Willie Cauley-Stein: the 2018-19 Season watch

Ozymandias

Ozymandias

All-Star
#1
#1
I've watched Gobert dismantle top C's in this league, Cousins included, and Willie looks damn confident vs Gobert on more than one occasion now, and that alone means he's worth something, because Rudy is the real deal.


as a Kentucky fan I watched Willie closely for years and to think that he's pulling off moves like that vs the best defensive player in the league SCREAMS progress to me.

one of the "big $$$" plays is when he knocks the rebound away from favors, sprints up the floor, catches, checks the pass at the top of the key, switches to yogi in the corner and delivers a cross court assist.

If the Kings are gonna play fast this is a good C to keep around...
 
C

Cojc

Bench
#2
#2
Last night was the player I envisioned him becoming. He was quick, played defense for most of the game and a few other things.
But will that be what we see most nights or will he resort to being lost most of the time as was the norm?

I will always give kudos to someone who shows he tries even on a difficult night and defense can be played every night.

He had a good game last night and for myself anyway I hope we see more of the player we saw last night.
 
Sac.Kings

Sac.Kings

All-Star
#3
#3
I'll say this. I love Yogi already. Love the guy. He's heart and effort personified and it does affect the entire team. Beli and his cool as a cucumber approach also helped stabilize us on a number of occasions.

Make no mistake, this is a game that would have been given up on last year. I actually enjoyed this game and if this is how we play, I don't care if we lose 60 games.
 
P

ppine

Starter
#4
#4
Willie raised his stock considerably last night against the Jazz. We all want this kind of play to continue. The question is always can he maintain the intensity and level of interest in playing hard. ?
 
Kingster

Kingster

Hall of Famer
#5
#5
ppine said:
Willie raised his stock considerably last night against the Jazz. We all want this kind of play to continue. The question is always can he maintain the intensity and level of interest in playing hard. ?
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That is the question. I want to see how Stein plays after the 20-game mark. It's in the "dog days" that I really want to evaluate his effectiveness. That said, it's sure a lot better to see him play well in his first game against a top center than very poorly.
 
twslam07

twslam07

All-Star
#10
#10
Willie played really well yesterday. Probably the best I have ever seen him play.

However, we have seen flashes from him before only to revert back to inconsistent play & lackluster efforts. Consistency is key here, and when I say consistency, I don't mean that I need to see 20 points scored on a routine basis. I need to see consistency in regards to effort, heart, & decision making.

Keep it up, big guy!
 
kingsboi

kingsboi

Hall of Famer
#11
#11
I'd imagine we would of used the other Willie thread for a "Willie watch" thread but this will suffice.....he needs to keep playing well so he can boost his trade value, if he keeps this up it will be a overpay on the Kings' part
 
KingsSelecao

KingsSelecao

Bench
#14
#14
Not on board. He’s still a weak rebounder for his size and athleticism.
Tonite he went back to the mean. He had a couple late baskets. But, he was mediocre a lot of the game. Kings would be stupid to pay this guy 20 m!/yr. In case you didn’t notice: defensive rebounding on the Kings is bad.
 
C

Cojc

Bench
#15
#15
I have been impressed by his offense down low so far this season but just think where we as a team could go if he started being a defensive presence down low. With his skills he should be averaging 10 rebounds and 2 blocks a game.
 
Dime Dropper

Dime Dropper

All-Star
#16
#16
He's never going to be a 10 rebound per game guy, that doesn't mean he doesn't have value. If Willie puts up 16/7/3 for the season you re-sign him, within reason. He's improving every year, that's literally all you can ask. We're not in a position to keep letting talent walk. Let's see how the season goes but I'm on board with keeping Willie if he keeps playing well.
 
M

mac

All-Star
#17
#17
Dime Dropper said:
He's never going to be a 10 rebound per game guy, that doesn't mean he doesn't have value. If Willie puts up 16/7/3 for the season you re-sign him, within reason. He's improving every year, that's literally all you can ask. We're not in a position to keep letting talent walk. Let's see how the season goes but I'm on board with keeping Willie if he keeps playing well.
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I guess we should look past stats and look at impact. If the team is winning and looks promising in large part due to him playing a role, then you keep him within reason as you say. The difficulty is of course is determining what is "reason", especially when he's looking to get paid.
 
lwc

lwc

Starter
#19
#19
I have to admit that I wish this wasn't "Contract Year Willie" we were evaluating. How much of his progression is a willingness to finally put in a consistent effort because he knows if he does he'll get paid? Juxtapose that with finally having a starting/defined role, consistency in the front office and coaching staff, and consistent development since Boogie left.
 
B

burekijogurt

Starter
#20
#20
mac said:
I guess we should look past stats and look at impact. If the team is winning and looks promising in large part due to him playing a role, then you keep him within reason as you say. The difficulty is of course is determining what is "reason", especially when he's looking to get paid.
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"reason" will be derermined for us by the market. we give a qualifying offer and wait to see what other teams think its reasonable. if we agree we match.
 
