Sacramento mayor Kevin Johnson speaks during a news conference. (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

During his 12-year NBA career, Kevin Johnson amassed 6,711 assists. But his most significant assist probably came earlier this week when he bridged the gap between the Kings, the city of Sacramento, and the NBA as a tentative deal was reached that would finance a new arena in Sacramento and keep the Kings in the California capital for a long time.

The agreement was a watershed moment for Johnson, the current mayor of Sacramento and former NBA star point guard for the Phoenix Suns. Johnson, who turned 46 on March 4, grew up in the Northern California region, went to high school in the Sacramento area, and attended the University of California at Berkeley. He is a Central Valley kid to the core, and he has a tremendous affinity for the community and he didn’t want to see his beloved city lose its one and only NBA franchise.

“It really didn’t start happening until Mayor Johnson came in,” Kings co-owner Gavin Maloof said on NBA TV. “We were so pleased that he became involved. I think the difference this time was the political will. We never really had that in all the other failed attempts. We couldn’t get the politics behind us, and now that Kevin is at the helm we’re really, really pleased.”

The new deal finally gave Kings fans something to cheer about. The franchise – which moved from Kansas City to Sacramento in 1985 – hasn’t had a winning season since 2006, and this year’s ballclub appears headed to the NBA lottery. When the framework of the deal was completed during the All-Star break, the anxiety-filled last couple years turned into one big exhale.

The Maloofs had been trying to get a new arena built in Sacramento for 13 years. After failing nine times, they were ready to pack up and leave.

The Kings appeared to be headed out of town, and the hardcore fans who fill Arco Arena night after night were already bracing for the worst. But a last-minute effort by Johnson and his team of civic leaders pulled off a near miraculous comeback that not only helped save the Kings in Sacramento but also provide a boost to the city’s economy with the amount of business the state-of-the-art arena would bring to the community.

“It’s terrific. We’re so excited to have the team here for many, many years. It’s great for our fans, great for our sponsors, the city, the community, for all of Northern California,” said Maloof, who promises the Kings will have a brand new 19,000-seat arena built by 2015.

According to the Sacramento Bee, the arena would cost about $390 million with a privately-financed $25 million premium parking facility next to the arena; a $1 fee on every arena ticket that will be set aside for facility maintenance and operations; and terms of a 50-50 split on naming rights and luxury suite revenue between arena operator AEG and the Kings.

The Bee also reported that the Kings are being asked to provide $73 million toward the project upfront. AEG will contribute $58 million to the deal in exchange for keeping much of the revenue from operating the arena. AEG will share part of its profits with the city.

“The building is a huge plus. It will help us recruit free agents, help us retain our current players, and it’s a beacon of light for our entire community. Everyone can rally behind this arena,” Maloof said.

Clippers forward Blake Griffin excited Staples Center - and the World Wide Web - with his dunk against the Oklahoma City Thunder. (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

Before we go completely gaga over Blake Griffin’s thunderous dunk (or throwdown) over Kendrick Perkins, let’s take a step back and avoid being a prisoner of the moment.

Griffin’s aerial assault on Jan. 30 against the Oklahoma City Thunder was spectacular and deserved all the attention it received the past couple of days. But to proclaim it as the best dunk in NBA history, like many were calling it on Twitter, is a complete knee-jerk reaction and a little farfetched. There was a whole lot of hyperbole going around the Web when Griffin posterized Perkins. Even LeBron James, who has seen or done better dunks in the past, got caught up in the moment.

In case you haven’t seen Blake’s dunk, click here.

Was it the best dunk ever? Before you answer that question, slow your roll and check out these 10 dunks. They all may be equal to or better than Griffin’s slam.

10) BARON DAVIS LOWERS THE BOOM ON ANDREI KIRILENKO AND THE JAZZ

9) SHAQUILLE O’NEAL BRINGS DOWN THE HOUSE (AND THE BACKBOARD) IN NEW JERSEY

8) DWYANE WADE PUNKS KENDRICK PERKINS AND DOES THE CABBAGE PATCH

7) KEVIN JOHNSON POSTERIZES HAKEEM OLAJUWON IN A 1994 PLAYOFF GAME

6) LEBRON JAMES “WITH NO REGARD FOR HUMAN LIFE!” AGAINST THE CELTICS

5) SHAWN KEMP TOMAHAWKS THE WARRIORS IN THE 1992 PLAYOFFS

4) JULIUS “DR. J” ERVING ROCKS THE CRADLE ON MICHAEL COOPER

3) MICHAEL JORDAN SPINS BASELINE AND THROWS IT DOWN ON PATRICK EWING AT THE GARDEN

2) DOMINIQUE WILKINS: THE ORIGINAL HUMAN HIGHLIGHT REEL

1) VINCE CARTER LEAPS OVER 7-FOOT FREDERIC WEIS IN THE OLYMPICS

Former NBA star Kevin Johnson, now Mayor of Sacramento, plans on helping the homeless who are forced to live in "Tent City."

Of the 6,711 assists Kevin Johnson has dished out throughout his 13-year NBA career, he recently delivered an even bigger assist to the financially troubled people of Northern California – this time as the Mayor of Sacramento.

A tent city that sprang up in the California state capital of Sacramento and became a symbol of the country’s desperate economic plight is to be closed within three weeks, the Sacramento Bee reported on March 20.

Mayor Johnston, born and raised in Sacramento and attended Cal Berkeley, said the plan was to move hundreds of the tent city residents to “safer, more sanitary” quarters and cordon off the pasture that they had called home.

The makeshift settlement got international attention last month when Oprah Winfrey filmed a segment at the site showing the deplorable conditions, with people living without running water, electricity or toilets.

According to the Bee, though the camp was seen as a stark illustration of the impact of the housing crisis, local reports have noted that most of its occupants have been homeless for years and that only a handful are people who have recently lost their jobs and homes due to the current economic crisis.

Johnson said the city has identified 150 beds that can be used immediately for temporary and permanent housing for tent city residents, while other members of the camp could be housed in modular units at an exhibition centre or in subsidised “shared housing” apartments.

Job losses, home foreclosures and a deepening recession are sending scores of newly homeless people into a makeshift camp along the banks of the American River in Sacramento, reported National Public Radio.

The tent city, spread over an area the size of several football fields, has local officials scrambling over how to handle the area’s homeless crisis.

More than a year ago, a handful of homeless people staked out the site on the northern edge of downtown Sacramento. Now there are more than 100 tents and anywhere between 300 to 400 people living without running water or sanitation. Their only protection from the elements is nylon tents and plastic tarps.

A single mid-day meal is available at a nearby faith-based charity called Loaves and Fishes. That’s where social worker Jim Peth says he’s seeing a lot of the newly homeless.

“That’s been very recent,” Peth says. “And you can tell because they’re much better dressed. They’re disoriented; they don’t know where to go. So they’re easy to spot.”