[Grades?]Kings v. Hornets - 2/25/17

VF21

Super Moderator Emeritus
SME
#32
A lot of apathy towards Buddy... Not his fault who he was traded for. I'm a fan, and think he will be solid
He's a rookie...stepping into the shoes (metaphorically speaking) of a future Hall of Fame player. It's normal for people to want to judge him by comparing him to said player. I don't expect a lot of him right now. In fact, I'm more interested in seeing Skal and WCS play. :)
 
#33
Simple -
it's one game to them.
If directives come down for teams to take a dive, then they simply get one back later on to even up.
On a simpler level, the Nuggets players simply didn't care about the game as much as the Kings' players did.

But this one game was absolutely vital for Vivek, Vlade, the entire Kings organization to save face and not lose MILLIONS of dollars with immediate proof of how hapless the team is now.

From a business standpoint, it make business sense for the NBA to have the Kings have that one game (with all the attention and eyes on it) to let them shine and not completely turn-off the fanbase.
People will have that as a mirage to keep their hopes up for a long time, and they will bank on that (market) "the up-and-coming, promising youngsters" angle.

THIS game is much more reality of the NBA.
Whether you want to explain it through a conscious conspiracy (keep in mind the defense the Kings got away with which fueled the offense which is very rare for them not to be called fouls), or a simple reasonable difference in how much each roster needed the win, the result is the same -
last game was a mirage, and this game is more the reality of the Kings for the foreseeable future.
I don't think you could get Coach Malone to throw a game of tiddly winks with a 3 year old. But I do admire your will to persevere.
 
#34
Despite the score the game didn't suck to watch... Straight lin as far as I'm concerned.

Skal is a revelation. He looks amazing out there.

Buddy even in a bad game managed to contribute. He'll tighten up his handle over the summer I believe.

Wcs was a non factor offensively after looking unreal last time out but he still managed to make some nice defensive plays.

The young guys got plenty of run and we moved a little closer to keeping our pick with Dallas winning tonight.
 
#35
He's a rookie...stepping into the shoes (metaphorically speaking) of a future Hall of Fame player. It's normal for people to want to judge him by comparing him to said player. I don't expect a lot of him right now. In fact, I'm more interested in seeing Skal and WCS play. :)
Yeah Buddy needs a summer to work on his handle. He'll be much improved next year.
 
#36
Despite the score the game didn't suck to watch... Straight lin as far as I'm concerned.

Skal is a revelation. He looks amazing out there.

Buddy even in a bad game managed to contribute. He'll tighten up his handle over the summer I believe.

Wcs was a non factor offensively after looking unreal last time out but he still managed to make some nice defensive plays.

The young guys got plenty of run and we moved a little closer to keeping our pick with Dallas winning tonight.
The Coaches will have to "feature" Willie in the offense to get his points I think. I did notice that the Hornets are a much better defensive team than the Nuggets. Also they had watched the Nuggets game and were watching the passing lanes to Willie.
 

VF21

Super Moderator Emeritus
SME
#37
Despite the score the game didn't suck to watch... Straight lin as far as I'm concerned.

Skal is a revelation. He looks amazing out there.

Buddy even in a bad game managed to contribute. He'll tighten up his handle over the summer I believe.

Wcs was a non factor offensively after looking unreal last time out but he still managed to make some nice defensive plays.

The young guys got plenty of run and we moved a little closer to keeping our pick with Dallas winning tonight.
No offense, but we banned the use of the words "lin" and "woss" a while back.
 
#38
The Coaches will have to "feature" Willie in the offense to get his points I think. I did notice that the Hornets are a much better defensive team than the Nuggets. Also they had watched the Nuggets game and were watching the passing lanes to Willie.
I kinda like the idea of Willie not being featured so much and getting his buckets when they're there. Just play great defense when his offense isn't there. With him and skal on the floor together there's a lot of athleticism in the front court. We'll see how it comes together
 
#43
They have a relatively tough schedule, and no chemistry.

