After the crushing depression that followed Kevin Martin’s injury (and the two unspeakably frustrating games the Kings somehow managed to lose) I am back! Hi!

Had the Kings lost this game as well I would likely have beaten someone nearby within an inch of their life. Luckily the Milwaukee Redds didn’t have enough at the end of their five-game road trip to pin another horrifyingly devastating loss on the Kings.

It was all John Salmons all the time in the 96-93 win and if the Kings are going to win with any regularity at all it is going to have to be he who leadeth the way. He had 22 points, 3 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 beautiful, clutch late game blocks of Michael Redd to help secure the win.

Other notes from the game:

• Spencer Hawes? SPENCER HAWES??? Spencer Hawes. The stats aren’t impressive (7 points, 5 rebounds), but he was quite impressive tonight.
• Ron Artest shot like an inebriated Samoyed (5-16), but still managed to play a good game overall (7 rebounds, 5 assists, 4 blocks)
• I hate Francisco Garcia (15 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals, 1 block, 2 3-ptrs) and Mikki Moore (umm…moral support???) a lot less lately. Garcia is still an unforgivable  turnover avalanche, but he is making good plays at a much higher rate to offset his many irritating characteristics. Moore still isn’t doing much in terms of stat-making, but he is a good team guy and I like when he cheers from the bench. He’s like Mark Madsen, only you don’t want to kill him.
• Brad Miller had 17 points and 10 rebounds. Such a performance last year was simply out of the realm of possibility. It was Miller’s seventh double-double of the season after 20 games. Last year in 56 games Miller had only three. Ick.
• I like Beno.

Ahead lies a five-game roadie that starts Wednesday in Boston. I don’t envision that game going particularly well, but hopefully when they return from the road they will not be 0-13. If they are, I will destroy the Christmas spirit of every child in America.