Bee: Kings cannot contain Barnes

SacTownKid

Hall of Famer
#1
http://www.sacbee.com/100/story/92001.html

Kings cannot contain Barnes

'Sac Town's Finest' scores a career-high 32 for the Warriors.

By Sam Amick - Bee Staff Writer

Published 12:00 am PST Wednesday, December 13, 2006
Story appeared in SPORTS section, Page C1
Print | E-Mail | Comments (0)

OAKLAND -- The absence of Jason Richardson was supposed to be a blessing.
The Kings, to this point, had made a habit out of catching each opponent at full health, with various superstars missing time before or after but never during their Sacramento stop. And this, as a reminder, was one of the worst Kings-killers of them all, a J-Rich who routinely got J-Richer when it came to the Golden State-Kings Northern California rivalry game.

But with Richardson out because of a bruised knee, former Kings forward and local product Matt Barnes took it to his old bosses like he never has, posting career highs of 32 points and 11 rebounds as the Warriors ran over the Kings in a whole new way, 126-113, at Oracle Arena on Tuesday night.


"It felt good, especially doing it against Sacramento," Barnes said. "It's always fun to play against guys I work out with in the summer and hang out with, but it was more important to get on track."

During the summer, Barnes had no NBA jobs to speak of. He would have come the Kings' way in a heartbeat. But he wound up with the Warriors as training camp neared, then made the team on a non-guaranteed contract with a strong camp and exhibition season.

For one night, Barnes -- the Del Campo High School graduate who has a tattoo on his left arm reading "Sac Town's Finest" -- could have worn a matching one on his right arm with temporary ink, perhaps reading "Oak Town's Finest."

The player so long labeled a non-shooter hit 13 of 22, including 6 of 9 three-pointers. In the first quarter, he scored nine points that were, simultaneously, everything the Kings wanted and didn't want.

The Kings' focus coming in was to avoid a repeat of their Nov. 16 visit, in which the Warriors put up 40 first-quarter points by pushing the throttle from the start. This time, the Kings were successful in their transition defense. It was their halfcourt defense that was exposed, as point guard Baron Davis, the focal point, drove the lane repeatedly and found shooters throughout. The Warriors, consequently, tied a Kings opponents' franchise record with 15 three-pointers on 27 attempts and shot 53.1 percent (43 for 81) overall.

"Obviously, we're not playing very good defense," Kings coach Eric Musselman said.


"Collectively, individually, we must not be teaching it right because their reaction to loose balls was quite evident each time down the floor. So those are areas of concern."
As are the Kings' own three-pointers, as they tried 32 and hit 10 against the Warriors' zone defense. Mike Bibby was 4 for 12 from three-point range and 4 for 14 overall for 16 points, and Ron Artest also was 4 for 14 and had 22 points. Kevin Martin was the lone threat from start to finish, scoring 32 points on 10-for-18 shooting.

"I think in that locker room, those guys probably thought that those (three-pointers) they were taking, they were going to make," Musselman said. "But having said that, where we rank in three-point percentage (27th) in the league is not very high. We need to work on them more in practices obviously."

Tied 18-18, the Warriors went on an 11-0 run. The Kings missed all six of their shots in that stretch, with Artest responsible for three. After trailing by 14 points midway through the second quarter, the Kings never came closer than seven points.
Artest, who said after Davis scored 36 points in the teams' last meeting that he should have guarded the point guard, did so this time.

"I guess I should've guarded Matt Barnes and Baron Davis at the same time," Artest said. "I guess that's something I've got to work on, guarding two people at the same time.

"Once Mike gets going, we're going to be fine. We've got to guard the post a little better, the dribble drive a little better, and coach is working on some defensive schemes because early on, his defensive schemes weren't the best."
 
Last edited:

SacTownKid

Hall of Famer
#2
Kings cannot contain Barnes

'Sac Town's Finest' scores a career-high 32 for the Warriors.

By Sam Amick - Bee Staff Writer

Published 12:00 am PST Wednesday, December 13, 2006
Story appeared in SPORTS section, Page C1
Print | E-Mail | Comments (0)

OAKLAND -- The absence of Jason Richardson was supposed to be a blessing.
The Kings, to this point, had made a habit out of catching each opponent at full health, with various superstars missing time before or after but never during their Sacramento stop. And this, as a reminder, was one of the worst Kings-killers of them all, a J-Rich who routinely got J-Richer when it came to the Golden State-Kings Northern California rivalry game.

But with Richardson out because of a bruised knee, former Kings forward and local product Matt Barnes took it to his old bosses like he never has, posting career highs of 32 points and 11 rebounds as the Warriors ran over the Kings in a whole new way, 126-113, at Oracle Arena on Tuesday night.


"It felt good, especially doing it against Sacramento," Barnes said. "It's always fun to play against guys I work out with in the summer and hang out with, but it was more important to get on track."

