Sacramento decides it’s time to fire Musselman

The Sacramento Kings fired Eric Musselman as coach on Friday after one tumultuous season. They finished 33-49 and missed the playoffs after reaching the postseason eight consecutive times under Rick Adelman.

“There is no particular joy in making this decision,” said Geoff Petrie, the Kings’ president of basketball operations. “However, I feel it is in the best interest of everyone going forward.”

Adelman was fired by owners Joe and Gavin Maloof last summer against the apparent wishes of Petrie. The Maloofs then chose Musselman, a longtime NBA assistant coach who coached the Golden State Warriors from 2002 to 2004.

After weeks of rumors surrounding Musselman’s departure, the Kings made the move after Musselman met with Petrie. The Maloofs must pay Musselman about $5 million for the remaining two seasons of his contract.

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Portland won a tiebreaker against Minnesota, meaning the Trail Blazers will pick one spot higher if neither gets a top-three selection through the draft lottery. The Trail Blazers and Timberwolves each finished 32-50, tied for the sixth-worst record in the league. They have the same 5.3% chance of winning the No. 1 pick.

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Boston Celtics guard Sebastian Telfair was arrested after police stopped him for speeding and found a loaded handgun under a seat in his vehicle.

Telfair, 21, of Brooklyn, N.Y., was stopped about 4 a.m. Friday on the Bronx River Parkway in Yonkers after being clocked at 77 mph in a 45-mph zone in his Range Rover, Westchester County police spokesman Kieran O’Leary said.

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Television ratings for the NBA regular season were down slightly from last season. ABC averaged a 2.0 national Nielsen rating for 19 games after averaging a 2.2 for 20 games last season. ABC televised two games on Christmas Day last season and one this year, and according to the Sports Business Daily, if Christmas Day games are not included, the average ratings were even.

TNT averaged a 1.2 cable rating this season, compared with a 1.3 last season, and ESPN ratings were even with last season.

One disconcerting area for the NBA is that in the coveted demographic of men 18-49, TNT’s ratings were down 22%, and ABC’s were off 12%.

However, in Los Angeles, overall ratings for the Lakers on Channel 9 this season showed an increase of 15%, going from an average of 4.0 last season to a 4.6 this season.

Channel 9 will televise Game 2 of the Lakers’ playoff series with Phoenix on Tuesday night in high definition. Game 3 Thursday night at Staples Center will be televised by FSN West and TNT, with Game 4 on April 29 only on ABC.

-- Larry Stewart

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Las Vegas’ goal of landing an NBA franchise is still alive after Commissioner David Stern said he would appoint a committee of owners to study the proposal Mayor Oscar Goodman submitted about how his city would handle a team. Stern is opposed to playing in Las Vegas while there is gambling on the league.