Kings interview Del Negro, Jackson and Mitchell for Head Coach position (Yahoo News)
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There's no doubt that all three of those players improved, especially Dieng. He really impressed me the last time we played them. Muhammad almost looks like an entirely different player in how he approaches the game now. In college he was mostly a baseline post up player who could overpower most players guarding him. Didn't work once in the NBA. He's improved dramatically. Didn't know to credit for that, but apparently it's Mitchell.
This looks like a situation where he was simply uninformed. He never played for Sacramento, never lived in the area, and sees Seattle like most people do as a bigger market for the NBA which has a proud history of its own. He got asked about it and gave an answer. It wasn't very diplomatic (or factually accurate) but it was just a soundbite. I've lived in California my whole life -- ask me about anything having to do with New England and I'll probably give an equally uninformed answer. Spencer Hawes getting drafted by Sacramento, playing 3 years in front of these fans, and then campaigning for the team to leave is a whole other level of distasteful but then I never liked that guy anyway so I don't need much an excuse to dislike him even more.
...and it's not like he played for the Lakers or anything, if you want to talk about unforgivable offenses!
The only reason I give Luke Walton a pass is that Doug Christie and Vlade also donned the purple and gold. That leaves me no choice but to believe that Kings Purple can trump Lakers Purple in the right circumstances.
...and it's not like he played for the Lakers or anything, if you want to talk about unforgivable offenses!
The only reason I give Luke Walton a pass is that Doug Christie and Vlade also donned the purple and gold. That leaves me no choice but to believe that Kings Purple can trump Lakers Purple in the right circumstances.
One thing I learned a long time ago, is don't be willing to blow off your big toe just to kill the fly sitting on it.
This looks like a situation where he was simply uninformed. He never played for Sacramento, never lived in the area, and sees Seattle like most people do as a bigger market for the NBA which has a proud history of its own. He got asked about it and gave an answer. It wasn't very diplomatic (or factually accurate) but it was just a soundbite. I've lived in California my whole life -- ask me about anything having to do with New England and I'll probably give an equally uninformed answer. Spencer Hawes getting drafted by Sacramento, playing 3 years in front of these fans, and then campaigning for the team to leave is a whole other level of distasteful but then I never liked that guy anyway so I don't need much an excuse to dislike him even more.
...and it's not like he played for the Lakers or anything, if you want to talk about unforgivable offenses! The only reason I give Luke Walton a pass is that Doug Christie and Vlade also donned the purple and gold. That leaves me no choice but to believe that Kings Purple can trump Lakers Purple in the right circumstances.
...and it's not like he played for the Lakers or anything, if you want to talk about unforgivable offenses!
The only reason I give Luke Walton a pass is that Doug Christie and Vlade also donned the purple and gold. That leaves me no choice but to believe that Kings Purple can trump Lakers Purple in the right circumstances.
I used "was" because yes it did happen in the past. But I put "is" in its place and the thought still holds true. You can also put in future tense too because if you plan to take the kings from Sacramento, you will be an enemy to Sacramento. You don't just move on because it happened in the past. Someone tries to steal your car last week and fails, are you gonna leave your keys lying around them today? How do you feel about the guy that said its ok that he steals your car, your "neighbor" in Oakland has a car you can borrow.
This idea that Karl wasn't on the same page is mythology! He was on the same page - Vivek's page! Of course he was on the same page - speed up the game, get your 3 point shots up (more Cousins shooting 3 pointers), run, run, run. ANALYTICS! Was defense even a word on the "page"? No, it wasn't! Was Karl on Cousins' page? No, he wasn't. That's the key. Number 1 Rule: Keep Cousins happy. Number 2 rule: Keep Cousins happy. Vivek apparently didn't know the Number 1 or Number 2 rules when he hired Karl. Key question for Vivek: How does your vision of analytics reconcile with Cousins?
