Fire Walton

Status
Not open for further replies.
What is the threshold for losses. 5 in a row? 7? 12?

What record would cause an in season move to be made?


8-12? 10-25?

There has to be a calculus for what is the final straw.
 
This organization has started another dumpster fire, I can't see a major name stepping up to grab this bull by the horns. The time to do that would have been in the summer. They instead decided to run it back, even after openly dangling guys, and now Monte is paying that price full on. You have distrust running rampant through this locker room. Buddy, Bagley, etc. Bringing in someone that has history with these players and has already developed one with the young players you might be going to if a rebuild is necessary is a HUGE advantage. The Kings have already been planting seeds that Bagley getting sandbagged (pun intended) is on Walton. This creates the potential of mending that relationship as well.
Monte is well respected around the league and has done a great job so far. 2 great draft picks, 2 good trades in Bogi-Divencenzo and Buddy-Kuzma. This trades go thru and the team is hugely upgraded on defense, which has been an obvious priority for him. There’s only 30 head coaching jobs in the NBA, we’re not gonna hire Thibs away from the Knicks but I don’t see any reason why the top assistants around the league wouldn’t want to come to take the job

I just don't think this team is that poor to have to pack it in and rebuild. I think this is a leadership issue.

The problem with bringing in a seasoned head coach is that that should take time. The seasoned head coach and the GM need to be on the same page and I just don't think it would be realistic to do that now.

So in my opinion the options are either Gentry or Jackson right now. Gentry doesn't impress me at all. Didn't all his teams suck, Bobby J has at least shown that he values defense, and he was also a very tough player, I'm sure he would demand the same from his players. The players need a tough coach for sure.

And if Bobby doesn't work it, then do your proper search in the off-season
Gentry makes a lot of sense to serve out the season of Walton gets fired. Wait until the offseason to do a thorough coaching search (even start evaluating during the season) and make the long-term hire then
 
Maybe you know Bobby better than me. Fair enough. But summer league and a few clips on YouTube of him coaching does not make him an NBA head coach.

That said he is the cheapest possible option so I'm sure Vivek is licking his lips.

Another fan favourite who he can hide his own faliure behind.
Waltons history in LA should have the reason he wasn't a head coach with this team in the first place. He was because of a relationship with Vlade, nothing more. Now the org is already working some stuff through the media that the guy they wanted went to Minnesota instead haha. The longer they hang onto Walton the more time they waste. He could end up a great coach with the right team who knows but here this is far too tainted.
 
Last edited:
Going back in history, the Kings needed a young Karl, not a Karl that had been weakened by cancer. He was pretty frail when he took the job, and this is not a job for the physically impaired. If Karl had been younger and backed by a strong management, it probably would have been great after the dust had cleared. D'Antoni is just an appeaser as far as I am concerned, and that's the last thing this team needs. We already have that with Walton. He exudes weakness, even in his language - uhm, uhm, uhm......and more uhm. Does that teenage speak affect make you want to follow him, come hell or high water?!! Are you ready, as a player, to do the dirty work that needs to be done in order to win, after hearing, "Uhm, uhm, uhm I'd really like you to actually make a screen, uhm, that you don't slip every single time?! It's so indecisive it makes my skin crawl. So I'd really like someone who can speak and teach incisively, cogently, persuasively, and commandingly. Is that Bobby Jackson? LOL. Don't get me wrong. Being able to speak is not the be all end all of necessary coaching attributes, but it's at least one of the attributes that I'd be looking for.
Yeah, that would have helped but Karl did have some success, before igniting his locker room of course, not too long before in Denver. He pulled the ultimate my way or the highway thing there to. He literally said something along the lines of him rather losing with his style than adapting and winning when the Warriors pounded them in the playoffs. When they hired him in Sac it was no shock that he was going to want to augment it to fit his vision. Vlade never chose and instead hung on to a toxic back and forth until it poisoned everything else in it's proximity. This team is in the same crosshairs all these years later, what are you going to choose Vivek?

The difference with D'Antoni and Walton run deeper though. D'Antoni historically wants to a run a spread pick and roll system that would fit Fox and co. Walton wants to run motion and horn sets. Surprise, surprise what he keeps on jackhammering back into the playbook and failing at time and time again. Would D'Antoni turn this around? Who knows. Like I said, it might be too far down the path of darkness to correct. Just like the Karl fiasco.
 
