HoopsHype.com Rumors

Webber saying he is engaged in talks with individuals intent on keeping the Kings in Sacramento; Barkley (jokingly?) saying he will invest "$10-15 million" to assist; Smth, also a former King, saying that, on the Kings worst nights, the fans were as lusty as they were during the years they contended. Sacramento Bee

Sacramento Kings, Joe Maloof, Gavin Maloof, Chris Webber, Anaheim 

Although I was unable to reach Webber at his home in Atlanta late Tuesday night, I am aware that he has made overtures about buying into the Maloofs' majority ownership, but has been rebuffed. Sacramento Bee

Sacramento Kings, Joe Maloof, Gavin Maloof, Chris Webber, Anaheim 

In a Friday morning radio interview with 103.3 FM in Dallas, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban shot back at Webber, defending his team's toughness and questioning Webber's originality. "Chris Webber has never had an original thought. It doesn't really matter. You know how these guys work. The last time I looked it was Jason Terry pushing and our guys responding -- no one is backing down from anybody. And it's the same nonsense talked by the same people who haven't had an original thought in their entire lives. Look, we don't care what Chris Webber says. It doesn't matter what Chris Webber says. We just go out and do our thing." CBSSports.com

Dallas Mavericks, Mark Cuban, Chris Webber, Jason Terry 

Earl Barron: Just watched the Fab Five documentary start to finish finally. Bill Walton said they were under achievers and over rated. WTF. They made it to the Final Four as freshmen. How is that over rated? Everybody just hated on their style back then. Twitter

Jalen Rose, Juwan Howard, Earl Barron, Chris Webber, Bill Walton, Michigan 

ESPN for the last two years rolled out a series of documentaries but none of them has gotten the reaction and buzz of your “Fab Five” documentary that aired on March 13. Time Magazine described the reaction as a “media firestorm.” Did you anticipate the reaction that you got from the film? JALEN ROSE: I absolutely did. That’s why the entire time it was noted that the revolution will be televised. That’s why it was very important for the story to be told 20 years later, as opposed to five years, 10 years, or even 15 years because a lot of issues that were noted in the documentary, a lot of the conversation we discussed in the documentary, and a lot of the situations that we exposed — good, bad or indifferent — I knew a lot of people weren’t going to be ready for, and/or were uncomfortable hearing them, especially knowing that a lot of it was true. ChrisWebber.com

Phoenix Suns, Jalen Rose, Chris Webber, Grant Hill, Michigan, Duke 

Grant Hill was so taken aback by that criticism that he wrote an op-ed piece for The New York Times. What was your reaction to what Grant Hill wrote? JALEN ROSE: It was very eloquently put, the soliloquy he did for The New York Times. And I understand where he’s coming from. I’m pretty sure, whether it’s family members, friends, or the media, a lot of people have instigated this to a point where it’s become irresponsible journalism. I’ve heard people question whether Jalen Rose is a racist, I’ve heard people question whether I still feel that way now. The documentary clearly noted about how we felt about an opponent. [Grant Hill] was someone I was competing against. And what set the tenor of the documentary, (ESPN Analyst) Dick Vitale summed it up best when he said: “Michigan, they don’t represent the clean cut, All American kind of guy.” Well, that’s what Grant Hill represented. ChrisWebber.com

Phoenix Suns, Jalen Rose, Chris Webber, Grant Hill, Michigan, Duke 

JALEN ROSE: In describing that term, that’s the word I used: Uncle Tom. Do I feel that way in 2011: of course not. He’s a very accomplished player, he comes from a tremendous family, Duke is an established program, Coach K is a tremendous coach, and the upbringing that Grant Hill had: that’s what I’m trying to bring to my kids. So I understand that it’s a school for everyone now. But then, I was fighting against Vitale’s comments; we were fighting against the letters you saw in the documentary that were so hate filled. And that was my way to express it. ChrisWebber.com

Phoenix Suns, Jalen Rose, Chris Webber, Grant Hill, Michigan, Duke 

Have you had a chance to speak to Grant Hill since the documentary aired? JALEN ROSE: I’m pretty sure, when we see each other in a week, a month, a couple of months — we will see each other soon, talk to each other soon, give each other a pound, hug it out, and move on. Really, the disappointing thing to me is when people try to make it a racial theme. The last time I checked, we’re both Black. It was a socio-economic issue that, at 17, I didn’t understand. Now, I do understand. So I don’t anticipate all of a sudden me and him setting up a heavyweight bout so we can slug it out. At the same time, I think it can now be a learning experience. Because whether people like the delivery or not, what remains is socio-economic issues based on class, based on status, based on stature, and those still exist. It’s unfortunate that a couple of idiotic media members were so simple-minded to take the term Uncle Tom to use that to define the doc, but not responsible enough to pay attention to how I said it. Again what I said about Duke, what I said about Grant Hill – that is how I felt. And I stressed it – I hated Duke. Not “I hate Duke.” Two separate things. ChrisWebber.com

