Our Second Unit?

[Gabriel]

Take a look at what happened this game.

Kings starting line-up looks terrific. Leads team to a good half-time lead.

Second half. Beno basically takes up Luther's minutes. He's in there for most of the fourth quarter where the Kings are not able to put points on the board.

A small change such as having Beno in there instead of Head, who was part of the good momentum this team carried throughout the first half, can change everything.

Here's what I think.

-I like JT starting and Landry coming off the bench.

-Beno Udrih and Omri Casspi are scrubs.

-Derrick Rose is waaaay better than Tyreke Evans.

-When the play of the game is some guy sinking a half court shot at halftime, you know something is wrong.

-Demarcus Cousins needs to work on his game.

So I ask, do you think our problem is our second unit? Because it really didn't seem like we had one tonight or any other night this season.

 

[DeMoN]

Take a look at what happened this game.

Kings starting line-up looks terrific. Leads team to a good half-time lead.

Second half. Beno basically takes up Luther's minutes. He's in there for most of the fourth quarter where the Kings are not able to put points on the board.

A small change such as having Beno in there instead of Head, who was part of the good momentum this team carried throughout the first half, can change everything.

Here's what I think.

-I like JT starting and Landry coming off the bench.

-Beno Udrih and Omri Casspi are scrubs.

-Derrick Rose is waaaay better than Tyreke Evans.

-When the play of the game is some guy sinking a half court shot at halftime, you know something is wrong.

-Demarcus Cousins needs to work on his game.

So I ask, do you think our problem is our second unit? Because it really didn't seem like we had one tonight or any other night this season.

Honestly, right now I don't think we have any other option other than start Landry. Thompson is my guy, but we really do need a second option out there, because until Cousins develops into one, we don't have one. Tyreke is really struggling right now, and taking a scorer off the floor is going to make it even worse. I think we got lucky tonight in the first half, shots we're finally dropping for us. But in future games I suspect the opposite to happen, as it has most of the games this season.

If we start Landry though, I demand JT to get close to 25-30 minutes at PF and Center.

 

[bajaden]

Honestly, right now I don't think we have any other option other than start Landry. Thompson is my guy, but we really do need a second option out there, because until Cousins develops into one, we don't have one. Tyreke is really struggling right now, and taking a scorer off the floor is going to make it even worse. I think we got lucky tonight in the first half, shots we're finally dropping for us. But in future games I suspect the opposite to happen, as it has most of the games this season.

If we start Landry though, I demand JT to get close to 25-30 minutes at PF and Center.

Just for the hell of it, why don't we start the same starting unit and see if we were just lucky or the unit really works well together. Thompson almost averaged a double/double last year. And he had a lot of games like last night. The only thing he lacked was consistency. I thought that this, his third year, he might become the player we want him to be. But he never got the chance. He even had Darnell Jackson, who had a couple of nice games moved ahead of him in the rotation. Two things I know. Thompson will outrebound Landry and he'll play better defense than Landry. He'll also pass the basketball and thats something the Kings desperately need in their offense right now. I think Thompson had 4 assists last night. I believe that 4 assists more than Landry has had all season.

 

[Kingster]

The Kings were doing fine in this game until...... Beno entered the game. Down the tubes they went, not because of Beno's lack of defense, but because his offense was horrible. I guess he doesn't like coming in off the bench, does he? How could he play worse?

On one play when he had the ball on the side court he threw the ball right into a double team. That's not even a bad high school play. The only play he made was when Dally set him a screen and he used it to shoot over it. (Happy now, Beno?) Westphal was obviously extremely upset with Beno's play when he was yelling at him over at the sidelines. It's a simple thing that Beno does not want to do - move the freaking ball. He wants to hog it, he wants to have screens set for him, he wants have the offense designed for him. Pure and simple, he's killing the Kings by pursuing his own selfish agenda.

 

[theclash4u5]

Just for the hell of it, why don't we start the same starting unit and see if we were just lucky or the unit really works well together. Thompson almost averaged a double/double last year. And he had a lot of games like last night. The only thing he lacked was consistency. I thought that this, his third year, he might become the player we want him to be. But he never got the chance. He even had Darnell Jackson, who had a couple of nice games moved ahead of him in the rotation. Two things I know. Thompson will outrebound Landry and he'll play better defense than Landry. He'll also pass the basketball and thats something the Kings desperately need in their offense right now. I think Thompson had 4 assists last night. I believe that 4 assists more than Landry has had all season.

