A DEFINING MOMENT KINGS READY TO PLACE ADVERSITY BEHIND THEM.

Byline: Vincent Bonsignore Staff Writer

SACRAMENTO - Chris Webber doesn't remember specific games as much as recall a cluster of images.

Larry Bird stealing the inbound pass against Webber's beloved Detroit Pistons in the 1988 Eastern Conference finals, piercing the heart of every tormented Pistons fan from Detroit to East Lansing,Mich.

Or Bill Laimbeer sinking six 3-pointers to help the Pistons close out the Portland Trail Blazers in the 1990 NBA Final, completing back-to-back titles after so many years of misery.

Those were defining moments in a kid's life, but even as Webber watched the Pistons back then with his family in Detroit, secretly envisioning himself one day performing on the same illustrious stage, he always recognized the pain that flowed with the triumph out on the court.

``You have to lose to a team before finally passing them.'' Webber said.

Like the Pistons falling so many times to the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference playoffs before breaking through against them in the 1988 Conference Finals, or Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls getting tortured by the Pistons all those years before Jordan finally rose above his hated rival to reach the 1991 NBA Finals.

And maybe even now as Webber and the Kings try to dethrone the two-time defending-champion Lakers in the Western Conference finals after falling to them the past two years in the playoffs.

The Kings face the Lakers in Game 7 today at Arco Arena, the final battle in an epic series that will certainly etch its place in NBA history and one Webber can't help compare to the bloody Celtics-Pistons, Bulls-Pistons wars over the years.

``One of those series where you walk off the floor and don't shake the hand of the opponent,'' Webber said. ``You have to fight and claw for everything.''

The series has been a fan's delight, if not a player's nightmare. The past three games have been decided in the final seconds, and each team has won on the other's court.

Kobe Bryant supposedly was the victim of food poisoning before Game 2 in Sacramento. Both teams believe they've been conspired against by the officials. And Friday the Kings circled around the LAX runway for an hour before their flight home finally took off, leaving some of the Kings to wonder if a Lakers fan was giving their pilot directions.

``A 6:30 p.m. game and we don't get home until 1:30 a.m.?'' Scot Pollard said.

This has been an epic battle filled with all kinds of subplots, so what better stage to finish things than a winner-take-all seventh game?

``This is what you dream and hope for,'' Vlade Divac said. ``This is what it's all about. Game 7.''

But are the Kings ready to ascend to such heights, and do so at the expense of the world-champion Lakers in a dramatic Game 7, no less?

Or is this just another stage of the misery before ecstasy process?

The Kings believe they are ready.

``We're going out there to win the game and reach the NBA Final,'' Rick Adelman said.

Webber, who re-signed with the Kings this offseason despite speculation he'd bolt to Detroit or New York as a free agent, agrees.

``We feel we're the better team,'' Webber said Saturday.

The Kings haven't been shy about claiming their superiority over the Lakers - Webber insisted Saturday the Kings have rightfully won five of the six games, and that only some questionable officiating has extended the series this far.

``Obviously we have to overcome some obstacles in this series,'' Webber said.

The Kings were especially upset after Game 6 when the Lakers attempted 27 free throws in the fourth quarter of a 106-102 victory to send the series back to Sacramento for Game 7.

But those complaints won't mean a thing today, which is why the Kings came to practice Saturday with the specific objective of cutting loose the disappointment of the Game 6 loss and focusing on today's game.

The last thing the Kings need is thoughts of referees out to get them clouding their heads.

``We came here to get it out of our minds,'' Webber said.

Now they're looking ahead to today.

``We're hungry and we believe in ourselves,'' Divac said. ``We're very confident. I think good things are going to happen. We just have to go out on the floor and prove it.''

The Kings earned the right to play host to Game 7 by finishing with the best record in the NBA, three games better than the second-place Lakers.

``We played all year for the homecourt advantage in a Game 7,'' Doug Christie said. ``So I guess you have to watch out what you hope for sometimes, because you just might get it. But we just have to go out and play hard and play smart. I think we'll be all right.''

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Chris Webber has experienced a lot of heartache while watching, and playing, in the NBA. Webber's now close to leading Sacramento to the NBA Finals.

David Sprague/Staff Photographer