Phoenix Suns, Jalen Rose, Chris Webber, Grant Hill, Michigan, Duke 

A lot of people who watched the documentary were left wondering where was Chris Webber? JALEN ROSE: Chris has a great opportunity to participate. I felt personally, as well as Juwan, Ray, and Jimmy that the forum could not have gotten any bigger. It’s not like it was me and my boy holding a camera, trying to do a documentary. He was initially 100 percent committed to do it. That’s what allowed me to pitch it to ESPN. As he realized the project was moving forward, he got cold feet and he felt like he did not want to address the issues — good, bad, and ugly — that happened from 1991 to 1993. But since the story is about the Fab Five, the story is not just about him. For him to not give an interview in 2011, that really does not affect the integrity of the story. ChrisWebber.com

Phoenix Suns, Jalen Rose, Chris Webber, Grant Hill, Michigan, Duke 

"I begged the (ownership) to keep Chris Webber and let me go ... and I could have been in San Antonio and had Tim Duncan." San Francisco Chronicle

Golden State Warriors, San Antonio Spurs, Coaching, Don Nelson, Chris Webber, Tim Duncan 

Jim Taylor: Chris Webber: "The Blazers will upset whoever they play in the first round of the playoffs." Noted for the record. Twitter

Portland Trail Blazers, Chris Webber 

Suns forward Grant Hill has written an editorial that will appear in this Sunday's New York Times in response to the ESPN 30 for 30 documentary on Michigan's Fab Five. The Fab Five was a college contemporary of Hill's time at Duke and the documentary, for which Jalen Rose was executive producer, has created controversy with statements Rose made about Duke recruiting, including an "Uncle Tom" reference. He and Michigan teammate Jimmy King made specific statements about Hill. Arizona Republic

New York Knicks, Phoenix Suns, Jalen Rose, Chris Webber, Grant Hill, Michigan 

Besides the on-court rivalry, Rose said in the film he felt Duke didn't recruit black players like him, only those who were “Uncle Toms.” Patrick pointed out that Duke did recruit Chris Webber. “We would've welcomed him with open arms,” Hurley said. “Jalen, on the other hand, I can understand why we didn't recruit him. He might have a tough time hitting the floor, because he wasn't taking my spot.” Detroit Free Press

Jalen Rose, Chris Webber, Michigan, Duke, Bobby Hurley 

Former Michigan star Jalen Rose described Sunday's ESPN documentary “The Fab Five” this way during a national conference call: “This is almost like the Bible of the Fab Five story. We really went in-depth about everything — the good, the bad, the ugly.” Michigan center Eric Riley's memories of his days playing with the Fab Five fall under the "bad" and "ugly" categories more often than the "good." "We felt like it was split. It felt like it was two different teams," Riley said, referring to the Fab Five and the Wolverines players that were there before their arrival. "We had experience, and some of us had been on a team that won a national championship (1989). But we felt like we were just part of their team." Daily Tribune

Jalen Rose, Chris Webber, Michigan 

LeBron James: #FabFive S/O to @Jalen Rose, j Howard, C Webb, J King, and R Jackson. What they did for the game is unmatched!! All the way from tiny tots, grade school, high school, college to Pros Twitter

Miami Heat, LeBron James, Jalen Rose, Juwan Howard, Chris Webber 

The "Fab Five" documentary at 9 tonight on ESPN will be considered must-see TV by many basketball fans. For several young NBA players, such as Detroit Pistons players Greg Monroe and Austin Daye, it will be a history lesson about the game they live and love. Monroe was 9 months old and Daye just 2 years old in March 1991, when Chris Webber and Jalen Rose committed to attend the University of Michigan on the same day they won separate high school state titles. Those commitments completed a class of incoming freshman at Michigan that featured five players rated in the top 100 national recruits, including four ranked in the top 10. Booth Newspapers

Detroit Pistons, Greg Monroe, Jalen Rose, Chris Webber, Austin Daye 

Monroe, who has met Webber and played against Howard (now with the Miami Heat), said he will tune in to watch the much-anticipated documentary. "Mostly, I remember them in the NBA," Monroe said following a practice last week. "That’s where I saw Jalen Rose, Chris Webber and Juwan Howard. Growing up, you heard about them and how they set a new style and trend in basketball on and off the court." Daye said his DVR will be set to record the show. "I’m definitely going to watch," he said. "Jalen Rose was one of my favorite players growing up." Booth Newspapers

Detroit Pistons, Greg Monroe, Jalen Rose, Chris Webber, Austin Daye 

Michael Lee: JaVale McGee told me that TNT/NBATV analyst Chris Webber will come Monday to assist him with the Slam Dunk contest. Twitter

Washington Wizards, Javale McGee, Chris Webber, All-Star 

A. Sherrod Blakely: #Celtics Paul Pierce said #Kings rookie DeMarcus Cousins reminds him of Chris Webber w/his post game and ball-handling skills. Twitter

Sacramento Kings, Paul Pierce, DeMarcus Cousins, Chris Webber 

Apparently, the preseason hype that surrounded this team is wearing off. That or the lofty expectations we heard and read about OKC coming into this season are now being replaced with more realistic projections. Either way, two of the all-time greatest players, Charles Barkley and Chris Webber, on Thursday night stubbornly rejected the notion that the Thunder is one of the best four teams in the Western Conference. The matter stretched into a 4 1/2 minute debate during one segment after Kevin Durant responded to one of Barkley’s comments via Twitter. If nothing else, the exchange between Barkley, Webber, Kenny Smith and host Ernie Johnson was entertaining. Here’s a link to the segment. Oklahoman

Oklahoma City Thunder, Kevin Durant, Charles Barkley, Chris Webber