Ben working with Kings to find a new place to play?

#1
http://espn.go.com/blog/marc-stein/post/_/id/4297/trade-chatter-is-kevin-love-untouchable

The aforementioned McLemore, sources say, is working with the Kings to try to find a new home via trade. Sacramento made the same pledge to veteran swingman Caron Butler as far back asDecember.

Word is that the Kings, who are desperate to end a playoff drought spanning nine seasons and counting before moving into a new building next season, prefer immediate help in trade talks more than future picks.
 
#2
So we're now driving Ben away too?
This is kind of BS.

At least the Timberwolves are interested in him too. Not sure what I'd want from them though especially for "immediate help". I will riot if it's for K-Mart.
 
#4
Wow. This came out of left field. There's a difference between a team exploring trades involving Ben, and Ben actually requesting one himself. I didn't expect that from B-Mac. Thank God it's not Cousins (the player that I'm surprised hasn't demanded a trade with such turmoil).
 
K

KingMilz

Guest
#6
Kind of torn on this one cause yeah we have jerked Ben but at the same time where else would he have got this much playing time over the first 3 years of his career and it's as much on him he's not a better player with all the opportunity with the instability.
 
#7
Whether he asked for a trade or we are willing to move him doesn't really matter too much as I think he was unlikely to last past the trade deadline anyway. He is our only real trade chip with some value that we have. If he can get you a good 3 and D guy (i.e. not Afflalo who doesn't defend any more) at the expense of Ben, I have no doubt we are pulling that trigger.
 

bajaden

Hall of Famer
#9
We don't know if Ben asked for a trade, or Vlade approached him and said that there had been feelers from other GM's and that he would try and move him to a place of his choice, if possible. We don't know! If indeed it's coming from Ben's camp, it's probably coming from his agent, who is doing his job. I can't blame Ben's agent if it is him. Ben has lost the starting role, and his minutes are becoming less and less. It's obvious that Karl has lost confidence in Ben, if he had it in the first place.

The mystery is, why? About the only advantage Belinelli has over Ben, is experience and BBIQ. Right now, Ben is the better shooter and defender. His ballhandling has improved to the point that I don't think Belinelli has any clear advantage. Neither is great at creating their own shot, but you won't see many alley opp's with Belinelli. Personally, I'd be shopping Belinelli, not Ben.
 
#11
We don't know if Ben asked for a trade, or Vlade approached him and said that there had been feelers from other GM's and that he would try and move him to a place of his choice, if possible. We don't know! If indeed it's coming from Ben's camp, it's probably coming from his agent, who is doing his job. I can't blame Ben's agent if it is him. Ben has lost the starting role, and his minutes are becoming less and less. It's obvious that Karl has lost confidence in Ben, if he had it in the first place.

The mystery is, why? About the only advantage Belinelli has over Ben, is experience and BBIQ. Right now, Ben is the better shooter and defender. His ballhandling has improved to the point that I don't think Belinelli has any clear advantage. Neither is great at creating their own shot, but you won't see many alley opp's with Belinelli. Personally, I'd be shopping Belinelli, not Ben.
LegionNBA ‏@MySportsLegion 40m40 minutes ago
Kings are working hard to trade Ben McLemore, who is unhappy with his minutes this season. (21 MPG)


That's as close as it gets to asking for a trade
 
#12
Kind of torn on this one cause yeah we have jerked Ben but at the same time where else would he have got this much playing time over the first 3 years of his career and it's as much on him he's not a better player with all the opportunity with the instability.
Nah. The jerking includes the instability of the franchise over the 3 years. More playing time doesn't fix that. It can actually make it worse. Especially in the end when you take that time away in favor of underperforming players.
 
#14
Ben asking for a trade as if he is Lebron and unhappy with his minutes? How about not sucking for 3 seasons Ben? Or putting 4-5 good games together in a row and not disappearing during games. Ridiculous. If he lived up to 50% of his hype, we wouldn't have a SG problem.

Don't let the door hit you on the way out bro.
 
#16
We don't know if Ben asked for a trade, or Vlade approached him and said that there had been feelers from other GM's and that he would try and move him to a place of his choice, if possible. We don't know! If indeed it's coming from Ben's camp, it's probably coming from his agent, who is doing his job. I can't blame Ben's agent if it is him. Ben has lost the starting role, and his minutes are becoming less and less. It's obvious that Karl has lost confidence in Ben, if he had it in the first place.

The mystery is, why? About the only advantage Belinelli has over Ben, is experience and BBIQ. Right now, Ben is the better shooter and defender. His ballhandling has improved to the point that I don't think Belinelli has any clear advantage. Neither is great at creating their own shot, but you won't see many alley opp's with Belinelli. Personally, I'd be shopping Belinelli, not Ben.
Perhaps there is a reason why we are shopping Ben and not Marco.... maybe Vlade knows/feels that Ben just doesn't have "it" to be a starting SG. It's not like Ben didn't have his opportunities, no one can say that. He had 2.5 seasons to show something, and if that "something" was special enough, you don't trade it away. Depending on what we get back, this may work out for us.

Who knows, maybe Marco gets shipped out too, it's not like he is untouchable. At this point, what we have isn't working, so we definitely need some sort of change (especially since Karl seems to be staying for the time being).
 
#17
I'm just curious what he's actually worth? We may find there's not enough value out there for him. Gerald Henderson, Shumpert, and Afflalo? Those players are nice, but not worth the risk of losing Ben, imo.
 
