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After weeks of political drama and speculation, team officials said this morning they are dropping plans to move to Anaheim this year, co-owner George Maloof told The Bee. "We are heading back to Sacramento. It was a tough decision. Ticket holders were reaching out to us, and it was the right thing to do to give it a shot at one more season," Maloof said during an interview in his office in the Palms casino in Las Vegas. Sacramento Bee

Sacramento Kings, Joe Maloof, George Maloof, Gavin Maloof, Anaheim 

The Kings will remain in the city of Sacramento for at least another season after exploring a move to Anaheim. A formal request to relocate had to be filed with the NBA by Monday afternoon, a deadline that had twice been delayed. The Maloof family has been the club's majority owners since 1999 and had been considering a move to Anaheim's Honda Center because of financial issues in the city and with the building now known as Power Balance Pavilion. "Out of respect to Kings fans and the regional business community, we have decided to remain in Sacramento for the 2011-12 season," the Maloof family said in a statement on Monday. "The fans' spirit and energy, specifically our season ticket holders, has been remarkable and we are truly thankful for their loyalty. We also are greatly appreciative of the support from our corporate sponsors as well as other local businesses that have come forward in recent weeks." Sacramento Bee

Sacramento Kings, Joe Maloof, Gavin Maloof, Anaheim 

Kings co-owner Joe Maloof confirmed at 8:30 a.m. that he informed the NBA of the team’s plans not to move. “We’re going to stay in Sacramento,” Maloof told the Register. “We appreciate everything the Samuelis, Anaheim Arena Management and the City of Anaheim did for us, but we decided to give Sacramento one more opportunity. “Kevin Johnson, Sacramento mayor, has made a lot of promises and we’re going to hold him to his word to see if they can come up with a new arena plan.” Orange County Register

Sacramento Kings, Joe Maloof, Gavin Maloof, Kevin Johnson, Anaheim 

Sam Amick: More Gavin Maloof: "We have cap space we're going to spend. I don't know if we'll spend all of it, but we'll spend a good portion of it." Twitter

Sacramento Kings, Joe Maloof, Gavin Maloof, Anaheim 

Sam Amick: Maloofs are currently calling Sacramento business owners who stepped up with $ recently to say thank you, I'm told. Twitter

Sacramento Kings, Joe Maloof, Gavin Maloof, Anaheim 

Alex Kennedy: Maloof: "Out of respect to Kings fans and the regional business community, we have decided to remain in Sacramento for the 2011-12 season." Twitter

Sacramento Kings, Joe Maloof, Gavin Maloof, Anaheim 

Alex Kennedy: Statement adds that "if an arena plan cannot be finalized in a timely fashion" the NBA's relocation committee will support move in 2012-13. Twitter

Sacramento Kings, Joe Maloof, Gavin Maloof, Anaheim 

Dave Mason: Mayor Kevin Johnson's news conference coming up in moments on Sports 1140 am and KHTK.com Twitter

Sacramento Kings, Joe Maloof, Gavin Maloof, Kevin Johnson, Anaheim 

Tom Ziller: Anaheim mayor called KJ to congratulate Sacramento. #HereWeStayed Twitter

Sacramento Kings, Joe Maloof, Gavin Maloof, Kevin Johnson, Anaheim 

Mark Kreidler: Mayor Johnson said no discussion of plans today. A day to celebrate. (Me, I'd love to see some plans.) Twitter

Sacramento Kings, Joe Maloof, Gavin Maloof, Kevin Johnson, Anaheim 

Mark Kreidler: Johnson said, "We had a momentum changer a couple of weeks ago." Clear reference in my mind to Ron Burkle vaulting into the picture. Twitter

Sacramento Kings, Joe Maloof, Gavin Maloof, Kevin Johnson, Anaheim, Ron Burkle 

A source close to the discussions tells Comcast SportsNet that the NBA has told the Maloofs to expect the Kings to stay in Sacramento next year. CSNBayArea.com

Sacramento Kings, Joe Maloof, Gavin Maloof, Anaheim 

George Maloof, a member of the Maloof family who owns the Sacramento Kings, told News10's Bryan May the family has reached a decision whether or not they will file for relocation to Anaheim, and it will be announced Monday morning at 10:00 a.m. The NBA's deadline for the owners to file for relocation is Monday at 2:00p.m. "I think we've pretty much made up our minds and we'll have something out to everybody tomorrow morning," Maloof told News10. news10.net

Sacramento Kings, Joe Maloof, Gavin Maloof, Anaheim 

"It's been extremely hard; it's been very emotional," Maloof said of the family's decision. "We truely love Sacramento, at the same time Anaheim has reached out to us and there is some great people there in the City Council of Anaheim." news10.net

Sacramento Kings, Joe Maloof, Gavin Maloof, Anaheim 

A source close to the issue told The Bee last week that the Kings' owners still thought Anaheim was a better situation for them financially, especially with no immediate plans here for a new arena. But the source added that the Kings' owners were listening to NBA officials, who expressed interest in keeping the team in Sacramento for at least another year. Sacramento Bee

Sacramento Kings, Joe Maloof, Gavin Maloof, Anaheim 

The Maloofs, owners of the Kings, have until 2 p.m. PST Monday to decide whether or not to file for relocating the Kings to Anaheim. A source close to their discussions said the Maloofs are concerned about, and are carefully watching, the possibility of the Joint Powers Authority falling apart -- even though it hasn't officially been formed. news10.net

Sacramento Kings, Joe Maloof, Gavin Maloof, Anaheim 

A spokesman for Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson had similar comment to Mahood Saturday morning. "We appreciate the energy this issue is generating around the region and welcome the input. A new entertainment and sports complex will certainly be regional in its positive impact on jobs and economic development," said Joaquin McPeek. "However, our current focus is 100% on the NBA's May 2 relocation decision and doing everything we can to keep the Kings in Sacramento. Any discussions beyond that are premature at this point." news10.net

Sacramento Kings, Joe Maloof, Gavin Maloof, Kevin Johnson, Anaheim 

It's not merely a question of whether they will file for relocation, although the fact that the Anaheim option is still being considered despite the opposition is a remarkable revelation on its own considering the widely-held belief that Stern would not only win in court should it ever get there but that he would never forget being challenged in such a way. There are continued whispers from sources close to the Maloofs that a possible antitrust lawsuit might be on the horizon, with the Maloofs' fact-finding mission on that front coming to light Friday by way of a report in the Orange County Register. SI.com

Sacramento Kings, Joe Maloof, Gavin Maloof, Anaheim 

A consultant familiar with the Kings' finances said the team is losing about $8 million a year. The losses would be higher, except that the Kings operate with the lowest player payroll in the league – around $44 million in the just-concluded regular season. Such a business model isn't sustainable over the long haul. With a chronically low player payroll, the organization "just withers on the vine," said this consultant. Sacramento Bee

Sacramento Kings, Joe Maloof, Gavin Maloof, Anaheim 

Jessica Mackaness, an attorney representing Joe and Gavin Maloof, had an appointment at my house to get a tape of Jackson making a comment about the Kings' efforts to relocate. However, the Register declined to turn over the tape. As a matter of policy, the Register does not release unpublished material gathered in the reporting of stories. Although the NBA films all pregame press conferences during the playoffs, Mackaness said the league didn't have a copy of the statement Jackson made before the Lakers played New Orleans in Game 2 of the first round of the NBA playoffs. Orange County Register

Los Angeles Lakers, Sacramento Kings, Phil Jackson, Joe Maloof, Gavin Maloof, Anaheim