* Spencer Hawes gained back a lot of faith, which is a somewhat sad commentary on the fickle nature of human emotion. One game shouldn't be enough for his teammates and some fans to screech, and one game shouldn't be enough for everyone to congratulate him. I enjoyed his performance, but there's a really long way to go.

* Similarly, kudos to Bobby Brown. His game reminds me of mid-career Mike Bibby. (Every point guard reminds me Mike Bibby!) But there's a long way to go. Not to besmirch the good name of Earl Watson, but dude wasn't even awake out there. Brown did good things, but the defense against him was lax even by preseason standards.

* Kevin Martin is going to be an absolute monster this season.

* Shelden Williams had a great defensive game, but his offense is painful to watch. He came out on the efficient end of the stick tonight (7 points on 6 shooting possessions, with 3 turnovers) thanks to drawing fouls, but his time in Atlanta seems to have shook him so much he's afraid to take it strong. On almost every shot, he's going straight up or backing away. When those whistles stop coming, he's going to need to be able to finish. If he can't, he's a liability … despite his excellent rebounding.

* There's no reason the Kings should go on a long scoreless streak when Francisco Garcia is in the game. He needs to get the ball when the system breaks down — he can create for himself and others. Instead, Donté Greene and Jason Thompson and Williams passed it amongst themselves. It didn't work.

* During halftime, Grant Napear hung the criticism of Hawes around the necks of fans and the media. It was refreshing to see Chuck Person immediately clarify (without being disagreeable) that the players and coaches were the ones who were vocally disappointed with Hawes. Sure, fans were disappointed, and I imagine a bunch of them called Napear's show. But the folks Sam Amick quoted for Thursday's paper were Mikki Moore, Reggie Theus and Beno Udrih … not fans. And I don't recall Marty McNeal quoting ticket holders, either.

* Four factors:

Terrible defensive rebounding on the whole, though things stayed cleaner when it was Thompson and Williams on the floor. Thompson looks like he'll be a pretty good rebounder at this level.

* Next game's Sunday against the Evil Empire.