Monte is well respected around the league and has done a great job so far. 2 great draft picks, 2 good trades in Bogi-Divencenzo and Buddy-Kuzma. This trades go thru and the team is hugely upgraded on defense, which has been an obvious priority for him. There’s only 30 head coaching jobs in the NBA, we’re not gonna hire Thibs away from the Knicks but I don’t see any reason why the top assistants around the league wouldn’t want to come to take the job



Gentry makes a lot of sense to serve out the season of Walton gets fired. Wait until the offseason to do a thorough coaching search (even start evaluating during the season) and make the long-term hire then
Uh, fair is fair, and he looked like the girl standing at the alter in both situations. Closing the deal is the key. Not creating the deal. So far he's been better than bad, but Vlade wasn't all bad either.

I was down with Gentry last season in a Hawks style move, but they missed the mark on that one last year, time to move past it. The reports of Alvin going at Griffin was timed to conveniently IMO. Stories like that coming out that far after the fact is odd. Gentry it turns out was a Walton hire, not a potential fall back. If you want a clean sweep so the players can get a fresh start, he's got to go to. Depending on the deal Bobby would sign, perhaps as an interim, it wouldn't preclude you from still going after someone in a search this summer. Bobby is already a part of this coaching system so essentially it's the same thing. I'd rather them take a look at him than someone that can't remotely be seen as some sort of outsider to these players.
 
That blurb that recently resurfaced on twitter about the Kings wanting Chris Finch and instead retained Walton when all that went down. Or something along those lines. It's all face saving nothings in the end but you can make an educated guess about which side they're coming from. lol.
 
It's been 4 losses in a row and the last 2 were pretty inexcusable but that happens in the NBA sometimes. We can't keep getting so high and low with these guys. We know what we have and it's virtually the same roster we trotted out there last season, so the up and down nature in which they play shouldn't be so shocking. I don't think we're a bad team but we're obviously middle of the road right now and if the players start getting down on themselves the way the fans are, i can see this losing streak getting a lot uglier. The rest of this month looks extremely difficult for us
 
You guys are nuts. Always blame the coach. It's the players.
Both things can be true here but they absolutely need better coaching. Anyone paying attention can see our players (specifically Buddy, Fox and Holmes) are used incorrectly and that's pretty damn difficult to overcome. There are at least 10 points on both ends of the floor that could be in our favor if we'd simply had smarter coaching decisions being made and im not joking.
 
I just don't think this team is that poor to have to pack it in and rebuild. I think this is a leadership issue.

The problem with bringing in a seasoned head coach is that that should take time. The seasoned head coach and the GM need to be on the same page and I just don't think it would be realistic to do that now.

So in my opinion the options are either Gentry or Jackson right now. Gentry doesn't impress me at all. Didn't all his teams suck, Bobby J has at least shown that he values defense, and he was also a very tough player, I'm sure he would demand the same from his players. The players need a tough coach for sure.

And if Bobby doesn't work out, then do your proper search in the off-season
Walton should go. I think Bobby would be a great coach. He's paid his dues.

I also think the Kings should trade Fox, Buddy, and Bagley. Build the team around Hali and Mitchell. That's Bobby J and Doug Christie 2.0. A back court that has the two way grit, team first mentality, and personality to win it all.
 
You guys are nuts. Always blame the coach. It's the players.
Exactly what carmichael dave is talking about right now on his show.

How many times are you gonna blame the coach without finally looking in and saying its the core players?. This core has accomplished nothing. Time to blow up the core of barnes, buddy, bagley, and fox. Then bring in a qualified coach to start fresh with the new core. No more turning over players 6,7, and 8 and time to blow out 1,2, and 3.
 
Athletic article doesn’t offer a lot of meat or details but the rumbling beginning is a welcome sign
And that is quite different from last year.... last year it might have existed internally but wasn't vocalized publicly in terms of the organization.

Could also be McNair sensing blood on the horizon and just making sure it is not his that is spilled.
 
Exactly what carmichael dave is talking about right now on his show.

How many times are you gonna blame the coach without finally looking in and saying its the core players?. This core has accomplished nothing. Time to blow up the core of barnes, buddy, bagley, and fox. Then bring in a qualified coach to start fresh with the new core. No more turning over players 6,7, and 8 and time to blow out 1,2, and 3.
No they have not accomplished anything, and likely would never be considered serious contenders with this core. However, Walton is a terrible coach.
 
I love Bobby, but I would pass on him personally. I'm sure he has a great basketball iq by this point, but this team needs more than just a X and O guy. They need a motivator and someone that is going to get in the players face and keep them accountable. This team lacks leadership in the worst way. We don't get any from our franchise player. We certainly don't get any from our current head coach. That's why we can never hang on to a lead. When things start to go south everyone just sits around and mopes. Walton tries to draw up some plays, but they don't do anything and we wind up losing. Every team needs a leader to win in this league. If your team doesn't have a LeBron to do it, it needs the coach to step up. Bobby Jackson just doesn't seem like that guy.
He has performed well in his limited opportunities. The players love Bobby too from the interviews. Granted its SL and g league but his performance got my attention.
 
