three of his first 17 shots. But recently, he has found a comfort level and his shooting stroke.
In his past six games, he has hit 12 of 23 shots, including 6 of 9 from three-point range.
Tonight, though, House and his teammates might find getting a victory more difficult than expected because of injuries. Center Brad Miller is listed as doubtful after suffering a right calf bruise late in Sunday's 110-108 victory over the Washington Wizards.
Forward Darius Songaila strained a tendon in his left foot Sunday and is listed as questionable, and forward Peja Stojakovic also is questionable as he tries to recover from a mildly strained right hamstring. Stojakovic, who has missed the past six games because of the hamstring injury and flu, will test his ability to move before the game.
Coach Rick Adelman could start the game with either Greg Ostertag or Brian Skinner at center with Kenny Thomas and Corliss Williamson at the forwards, depending on what trainer Pete Youngman determines.
The Kings are adjusting on the fly after Wednesday's trade that sent Chris Webber, Matt Barnes and Michael Bradley to the Philadelphia 76ers for Skinner, Thomas and Williamson. In an unusual move after back-to-back games, Adelman held a workout Monday to walk through offensive and defensive concepts and situations with his new players.
House already has gone through that phase and has settled down, Adelman said. The coach said he and his staff have plays designed to maximize House's shooting ability. Now, they have to start using them.
"We have things in," Adelman said, "but it's a matter of running them. Some of the stuff we haven't used since Doug (Christie) was here. Other things we can run are similar to what we run for Mike (Bibby) and Cuttino (Mobley). I think Eddie was rushing his shot when he first joined us, but he's shot the ball better lately."
House and his brother-in-law, Bibby, likely would make a deadly offensive duo if paired on the court at the same time. Their abilities to scorch defenses from long distance would open up the lane. But because Bibby and House are only 6-foot-1, the Kings probably would be more susceptible to high-scoring big guards if they played them together.
Notes - Bibby was named the Western Conference Player of the Week after leading the Kings to a 3-1 mark with averages of 26.5 points, 5.3 rebounds, 7.5 assists and 3.0 steals. He has led the team or shared the lead in scoring in three of the past four games. ... Sacramento is 20-6 against sub-.500 teams. ... The Kings have allowed 100 or more points in 12 of the past 14 games. They have not prevented two successive opponents from scoring 100 points since Jan. 25 against New Jersey, a 113-93 victory, and Jan. 27 against San Antonio, a 90-80 loss. ... Sacramento will visit Orlando on Wednesday night, when it will face Christie for the first time since trading him Jan. 10 for Mobley and Bradley.