Vlade hasn't coached a day in his life. Enough with the crap about Vlade being the guru of basketball. It's fantasy. He was a good player for the Kings. He was a leader in the locker room. So what? How many players have been good players in the NBA and been leaders in the locker room? At this point Divac is a crap shoot - nothing more, nothing less. He should approach this coaching search with humility and the knowledge that he doesn't know everything and that he should learn from those who know more than he does about coaching a team. Maybe he can learn something from talking to some good intelligent coaches. Instead of imposing his vision, he should be molding his vision with the help of people who know more than he does!
Vlade hasn't coached a day in his life. Enough with the crap about Vlade being the guru of basketball. It's fantasy. He was a good player for the Kings. He was a leader in the locker room. So what? How many players have been good players in the NBA and been leaders in the locker room? At this point Divac is a crap shoot - nothing more, nothing less. He should approach this coaching search with humility and the knowledge that he doesn't know everything and that he should learn from those who know more than he does about coaching a team. Maybe he can learn something from talking to some good intelligent coaches. Instead of imposing his vision, he should be molding his vision with the help of people who know more than he does!
I agree with most of this, though I don't think Vivek is all that beholden to a particular basketball philosophy other than he wants to be entertained and doesn't quite understand yet that entertaining basketball isn't necessarily winning basketball. He was right in his instincts to hire Mike Malone -- he looks like a very good coach in the making. He was wrong in his instincts to listen to Pete D'Alessandro and Chris Mullin and ultimately to let them talk him out of the coach that he handpicked himself. I trust Sacramento fans to show up and support a winning team whatever the play style and Vivek will learn that soon enough if he hasn't already. I would hope also that he's seen this year and last year that a lot of what his special advisers were selling is bunk -- we had the #1 pace in the league and won 33 games. Clearly it's not a shortcut to anything. He's said in the past that his only real talent as a manger is making adjustments quickly and he did hit the reset button on the front office and the George Karl hire he obviously wanted at the time surprisingly quickly. And he did allow Vlade to take last year's draft pick completely out of his hands after the public shaming he endured a year earlier. So we'll see what happens but my hope is that the pace fad is already forgotten, the temptation to micromanage the roster is curbed, and he won't be a serious problem much longer.
I think you'd win that bet. And ironically I think Mike Malone's understanding of the team D'Alessandro assembled outshined PDA's understanding of the same team.
And both of those cases underscore how important it is to hire a coach that Vlade can be in step with going forward instead of having the GM and coach be at odds with one another.
And both of those cases underscore how important it is to hire a coach that Vlade can be in step with going forward instead of having the GM and coach be at odds with one another.
I would agree with much of this, but I think Vlade just about has to have a general philosophy of the game, and vision for the team. After all he grew up idolizing Sabonis, became great passing big who was drafted into a high pass team, played in the Triangle offense, and thrived in the Princeton offense. Now he holds the reins of a team anchored by a big man with excellent passing skills and brought in a league assist leader at the point. I'd say Vlade has a philosophy,and unfortunately this past season it lead to a push the pace, dribble drive offense being imposed on what should have been a pass heavy patient offense. So with Pop and RA offering advice I expect Vlade will select a Coach who plans to move the ball rather than push pace.
I don't think, PR wise, that the Kings are going to make an offer to a second tier candidate they interview early. It would go against everything they have said about doing a deliberate extensive coaching search.
Therefore I would not want to be on this first list of candidates - they are fodder - they are there to create and support an image of a deliberate extensive search, at the end of which they will hire .... somebody else.
I hope for Blatt, McHale, Walton, Udoka, Messina, or Calipari. Whichever of those Vlade likes best is good by me. None of the guys so far is an "A-lister" in my book
Therefore I would not want to be on this first list of candidates - they are fodder - they are there to create and support an image of a deliberate extensive search, at the end of which they will hire .... somebody else.
I hope for Blatt, McHale, Walton, Udoka, Messina, or Calipari. Whichever of those Vlade likes best is good by me. None of the guys so far is an "A-lister" in my book
Yes and no. I agree that I don't see a contract offer coming early - not until they've interviewed all the candidates - but being one of the first isn't always a bad thing. There are times when you are impressed with someone you interview early in a process to the extent that you keep comparing people that come later to that first candidate you really liked. More often than not, that's the person that gets the job.