Well, this'll be interesting. Under normal circumstances, the Pistons and Wolves would certainly qualify as "winnable" games, even should-win games. Now, will the players play hard for their embattled head coach - if not for the sake of personal and professional pride and as a mater of course - or do they seize the opportunity potentially to bury him?

Cuz if they lose to 3-9 Detroit and 4-8 Minnesota going into games against the Raptors, Jazz, and Sixers, in 8 days they could easily be 5-13 and riding a (guess what?!) 9-game losing streak.

Course, truth is that our boyz need the jolt of energy a coaching change might bring NOW, not on the other side of another loss to a bad team they *should* beat.
 
Exactly what carmichael dave is talking about right now on his show.

How many times are you gonna blame the coach without finally looking in and saying its the core players?. This core has accomplished nothing. Time to blow up the core of barnes, buddy, bagley, and fox. Then bring in a qualified coach to start fresh with the new core. No more turning over players 6,7, and 8 and time to blow out 1,2, and 3.
I wouldn't place any blame on the coach, if I knew he wasn't costing us games with this decisions. That doesn't seem to be the case here. They have little to lose by trying someone new
 
People are going to rejoice when he’s fired but it will be the same old team. We aren’t magically going to be good when he’s gone.
I don't know that there's more to be said than what's been said, typically umpteen times, but: they could and should be way better than what we've seen this past week-plus. They could and should have been way better than the team that laid two 9-game-losing streak eggs last year. The head coach clearly bears some responsibility for that. He's had plenty of opportunity to prove himself worthy and failed.

Next!
 
If Walton didn't have a couple more years left on his contract I'm not sure he would still be the head coach. He wasn't McNair's hire, and despite what McNair has stated about the two of them having a good relationship, I think it has more to do with Vivek not wanting to pay yet another coach for doing nothing. Can't say I blame him, but then a lot of it has to do with him in the first place. In my opinion there's enough talent on this team to make the playoffs, although some of it doesn't quite fit properly.

I could nit pic Walton to death, but I won't waste your time with it. I think we all know basketball well enough to see his mistakes. We have a potential all star in Fox, and yet, the offense seems to fall apart if Haliburton isn't on the floor. But when Haliburton is on the floor, Fox seems to struggle finding his game. Not saying that can't be worked out, but how often do we see the two of them intentionally run plays for each other. Walton doesn't appear to have an answer, other than, it will work itself out. Really?

Harkless is a very good defender, but you can't have a SF scoring 0 to 2 points a night on a contending team. He should be coming off the bench period! I would have had Barnes and Metu in the starting lineup from the get go. I think Metu proved he's capable last season. I would cut Woodard and move King up to the parent club on a guaranteed salary. King is an NBA player and anyone who watched him play in summer league or recently in the G-League knows that.

I think playing a small lineup in certain situations can give you an advantage, but to make it a regular part of your rotation plans can make you easier to defend when game planning. We've gotten killed on the boards far too often while playing small, and too many teams have figured out how get mismatches against us. In short, were too predictable at times. As you can see most of my criticism is leaning toward Walton, who I think is probably too comfortable knowing that even if he's fired, he's walking away with two more years worth of salary. I hope I'm wrong about that.

I don't think there's any doubt that if Walton is fired the Kings will appoint someone currently on the staff to take over. That always puts the GM in a tricky situation. If your the GM this is your chance to hand pick the person you want for the job. But what if you appoint someone from within temporarily, and he turns the team around and makes the playoff's? Are you as the GM OK with that. Are you willing to give that person a 2 or 3 year contract based solely on what's left of the current season? Like I said, it's always a tricky situation..

On the whole, I think McNair has done a good job. You can't blame him for the Lakers pulling out of a trade that everyone in the entire league thought was going to happen, including the players involved. What's ironic is that that Lakers decided to go for headlines over efficiency. Buddy was the perfect fit for their team and instead they wanted the headlines to read that the Lakers had landed another all star. An all star that will shoot them right out of games, but will put up gaudy stats. The sad part is that trade would have helped both teams. But that's not McNair's fault.

I think Bagley for Bey would have been a terrific trade if true, but I don't blame the Pistons for turning that down. I would have turned it down as well. If nothing else, McNair found out Bagley's value. I think hopefully the most McNair will get for Bagley is a low first round draft pick, but even that's difficult because of Bagley's 11 mil salary. Which means we'll have to take salary back, which is why he's holding a roster spot open. In short, the whole Bagley thing is a big mess, but that mess wasn't created by McNair
 
Status
Not open for further replies.