Agitated and unhinged, Joe Maloof is a man in true denial mode

If there's one thing we've discovered through this entire relocation saga, it's this:  Both the fans and the Maloofs have been put through a meat grinder.

We've seen over the past months how the fans have reacted -- with creativity, enthusiasm and verve.

But we hadn't seen the toll on the Maloofs until Monday.  Specifically, until Monday afternoon when Sacramento Kings owner Joe Maloof was interviewed on KHTK's Grant Napear show.

It was disturbing, to say the least.

Maloof was clearly agitated and out-of-breath.  Maybe even severely sleep deprived.  You could almost feel his sweat coming through the radio. He seemed defensive, annoyed and downright frayed.  An image of Gary Busey comes to mind. He said all the right things, but the subtext was palpable.  He was a man done wrong.

Joe Maloof denied his family was in financial trouble.  He denied the league forced him to stay in Sacramento.   In fact, he denied the return to Sacramento was anything but  his family's idea.

Yes, this was a man in real denial.

And I didn't believe a word of it.

He sounded especially unhinged when talking about a seat snafu in the final game of the season when Lakers fans were seated in the customary Maloof seats.  Joe huffed and puffed, sputtered and disavowed any knowledge of the incident.

His voice rose and fell as he tried to put his thoughts together.  He vowed to spend money on free agents and compete, but it wasn't clear where all this new money was coming from.

By the time the interview was over, I could imagine Joe collapsing on the floor in a puddle.

In the end, it doesn't much matter what brought the team back to Sacramento.  They are here and the city gets one last shot.

But whether Joe Maloof can last another year without puncturing a blood vessel in his brain is another story.

Revealed: The secret pages from Joe Maloof's diary over the past few weeks

Many Sacramento fans have wondered about the state of mind of Kings ownership over the past few weeks.  Well, wonder no more.

Thanks to an inside source. we were slipped a number of pages from the alleged personal diary of Joe Maloof.

The thoughts are quite revealing.  Read on:

April 13:  Arrive in New York.   Order champagne for pre-meeting celebration.  Asked my assistant to secure tickets to hottest show on Broadway: "Spiderman - Turn Off The Dark."   I love big shows.  Lots of cool special effects and flying.  Risky stuff, but what could go wrong?

April 14: Prepared Anaheim proposal for NBA Board of Governors with brother Gavin and my best bud Mayor Tommy of Anaheim.  I asked why we only had a sketchy one-page outline of the proposal.  Tommy just smirked and ordered more popcorn shrimp and imported beer from room service.   Sent text message to Dave Stern:  "Done deal, right?"  His response was interesting: "LMAO." Later that night, Tommy feel asleep on my leg.  I think he got drool on me.

April 15:  My advisors tell me that the meeting didn't go too well.  Mark Cuban supposedly flipped me the bird when I was checking my Blackberry.  I think it went great.  We are gonna be rolling in the dough when we head south.   Just in time, too.  Haven't made my car payment in three months.  Just heard about some movement in Sacramento called Here We're Built by some dude name Carmel Dave.  What a joke.  Nobody pays attention to crap like that.  By the way, who the hell is Ron Burkle?  Told my assistant to do a Google search.

Just got word.  Two-week delay before we're officially the Royals.  Oh well, not like I have anything better to do.  Maybe I'll take some online college courses in business.  

April 16: Saw Kevin Johnson strutting through the lobby.  Suddenly, the dude has confidence.  Never saw that before. By the way, I told him that Burkle is a prick.  And the team is not for sale.  My brother George told me to say that, even though I would sell in a heartbeat if we got a good offer.  I need some cash.  Yes, I could ask my sister Adrienne for a loan, but she just dropped a load on a brow lift and seems a little light on funds.

April 17:  Back in Vegas.  Home sweet home.  Gonna spend all day playing blackjack, wearing tight shirts, and glad-handing all the skateboarders at poolside.  Told my assistant to get me the real estate listings for Anaheim.   Looking for a nice foreclosure I can get cheap.  Very cheap.

April 18: My brother George whisked me away to his office to give me good news.  Seems the NBA got that carpet-bagging dude who stole the Sonics from Seattle to look into our relocation.  Woo-hoo.  Stern is a genius.

April 19:  Got wind of another idiotic movement.  Here We Purple Nurple?   Huh?  Sounds like a fraternity prank.  Sacramento fans are usually very creative, but I don't get this one.  Saw a video blog by that Carmel Dave guy.  Talk about charisma.  Was that his garage?

April 20:  Emergency meeting at the poolside bar.  Gavin is pale.  First thought:  He needs sunscreen.  George says it looks like we're going back to Sac.  I'm shocked.  Ask assistant to lend me his credit card so I can order a Turkey Club.  Always feel better with bacon.

Cash-strapped Maloofs squirm as they go from whales to minnows

Is there anything more delicious than watching the cash-strapped Maloof boys squirm as their long-anticipated move to Anaheim slowly disintegrates?

I'll be honest.  I thought there were long gone.  And that's probably still true, but the events of the last two days are just fascinating to witness.

After playing ridiculous hardball with the city in negotiations for a new arena and then dismantling the team in the name of economics and killing the attendance, they are a bundle of mock outrage because an interloper has the nerve to make them look like small-time players.

Yup, welcome to the recession, Gavin and Joe.  You are cash poor and so are we.  How does it feel?

And now you're ready to blame Billionaire  Burkle for trying to move in and take your team.

Deal with it.

The Maloof brothers are like those Jersey guys in shiny suits who strut boldly and believe that outward signs of obvious wealth are what matter most.