I could definitely see Mitchell or Del Negro making a great impression on Vlade.
I could definitely see Mitchell or Del Negro making a great impression on Vlade.
Still holding my breath that we'll at least talk to Blatt....
...Or, maybe he can come out and spurn us like all the other top tier coaches, just so I don't have to be all in a tizzy with hope.
Still not keen on Vinnie or Mitchell. Better than the usual Westphails, Natts, and Karls we bring through here though.
...Or, maybe he can come out and spurn us like all the other top tier coaches, just so I don't have to be all in a tizzy with hope.
Still not keen on Vinnie or Mitchell. Better than the usual Westphails, Natts, and Karls we bring through here though.
We have been rumored to be interested in him. New York is the other team linked to him. Like a poster above said the 1st wave if interviews probably won't be offered a job so Blatt will come later.
It's said vlade is looking for a coach that preaches ball movement, defense, experience, and no nonsense. Blatt fits the bill
It's said vlade is looking for a coach that preaches ball movement, defense, experience, and no nonsense. Blatt fits the bill
Probably because I'm tired of the "have faith in Vlade" line that I see constantly on this board. I also have a visceral response to meaningless tripe like, "on the same page." What page? Where is the page? What's on the page? Who wrote page? Is the page completely written? I'm looking desperately for the page and I just can't find it. Help me out here. And then there's the "vision thing." Come on. Vision? Where has Divac in specificity articulated this vision? "Vision" is placeholder for "I don't know what the heck he's doing, but I'm going to give you my best guess." Then there's the justification of Vlade as a guy who is a good "counselor," which is not my litmus test for the guy who has final say in all personnel decisions.
Yes, I'm assuming he's a crap shoot, a reasonable proposition based on his experience or lack thereof. He has no track record of success in NBA management other than one year of failure.
All of the above are reasons for my frustration. Is Vlade Divac the best that Vivek could do? REALLY? It just seems like amateur hour to me. Does Vlade Divac have good intentions? Of course. Is Vlade Divac a good guy? Sure seems like it from every report I've heard. Was he a good player? Yes. Was he the locker room leader? Yes, or at least he was the guy who was the locker room "counselor." All of the above are fine qualities, but they don't mean squat when it comes to management competence. Not even close to what I was hoping for from a new ownership group. Seems like a repeat of a repeat of a repeat that we've seen for well over a decade.
Yes, I'm assuming he's a crap shoot, a reasonable proposition based on his experience or lack thereof. He has no track record of success in NBA management other than one year of failure.
All of the above are reasons for my frustration. Is Vlade Divac the best that Vivek could do? REALLY? It just seems like amateur hour to me. Does Vlade Divac have good intentions? Of course. Is Vlade Divac a good guy? Sure seems like it from every report I've heard. Was he a good player? Yes. Was he the locker room leader? Yes, or at least he was the guy who was the locker room "counselor." All of the above are fine qualities, but they don't mean squat when it comes to management competence. Not even close to what I was hoping for from a new ownership group. Seems like a repeat of a repeat of a repeat that we've seen for well over a decade.
Vlade Divac is and was just as qualified as most GMs who enter the league. People like to talk a lot of rot, but NBA GMs are barely professionals. They are hired from all walks of life, half the time their big qualification is "coached a few years" or "once was a player". Sometimes you get "was a lawyer" or "was an agent". I suppose these mythical "qualified GMs" are the occasional middle management peon who gets bumped up like a PDA, but nobody knows who's going to be good at it. Thibs just got himself appointed god-emperor in Minnesota. Does he know what he's doing? Who knows. Sam Hinkie was running experiments in Philly. Did he know what he was doing? Joe Dumars was hired straight off the playing floor. Doc Rivers was a coach who has now used his GM spot to hire his son. Bryan Colangelo failed miserably in Toronto, and now got nepotismed back into a job in Philly by his dad. That Billy King sure was an "experienced GM".
