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Ailene Voisin: More of Christie's savvy will be a plus
By Ailene Voisin -- Bee Sports Columnist
Published 2:15 am PST Thursday, November 4, 2004
SAN ANTONIO - No one is threatening to jump off the backboard and into the first row of seats. No one has tossed a chair in the locker room. No one has choked the coach. But with his team off to an 0-2 start and faltering miserably at both ends, Doug Christie, who made his 2004-05 debut Wednesday night, calmly suggests the Kings are in crisis, or, at least, in the rehab and recovery phase.
They missed the big guy, that lovable, lumbering old lug, Vlade Divac.
They miss his passes, his 7-foot-1 presence.
"When we had Vlade," said Christie after the Kings were overpowered by the Spurs, "we would usually start the offense in the low post, with him backing down his man. Then we'd split off him, and we would find people. The ball just whipped around, so it was easier to score.
"Now as a unit, we're trying to find an identity. We don't know who we are. We just have to keep attacking until we find something that works. But it's going to be more difficult than it was before."
While Kings coach Rick Adelman attempts to sort this entire mess - an interior defense torched by Tim Duncan for 30 points, an embarrassing 54-36 deficit on the boards, a reluctance to move with the ball or without the ball, lapses in energy and concentration, etc., etc., etc. - Christie's return will only help. This was the most consistent player throughout the second half of last season, and throughout his stay in Sacramento, he has been among the most durable. This isn't someone who calls in sick.
Although his painfully thin, 6-6, 205-pound physique hints he is no match for a collision with the hardwood, much less the NBA's bigger, thicker players, he has enjoyed more than a decade of health and prosperity, missing only four games in his previous four seasons before sitting out Tuesday's opener with a strained left arch. And whatever he has lost in speed or quickness over the course of his 34 years, he has overcome with superior physical conditioning and heightened court awareness.
Other millionaires pour over the stock market. Christie peruses the box scores, memorizes scouting reports and studies videotapes, making mental notes he puts to good use. Studious even in his expressions, he has a knack for finding Peja Stojakovic on backdoor cuts, nudging Chris Webber into the low post, playing off Mike Bibby - in essence understanding how to exploit the skills of each teammate.
But the true beauty of his game is its completeness; if he had a consistent jump shot, he would be a perennial All-Star. Instead, he settles for contributing exceptional and unflinching defense, and when called upon - and this seems to be one of those times when his services are particularly needed - accepting the pain that often accompanies the pleasure.
"Actually, my foot feels pretty good tonight," said Christie, "although the big test will be how it feels in the morning. I told Pete (trainer Pete Youngman) that I could have gone back out there and played longer (than 20 minutes), but this is what we had agreed upon, so I left it at that. I want to be able to run guys into submission, and I'm not at that point yet."
Consistent with the sharp-angled degree of difficulty that has greeted the Kings thus far, everything from a preseason trip to China, a preseason finale at Dallas and a regular-season opening road trip to Dallas, San Antonio and Houston, was Christie's first official test, of course, which figured to be against the Spurs and their electric shooting guard, Manu Ginobili. Yet with Christie on the floor, Manu was mortal, and for a while there, the Kings seemed to emerge from their collective funk.
On their very first scoring possession, Christie zipped a pass to Bibby , who immediately found Stojakovic on the right wing for three. Brad Miller connected from the foul line. Peja cut underneath for a basket, assist to Webber. And then it was Christie himself, stroking consecutive jumpers from the wings, tipping a rebound into the hands of Greg Ostertag, then slapping his palms together, exhorting his teammates, pressing for more. These were the Kings, the old Kings, sans Divac - players moving without the ball, passing willingly, performing enthusiastically and defending aggressively when absolutely necessary. But the reality is Divac is gone, Christie is still working his way back and the Kings have to find new ways to compete. The Kings have to find their game, find themselves.
Ailene Voisin: More of Christie's savvy will be a plus
By Ailene Voisin -- Bee Sports Columnist
Published 2:15 am PST Thursday, November 4, 2004
SAN ANTONIO - No one is threatening to jump off the backboard and into the first row of seats. No one has tossed a chair in the locker room. No one has choked the coach. But with his team off to an 0-2 start and faltering miserably at both ends, Doug Christie, who made his 2004-05 debut Wednesday night, calmly suggests the Kings are in crisis, or, at least, in the rehab and recovery phase.
They missed the big guy, that lovable, lumbering old lug, Vlade Divac.
They miss his passes, his 7-foot-1 presence.
"When we had Vlade," said Christie after the Kings were overpowered by the Spurs, "we would usually start the offense in the low post, with him backing down his man. Then we'd split off him, and we would find people. The ball just whipped around, so it was easier to score.
"Now as a unit, we're trying to find an identity. We don't know who we are. We just have to keep attacking until we find something that works. But it's going to be more difficult than it was before."
While Kings coach Rick Adelman attempts to sort this entire mess - an interior defense torched by Tim Duncan for 30 points, an embarrassing 54-36 deficit on the boards, a reluctance to move with the ball or without the ball, lapses in energy and concentration, etc., etc., etc. - Christie's return will only help. This was the most consistent player throughout the second half of last season, and throughout his stay in Sacramento, he has been among the most durable. This isn't someone who calls in sick.
Although his painfully thin, 6-6, 205-pound physique hints he is no match for a collision with the hardwood, much less the NBA's bigger, thicker players, he has enjoyed more than a decade of health and prosperity, missing only four games in his previous four seasons before sitting out Tuesday's opener with a strained left arch. And whatever he has lost in speed or quickness over the course of his 34 years, he has overcome with superior physical conditioning and heightened court awareness.
Other millionaires pour over the stock market. Christie peruses the box scores, memorizes scouting reports and studies videotapes, making mental notes he puts to good use. Studious even in his expressions, he has a knack for finding Peja Stojakovic on backdoor cuts, nudging Chris Webber into the low post, playing off Mike Bibby - in essence understanding how to exploit the skills of each teammate.
But the true beauty of his game is its completeness; if he had a consistent jump shot, he would be a perennial All-Star. Instead, he settles for contributing exceptional and unflinching defense, and when called upon - and this seems to be one of those times when his services are particularly needed - accepting the pain that often accompanies the pleasure.
"Actually, my foot feels pretty good tonight," said Christie, "although the big test will be how it feels in the morning. I told Pete (trainer Pete Youngman) that I could have gone back out there and played longer (than 20 minutes), but this is what we had agreed upon, so I left it at that. I want to be able to run guys into submission, and I'm not at that point yet."
Consistent with the sharp-angled degree of difficulty that has greeted the Kings thus far, everything from a preseason trip to China, a preseason finale at Dallas and a regular-season opening road trip to Dallas, San Antonio and Houston, was Christie's first official test, of course, which figured to be against the Spurs and their electric shooting guard, Manu Ginobili. Yet with Christie on the floor, Manu was mortal, and for a while there, the Kings seemed to emerge from their collective funk.
On their very first scoring possession, Christie zipped a pass to Bibby , who immediately found Stojakovic on the right wing for three. Brad Miller connected from the foul line. Peja cut underneath for a basket, assist to Webber. And then it was Christie himself, stroking consecutive jumpers from the wings, tipping a rebound into the hands of Greg Ostertag, then slapping his palms together, exhorting his teammates, pressing for more. These were the Kings, the old Kings, sans Divac - players moving without the ball, passing willingly, performing enthusiastically and defending aggressively when absolutely necessary. But the reality is Divac is gone, Christie is still working his way back and the Kings have to find new ways to compete. The Kings have to find their game, find themselves.
