Ben McLemore

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kingsboi

kingsboi

Hall of Famer
#6
#6
as I mentioned in another thread...this team is just a different animal when he is a capable shooter. He needs to continue to take them if he is open, that's why he is out there. Defend and spread the floor.
 
N

New Era

Starter
#9
#9
The proverbial "light bulb" has been turned on inside Ben's head. He's literally transformed himself from a crappy DLeaguer to potentially the Most Improved in the NBA in a matter of weeks.
 
L

Livinthedream

All-Star
#15
#15
Glenn said:
"Just keep shooting." I think that instruction from Malone finally sunk in and a miss is no longer as disappointing.
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Yes. He needs to know It's ok to take 10-12 shots a game. The more shots he takes, the better he plays. It allows him to get a feel for the game and let the law of averages catch up.
 
funkykingston

funkykingston

Super Moderator
Staff member
#17
#17
Here's why tonight's game was important for Ben - they needed his shooting.

McLemore had a few games last season where he got hot and put up numbers. 20 against the Heat, 20 against the Lakers, 19 against the T'Wolves, 31 against the Suns. But three of the four of those games were losses and the last two were at the very end of the season when the games didn't matter.

With the zone tonight the Kings HAD to have somebody hitting from outside. This wasn't a "hey, Ben's having a good game - that's nice" type night. This was a "thank goodness Ben hit shots or the Kings would have lost tonight" type night. He had the pressure on him tonight and came through.

Nice job young man.
 
L

Livinthedream

All-Star
#19
#19
funkykingston said:
Here's why tonight's game was important for Ben - they needed his shooting.

McLemore had a few games last season where he got hot and put up numbers. 20 against the Heat, 20 against the Lakers, 19 against the T'Wolves, 31 against the Suns. But three of the four of those games were losses and the last two were at the very end of the season when the games didn't matter.

With the zone tonight the Kings HAD to have somebody hitting from outside. This wasn't a "hey, Ben's having a nice game - that's nice" type night. This was a "thank goodness Ben hit shots or the Kings would have lost tonight" type night. He had the pressure on him tonight and came through.

Nice job young man.
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This game forced the team to trust each other on offense. You can't beat a zone without passing. We couldn't do the usual offense of having our SG stand in the corner while we post Cuz or Rudy. It will give Ben confidence in the future and give teammates confidence in him. So this was an important game like you said.
 
funkykingston

funkykingston

Super Moderator
Staff member
#21
#21
andremiller07 said:
We need to find a back up for Ben (who thought we would be saying that)
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Just have to hope Stauskas shows similar growth in his game that Ben did. The difference obviously is that Ben had all the tools and physical attributes and had to work on his ball handling, defensive positioning and his feel for the game in general while Nik has the feel for the game, the ball handling etc and needs to adjust to bigger, stronger and faster opponents.

With opposing teams targeting Stauskas whenever he's in the game Nik will either become a quick study or star racking up DNPs.
 
Hadlowe

Hadlowe

Starter
#22
#22
andremiller07 said:
We need to find a back up for Ben (who thought we would be saying that)
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Stauskas will come around. Thankfully, Ben has taken a huge step toward being a good player and Nik doesn't need to be good right now. I think he will turn it around and become the sixth-man by the end of the year. He has a solid head on his shoulders and actual basketball skills. He just needs to get past the rookie jitters and he will be fine.
 
K

KingMilz

Guest
#23
#23
Hadlowe said:
Stauskas will come around. Thankfully, Ben has taken a huge step toward being a good player and Nik doesn't need to be good right now. I think he will turn it around and become the sixth-man by the end of the year. He has a solid head on his shoulders and actual basketball skills. He just needs to get past the rookie jitters and he will be fine.
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I agree what I was saying was more of a compliment to Ben than it was taking a shot at Nik, who would have thought Ben could play this consistent and solid while improving his D out of sight compared to last year.
 
J

jdbraver

Guest
#27
#27
Let's not go too overboard. Still need a few more consistent games b4 I anoint him a viable starter. But he is on his way.
 
VF21

VF21

Super Moderator Emeritus
SME
#28
#28
jdbraver said:
Let's not go too overboard. Still need a few more consistent games b4 I anoint him a viable starter. But he is on his way.
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I don't think anyone has gone overboard. If you look at the comments, most of them are saying he's on his way to becoming a good player. But hey - you can wait a while longer if you like. :)
 
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