exactly... its a win-win situation.... and is it really pessimistic when its true? since when has telling the truth been a nice thing? when people say, "i hate to say it but..." thats never a nice conversation.
if they suck, i'll have an "i told you so" thread.... if im wrong and they succeed, i'll be the first to say that i was wrong about whatever topic i was wrong about. i dont want this team to suck but the fact of the matter is that the team does suck right now. i expect them to be etter than last years team so that should mean something. but i dont see this team making the playoffs which is where we should be trying to get to, not the lottery... i dont want this team to be in the running for john wall, i want them playing in the playoffs. i want them to at least play 4 more games than half of the nba. id rather they get swept then end up with the 4th pick and the worst record in the nba again. at least if they get swept in the first round they made the playoffs, we would know what we have to build around. we would know who to keep and who we need to make it to the next level.
Look, we both want the same things. I'm just more realistic than you are. We are in a rebuild! Can we at least agree on that. If we can, then its safe to say that our record is going to reflect that. Its very difficult to do it in one or two years. It has been done, but it requires luck. Like sucking for one year and having Tim Duncan sitting there at the top of the draft board. Or, you're in a major market and its easier to attract big time free agents. And even that doesn's help if your present team is really bad and your way over the cap thanks to bad management. AKA the Knicks. Now we can agree or disagree on when the rebuild should have started, or when it actually started. Without actually talking to Petrie, its pretty much subjective.
So I don't think the team sucks. I don't really like that phrase anyway. It should be applied to vacuum cleaners and other things I can't mention. But I agree that the team will more than likely have a bad record. Not as bad as last year, but I seriously doubt it will be good enough to make the playoffs. Now that may bitterly disappoint you, because thats the standard you've set for the coming year. At least it sounds that way. But it doesn't disappoint me. No realistic fan would expect the team to make the playoffs this year. But I damm well expect them to be a lot better. I want the assists to go up and the turnovers to go down. I want the team to out rebound most of the teams they play, and if not outrebound them, then at least stay even with them. I want our offense to look like, well, an offense. Like we have an actual plan out there. Ditto the defense!
In other words, I have hope. Now I want the team to give me reason for having that hope. If they don't, I'll be as critical as you are. But right now, other than we don't have a backup center, or we haven't made any sexey moves, I don't have anything to criticize. I could play the " Woulda, Coulda, Shoulda " game like you, but it doesn't accomplish anything. Does it really make you feel better? When did you start watching the Kings and become a fan? I'm just curious if you were a fan from the get go. Because they really stunk there for a while. I was there from the beginning, sitting in that warehouse with the loudameter hanging in the middle of the arena.
With the ownership we had then, and the league appointed GM, I thought the team was doomed for all eternity. But at least I was getting to watch NBA basketball. I guess I just have a different mentality. When I was a kid and my St. Louis Cardinals baseball team went from 5th place to 4th place in one year, I thought that was a sucess. I saved my allowance for streetcar fare and a ticket into the bleachers. I went on sundays because they were always doubleheaders. Two for the price of one. It didn't get any better. But when I was at the game, I never once thought about where my team was in the standings, or what the win would do for them in the overall picture. Yeah, I wanted them to win, but more than anything else, I enjoyed the game. One of the most exciting games I ever attended, my Cardinals lost to the Cinn. Reds 19 to 15. Stan Musial hit three home runs in the loss. And that was the first game of a doubleheader.
Anyway, I sincerely hope you find a little joy out of the coming season. And if not, you don't have to be a " I told you so ". I think we all know what you think. PS. I live in Ensenada. Your more than welcome to come down and watch the games with me. BYOB!
