The Curious Case of Ben McLemore: A Forgotten King

Team_Dime

Team_Dime

Prospect
#1
#1
Amidst an off-season with no shortage of activity, including a plethora of trades and signings that have given the franchise its' much needed facelift, there is one constant who not only happens to be entering his 3rd year in the NBA, but is facing his make or break moment. Taken with the 7th overall pick in the 2013 NBA Draft, the former Kansas Jayhawk has become one of the more curious cases within the Sacramento Kings roster. Most Kings fans would agree that he is expected to have a "breakout" type of season as a three-and-d type of wing who fits as the perfect compliment to the trio of Gay, Cousins, and Rondo.
It's safe to assume that while we're sure to see McLemore have his high scoring nights and highlight plays, what's needed most from his position at SG is consistency and as well as an unwavered commitment to defense. Under George Karl, Ben appears to be the perfect type of shooting guard, a prototypical run-and-gun type of wing that can knock down the three with mild consistency. Though he's never appeared to have clashed with anyone within the coaching staff, front office, or teammates, that very lack of intensity can also be what holds McLemore back from being able to take that next step in his development. After two years in the NBA, he's shown to be far too timid and passive to ever reach his full potential, given the fact that he has been surrounded by an endless array of disorganization. With that said, he has never had a point guard like Rajon Rondo throwing him alley-oop passes, spotting him on the dot for back door cuts, or giving him the ball when he's set from long distance. Whether that makes a noticeable improvement in his game, of course, remains to be seen.
This off-season, the Kings have signed veteran guard Marco Belinelli, who in the eyes of many will be the teams' starting shooting guard. With the idea in mind that Divac and company want to win now, Marco comes from a winning environment and successful system in San Antonio, which provided him with the experience that made his acquisition in Sacramento so exciting for the fans. Both players are considered three-point threats while they're on the floor, providing valuable spacing, though McLemore holds the edge when it comes down to the other end of the floor. It is going to be very interesting to see how Coach Karl decides to construct his starting lineup come opening day. Whether he starts or becomes part of the second unit, Belinelli's presence should be crucial to McLemore's development.
Undoubtedly, this upcoming season in Sacramento proves to be one of, if not the most important years in the history of the franchise. With the teams' new arena set to open the following season, there is added pressure on this team to be successful immediately and provide the type of the appeal that will force fans to spend their hard-earned cash on supporting the team, going to the games, etc. Another dismal season would spell disaster for Vivek Ranadive and Co. who have formulated a roster built to be competitive, even in a grueling Western Conference. Here's to hoping that Ben McLemore can become the shooting guard we have hoped since the day he was drafted.​
 
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Bricklayer

Bricklayer

Don't Make Me Use The Bat
#3
#3
One of the best signs of this offseason is that Ben is forgotten. For any team trying seriously to be good that would have been true for 2 years now. He never should have been a featured player in his first couple of years, and if we were actually RELYING on him to be this year it would be an open invitation to yet more disaster.

But now we've got him back where he belonged form the beginning: as a POTENTIAL put you over the top type kid, but not a necessity. If he's suddenly magically a star, sure, great. His biggest supporters are being whacky birds about that, but hey, he's free to suddenly do that out of the blue and we'll take it with a smile. If he's just ready to start but still wildly inconsistent, we can just sub in Marco or go 2-PG with Collison at SG when Ben's not going well and its no great disaster. We might even get better. If Ben gets beat out by Belinelli for the starting spot, all of a sudden that's fine too. He can come off a suddenly strong bench and give us depth. If he emerges at some point in the season, starts flashing high quality play, he can pop back up and give us a nice problem minutes wise.

Ben's been a rampant source of instability on the team because we threw him out there and relied on him at a time he was bad as often as he was good and there were no options. But now we've covered that up with quality options, so instead of gambling for 1 part good or 2 parts bad, we can make Ben into a guaranteed positive. If he plays well enough to start, or just to be a major help, we give him those minutes and he's a positive while he's out there. If he struggles or goes through those disappearing stretches, we can simply shift the minutes elsewhere in the backcourt without even blinking, so his off days, weeks, months, whatever, barely register as a negative.

One of the real advantages of depth is that you don't need to rely on guys during their bad days/stretches. You can always go to a hotter hand because you have so many options. Its how the Spurs have exceeded their aging legs (and also why I don't fully buy into the cult of Kawhi -- he's never had to take a tough shot on a bad day in his life, so of course he's efficient). Handled correctly, this could be the season when Ben gets efficient. You play him during his hot steaks. Bench him during his disappearing acts. All of a sudden we get all of the good and little of the bad.
 
