Artest out 3-4 weeks

Forward Ron Artest had surgery on his right elbow Wednesday and will miss three to four weeks, another blow to the injury-depleted Sacramento Kings.

After missing two games, Artest had an MRI exam in New York, and it was decided to have the procedure to remove five bone chips right after it.

Artest is averaging 19.1 points.

The Kings are already without leading scorer Kevin Martin (groin) and starting point guard Mike Bibby (thumb).

Oklahoma City residents will vote March 4 on whether to levy a one-cent sales tax to pay for improvements at the Ford Center in hopes of luring an NBA team.

The vote, set Wednesday by the City Council, will take place about six weeks before NBA owners meet to vote on an application by the Seattle SuperSonics to relocate to Oklahoma City.

The tax would last for 15 months, starting on Jan. 1, 2009, the day after a current one-cent sales tax used to finance school improvements expires, and would generate an estimated $121.6 million. It would also pay for an NBA practice facility.

The efforts of the SuperSonics’ Oklahoma City-based ownership group, led by Clay Bennett, to move the team from Seattle has ended up in federal court, where a judge will decide whether the team must honor the final three years of its lease at Seattle’s KeyArena. The team’s lease expires after the 2009-2010 season.