[Grades] Grades v. Blazers 1/7/2014

[ParniValjak]

The idea of this man playing next to DeMarcus Cousins is exciting.

the dream shake at 1:22

a player that can make plays like this in the frontcourt next to Big Cuz? sign me up.

Embiid would be ideal, though he seems to operate best offensively from the same block as Cousins but I am sure we could work something out!

Having said that, its a pipe dream. I don't think we will get a pick early enough to get this kid and besides, bigs with that much potential generally rise up the boards closer to the draft because teams are desperate for that next big (literally) thing. Embiid has a rep as a good, hard working kid with huge upside who happens to be improving at a rapid rate. Those guys get taken top 3.

 

[FaStRmAn]

If they play Orlando like they did Portland for the first 3 Quarters, then what would the outcome be? I think the main enemy is consistency. This is a young team in key positions, and consistency is going to suffer some growing pains. I totally agree with moving B-Mac to the bench. He learns nothing getting his brains beat out. He will learn coming in with the 2nd unit and playing his way into the starting unit just like all rooks should. He has a bit to learn especially on the defensive end before he can get run with the big boys.

 

[funkykingston]

Having said that, its a pipe dream. I don't think we will get a pick early enough to get this kid and besides, bigs with that much potential generally rise up the boards closer to the draft because teams are desperate for that next big (literally) thing. Embiid has a rep as a good, hard working kid with huge upside who happens to be improving at a rapid rate. Those guys get taken top 3.

The Wizards got a top three pick last year (Otto Porter) with the 8th worst record in the league.

In 2011 two of the top three picks (#1 and #3) went to teams with the 6th and 8th worst record.

In 2010 the teams with the 5th and 6th worst records picked #1 and #2

When the Bulls got the first pick that became Derrick Rose they had the 9th worst record in the league.

I could go back and check each draft but it certainly seems to me that the team slotted 8th before the lottery ends up picking in the top three pretty often.

Even with the win over Portland the Kings still own the 4th worst record in the NBA.

And while I think the Kings have a potentially very good duo with Gay & Cousins and a top level6th man in IT, it will take time for the team to gel. And because PDA seems bound and determined to keep wheeling and dealing there will likely be more new players to integrate meaning more bumps in the road and inconsistency.

My guess/hope is that the team continues its up & down play, looking impressive in some wins and rudderless in some losses before finally appearing to put the pieces together to finish the season strong, ending up with the 6th or 7th worst record in the league. And history has shown that's still a slot with a VERY good chance of jumping into the top three. Embiid? Yes please. Exum looks like he would be a nice piece too. But in the worst case that they miss out on the first tier a guy like Willie Cauley-Stein or Noah Vonleh would make for a really nice pairing with Cousins.

 

[kupman]

At a certain point you get tired of banging your head against a brick wall, just post the video, let people decide for themselves.

This video shows some nice examples of very poor team defense.

:27 IT is picked and DMC help D is feeble

:32 IT is picked and JT barely shows at all; JT does nothing to slow DL down after IT is picked

1:00 IT is picked and DMC lets DL run righy by him and to the basket to get a nice assist.

2:08 IT is picked and DMC and JT offer very little help


The game plan against us should be simple. Set picks on IT and know that nobody will step in and offer help. You will probably be able to dribble uncontested to the basket.

 

[Glenn]

This may be a rude and certainly lazy request but does anyone have a list of the odds involved for the lottery bound teams? If I recall correctly, the worst team in the league has a 25% chance of getting the #1 pick and different odds for them getting other picks. The team with the best record has about a 1% chance of getting the #1 pick. Any team outside the top three can move up into the top three. They cannot move up to any other position outside of the top 3.

The funky one gave a lot of good examples. For instance, if we have the third worst record we would have, let's say, a 10% chance of getting #1, 15% to get #2, and 20% 0f #3. If other teams moved up to the top three, we could be bumped backwards AT THE MOST three positions. Let's say we end up 8th from the bottom. We would have a certain percentage chance of getting picks 1, 2, or 3 but we could not move up to 4, 5, etc. We could get bumped backward if teams 9-13 got into the top 3 which seldom happens. It's a matter of probability.

The long and short of it is that the worst we do, the best chance we have of getting a high pick and the worst we could do is pick 3 positions lower.

Statistics are not altered by luck or the past. They are what they are.

 

[funkykingston]

This may be a rude and certainly lazy request but does anyone have a list of the odds involved for the lottery bound teams?

From this last draft:
http://www.nba.com/bobcats/2013-nba-draft-lottery-odds-chart

 

[Capt. Factorial]

From this last draft:
http://www.nba.com/bobcats/2013-nba-draft-lottery-odds-chart

Perhaps better is the Wikipedia article. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NBA_draft_lottery

The one thing that you'll see in the link from the Bobcats is that last year there was a tie for 7/8. The Wiki article will have the odds for no ties, and then if there are any you can figure them out by averaging.

 

[Glenn]

This will probably be a useful conclusion for Kings fans. This assumes we finish between 5th and 14th. We are very likely to get the pick where we finish or one later. In other words if we finish 6th, we will have a high probability of picking 6th or 7th. If we finish 5th, we are most likely to pick 5th or 6th.

 

[FaStRmAn]

Let's just say Malone tried everybody on Lillard, and there's simply no dynamic defenders on this roster.

Yea but Malone aint the only Coach with that problem. Lillard is a freek who scores on just about everyone.

 

[jalfa]

The Wizards got a top three pick last year (Otto Porter) with the 8th worst record in the league.

In 2011 two of the top three picks (#1 and #3) went to teams with the 6th and 8th worst record.