Good luck...

"I like Carl on the floor a lot," Westphal said." I like him in the starting lineup."

 

[CruzDude]

Beno was not the problem last night. Tyreke was. He is not recognizing the closing down of the middle and double-triple teaming he gets in the second half and stronger yet in the 4th quarters of games. Every game. Some teams put the bang on him in the 1st quarter and he ends up with 9 points for a game. He needs to focus on that and get other players involved. JT moved really well last night but when the middle become a dirt pile for Tyreke so is it for others as well, unless he moves out of there and gets his assists up towards 10 with most coming in second halves. Cousins also is early in his learning process and his defense and offense is sorely missed late when he has 4 fouls early in the 3rd. No it isn't one guy in any game. It is all of them and the lack of team leadership on the floor.

 

[Bricklayer]

Beno was not the problem last night. Tyreke was.

That is not a credible way to begin your post unless the point is that Beno is too irrelevant to be the problem, and even there I think that's a stretch. He was completely awful and we got crushed whenever he was running things.

 

[Kingster]

Beno was not the problem last night. Tyreke was. He is not recognizing the closing down of the middle and double-triple teaming he gets in the second half and stronger yet in the 4th quarters of games. Every game. Some teams put the bang on him in the 1st quarter and he ends up with 9 points for a game. He needs to focus on that and get other players involved. JT moved really well last night but when the middle become a dirt pile for Tyreke so is it for others as well, unless he moves out of there and gets his assists up towards 10 with most coming in second halves. Cousins also is early in his learning process and his defense and offense is sorely missed late when he has 4 fouls early in the 3rd. No it isn't one guy in any game. It is all of them and the lack of team leadership on the floor.

Beno and Tyreke were the problems, but at least Tyreke has an excuse - a bad wheel. And he's only in his second year. And he compensates for his poor decision making by good D. Once the ball was in Beno's hands, this game went down the tubes. Just like the last game.

 

[Happy]

Not sure they have a second unit and surely don't have a starting lineup. All Ive seen are spur of the moment unexplainable substitutions.

 

[bajaden]

I'll say this. As much as we criticize Tyreke for over dribbling the ball, and so deserving at times, Beno is just as big a culprit. The Bulls doubled Beno, or attempted to trap him when he had the ball, especially in the second half, and it worked to perfection. Someone must have looked at a lot of film on Beno and realized that if you pressure him when he has the ball he's apt to make a bad decision with it. Whether the bad decision is over dribbling or making a bad pass or driving into the teeth of the defense. He did all three last night. But one that ticks me off the most is his dribbling around with the ball trying to create something and then passing the ball to someone else with just a couple of seconds left on the clock. He did to Thompson 3 times last night and to Dalembert once.

Its especially tough on bigs because they're ususally in the low post with someone guarding them and they don't have the time to make any moves other than just shoot the ball. Its a cowardly cheap a$$ thing for a guard to do. Once in a while I can understand, but Beno does it on a regular basis.

 

[Larry89]

Unfortunately Beno is not cutting it, seems like he hasn't been putting in as much work as he did last year, maybe unhappy with his role, I say we give Pooh Jeter a chance, he has been working with Bobby Jackson afterall maybe he will be a better guard off the bench

 

[DeMoN]

I see Beno as more of a Jamal Crawford type of player

 

[pshn80]

The Kings were doing fine in this game until...... Beno entered the game. Down the tubes they went, not because of Beno's lack of defense, but because his offense was horrible. I guess he doesn't like coming in off the bench, does he? How could he play worse?

My take, and I attended the game, was that the Kings were doing fine in this game until........ the Bulls put the screws on on offense and Kings never once in a least a half dozen possessions deal with it at all except to turn it over, pass too late, take a hurried and poor shot either early or late in the clock. On second thought, it might have been or seemed like a dozen possessions. Did Beno contribute to this? Yes, as did Greene with splendor, and all the others that touched the ball. Let me suggest a new rule for the team: don't let Cousins or Thompson dribble the ball especially in crunch time. The second biggee was in the last four or five minutes Evans was asked or allowed to handle the ball, dribble, shoot but not pass. Total disaster.

 

[Agent23]

Take a look at what happened this game.

Kings starting line-up looks terrific. Leads team to a good half-time lead.

Second half. Beno basically takes up Luther's minutes. He's in there for most of the fourth quarter where the Kings are not able to put points on the board.