At this point, I'm ambivalent to them winning. I think the top three protection is as big of a threat as them being a playoff team
It's not really close. If they miss the playoffs, it's likely they finish in the 9-12 range which makes it really unlikely theyou jump up. Lotto picks are pure gold this year, we need thato sucker
 
#44
Skal was nice. We may struggle to score for a while yet. I have to ask why was Ben on Batum while Tyreke was out there? It was 2 days ago that was Ben beat up by a bigger stronger SF? I know he's probably gone after the season but I like Tyreke'so game. I think Hield, Temple, and Malachi are the only 3 current guys we keep.
 
#45
Pelicans losing to a potential west playoff team is great for us too. Starting the post-cousins era off well
The Pelicans were posting Boogie in the 4th and it wasn't working. I have been saying for years he's not reliable down there with TOs and forced shots. He's gotten better but he doesn't have a go-to move. Boogie only got 9 FGAs to Davis 34 FGAs. They are going to get better but their supporting cast is awful. Losing Omri is real blow because he could have been their 4th best player. Tomorrow the Pelicans have the rested Thunder on the road. That's likely going to put them at 0-3 post-trade. And the more the frustration grows the more likely Boogie gets another technical and misses game. Good news for us! The Pelicans schedule the rest of the way is pretty rough. I don't think their playoffs odds are very good unless they make dramatic improvement.
 
#46
Charlotte is just a really bad matchup. They start three 6'8 long guys in Batum, Kidd Glichrest and Wiliams who were doing a great job of swarming the rollers on our picks and on offense they were exploiting their size on the wings. This team is gonna have success through pick and roll. At least Skal showed us something, great touch and is showing flashes of high level understanding of game and skill. That pump fake, put it on the floor and left hand hook was nice.
 
#47
The Pelicans were posting Boogie in the 4th and it wasn't working. I have been saying for years he's not reliable down there with TOs and forced shots. He's gotten better but he doesn't have a go-to move. Boogie only got 9 FGAs to Davis 34 FGAs. They are going to get better but their supporting cast is awful. Losing Omri is real blow because he could have been their 4th best player. Tomorrow the Pelicans have the rested Thunder on the road. That's likely going to put them at 0-3 post-trade. And the more the frustration grows the more likely Boogie gets another technical and misses game. Good news for us! The Pelicans schedule the rest of the way is pretty rough. I don't think their playoffs odds are very good unless they make dramatic improvement.
I would have thought NO would win this game, I mean they start Dirk at C. Scouting report is out though, just swarm Cousins in different ways(on the catch, at the rim, on the drive). Their roster is really bad outside of their top three guys. Reminds me of the Cousins, IT, Rudy team.
 
#48
Also disappointed with Collison. I was thinking this might be a stretch for him to prove to be a Jrue/Dragic type.. but I didn't feel his presence at all. Maybe Vlade thought you could keep that top ten with him on the roster
 
#49
Key word, horrible TEAM. I still say it's indeed possible to build around him, and the Kings failed him every single step of the way. Did he help out with his personal issues. Sure, I won't argue that. Were they blown totally out of proportion? I also think so.

We won ~30 games on the back of him and little help. Give him a TEAM and look out.
He had IT and Rudy. Either of them are perfectly capable 2nd options to lead us past 30 wins. Stop with the excuses.
 
#51
Awful game, outside of Skal. Without him there would be zero to be excited about on this team.

It is what it is. This team isn't cracking 30 wins this year. It's going to be rough for the foreseeable future, as in multiple seasons, unless we luck into another superstar.

Sigh... yeah, superstar. I wish we knew where to get one of those who wanted to play in Sacramento. Maybe in time. It's tough to hit in the draft.