D

dude12

Hall of Famer
#4
#4
If Ben continues his upward tick, then great. We finally have a vet option that we can rely on instead of the twosome of Ben and Stauskas which was just plain dumb to turn it over to 2 pups...thanks PDA. If Ben doesn't provide an upward tick, then I wouldn't be surprised to see him traded off or moved to minimal minutes and seeing Bellinelli and Collison and James Anderson take up all those minutes. Anderson can provide solid vet minutes right now.
 
Mr. S£im Citrus

Mr. S£im Citrus

Doryphore of KingsFans.com
Staff member
#5
#5
I don't really think that a guy heading into his third season qualifies as a "constant," but YMMV. He's a King, so I hope he has a good year.
 
P

pshn80

Starter
#7
#7
Our situation at the two is much better for the team, for Ben, and for me the fan. I think Brick said it best. I've never liked Ben's game but now he and I don't need to worry as much about it. His blooming into a real positive team guy would be a wonderful outcome.k
 
2

206Fan

All-Star
#8
#8
I really hope he starts. He would benefit much more playing with Rondo, Cuz, and Gay. Making him a lead guy off the bench will only knock down his confidence. We've seen that happen with Harrison Barnes in his 2nd year. As soon as they put him on the bench, he started struggling. In his 3rd year they decided to bring him back in the starting lineup, and he's performed very well.

I want to see Ben hit the 14ppg and .360 3pt%.
 
2

206Fan

All-Star
#9
#9
pshn80 said:
Our situation at the two is much better for the team, for Ben, and for me the fan. I think Brick said it best. I've never liked Ben's game but now he and I don't need to worry as much about it. His blooming into a real positive team guy would be a wonderful outcome.k
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Ben's game is the norm for SGs now. 3&D mold
 
Gary

Gary

All-Star
#10
#10
206Fan said:
I really hope he starts. He would benefit much more playing with Rondo, Cuz, and Gay. Making him a lead guy off the bench will only knock down his confidence. We've seen that happen with Harrison Barnes in his 2nd year. As soon as they put him on the bench, he started struggling. In his 3rd year they decided to bring him back in the starting lineup, and he's performed very well.

I want to see Ben hit the 14ppg and .360 3pt%.
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Not on this team. I would rather he scores 8ppg, plays D and averages 36% 3pt. We don't really need him to score unless it's something to keep the defense honest. Kind of the same thing Bowed did for SA.
 
Bricklayer

Bricklayer

Don't Make Me Use The Bat
#11
#11
206Fan said:
I really hope he starts. He would benefit much more playing with Rondo, Cuz, and Gay. Making him a lead guy off the bench will only knock down his confidence. We've seen that happen with Harrison Barnes in his 2nd year. As soon as they put him on the bench, he started struggling. In his 3rd year they decided to bring him back in the starting lineup, and he's performed very well.

I want to see Ben hit the 14ppg and .360 3pt%.
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The lack of shooting/spacing in our projected starting lineups of Rondo/Gay/Cuz/WCS or Rondo/Gay/Cuz/Koufos is obvious enough that whoever occupies that SG spot is going to be called upon to do a lot more than 36%. Given that he'll be virtually the only shooter out there, 40%+ would have to be the target.

And I disagree a bit with the idea we don't need a 3rd scorer to emerge in the 12-14ppg range. With Rondo running the point now instead of Collison, we do. I just think we have multiple options. If its Ben and he's efficient, fine. If its Belinelli, fine too. Collison should be the 6th man, so that doesn't quite count. Again with Rondo/WCs or Rondo/Koufos, think the 3rd weapon has to be that SG, who legitimately better be ready to knock down 2-3 threes every game, because they're going to get those shots. That'll put them halfway to the 3rd weapon target area by itself.
 
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kingsboi

kingsboi

Hall of Famer
#12
#12
He's been the forgotten King because he won't make or break on the amount of success the Kings have this season. I do have to give him credit, he has improved from rookie to sophomore year, now let's see how he does with a competent team around him and a full training camp, preseason and regular season with a HOF coach and depth.
 
One and Done

One and Done

Bench
#13
#13
While he improved greatly last season, Ben needs to make a similar boost in efficiency this coming season in order to be a quality rotation player.

He doesn't excel in any category - spare a nice FT % in the rare moments he gets to the line - and needs to bring up at least one skill to above average in order to solidify his minutes on the court. Unfortunately, we really need him to take a jump forward: we don't have a two-guard with an average (15) PER or above, and Bellinelli hasn't been greater than fringe starter (solid 3P shooting roleplayer with average defense/passing ability). Given the spacing issues that Brick mentioned, and that Bellinelli can't be relied upon every night, Ben really needs to improve his 3P % and motor (specifically, getting open and not passing on good looks). Secondarily, he needs to continue to get better on defense as well as improve his ability to create for others.