D

dude12

Hall of Famer
#21
#21
The problem with not signing WCS is it creates a hole they would have to fill. He does fit the style the Kings are playing right now. Not signing him ruins the continuity they have been working towards. Now if it’s going to cost $20M per year, that becomes a problem
 
Kingster

Kingster

Hall of Famer
#22
#22
Dime Dropper said:
He's never going to be a 10 rebound per game guy, that doesn't mean he doesn't have value. If Willie puts up 16/7/3 for the season you re-sign him, within reason. He's improving every year, that's literally all you can ask. We're not in a position to keep letting talent walk. Let's see how the season goes but I'm on board with keeping Willie if he keeps playing well.
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Let's assume that WCS continues to play like this for the rest of the season, along with a few bumps in the road. What would you pay him?
 
Dime Dropper

Dime Dropper

All-Star
#23
#23
Kingster said:
Let's assume that WCS continues to play like this for the rest of the season, along with a few bumps in the road. What would you pay him?
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If he were to average 19/7/2 in only 29mpg, as he is doing now, then anywhere from 12-18mil per year. I know that's a big gap, but it will depend on what other offers he gets. We cannot continue to let talent walk. At some point we have to let the young guys grow together. Continuity is important for a small-market, young team. Denver are reaping the rewards of sticking together now. Not that I think they're a contender. But they should be a playoff team this year.
 
Kingster

Kingster

Hall of Famer
#24
#24
Dime Dropper said:
If he were to average 19/7/2 in only 29mpg, as he is doing now, then anywhere from 12-18mil per year. I know that's a big gap, but it will depend on what other offers he gets. We cannot continue to let talent walk without adequate compensation. At some point we have to let the young guys grow together. Continuity is important for a small-market, young team. Denver are reaping the rewards of sticking together now. Not that I think they're a contender. But they should be a playoff team this year.
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I added three words to make me totally agree with your statement. If WCS walks and the Kings get nada like we've seen so often in the past, it's a disaster. It's possible (maybe not likely, I dunno) that there is a trade where Kings get just compensation though. It could be a very tough situation on the Kings to predict his performance going forward after this year. For example, to me, it's a lot easier making the evaluation on the Joker than it is on WCS. I guess after another 79 games we'll have a better understanding of the situation.
 
T

The_Jamal

Hall of Famer
#25
#25
Willie has been balling to start the year:

62.4% USG (very good)
4.3% TOV (very, very, very good)
22% USG
12.9% TRB (meh, but we kind of know this already)
10.8% AST (solid for a big man)
.275 FTR (Would like to see this higher)
.176 WS/48
23.4 PER

The on off numbers are really funny too, but pretty accurate with how Giles (his main back-up) has performed so far:

On Court 87 minutes:
OFF rating- 125.4
DEF rating- 119.9

Off Court 57 minutes:
OFF rating- 106.1
DEF rating- 131.6

It's been 3 games, but yeah, this is a guy you pay 15+Mil for a season. Hopefully he keep its up.
 
kb02

kb02

All-Star
#27
#27
Don’t overreact tonight when WCS outplays Jokic. Outside of AD, WCS is Jokic’s worse match up. They’re both too quick for him.

If elevation was not a factor, I think the Kings win the game. Kings match up well with Denver, outside of the 3 spot.
 
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R

rhythmless

Starter
#28
#28
What if he is only putting in this effort now that it's for a contract? Then after he gets paid, he's going to go back to trying to be something else and waste everyone else's time until he's playing for another contact?
 
Kingster

Kingster

Hall of Famer
#29
#29
John Galt said:
If he does it through November I would pay him.
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I wouldn't begin to get serious about an evaluation until the end of January. A major question with WCS is consistency and attrition. One can't gauge his consistency or his ability to withstand the NBA physicallity over just a couple of months.

It would be nice to see WCS actually outrebound the opposing center in some games going forward. At this point, in an odd way, I look at WCS kind of like Marcus Smart with Boston. As a guard Marcus Smart can't shoot, is a so-so assist guy, but brings defense and toughness to the table. WCS can't rebound, can't spread the floor on offense with outside shooting, isn't particularly good at defending physical players in the post, but can run the floor very well, get lobs, score off his quickness inside, and guard the perimeter. It's a mixed bag with both of them, and in each case they don't do particularly well what you expect from their respective position, but they do do other things very well. Marcus Smart was awarded a contract of $52 million over 4 years by Boston.
 
2

206Fan

All-Star
#30
#30
Dime Dropper said:
If he were to average 19/7/2 in only 29mpg, as he is doing now, then anywhere from 12-18mil per year. I know that's a big gap, but it will depend on what other offers he gets. We cannot continue to let talent walk. At some point we have to let the young guys grow together. Continuity is important for a small-market, young team. Denver are reaping the rewards of sticking together now. Not that I think they're a contender. But they should be a playoff team this year.
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If he averages those numbers, he's going to get paid a lot more than 12-18. Some team will offer him near-max..because those are MAX numbers for a center.
 
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