#18
Just aggravates me that someone like Ben, who has largely been a disappointment thus far in his career, can complain about a lack of playing time this season as if he is the next Kobe/MJ. What happened to earning things in life and working hard? Or looking yourself in the mirror and saying "hey... maybe I don't deserve as many minutes as I think I should be getting." Sure, there have been times when Ben should have been playing instead of Marco, but honestly between the two of them it's sort of a pick your poison type of thing.
 
#20
Just aggravates me that someone like Ben, who has largely been a disappointment thus far in his career, can complain about a lack of playing time this season as if he is the next Kobe/MJ. What happened to earning things in life and working hard? Or looking yourself in the mirror and saying "hey... maybe I don't deserve as many minutes as I think I should be getting." Sure, there have been times when Ben should have been playing instead of Marco, but honestly between the two of them it's sort of a pick your poison type of thing.
Only if one poison gives you a mild tummy ache while the other kills you. Ben hasn't done much the last couple years. We knew he was a project when he got drafted but did nothing to bring in a starter so he could develop at an appropriate pace. He's shown definite skill improvement this year but has repeatedly been yanked (just like the only other recent pick in wcs) in favor of vets that have performed worse.

Watch how teams will swoop in and buy low in order to develop him while we tread water in the 8-10th seed in the west, while giving up any possible asset to get better long term.
 
#21
Just aggravates me that someone like Ben, who has largely been a disappointment thus far in his career, can complain about a lack of playing time this season as if he is the next Kobe/MJ. What happened to earning things in life and working hard? Or looking yourself in the mirror and saying "hey... maybe I don't deserve as many minutes as I think I should be getting." Sure, there have been times when Ben should have been playing instead of Marco, but honestly between the two of them it's sort of a pick your poison type of thing.
Ben just might not want to be in this environment anymore. There is nothing wrong with saying you'd like a fresh start. It's not as if he's gone to the media and complained. Not sure why that would aggravate you. You haven't heard his words or his side. There was no direct quote asking to be traded. Just the insinuation that he is unhappy.
 

Bricklayer

Don't Make Me Use The Bat
#23
If true this doesn't bother me at all. And I think it Vlade's influence back there making splits mostly amicable. Whether that's practical or not I do not know. But it can hardly be a surprise after Ben, suddenly for the first time in his career, started sitting out games with an injury just before a trade deadline.

The Belinelli thing is a bit of a mystery, but I will one more time mention that Marco Belinelli was a major rotation player/part time starter for a dynastic title team two years ago. He's not one of our unproven hope and prayer guys. Most of what we have done has been done with a clear purpose of constructing a playoff roster.

Obviously the Minny thing would have been Kevin, and theoretically somehow you would say our scoring from the position would be very taken care of in that case. Now Rubio is also available supposedly, but it would be one of the freakiest lineups of all time to have he and Rondo play together, so can;t go there for the defense (and injuries).
 
#26
Emotions are running to high here. First and foremost were talking business and secondary who knows what's true nowadays it is nearing the deadline ya know. I'm for keeping Ben he's one of our only young guys and EVERYBODY knew he was a project from the start. That said if the right deal comes along you take it.
 
#27
If true this doesn't bother me at all. And I think it Vlade's influence back there making splits mostly amicable. Whether that's practical or not I do not know. But it can hardly be a surprise after Ben, suddenly for the first time in his career, started sitting out games with an injury just before a trade deadline.

The Belinelli thing is a bit of a mystery, but I will one more time mention that Marco Belinelli was a major rotation player/part time starter for a dynastic title team two years ago. He's not one of our unproven hope and prayer guys. Most of what we have done has been done with a clear purpose of constructing a playoff roster.

Obviously the Minny thing would have been Kevin, and theoretically somehow you would say our scoring from the position would be very taken care of in that case. Now Rubio is also available supposedly, but it would be one of the freakiest lineups of all time to have he and Rondo play together, so can;t go there for the defense (and injuries).
Ok. You can wipe that grin off your face. ;)
 

Bricklayer

Don't Make Me Use The Bat
#28
Ok. You can wipe that grin off your face. ;)
No particular grin. Ben's not a cancer, and he's not a bad guy. He's just a failed pick. And frankly its a worn our marriage. If he asked to move on, he would have been right to do so (who knows, maybe the decision to keep Karl factored in?). If we are shopping him looking for an upgrade or defense, we are right to do so. Ben has not gotten it done. So...time to make a move. I have no problem with any party's thinking here. Doesn't have to be done at any cost. But if we get the right piece back its an opportunity to get better.
 

VF21

Super Moderator Emeritus
SME
#29
Just aggravates me that someone like Ben, who has largely been a disappointment thus far in his career, can complain about a lack of playing time this season as if he is the next Kobe/MJ. What happened to earning things in life and working hard? Or looking yourself in the mirror and saying "hey... maybe I don't deserve as many minutes as I think I should be getting." Sure, there have been times when Ben should have been playing instead of Marco, but honestly between the two of them it's sort of a pick your poison type of thing.
REMINDER: Just because a tweet says a player is saying something DOESN'T MEAN THE PLAYER IS SAYING IT.

I do not believe that Ben McLemore is actually complaining in the real sense of the word. It's just not in his character.
 
#30
REMINDER: Just because a tweet says a player is saying something DOESN'T MEAN THE PLAYER IS SAYING IT.

I do not believe that Ben McLemore is actually complaining in the real sense of the word. It's just not in his character.
While I understand what you are saying, a trade request doesn't just come up for no reason. It means something is/was bothering him. Unless the media had it all wrong and we told him we were gonna trade him. I suppose it wouldn't be the first time the media (or me) would be wrong.

If he did complain, it would have been the most aggressive thing he did since entering the NBA. Shame it had to be on the way out.