Jermaine Taylor to be traded to Kings, gets news from beat writer

The scene with Jermaine Taylor was beyond weird. He arrived at the Rockets locker room a little before 6. He had heard nothing from the Rockets. His only information was a brief call from his agent, whom Taylor said knew only what I had told him in a very brief voice mail.

Instead of me asking Taylor questions, he asked me, which was as awkward as it was unusual as Courtney Lee and I told him he was heading to Sacramento.

"I'm OK with it," Taylor said of the deal before the game. "The only thing that's bugging me is no one told me anything yet. I had to hear it like this. I look at it as an opportunity to start over and go someplace else and play. I don't know whether to go in the other locker room and get dressed right here.

"I know what kind of player I am and I know if I get a chance, I'll be a great player. That's what I'm looking forward to."

The Rockets had agreed to send Taylor and cash to Sacramento for a conditional second-round pick. The condition is that they'll never, ever get it. It is protected through the top 55. If the Kings somehow don't finish among the best five teams in the league this season, the Rockets get nothing.

They did it to create the roster space for Terrence Williams. Taylor was happy for the chance to get meaningful and regular playing time. But for those few minutes, he truly did not know whether to continue getting dressed, head down the hallway to the Kings locker room or begin calling movers.

The Rockets could have completed the deal Tuesday, but wanted to wait until today, just in case something went wrong with the trade for Williams. That deal involves Joe Smith going to the Lakers and he could not be traded until Wednesday. Nothing is expected to go wrong. The Nets are thrilled with the deal. The Lakers are happy. Sasha Vujacic (who like Taylor, did not know about the deal until told by the media) could not get off their bench. The deal will go through and Taylor will play against the Rockets in Sacramento on Sunday.

For a few minutes there, it was a weird scene. When the game ended, Taylor grabbed some things from his locker and prepared for a move to a team that could use the help.

Funny thing was that his attitude even under those circumstances was as great as it had been through his brief time with the Rockets.