Vlade's qualifications were just fine, and he's done a solid job to this point. We're in better shape then when he took over.
Vlade's qualifications were just fine, and he's done a solid job to this point. We're in better shape then when he took over.
Just by looking at the players Vlade has picked up/gone after, it's clear that his vision meshes with what Cuz brings as a player.
Did his vision mesh with Karl? Heck no. But now Karl is gone and Vlade is looking for the next coach (aside: I'll always wonder what could have been with Malone, I definitely think he and Vlade would be on the same page).
Does it mesh with what Vivek wants as an insane megalomaniac owner with a very tenuous grasp on how the NBA game works? Who knows. ... maybe the short attention span of the irritant can be turned away from the fools gold of pace.
Does that vision mesh with the modern NBA? Who knows, but we have a stud center, so why not go for it? I think we can go far with Cuz. We just need some roster tinkering and a coach who isn't a toxic distraction with no interest in playing to his roster's strengths.
I still want to see some bigger names brought in, but I think Vlade will make the right choice in the end regardless.
Did his vision mesh with Karl? Heck no. But now Karl is gone and Vlade is looking for the next coach (aside: I'll always wonder what could have been with Malone, I definitely think he and Vlade would be on the same page).
Does it mesh with what Vivek wants as an insane megalomaniac owner with a very tenuous grasp on how the NBA game works? Who knows. ... maybe the short attention span of the irritant can be turned away from the fools gold of pace.
Does that vision mesh with the modern NBA? Who knows, but we have a stud center, so why not go for it? I think we can go far with Cuz. We just need some roster tinkering and a coach who isn't a toxic distraction with no interest in playing to his roster's strengths.
I still want to see some bigger names brought in, but I think Vlade will make the right choice in the end regardless.
It's very popular.to blame Karl. But it was Vlade, who decided not to fire him. And it's clear as day, that this roster isn't even close to resemble a competetive playoff team. It's only one year into Vlade's reign and therefore it's too early to draw any final conclusions.
But there were quite a few opportunities to improve this team outside of the big names like Wes Matthews. Curry was a good under the radar signing, but the Kings need more signings like that to get over the hump.
We missed on too many draft picks and won't be considered by most FA's. So Vlade better finds guys like Harkless or Bullock soon.
We wasted.one season. We can't afford to waste another.
But there were quite a few opportunities to improve this team outside of the big names like Wes Matthews. Curry was a good under the radar signing, but the Kings need more signings like that to get over the hump.
We missed on too many draft picks and won't be considered by most FA's. So Vlade better finds guys like Harkless or Bullock soon.
We wasted.one season. We can't afford to waste another.
If Vivek hasn't figured out how the NBA works by now, we are screwed for a long. long time. When Vlade sits next to him at games or chats with him in any other environment, I hope Vivek has learned to listen. Sometimes it is difficult to change your direction when you think you are brilliant and can change the NBA but really, Vivek, listen to the big, mellow dude.
As an addendum, if Vivek really thought he had a brilliant new vision, he couldn't help but notice that Vlade didn't agree. I was worried about Vlade's one year contract as the days ticked down to the end of the contract. Vivek could have easily let Vlade go and pursued his odd/old plan. Fortunately for us all, he extended Vlade's contract and in a way, said "uncle." (Do people say "uncle" out here?)
As an addendum, if Vivek really thought he had a brilliant new vision, he couldn't help but notice that Vlade didn't agree. I was worried about Vlade's one year contract as the days ticked down to the end of the contract. Vivek could have easily let Vlade go and pursued his odd/old plan. Fortunately for us all, he extended Vlade's contract and in a way, said "uncle." (Do people say "uncle" out here?
)Vlade scurried as best he could to add 10 new players to mesh in a reasonable fashion to a decent team. If he had hired Matthews, we would have no worries about Vlade. Vlade DID go after Wes. I don't know who else was available. That's all he could do as the team itself was toxic. I think the team is quite close to being a playoff team.