Sometimes players take a step back in season 3, or they plateau. However, I'm hoping he continues to improve in areas where the team needs him (shooting accuracy, defense, passing) and increase his PER to the 14-15 rating level.
 
bajaden

bajaden

Hall of Famer
#15
#15
Gary said:
Not on this team. I would rather he scores 8ppg, plays D and averages 36% 3pt. We don't really need him to score unless it's something to keep the defense honest. Kind of the same thing Bowed did for SA.
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When did 36% become acceptable? He needs to get to 38% or above to be considered a 3 pt threat. Most of the good 3 pt shooters shoot 40% . 36% probably looks good to some considering how bad we've been from the three, but in reality it's mediocre.
 
bajaden

bajaden

Hall of Famer
#16
#16
Sac.Kings said:
Anyone have any clue of what Ben does during the off-season? Does he train or workout at all?
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Reportedly he's a very hard worker who spends the offseason working on his game with the coaching staff. One should remember that Ben came to the game of basketball late, so to a large extent, he's playing catch up to other players his own age. He was drafted high, based mostly on his beautiful shooting stroke, and his athleticism. Or, his long term potential. I agree with Bricky that throwing him to the wolves was the worse thing that could have happened to him. Too much pressure for a young player who is still developing his skills. Whether Ben has the mental toughness to be more than just a role player remains to be seen.
 
L

Livinthedream

All-Star
#19
#19
He shoots greater than 50% from 2pt. If he primarily plays on the perimiter and shoots 38% from 3, shoots over 50% from 2pt and scores around 14ppg, he still has to be accounted for and is doing his job.

Sometimes you have to play to a guys strength rather than wish he was something else.

Also, I think the worst thing that happened to Ben the last 2 years was all of the turnover in players and coaches. The worst thing that happened to him as far as getting fan support is being a starter on a misguided franchise where everyone is looking for a scapegoat.
 
Chupacabra

Chupacabra

Starter
#20
#20
I dont think his case is curious. People have a natural tendency to embellish and add drama where there is none. He looked much better last year than in his rookie season. This can be attributed to good work ethic which should indicate that he'll continue to improve. No specific stats needed from him. Playing solid D and making open shots continues to be his role.
 
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T

The Hammer

All-Star
#21
#21
Ben has not even come close to his ceiling due to his youth (guys only play one year of college), a bit of insecurity/immaturity, and the lack of a steady environment and coach to nurture him through that.

Ben on the Spurs right now would be starting to shine.

However his potential is in no way wasted, just slightly delayed, and he is putting in the work. All signs point to this being a year where he can have a big impact, with little risk to himself or the team. All the vets and talent around him act as a safety net. It's become a great place for young players to find themselves.

The talent and potential is still just dripping off this guy. Ben is one of the players I'm most excited about this season, and as others have said, he's kind of gone under the radar with all the other activity/drama, which is exactly where he needs to be. I can't think of a better mentor for him than Caron Butler. That relationship alone would be worth Caron's salary. The sky is still the limit, and the support system is now in place for Ben to do very well... if not this year, then next. No rush now.
 
P

pshn80

Starter
#22
#22
Livinthedream said:
He shoots greater than 50% from 2pt. If he primarily plays on the perimiter and shoots 38% from 3, shoots over 50% from 2pt and scores around 14ppg, he still has to be accounted for and is doing his job.

Sometimes you have to play to a guys strength rather than wish he was something else.

Also, I think the worst thing that happened to Ben the last 2 years was all of the turnover in players and coaches. The worst thing that happened to him as far as getting fan support is being a starter on a misguided franchise where everyone is looking for a scapegoat.
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He played poorly his first year while starting and his second tear he played much less poorly but still not a positive factor for the team. He really needs to improve more whether as a starter or a rotation guy. His future is hopefully bright but he must improve. He is a hard worker and if you add some killer juice it may just work.
 
K

KingMilz

Guest
#25
#25
Hoping Ben's 3rd year is not a replica of Terrance Ross cause of far aside from one 50 point game between the 2 there is virtually little to no difference in play style and production over the course of there first 2 years.

I really hope Benny steps up this year him and Rondo are just massive wildcards.
 
Gary

Gary

All-Star
#30
#30
bajaden said:
When did 36% become acceptable? He needs to get to 38% or above to be considered a 3 pt threat. Most of the good 3 pt shooters shoot 40% . 36% probably looks good to some considering how bad we've been from the three, but in reality it's mediocre.
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True... Maybe I was setting the bar too low.. We might be seeing Belinelli as the first sub?
 
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