Hell, Adrienne Maloof is the poster girl for such nonsense.  She paraded around the arena concourse Wednesday night, huge camera crew in tow, dressed to kill in designer clothes, and sporting a look so surgically enhanced you thought her face might implode at a moment's notice.

Yet this is the image Joe and Gavin and George Maloof want to convey.

Except for one important fact.

They're broke.

And Burkle isn't.

Suddenly,  the NBA owners are looking at the Maloofs as expendable.   The league is a club for the whales, not the minnows.

Is Sacramento an NBA town?  Maybe not.  But there's a guy with awful deep pockets who thinks it just might be.

And that might just be good enough for David Stern and the rest of the Billionaire Boys Club.

Joe Maloof's Deleted Tweets Tell What the Family is Really Thinking

Kings Talking Points has learned that some tweets were deleted from Joe Maloof's account over the past week just moments after they were posted.

Thanks to some nifty computer razzle-dazzle, we were able to recover the tweets and post them here for your entertainment:

JOE MALOOF
@grantnapear Thanks for all your support. You will always be our guy. P.S. You do a great job as our towel boy at the Palms, as well. #supershill

JOE MALOOF
@KJ_MayorJohnson Ooops, couldn't call. Hard to get could cell reception in Orange County. #sucker

JOE MALOOF
Here We Stay was a great success. Sorry about the throwback Royals jerseys. However, they are on sale in Kings store. Just $49.95. #soakingfansalways

JOE MALOOF
@boogiecousins See, I was smart when I told you not to buy a house here when we drafted you. #seeyouinanaheim

JOE MALOOF
Power Balance Pavillon just rolls off the tongue. Killer deal for franchise. I make Mark Cuban look like a pussy. #geniusmogul

JOE MALOOF
Anybody want to buy some huge letters? Just taken down from familiar public building. Four available. All in good condition. #myfamilyisbroke

JOE MALOOF
@KJ_MayorJohnson About that $70 million we owe you, Sacramento. I'm thinking government bailout. Who's with me? #obamaissmarterthanKJ

JOE MALOOF
@ronwenig Sure, Gavin and I could have spent money the last five years and kept us a winner, but Sac loves rooting for a lowly underdog. It was a strategy. #lutherheadrules

JOE MALOOF

Just found those financial documents they've been wanting.  Were under my desk next to old hot dog wrapper and Doug Christie bobblehead.  Should I send them over?  Ah, screw it. . #nevergonnahappen

Revealed: Top secret and embarrassing cost-cutting efforts by the Sacramento Kings

With talk of the Palms Casino in financial trouble, it's no surprise that the Kings are looking at all types of methods to save money.

Thanks to an insider in the organization, Kings Talking Points has learned about some extremely serious measures currently being implemented or considered by the team.

Have a look:

Heating bills have gone through the roof in recent months. Kings players have been ordered to share showers to save on hot water. Sam Dalembert and Pooh Jeter enjoy their time together, although Jeter usually just gets only drippings when he stands beneath the big man.

Maintenance workers have been told to remove the giant "O" from Arco on the side of the building to save on electrical costs. "Arc Arena sounds cooler," Gavin Maloof allegedly said. "And nobody likes gas companies these days, anyway. Screw 'em."

Grant Napear allegedly threw a fit when the Kings told him his salary would be cut. Napear said he would reduce his use of silly hyperbole if he could keep his pay at the same level, but Joe Maloof allegedly told him "If you don't like that, you don't like semi-bankrupt, cut-rate, cost-cutting, cheapo franchises."

Uniform washing was reduced in November. The players only get freshly laundered uniforms after victories. A recent 8-game losing streak resulted in an awful stench wafting through the arena. One Kings dancer fainted and was carried off the court in a wheelbarrow. The stretcher had been sold on Ebay.

Kings president of basketball operations Geoff Petrie was ordered to dump salaries at every turn. He currently has ads on Craigslist in 20 NBA cities offering Carl Landry to any team in exchange for a Starbucks gift card.

Slamson was told that his t-shirt cannon was being confiscated. The depressed Lion sulked for three days before rollerblading into a concrete wall in total despair.

Finally, souvenir quality will soon take a serious dip. Official Kings jerseys will be made of burlap. And shockingly, we were informed that all autographed items in recent months were actually signed by a young slacker named Lil Jacob, who is spending untold hours in the bowels of Arc Arena with a dull Sharpie.

Joe Maloof's secret text messages: What it would take to fire Paul Westphal

Last night, Joe Maloof sent a text message to Jason Jones of the Bee proclaiming that "No" he was not going to fire Paul Westphal.

What hasn't been revealed were a number of text messages sent by Joe Maloof to his brother Gavin laying down the guidelines for what WOULD cause the firing of the coach.

The text messages were secretly leaked to Kings Talking Points and we are revealing them here today:

--If Paul tries to high-five me in the practice facility bathroom one more time, he's out.

--If Paul keeps ignoring my pleas to massage Tyreke's aching feet during timeouts, he is canned. Period.

--Paul is gone if he can't figure out that calling DeMarcus a "Sulky Suzy" in pre-game warmups is not helpful to the delightful young man's mental well being.

--I think Westy is done if I could convince Bill Walton to coach the team. He was at the house the other night and I love his enthusiasm, but his teeth are kinda annoying.

--If Paul loses another 20 more in a row, there's a pretty good chance we can get off easy by telling the press that he is voluntarily stepping down because of chronic heartburn. That way we don't look like we fired anybody and maybe Westy gets a deal with Zantac.