In 2010 the teams with the 5th and 6th worst records picked #1 and #2

When the Bulls got the first pick that became Derrick Rose they had the 9th worst record in the league.

I could go back and check each draft but it certainly seems to me that the team slotted 8th before the lottery ends up picking in the top three pretty often.

Even with the win over Portland the Kings still own the 4th worst record in the NBA.

And while I think the Kings have a potentially very good duo with Gay & Cousins and a top level6th man in IT, it will take time for the team to gel. And because PDA seems bound and determined to keep wheeling and dealing there will likely be more new players to integrate meaning more bumps in the road and inconsistency.

My guess/hope is that the team continues its up & down play, looking impressive in some wins and rudderless in some losses before finally appearing to put the pieces together to finish the season strong, ending up with the 6th or 7th worst record in the league. And history has shown that's still a slot with a VERY good chance of jumping into the top three. Embiid? Yes please. Exum looks like he would be a nice piece too. But in the worst case that they miss out on the first tier a guy like Willie Cauley-Stein or Noah Vonleh would make for a really nice pairing with Cousins.

pretty much the same scenario I'm expecting and kinda rooting for. especially with how due the Kings are to finally move up in the friggin draft for once (after having dropped the maximum possible amount of spots just recently).

 

[ParniValjak]

The Wizards got a top three pick last year (Otto Porter) with the 8th worst record in the league.

In 2011 two of the top three picks (#1 and #3) went to teams with the 6th and 8th worst record.

In 2010 the teams with the 5th and 6th worst records picked #1 and #2

When the Bulls got the first pick that became Derrick Rose they had the 9th worst record in the league.

I could go back and check each draft but it certainly seems to me that the team slotted 8th before the lottery ends up picking in the top three pretty often.

Even with the win over Portland the Kings still own the 4th worst record in the NBA.

And while I think the Kings have a potentially very good duo with Gay & Cousins and a top level6th man in IT, it will take time for the team to gel. And because PDA seems bound and determined to keep wheeling and dealing there will likely be more new players to integrate meaning more bumps in the road and inconsistency.

My guess/hope is that the team continues its up & down play, looking impressive in some wins and rudderless in some losses before finally appearing to put the pieces together to finish the season strong, ending up with the 6th or 7th worst record in the league. And history has shown that's still a slot with a VERY good chance of jumping into the top three. Embiid? Yes please. Exum looks like he would be a nice piece too. But in the worst case that they miss out on the first tier a guy like Willie Cauley-Stein or Noah Vonleh would make for a really nice pairing with Cousins.

All well and good but the lottery has not been too kind to the Kings in recent times. I very much doubt we are lucky enough to get a top 3 pick from 6-8th spot.

Embiid would be an ideal player for us. Him and Cousins would cause fits for other team.

 

[ParniValjak]

This video shows some nice examples of very poor team defense.

:27 IT is picked and DMC help D is feeble

:32 IT is picked and JT barely shows at all; JT does nothing to slow DL down after IT is picked

1:00 IT is picked and DMC lets DL run righy by him and to the basket to get a nice assist.

2:08 IT is picked and DMC and JT offer very little help


The game plan against us should be simple. Set picks on IT and know that nobody will step in and offer help. You will probably be able to dribble uncontested to the basket.

There seems to be one common denominator in all those! Hmmmm.

 

[gunks]

Considering our luck in the draft lately, I'm not too keen on getting all caught up in it.

We're either going to pick JUST after the player we really need, or should we luck into picking top 3 we will undoubtedly select the bust.

I like the Gay/DMC duo. I hated Gay coming in, but dude is putting up numbers. I dont know if he's playing for a contract, Malone just knows how to use him, or he thrives next to a big like Cousins, but its working. We resign Gay, and we dont need to draft a star. 3rd options can be had pretty easily on the FA market. We may even have one lurking on the roster (Ben could make strides, and if we can find a defensive stud SG I have no problem moving foward with IT as the 3rd guy).

 

[randymoss1881]

Considering our luck in the draft lately, I'm not too keen on getting all caught up in it.

We're either going to pick JUST after the player we really need, or should we luck into picking top 3 we will undoubtedly select the bust.

I like the Gay/DMC duo. I hated Gay coming in, but dude is putting up numbers. I dont know if he's playing for a contract, Malone just knows how to use him, or he thrives next to a big like Cousins, but its working. We resign Gay, and we dont need to draft a star. 3rd options can be had pretty easily on the FA market. We may even have one lurking on the roster (Ben could make strides, and if we can find a defensive stud SG I have no problem moving foward with IT as the 3rd guy).

Agreed. DMC is gonna get even better which is scary and Gay is a good #2. Now we need to surround them with defensive players like okc did with there 3. We need Ben to become our 3rd guy next season assuming he can take a beal like jump from year 1 to 2. If he can become that elite shooter it will make gay/DMC that much better.

 

[HereWeBoogie]

the ESPN Mock Lottery Draft Machine came out today. on my first 2 attempts it put the Kings 1 and 2 and picking Jabari Parker both times

 

[Gilles]

Considering our luck in the draft lately, I'm not too keen on getting all caught up in it.

We're either going to pick JUST after the player we really need, or should we luck into picking top 3 we will undoubtedly select the bust.

I like the Gay/DMC duo. I hated Gay coming in, but dude is putting up numbers. I dont know if he's playing for a contract, Malone just knows how to use him, or he thrives next to a big like Cousins, but its working. We resign Gay, and we dont need to draft a star. 3rd options can be had pretty easily on the FA market. We may even have one lurking on the roster (Ben could make strides, and if we can find a defensive stud SG I have no problem moving foward with IT as the 3rd guy).

I would say that in all the drafts lately Kings were in a position to pick players they needed, just chose not to.