But Culture = A. They lost with class. That was one of the classiest losses I have ever seen!! Kumbaya and rainbows and 20 point losses. The grass is greener in Kingsville!!!!
Oh, come on, what did you expect. I was there, enjoyed the game and the players. Simple deal, our team, a bunch of newbies, in their second game together ran into a buzz saw of tough defense, hurried their shots and took bad ones and couldn't hit anything. Lots of good Kings stuff in this game, just not scoring. Keep coming back and watching this good stuff. Like a breath of fresh air.
 
#52
Charlotte is just a really bad matchup. They start three 6'8 long guys in Batum, Kidd Glichrest and Wiliams who were doing a great job of swarming the rollers on our picks and on offense they were exploiting their size on the wings. This team is gonna have success through pick and roll. At least Skal showed us something, great touch and is showing flashes of high level understanding of game and skill. That pump fake, put it on the floor and left hand hook was nice.
They did good job of taking away lob (and interior pass) to Willie (or Skal) after we destroyed the Nuggets with that play. But that happens when you go up against the 7th ranked defense vs. 30th ranked defense. Skal has touch and patience and nice arc on his shot. Its not uncommon for rookie to rush his moves but Skal has poise and knows he belongs.
 

SLAB

Hall of Famer
#54
Oh, come on, what did you expect. I was there, enjoyed the game and the players. Simple deal, our team, a bunch of newbies, in their second game together ran into a buzz saw of tough defense, hurried their shots and took bad ones and couldn't hit anything. Lots of good Kings stuff in this game, just not scoring. Keep coming back and watching this good stuff. Like a breath of fresh air.
I'll keep coming back and watching because I'm a Kings fan, but the "good stuff".... wasn't good for me.
 
#55
Don't forget about Golden State and their "handsy defense" that the league allows just for them......... or any of the other numerous conspiracy theories you've floated time and time again on this forum.

I'm not sure what's worse:

A.) That you actually believe this crazy nonsense.

Or

B.) That you actually think it's a good idea to hit 'Send' and share it with everyone else expecting to be taken seriously.
Yeah, it's such a crazy theory that the Warriors are allowed to play a more aggressive, reaching style of defense that bats/steals more balls away than most teams.... :rolleyes:

Next thing you know, the loony bin'll be after me for believing that they are also allowed to get away with an inordinate number of illegal screens.

Good thing the reasonable KF's such as yourself are here to remind people that the refs call things consistently from game to game, with no ulterior motives involved....
 
#57
This was a good learning experience game. Lets see what these guys can do when all the easy jumpers and lobs are crashed and youve got to make things happen.

Not sure if Willie can be a franchise center because well hes not a conventional center. Very well could be but I hope we made some sort of effort to aquire Okafor he was throwing the ball in like a pinball tonight, very talented.
 
#58
IT was not the player he is today, and Rudy's brand of basketball has never won at any stop, period. It's not excuses, it's reality.
Well thankfully we aren't talking "winning brand of basketball" and are talking about eclipsing a mere 30 wins. Rudy (as the main/2nd option) did this multiple times in Memphis including a playoff birth. Getting to 30 wins means you've passed being abysmal and are simply a bad team. Are you going to sit there and tell me Rudy Gay and IT (whatever version) were not good enough to help Cousins get past that mark all but once?

The cold, hard reality is that 30 wins should be able to be accomplished by any true superstar by themselves, yet it could barely be accomplished once with solid second options. Again, 30 wins. That's not a lot to ask for if you are supposed to be a franchise player.
 
#60
As bad as our half court offense was, it was our defense that gave this away IMO. Rotations were not crisp, and I don't really fault the guys because that's perhaps even harder to implement for players who haven't been playing together. I was mad that coach stuck with KK for so long, leaving Kaminsky for open shot after open shot.

Wasn't happy with Tyreke's play in the first quarter, he needs to look to kick it out a lot more. In general he's a player that is going to the pound the ball a fair bit, and that does frustrate me at times especially given that he's somehow lost his ability to finish contested shots around the rim in the last 3 seasons. My guess is he just got so used to getting it on the board for AD to finish.

Sad loss, but on to the next one!