CLEVELAND: J.J. Hickson said he was excited to walk into Quicken Loans Arena for practice on Saturday. Everything looked the same and smelled the same, just as he left it.
Turns out, he never wanted to go.
Hickson returned Sunday night as a member of the Sacramento Kings, his first trip back to Cleveland since the Cavs dealt him the day before the lockout began for Omri Casspi and a conditional first-round pick.
Both Casspi and now Hickson have admitted it has taken longer to adjust to their new surroundings than either expected. Hickson isn’t a focal point of the offense, as he was for the Cavs. Instead, he’s playing less than 20 minutes off the bench and averaging just 5.2 points and 5.4 rebounds.
“After going through the season we went through last year, I didn’t want to come to a situation like this,” Hickson said. “I wanted to rebuild here [in Cleveland]. … Unfortunately, it happened and I’m a Sacramento King now.”
Mental lapses
The Cavs dealt him in part because of the uncertainty surrounding the lockout and they were uncomfortable paying him the type of money he was seeking. Hickson will be a restricted free agent at the end of the season, but is probably costing himself millions with this season’s struggles.
He was benched by interim Kings coach Keith Smart during Friday’s loss at Detroit. Smart yanked him in the second quarter and gave him an earful on the bench. Hickson never saw the court the rest of the night.
“I’m not getting into that,” Smart said of Hickson’s mental lapses. “I didn’t have this team from the start of training camp, so all of our guys are adjusting to how I want them to play. Right now, all these guys are under a spotlight to see how they fit. I tell the guys what has happened to you in the past has no bearing on what you have with me now.”
Hickson’s lapses were common during his time in Cleveland, both with Mike Brown and Byron Scott. Both coaches grew irritated with his demeanor at times, although Scott seemed to get through to him during the second half last season.
Over the season’s final 3 ½ months, Hickson averaged 16.1 points and 11 rebounds. He was one of six players in the league to average at least 15 points and 10 rebounds. Others on the list are Dwight Howard, Blake Griffin, Zach Randolph, Al Jefferson and Kevin Love.
Sleepless in Sacramento
It hasn’t been nearly so smooth in Sacramento.
Smart blamed Hickson’s struggles on having to return to his natural power forward position after he spent most of last season at center. But Hickson said last season he thought he was one of the best power forwards in the league. He said Sunday he wasn’t sure why the adjustment has been so difficult, but made it clear, both in words and body language, he wasn’t happy in Sacramento.
“It’s more mental than anything being in a new system, two new coaches in less than two months, new style of play, new personnel on the court, new front office, new way of doing things,” Hickson said. “Everything is a blur to me. Everything is new. It’s going to take me awhile to get adjusted.”
Hickson upset the locals when he began asking, shortly after the trade, whether the team was moving to Anaheim, Calif., because he’d really like to go there. The Kings owners will move the team to Anaheim if they don’t strike a deal for a new arena soon.
He struggled miserably when he was inserted into the starting lineup, and now he sounds like a guy who can’t wait to get out of town. Asked whether he can make it work in Sacramento long term, Hickson paused.
“Uh … yeah,” he said. “I think so, yeah.”
No contract for Uzoh
The Cavs informed Ben Uzoh after Sunday’s game that they are not picking up his contract for another 10 days.
Uzoh played five minutes during his time with the Cavs, who now have an open roster spot.
The Cavs signed Uzoh when Kyrie Irving was sidelined with a concussion. Now that Irving is healthy, they could look for another big to replace Anderson Varejao.
Jason Lloyd can be reached at jlloyd@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/JasonLloydABJ. Follow ABJ sports on Facebook at www.facebook.com/sports.abj.
