[Game] Kings @ Timberwolves - Friday, Dec. 18 - 5 PST, 8 EST
- Thread starter VF21
- Start date
Well that was disappointing to say the least. So much for making a run. This team needs a leader. A real leader who doesnt take any crap, especially from Cuz. Malone was that leader last season and we need to find someone else who can be in that role. If we didn't play like complete crap in the early part of this game, we would have won. Stop putting Rondo and Collison together Karl!!
The rebounding wasn't that big of a deal, you can live with 14 o-boards if you end up with around the same shot attempts and don't foul too much. The rebounding woes can be attributed to the easy shots given up in the first 3 quarters aka DEFENSE, missed free throws, not making as many shots on your end, and getting many o-boards on your end.
The game changes when you go from playing 15 feet and in, to 15 feet and out. This is another game where the amount of paint touches for Cousins can probably be counted on 1 hand. He spends 90% of his time above the 3 point line setting screens.
Oh, and also with playing more PF comes guarding more screen and roll which takes him away from the basket.
Just checking stats he's almost a full rebound down on the offensive boards this year.
As a general statement about the team, I think it needs much more time together and maybe a tweak here or there but Vlade has put us in a good position. We may not be world beaters this year but the great teams are those who have played together a lot. "Wait until next year" may sound silly but that's exactly how I am looking at the team this year. I also hope to make the playoffs but that will depend on the rest of the teams continuing to suck and I'm not so sure we can count on that.
I
Irrelevant of how he's being played, he is dog tired the whole game. You can see it in his play, you can see it in his behavior and mannerisms. He's simply just out of shape at the moment. Some of those shots he put and and even some on the ones he made were low quality looks. No other way to put it, he simply needs to improve his conditioning. I expect so much more from him.
They cleaned up on the defensive boards. There were some timely offensive boards that you'd like to have back, but the Kings didn't get killed on the boards in the sense that it hurt too much when all was said and done. They got killed defensively early, that was the issue. You can't expect to compete on the boards in total when you do nothing but take the ball out of your own net. They got one more whole shot attempt than the Kings out of it, you can live with that.
I
Just telling it how it is. We have a lot of problems and Cousins is certainly one of them at the moment. I'm the only one who has addressed this issue, while others just continue with the same criticisms of this team week after week. Granted, they are valid. But so is mine. I will continue to criticize Cousins until I see positive change, and the return of that top 10 player we have come to know from the last 2 seasons.
OK, do understand his role offensively? Look how much he's moving around the floor. He's sets up low, comes up, sets a screen, fights through contact, and put that on repeat every play. There is simply too much screen and roll with Cousins, way too much. I can't recall another 300 pounder playing pick and roll like that. The majority of his offensive moves up top are something you'd see out of LeBron James, not a center. He can do it, no doubt, but not every play. It will wear him down because it did just that when Paul Westphal did the same thing to him. Mark my words, if they let Cuz settle in and not run around so much and let him take advantage in more ways than one you'll see a lot less chair kicking around here.
Um...no we didn't. That's where we got killed. Omri and Rudy were pathetic, and none of our guards helped a damn bit. We got 23 defenisve boards, they got 12 offensive boards. That's not a healthy ratio, and that's with Cuz generally taking care of his own. But we got owned at all 4 other positions. Outhustled, outmuscled, outdesired.
We'll never go far without an emphasis on defense which is forever an afterthought for Karl. That and his continual stupidity which is rondo and collision together are handicaps which set us back from the offset. Any close game won't go our way with how Karl sets us out. It's just the reality that is kings land.
The Kings successfully rebounded on 53 percent of their defensive rebounding opportunities; the Timberwolves, 81 percent. The league average is 76 percent. Our offensive rebound percentage was 19 percent, theirs was 33 percent; the league average is 24. We are rebounding very poorly with this lineup. I don't see how anybody can say that we didn't get killed.