A POINT GUARD FIT FOR ROYALTY BIBBY THRIVING IN SACRAMENTO: IS NBA TITLE NEXT?

Byline: Jill Painter Staff Writer

Mike Bibby was blossoming into a successful NBA point guard. He was flashy yet smart. A beautiful passer who could also score from a variety of spots on the floor. A resilient player who started all 214 games his first three seasons.

Yet he played for the floundering Vancouver Grizzlies, who won 54 games in three years.

The Sacramento Kings were quickly becoming one of the league's better teams. The cast of Chris Webber, Peja Stojakovic, Doug Christie and Co. had the Kings on the rise, but they couldn't get past the Lakers in the playoffs, losing to the two-time defending champions the past two seasons.

Then came what seems to be a perfect marriage: In the offseason, the Kings sent Jason Williams, the loved yet erratic point guard, to the now-Memphis Grizzlies for Bibby in a four-player deal.

He was the missing piece for the championship-minded Kings, or so it seems. And they're the team that finally complements Bibby.

``I'm having fun again and that's probably the main thing,'' Bibby said. ``We're winning and I'm having fun. I think I couldn't have been put in a better situation than the one I'm in now.''

Since Bibby's arrival, the Kings have reached numerous milestones. They have the best record in the NBA at 60-20, winning more games than Bibby did with the Grizzlies in three years.

The Kings won the Pacific Division title last week with a 125-106 victory over the Clippers, the first title in franchise history since the Kansas City Kings won their division in 1978-79. And they secured homecourt advantage throughout the playoffs, a tremendous advantage in light of their record at Arco Arena - 35-5.

The Lakers, one of just four teams this season to win at Arco, play host the Kings tonight at Staples Center in the regular-season finale.

It is, in all likelihood, a preview of the Western Conference finals. And, while the Lakers have won two of three against the Kings, Sacramento - under the direction of a new point guard - might be better equipped than any other team to knock off the defending champions.

``When I first came here, I knew good things were going to happen,'' Bibby said. ``I just didn't know what. I think God does stuff for a reason. Things happen for a reason. It feels good, but I'm just going to take it game by game. I'm just happy to be here.''

And the Kings were happy to have him. The fans have embraced him. Why else would one Web site be dedicated to pictures of Bibby's eight tattoos and the stories behind them?

Williams, who wowed spectators with his breathtaking ballhandling skills and unpredictably stylish moves, was a popular player with the Kings and their fans in spite of his penchant for miscues.

However, Bibby's teammates accepted him immediately, which explains a seemingly effortless transition.

``I think Mike is more like the icing on the cake,'' Webber said. ``More than anything, it's been all of us. I'm not discounting him at all because he's come in here and guided the ship smoothly. But I think it's everyone in here. He's been better than everyone would've thought.''

Bibby is Sacramento's third-leading scorer at 13.7 points per game, but he's one of seven with double-figure scoring averages for the high-scoring Kings. Only three Lakers - Shaquille O'Neal, Kobe Bryant and Derek Fisher - average in double figures.

Bibby averaged 14.7 points and 7.8 assists with Vancouver. However, with guard Bobby Jackson and Webber, one of the NBA's best-passing big men, Bibby averages just 5.1 assists with Sacramento.

``What Mike gives you is such a consistent effort game in and game out,'' Kings coach Rick Adelman said. ``He's a great shooter. He's a great decision maker. A lot of times you come to a team like ours - and he averaged almost 20 points and eight assists with Vancouver - but with us, he's not going to do that and it's never bothered him.

``He knows other guys can pass the ball and they're going to get assists. That's what made him so special.''

What's special for Bibby, the son of USC coach Henry Bibby, is a personal support group - ``Team Dime,'' a reference to his jersey number - composed of family and friends who have been there for Bibby through all his ups and downs.

As a college freshman, he was the point guard on Arizona's national-championship team in 1997 and became the second overall pick in the 1998 NBA draft, leaving the Wildcats after his sophomore season.

He landed with a beleaguered franchise that was young and talented but couldn't win. In his first season - shortened because of the NBA lockout - Vancouver won just eight games.

``He always had a support group with him that has kept him going despite losing,'' his mother, Virginia Bibby, said from her home in Phoenix. ``It wasn't something that he was enjoying, but he had to make the best of whatever situation he was in. He's in a better situation, the team is winning and he feels better about himself.''

Western Conference teams have noticed.

``When they had J-dub (Williams), you never knew what J-dub was going to do,'' Lakers forward Robert Horry said. ``He was more of a 3-point shooter. He really didn't have too much in between and that's where Bibby makes a difference. And I think they trust him more.''

The Kings trust he's the final piece of a championship puzzle.

MIKE BIBBY FILE

Age: 23

Height: 6-1

Weight: 190

Position: Point guard

Pro experience: 4th season

2002 stats: 13.7 points, 5.1 assists

How acquired: Traded from Vancouver (now Memphis) for Jason Williams in a four-player deal in January.

Career-high games: 37 points at Minnesota, Nov. 22, 2000; 18 assists, three times

Personal: Son of USC coach Henry Bibby

College: Guided Arizona to the NCAA title as a freshman in 1997

CAPTION(S):

2 photos, box

Photo:

(1 -- color) Mike Bibby's contributions have many observers thinking he's the missing piece to Sacramento's championship puzzle.

Eric Grigorian/Special to the Daily News

(2) ``We're winning and I'm having fun. I think I couldn't have been put in a better situation than the one I'm in now.'' - Mike Bibby, Sacramento Kings point guard (pictured at left)

Box:

MIKE BIBBY FILE (see text)