But based on overall health, I'll keep the Heat on top this week.

Let's just hope this is settled in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Seventeen of those blocks came against Oklahoma City, which leads the NBA at 7.63 blocks per game entering Saturday's games.

But it's surprising when the Phoenix Suns, who are in the middle of the league at five blocks a game, block 11 as they did in beating the Kings 98-84 Saturday night.

Head coach Keith Smart addresses the media following the Kings' 98-84 loss to the Phoenix Suns.

Shooting a chilly 35 percent, the Kings finished with just two players in double figures and lost to the Phoenix Suns at Power Balance Pavilion on Saturday night, 98-84.

The Kings had trouble finishing plays under the basket, making just 17 of 42 shots in the paint. DeMarcus Cousins had a game-high 26 points and pulled down nine rebounds, and Marcus Thornton scored 21 points.

The rest of the team combined to make 11 shots from the floor.

On a cold shooting night, the Kings could not keep up with the Phoenix Suns, who shot 50 percent from the floor en route to a 98-84 win at Power Balance Pavilion.

The Kings shot 35 percent. DeMarcus Cousins had 26 points and 9 rebounds and guard Marcus Thornton scored 21 points for the Kings, who fell to 10-17.

Jared Dudley had 20 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Suns, who also received 18 points from Markieff Morris off the bench. Steve Nash finished with 15 assists after sitting out the second quarter.

The Kings had 11 shots blocked, a game after they had 17 shots blocked by the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Tyreke Evans had 4 points on 1-of-9 shooting.

THIRD QUARTER
Suns 75, Kings 60

The Kings will need another big fourth-quarter comeback if they want to win this one.

Phoenix has shot 53 percent from the floor through three quarters, led by 17 points from Jared Dudley and 15 points from center Marcin Gortat.

Marcus Thornton has 20 points to lead the Kings.

The Suns have been able to overcome 16 turnovers with good shooting.

Steve Nash returned to the floor to start the third quarter after getting stitches in his lip and had 6 assists in the quarter, giving him 12 for the game.

1. Guard matchup. Kings guard Tyreke Evans has averaged 21.4 points per game in the Kings' last seven games. More important to Kings head coach Keith Smart, though, have been Evans' strides in working to create shots for teammates, which Smart said has made Evans the "unsung hero" in the Kings' recent stretch of four wins in five games.

Tonight, Evans faces the unenviable task of chasing around after Suns point guard Steve Nash, an assignment that usually entails fighting through a lot of screens when the Suns run pick-and-roll. Nash's 10.1 assists per game lead the NBA.

"I feel bad," Cheryl Miller said Saturday. "I thought the question was very direct and we had plenty of time for him (Johnson) to expand on it. There could have been clarification across the board. I guess we stirred up the dust, but if there's a plus, people are talking about it. The last thing I want to see is Sac lose a team, and I know Chris (Webber) and my brother (Reggie) feel the way. Our hearts are in the right place. Reggie played for 18 in Indianapolis, so we all understand small markets. I just hope everybody keeps their ire up, and keeps their fervor for where the Kings need to be."

The broadcast team of Webber, Reggie Miller, Kevin Harlan and sideline reporter Cheryl Miller angered fans over comments that incorrectly addressed the arena situation.

You can hear Webber's cal to show host and Kings television play-by-play man Grant Napear here.

Kings head coach Keith Smart talks about what he thinks of the Kings' shot selection and other topics following the team's practice Friday afternoon.

I was speaking with Mario Elie, who had been just hired as an assistant coach with the Kings.

Elie made his NBA career on defense and said with Greene's size (6-foot-10) and athleticism that Greene should be able to be a reliable defender every night, but he thought Greene was more concerned about scoring.

Center DeMarcus Cousins talks about the impact of the home crowd following the Kings' win over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Thursday night.

Kings center DeMarcus Cousins said he refers to Marcus Thornton as "Mr. Big Shot."

Head coach Keith Smart has used no such moniker for the Kings guard. But he demonstrated his confidence in Thornton nonetheless in the Kings' 106-101 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Thursday night.

* The atmosphere at Power Balance Pavilion was more electric than it has been against any team not named the Lakers in the past, oh, six or seven years. The place was rocking, folks.

* Donte Greene played the most complete 16 minutes of his Kings career. The numbers don't tell the full story: 10 points, four rebounds, two assists, two steals, and great defense in the closing minutes against the willowly Kevin Durant. Donte used his size and length to stay in front of Durant, and contest his long jumpers, which is all you can do.

* The Kings had an arena and Sacramento-era record 17 of their shots blocked, including nine in the third quarter - six of them by Serge Ibaka. They also shot only 40 percent to the Thunder's 48. But, the Kings controlled the boards (46-40), committed only 12 turnovers to 21 assists, and beat OKC at its own game: the Kings outscored the Thunder in fastbreak points (23-19) and cominated the paint (60 points to 34).

