Before being wheeled out of American Airlines Center late Thursday evening, on one of the worst of all possible nights, Chris Webber clutched his injured left knee, squeezed a towel, and uttered the four words that can destroy a season.

"I heard a pop."

Could it have been any worse?

The Kings' best player tumbles in a heap beneath the basket -- status unknown prior to an MRI today -- his teammates collectively relinquish a record-setting 83 points at halftime, Bobby Jackson fractures a cheekbone, Hedo Turkoglu gets ejected, Vlade Divac is benched to start the second half, and the bottom line is this: the Kings committed the mortal sin.