During the summer, Barnes had no NBA jobs to speak of. He would have come the Kings' way in a heartbeat. But he wound up with the Warriors as training camp neared, then made the team on a non-guaranteed contract with a strong camp and exhibition season.

For one night, Barnes -- the Del Campo High School graduate who has a tattoo on his left arm reading "Sac Town's Finest" -- could have worn a matching one on his right arm with temporary ink, perhaps reading "Oak Town's Finest."

The player so long labeled a non-shooter hit 13 of 22, including 6 of 9 three-pointers. In the first quarter, he scored nine points that were, simultaneously, everything the Kings wanted and didn't want.

The Kings' focus coming in was to avoid a repeat of their Nov. 16 visit, in which the Warriors put up 40 first-quarter points by pushing the throttle from the start. This time, the Kings were successful in their transition defense. It was their halfcourt defense that was exposed, as point guard Baron Davis, the focal point, drove the lane repeatedly and found shooters throughout. The Warriors, consequently, tied a Kings opponents' franchise record with 15 three-pointers on 27 attempts and shot 53.1 percent (43 for 81) overall.

"Obviously, we're not playing very good defense," Kings coach Eric Musselman said.


"Collectively, individually, we must not be teaching it right because their reaction to loose balls was quite evident each time down the floor. So those are areas of concern."
As are the Kings' own three-pointers, as they tried 32 and hit 10 against the Warriors' zone defense. Mike Bibby was 4 for 12 from three-point range and 4 for 14 overall for 16 points, and Ron Artest also was 4 for 14 and had 22 points. Kevin Martin was the lone threat from start to finish, scoring 32 points on 10-for-18 shooting.

"I think in that locker room, those guys probably thought that those (three-pointers) they were taking, they were going to make," Musselman said. "But having said that, where we rank in three-point percentage (27th) in the league is not very high. We need to work on them more in practices obviously."

Tied 18-18, the Warriors went on an 11-0 run. The Kings missed all six of their shots in that stretch, with Artest responsible for three. After trailing by 14 points midway through the second quarter, the Kings never came closer than seven points.
Artest, who said after Davis scored 36 points in the teams' last meeting that he should have guarded the point guard, did so this time.

"I guess I should've guarded Matt Barnes and Baron Davis at the same time," Artest said. "I guess that's something I've got to work on, guarding two people at the same time.

"Once Mike gets going, we're going to be fine. We've got to guard the post a little better, the dribble drive a little better, and coach is working on some defensive schemes because early on, his defensive schemes weren't the best."
About time someone says this and glad to hear they are working on it. The strategy is completely flawed. Sucking in the paint to help is a big problem for this team. I don't know if that can be helped without getting a shotblocker but it is still very bad at this point.

Also what the heck was with the zone D Muss decided to run when the W's were blazing hot from 3? That was just wierd.
 
#3
Artest, who said after Davis scored 36 points in the teams' last meeting that he should have guarded the point guard, did so this time.

"I guess I should've guarded Matt Barnes and Baron Davis at the same time," Artest said. "I guess that's something I've got to work on, guarding two people at the same time.
Ha ha! That is a funny quote by Artest. I'm sure he was joking, although Bibby's defense causes more tears then laughs. :(
 

Bricklayer

Don't Make Me Use The Bat
#4
"I guess I should've guarded Matt Barnes and Baron Davis at the same time," Artest said. "I guess that's something I've got to work on, guarding two people at the same time.

"Once Mike gets going, we're going to be fine. We've got to guard the post a little better, the dribble drive a little better, and coach is working on some defensive schemes because early on, his defensive schemes weren't the best."

Tick tick tick....
 

SacTownKid

Hall of Famer
#8
I personally hope for the boom. These guys need to show some heart. At least Ron does that much.

I am sure these phrases were spoken with a half smile but I wait for the day Ron gets sick of this effort on the defensive end and starts making some demands of his teammates.
 
#11
I think this is the first time Mussleman put the blame on his team for the loss rather than calling it a "phenomenal" job by Warriors in whooping our A**ES.
 
#13
Kings cannot contain Barnes....

Not in a million years did I ever think we would see such a tile for a news article... but alas that is why we are the Kings.
 
#14
"I guess I should've guarded Matt Barnes and Baron Davis at the same time," Artest said. "I guess that's something I've got to work on, guarding two people at the same time.
I think Bibby is gone at the end of the year. He will walk given the locker room presence of Artest. We need to get something out of it.
 
#17
Someone had to say it... Bibby couldn't guard a fly if his life depended on it.
Wait a sec....he lighter and quicker then ever and determine to play solid defense....what happened?.... I'm not an expert for one-on-one defense but I don't understand why he can't stay in front of any elite point guards more than 3 seconds?
 
#19
Before the game, I looked at the Warrior's line-up and saw Barnes. Ok, we have a weak spot, we can sluff off Barnes to help on defense. It looks like Muss thought the same thing. Dang.

