then watched him sign with Florida as a free agent.

Sacramento, CA (SportsNetwork.com) - Isaiah Thomas scored 17 points off the bench in his return to Sacramento to help the Phoenix Suns come through with a 115-106 victory over the scuffling Kings. Thomas, traded to the Suns in July after three very productive seasons in Sacramento, put up eight of his points during a 16-2 second-half run that lifted Phoenix to a season-high fifth straight win. Fellow reserve Marcus Morris also had a big night for the Suns, hitting 6-of-7 attempts from 3-point range to finish with 20 points. Eric Bledsoe and Markieff Morris contributed 18 and 17 points, respectively, while Goran Dragic had 16 along with six assists. We got a big lift from Marcus, Suns coach Jeff Hornacek said. When we are making the shots, were getting good looks. Playing without star center DeMarcus Cousins due to a stomach virus, Sacramento suffered its seventh loss in eight games after failing to match Phoenixs markmanship from the perimeter, as the Suns went 14-of-33 on 3-point tries. Darren Collison paced the Kings with 19 points and Rudy Gay and Derrick Williams both had 16 in defeat. Reggie Evans compiled 11 points and 16 rebounds starting in place of Cousins. Well you give up 25 fastbreak points, 19 second-chance points, Kings coach Tyrone Corbin attributed to the loss. The second-chance points really hurt us. The Suns trailed 88-86 late in the third quarter before putting together their game-changing spurt, which was fueled by their long-range shooting. Marcus Morris and Thomas closed out the period with consecutive triples, and Morris drilled another to begin the fourth before Thomas converted a 3-point play that the ex-King followed with a driving layup to put Phoenix up 102-90 with 10:30 left. Sacramento, which went 6-of-21 from the floor in the fourth quarter, never recovered as the Suns stretched the lead to as much as 15 points down the stretch. Phoenix struggled offensively early on before catching fire near the end of the first quarter. The Suns hit 5-of-7 shots -- three of them from long distance -- during a 15-6 stretch that staked them to a 28-17 lead. Sacramento answered with an 8-0 run and continued to chip away, with Carl Landrys short jumper midway through the second quarter giving the Kings a 40-39 edge. The game remained tight for the remainder of the half, with Phoenix owning a 59-56 advantage following a Marcus Morris trey just prior to the buzzer. Phoenix then opened the second half with a 7-0 flurry to go up by double digits, but Collison knocked down a trio of 3-pointers during a 19-10 sequence that pulled the Kings within 76-75 with 5:46 left in the third quarter. Game Notes Sacramento had won five of its last seven matchups with the Suns, including a 114-112 double-overtime triumph in Phoenix in which Cousins totaled 25 points and 18 rebounds ... In addition to Cousins, the Kings were without backup point guard Ramon Sessions due to a strained lower back ... Suns center Alex Len tied a career high with 11 rebounds while swatting away a personal-best five shots. Custom Nike Baseball Jerseys Outlet . -- Once again, Carlos Santana was a huge hit in Kansas City. Custom Nike Tampa Bay Rays Jerseys . Browns owner Jimmy Haslam announced the move with Young on Monday during a speech at a Pro Football Hall of Fame luncheon. https://www.customnikebaseballjerseys.com/ . Reyes, 26, was traded from Atlanta to Toronto in July 2010 and spent the remainder of the season in the minors. He began 2011 in the majors and made 20 starts with the Blue Jays, going 5-8 with a 5.40 earned run average before he was waived on Aug. Custom Nike Houston Astros Jerseys . Louis Cardinals won the World Series last season, but after losing first baseman Albert Pujols to free agency and manager Tony LaRussa to retirement, they opened the 2012 season in 12th spot in the TSN. Custom Nike Baseball Jerseys China . Vonn punctuated her near-perfect season in perfect fashion Friday, earning her fourth overall World Cup title with a dominating giant slalom victory.In terms of actual money, no member of the Ottawa Senators is being paid more this season than Milan Michalek. The winger is making $6 million in 2013-14 – although his cap hit is only $4.3 million. He is in the final year of a back-loaded deal he signed with the San Jose Sharks prior to the 2008-09 season. Michalek has only three goals in 18 games so far this season and is sporting a team-worst minus-seven rating. Prorated over the course of a full season, this would translate into just 14 goals and mark the worst offensive output of his NHL career. In the 2011-12 campaign, Michalek led the Sens with a career-high 35 goals and was one of their most consistent players. But this year, Michalek is like many other players on the roster who is struggling to find his game. "I know I havent been good. I have to be better and everyone is expecting me to score," Michalek told a handful of reporters on Thursday. "Its frustrating right now and hopefully its going to turn around soon." If there is a silver lining to Michaleks woes its that he has been able to stay healthy so far. He missed 25 games with a knee injury last season and clearly wasnt 100 per cent when he returned in time to play in the playoffs. Michalek went overseas in the summer to undergo blood serum therapy for his injured knee and he reiterated on Thursday that he is not suffering from any type of physical ailment that is affecting his production. When the Senators acquired Michalek back in the fall of 2009, he was the centerpiece in a forced deal with the Sharks that saw Dany Heatley head to the west coast. And the Sens have never regretted the trade, considering that Michalek has been the consummate professional and teammate since joining the team. He can play in all situations and has been a consistent performer when he has been able to stay healthy. Since the deal was made, Heatley has averaged 0.34 goals-per-game while Michalek has been right behind with a 0.33 mark. A big reason for Michaleks success has been the chemistry he has formed with Jason Spezza. But this season, Ottawas formerly dynamic duo has failed to generate many opportunities at even-strength. Even Michalek cant explain why he and Spezza cant seem to click this season. "I dont know the difference this year - if I did it would be good. You just have to work hard and hope things willl come around soon," he said.dddddddddddd The 28-year-old is set to become an unrestricted free agent in July and he couldnt have picked a worse time to go into a slump. The Senators have already stated they are a budget team that will stay well below the cap, so its hard to imagine a scenario where Michalek can come back next season making anything close to $4 million. The club also has to deal with several contracts that are set to expire in the next 18 months or so, including: Spezza, Chris Phillips, Bobby Ryan, Clarke MacArthur and Craig Anderson. Where does Michalek fit on that priority list? Its hard to say, but his slow start to the season isnt helping his cause. "Im just trying not to think about it. Well see what happens in the future," Michalek said when asked if the pressure of playing in the final year of his contract was a factor in his slow start. In the past, Bryan Murray has not traded away his veteran players who were set to become unrestricted free agents when his team was in a playoff race. We could all see the writing on the wall that Filip Kuba was not coming back after the 2011-12 season, but the Sens hung onto him for the playoff run and then watched him sign with Florida as a free agent. The same scenario played out last season with Sergei Gonchar, who stayed with the team past the trade deadline even though he was set to become an unrestricted free agent. Murray eventually found a taker for Gonchar in early June, but he only received a conditional sixth-round pick in return. Even going further back, Murray ended up hanging onto Anton Volchenkov and Wade Redden in seasons where they ended up walking as UFAs. So what will they do with Michalek this season? A lot depends on the teams performance in the next 6-to-8 weeks. If they are out of the playoff race, we could see a similar situation to what played out in 2010-11, when Murray shipped off several veterans around the trade deadline. If Michalek is healthy, surely someone will take a chance on him and his expiring contract. But if the Sens are in the playoff race, Murray has shown a reluctance to move any of his key pieces – even though they have the ability to walk at the end of the year. Of course, if the Sens are going to get into the playoffs this season, they will likely need more production from Michalek. ' ' '