A small change such as having Beno in there instead of Head, who was part of the good momentum this team carried throughout the first half, can change everything.

Here's what I think.

-I like JT starting and Landry coming off the bench.

-Beno Udrih and Omri Casspi are scrubs.

-Derrick Rose is waaaay better than Tyreke Evans.

-When the play of the game is some guy sinking a half court shot at halftime, you know something is wrong.

-Demarcus Cousins needs to work on his game.

So I ask, do you think our problem is our second unit? Because it really didn't seem like we had one tonight or any other night this season.

Its funny you mention that Derrick Rose is better than Reke. Last year, it was debatable. This year, D-Rose has made the jump from good young player to Superstar in year 3. The big question is, can Tyreke make that same jump in his third year? I know its the "in" thing to be down on him right now, but it was just a few months ago he was our superstar in the making. Does him being unhealthy right now really change that?

 

[bajaden]

I see Beno as more of a Jamal Crawford type of player

Thats an insult to Crawford..Sorry, I happen to like Crawford..

 

[DeMoN]

Thats an insult to Crawford..Sorry, I happen to like Crawford..

I said type, not to his ability, a guard who can come off the bench and make shots. I don't except anythign esle.

 

[Lockehead]

My only problem with Beno is that he plays the game at his own pace. If hes on the floor with a big unit, he'll push the ball and play at the same tempo he does with a small unit.

 

[IfAt1st]

Its especially tough on bigs because they're ususally in the low post with someone guarding them and they don't have the time to make any moves other than just shoot the ball. Its a cowardly cheap a$$ thing for a guard to do. Once in a while I can understand, but Beno does it on a regular basis.

WTF?
"A regular basis"??

baja -
I'm confident you've seen enough of the games this year that you know that's incorrect. What do you call "a regular basis"? Once a game? Once a half? Every other possession?
I'm addressing your post because you have the ear of a lot of KF's and you sound like a stand-up guy who admits when he's over-demonizing a player.

This entire thread is demonizing Beno based off of one or 2 games. I didn't see this whole game, but I did catch every play after the Kings WERE AHEAD 81-78 and Beno didn't come close to losing this game.

I detailed the mistakes in the Grades thread, and Beno only made one bad play in the critical 4th qtr when the game was lost (fouling after he missed a good pull-up J, leading to 2 FT's the other way - I'm not sure if the Bulls made both).
Other Kings played WAY worse from the 9 minute mark till the end.

Come on, KF - Pooh Jeter should play instead of Beno?
Based on what facts, pray tell?
Look at Beno's statistics this year. Add in the countless assists he has lost because of countless misses and TO's. He makes plays, guys, and has bailed the Kings out with buckets (including the only game-winning one this year so far) on a regular basis.

But, hey - don't let reality get in the way of a mob internet lynching.
Go ahead and crucify a guy for an apparent bad couple'a games while you allow other Kings players to screw-up night in and night out with impunity.

 

[pshn80]

WTF?
"A regular basis"??

baja -
I'm confident you've seen enough of the games this year that you know that's incorrect. What do you call "a regular basis"? Once a game? Once a half? Every other possession?
I'm addressing your post because you have the ear of a lot of KF's and you sound like a stand-up guy who admits when he's over-demonizing a player.

This entire thread is demonizing Beno based off of one or 2 games. I didn't see this whole game, but I did catch every play after the Kings WERE AHEAD 81-78 and Beno didn't come close to losing this game.

I detailed the mistakes in the Grades thread, and Beno only made one bad play in the critical 4th qtr when the game was lost (fouling after he missed a good pull-up J, leading to 2 FT's the other way - I'm not sure if the Bulls made both).
Other Kings played WAY worse from the 9 minute mark till the end.

Come on, KF - Pooh Jeter should play instead of Beno?
Based on what facts, pray tell?
Look at Beno's statistics this year. Add in the countless assists he has lost because of countless misses and TO's. He makes plays, guys, and has bailed the Kings out with buckets (including the only game-winning one this year so far) on a regular basis.

But, hey - don't let reality get in the way of a mob internet lynching.
Go ahead and crucify a guy for an apparent bad couple'a games while you allow other Kings players to screw-up night in and night out with impunity.

Good post because in all this recent play I haven't identified Beno as the problem as inferred by many recent posts. Let me add that in my book Beno is the best ball handler on the team. His starting life has been benched. When he started his offense was an important part of our few successes. I understand that he was benched because of his defense. In adding up this plus and this minus we may be ahead by starting Beno.