Last time it was Davis with a career night. This time, it was a bench warmer with a career night.

What ticked me off most was, the Warriors had been playing even WORSE than we have in the prior 10 games! WORSE!! And yet, they come out and look like the Phoenix Suns never missing 3s. Why us? They couldn't beat a fly before last night but they all look like all-stars against us. CRAP!!
 
#22
no. bibby would never make my list. no matter how mad i get at him. we are still a big man away from contending. some center we've never heard of got 20 and 6 against us last night. posting career nights like pizza coupons. the problem is our front court. has been since webber and divac left.
 
#23
EVERYONE talked about how bibby got better defensively. what happened?
What happened is he's not now, nor has he ever been, a natural defender. It's just not the way he's built.

He opened up the pre-season with a renewed energy on that end and was clearly playing above his natural ability. Then he got hurt on a defensive play. Then the team started playing poorly -- barely winning the good ones, badly losing the bad ones. New and exciting turned into different and sucky. Energy and enthusiasm went down, defense went bye bye. Now we're back to good ol' can't-guard-a-parked-car Mike Bibby.

Which, though I'm not usually much on self congratulation, is exactly what I and a few others predicted would happen a couple of months ago. We've got a team that's built for offense, and tried to balance it out with a coach that preaches defense -- that's just not going to work. Anyone who didn't see this coming, at least a little bit, had their head in the clouds. Front office included.
 
#24
Go Matt Barnes! I couldn't hope for a nicer guy to stick the dagger in the Kings and twist. :) Seriously, I hate it but I have to admire Matt for it. The kid worked hard and keeps hanging around the league long after most people thought he'd wash out.

I wish we'd kept him and his tattoo because there was something special and fun about having a local kid hustling for a spot on his hometown team. (cheap contract for a semi-useful bencher made sense too)

But it didn't work out so he's got to move on and keep scrapping to hold down an NBA job. He seems to be making progress and I wish him the best.

Say what you want about the guy's talent but he'll always have "32 vs. Sacramento 12/12/06" to look back on if the ball stops bouncing his way. I can dig that, if I stop being mad long enough (ouch, worse than the warriors now, that stings) to be happy for Barnes.
 
#25
Exactly, Ron can stand Bibby's lack of Defense by his comment of him trying to learn to guard 2 players at one time. I think Bibby will be traded, or Artest will explode. Kind of the same thing with Webber's feeling about Peja's lack of Defense and softness. You have to have respect for your teamates and know you have each other's backs, this is turning into a big rift and the teams chemistry is very bad. I feel we need to blow this thing up and go into total rebuild mode around KMart and Artest and maybe also Price.
 
#26
Before the game, I looked at the Warrior's line-up and saw Barnes. Ok, we have a weak spot, we can sluff off Barnes to help on defense. It looks like Muss thought the same thing. Dang.

Last time it was Davis with a career night. This time, it was a bench warmer with a career night.

What ticked me off most was, the Warriors had been playing even WORSE than we have in the prior 10 games! WORSE!! And yet, they come out and look like the Phoenix Suns never missing 3s. Why us? They couldn't beat a fly before last night but they all look like all-stars against us. CRAP!!
Teams are sure licking their shopps thinking about playing us and allowing they younings and old vets to have career nights against us. Matt really torched us. I really hope we would have kept him, he was involved in the Webber trade as well and it sucks losing him. He is a real hustler and man did he get a shot since we traded him away! :D
 
#27
Go Matt Barnes! I couldn't hope for a nicer guy to stick the dagger in the Kings and twist. :) Seriously, I hate it but I have to admire Matt for it. The kid worked hard and keeps hanging around the league long after most people thought he'd wash out.

I wish we'd kept him and his tattoo because there was something special and fun about having a local kid hustling for a spot on his hometown team. (cheap contract for a semi-useful bencher made sense too)

But it didn't work out so he's got to move on and keep scrapping to hold down an NBA job. He seems to be making progress and I wish him the best.

Say what you want about the guy's talent but he'll always have "32 vs. Sacramento 12/12/06" to look back on if the ball stops bouncing his way. I can dig that, if I stop being mad long enough (ouch, worse than the warriors now, that stings) to be happy for Barnes.
Fine. Either he turns into Ray Allen or Tony Delk.

I'll wait and see if he puts up these numbers against anyone else before I decide which it is.
 
#30
Exactly what I'm feeling. Artest has the potential to be a real problem if this team continues to lose. Does he have a right to be pissed off? Of course. Anger isn't bad, its whether you do something constructive or destructive with it.

My personal feeling: I hate when teammates start calling out other teammates to the media. I don't think that ever produces a positive result. It just destroys teams. If Ron wants to criticize anybody, inlcuding Muss or Bibby, go say it to a guy's face, not a reporter.:rolleyes: