HOUSTON - When Spencer Hawes finished practice in Sacramento on Friday, the Kings' second-year center thought he was in trouble.
"We got done, and they were like, 'Hey (Kings basketball president) Geoff (Petrie) needs to see you,'" Hawes said. "I was like, 'Oh, (shoot), what'd I do?' It kind of caught me off guard."
The meeting was nothing to be afraid of, however, as Petrie was informing Hawes of his decision to pick up his team option for the 2009-10 season worth $2.3 million. While it was far from a surprise, Hawes said the notion of having another guaranteed season added to his NBA career was reason to appreciate his plight.
"You always hear the horror stories about guys, even lottery picks, coming in and not having (the option) picked up," he said. "It's always good to see it in writing."
The same can't be said for third-year guard Quincy Douby or third-year forward Shelden Williams. Both have options for the 2009-10 season that have yet to be picked with the Oct. 31 deadline looming, with Williams' worth $4.3 million and Douby's worth $2.2 million.
Injury update
Kings swingman Francisco Garcia did not play against Houston, although it was Kings coach Reggie Theus' decision to rest him and not because of the sore left foot that kept him out of Thursday's practice. He is expected to play Saturday at Dallas.
Douby said he will not play against Dallas and will continue to take the cautious approach to letting his sprained right ankle heal. The injury, Douby said, includes strained ligaments and a strained muscle in his foot.
Artest banking on Bauman
Ron Artest hopes to follow in the footsteps of Peja Stojakovic, at least as it pertains to success on the free-agent market.
The former Kings small forward now with Houston has changed agents since leaving Sacramento, replacing Mark Stevens with Stojakovic's agent, David Bauman. The move makes sense based on precedent: Bauman landed Stojakovic's five-year, $64 million deal with New Orleans in his free-agent summer of 2006, this after he was traded from the Kings to Indiana in the deal that brought Artest to Sacramento. Artest will be a free agent next summer. - Sam Amick
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