* Oops. TNT analysts Chris Webber and Reggie Miller completely botched their update about Sacramento's arena situation. Guess they gotta read The Bee. They had Sandy Sheedy's proposal regarding the parking bids as passing and requiring a public vote, which of course, is not what happened. Mayor Kevin Johnson, seated a few feet away from me, worked his cellphone furiously, scrambling to get the accurate information to the TNT crew.

* Rookies Jimmer Fredette and Isaiah Thomas again contributed off the bench. Fredette threw nice passes and converted a three in transition, while Thomas was Russell Westbrook's worst nightmare in the closing sequences. Thomas is smaller than his listed 5-foot-9, but he is also quick and much stronger than he looks.

* As soon as the game ended, an animated DeMarcus Cousins ran over to the TNT broadcast table and was seen shaking hands with Miller and chatting with Webber. When I asked what he said to Miller, he said, "Ah, it was nothing. I just asked him, 'how do you like me now?' He said a lot of stuff about me. But he just shook my hand and we were laughing."

* Tyreke Evans had two beautiful drives at the start of the fourth quarter. Imagine if the Kings had a consistent deep shooter to put out there with him? Fredette eventually may be that guy. Marcus Thornton hits big shots, and when he is of the mind, can be a pest defensively. He has extremely quick hands. But he is a streak shooter, and in light of Evans' struggles from the perimeter, I'm not convinced this is a starting backcourt. More consistent outside shooting would lead to better spacing and open the lane, especially for Tyreke.

Head coach Keith Smart talks about Marcus Thornton's late three-pointers, Donte Greene's contributions off the bench and other topics following Thursday night's game.

Tyreke Evans scored 22 points and made some key late free throws, Donte Greene led the Kings' bench players with 10 points and the Kings closed the game on a 19-6 run to beat the Oklahoma City Thunder on Thursday night at Power Balance Pavilion, 106-101.

The Kings trailed 95-87 with just under six minutes remaining in the game. But they rallied to tie it at 97-97 on the second of back-to-back three-pointers by Marcus Thornton and made 9 of 12 free throws down the stretch to close out the win.

DeMarcus Cousins had 19 points and 9 rebounds, and Jason Thompson added 11 points and 10 rebounds for the Kings, who improved to 10-16.

Several times during the first half, Webber made comments about the council's vote on the arena failing. In the second half, Webber said he had talked to Johnson and again attempted to clarify but he never really explained the vote accurately and what it meant.

Yes, the vote failed - but it wasn't a vote on the arena, as Webber implied. The council rejected by a 5-4 vote a request by Sandy Sheedy to put the plan to lease the city's parking to help finance the arena up for a public vote.

Here's one of The Bee's Ryan Lillis' stories that best explains the vote and what it means.

Trailing by eight points midway through the fourth quarter, the Kings closed out the game with a 19-6 run to beat the Oklahoma City Thunder on Thursday night at Power Balance Pavilion.

Tyreke Evans finished with a team-high 22 points for the Kings, who improved to 10-16. DeMarcus Cousins had 19 points and 9 rebounds, and Jason Thompson had 11 points and 10 rebounds.

The Thunder saw their Western Conference-best record drop to 20-6. Russell Westbrook scored a game-high 33 points and Kevin Durant had 27 points and 8 rebounds.

The Kings, who shot 40 percent from the floor, forced 23 turnovers and overcame a 48-percent shooting night and 17 blocked shots by the Thunder.

THIRD QUARTER
Thunder 78, Kings 76

Russell Westbrook scored 16 points in the third quarter as the Thunder took a two-point lead going into the fourth.

Westbrook leads all scorers with 27 points and has added 5 rebounds. Kevin Durant has 17 points for the Thunder.

Tyreke Evans has a team-high 16 points for the Kings, who have also received 14 points and 6 rebounds from DeMarcus Cousins, and 8 points and 9 rebounds from Jason Thompson.

Oklahoma City did an excellent job of challenging the Kings' shots after halftime. The Thunder has 14 blocks, including 9 by forward Serge Ibaka.

That has knocked down the Kings' shooting percentage, though they are still shooting above 40 percent from the floor.

Here are a few things to keep an eye on during the game:

1. The Kings' defense, playing better, will have its hands full. The Kings have been markedly improved on defense in their last six games, allowing an opponent to score 100 or more points just once, and that in an overtime win over the Golden State Warriors. The Thunder, one of the NBA's highest-scoring teams, will test them. Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook make up one of the league's most formidable scoring duos, with sixth man James Harden averaging 16.8 points off the bench.

2. Durant likes playing in Sacramento. In five games played at Power Balance Pavilion (or then-Arco Arena) in the past three seasons, Durant has averaged 32.8 points per game. The NBA's leading scorer the past two seasons is coming off of back-to-back 33-point games, including the Thunder's shootout win over the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday night. Durant hit the eventual game-winning jumper in that game with about 15 seconds left and then blocked a potential tying shot as time expired.