http://www.sacbee.com/100/story/95442.html
Musselman sees hope for struggling Kings
By Joe Davidson - Bee Staff Writer
Published 12:00 am PST Wednesday, December 20, 2006
Eric Musselman grimaces and frets in defeat, and there has been a lot of that lately: eight setbacks in 10 outings, some of the close, white-knuckle variety, others sheer beatdowns.
But during the holiday season, the Kings' coach hasn't attended practice following losses wearing a Grinch-like visage. Or outlook. He preaches the positive, and Tuesday's lesson before practice was that December doesn't necessarily have to be all about doom and despair.
There's hope because the season remains young -- and because a number of other playoff hopefuls are packed into the same boat tossing about in mediocrity and frustration.
"I have to be upbeat," Musselman said. "We came in today and talked about the standings. We're a game out of the eighth seed."
He cited a clear-cut top seven -- San Antonio, Phoenix, Utah, Dallas, the Los Angeles Lakers, Houston and Denver -- but then "there's this whole other lump."
Musselman numbers the Kings (10-13) among that next bunch, along with the Los Angeles Clippers, New Orleans, Minnesota, Portland and Seattle, all with at least 10 victories.
"Reality is reality," Musselman said. "We're not playing at home as well as we'd hope. That's a reflection of our record, and we're not happy with that."
The Kings, so often a sure thing at Arco Arena, have only a 7-6 home record, poorest in the Pacific Division. Another reality is the Kings are not the most athletic team around, meaning fast teams are a real challenge. Further, veteran floor leader Mike Bibby continues to struggle with his shot, which only helps the opposition.
It is no secret that when Bibby is hot, or at least warm to the touch as he was late against Utah on Friday, the Kings are formidable. Not so when he's cold, which his career-low 35.7 field-goal percentage this season shows is often.
The Kings started slowly against Dallas on Monday, with Bibby making just one of his first six shots. They made a run in the third quarter, then buckled and lost 109-91. The Kings shot just 39.8 percent.
But Musselman isn't about to call out his team for a collective lack of effort. He's the first to say the Kings can play better, and he's also first to say they have to if they want to join the top tier.
"When your offense is clicking, it gives you more energy," Musselman said. "There's been a lot of nights we've been pleasantly surprised with the effort on poor shooting nights. Last night (against Dallas), it was tough. They can demoralize you, and they did that to us. Thirty seconds to go in the third quarter, and it was a six-point game, then we had a bad fourth quarter."
Also clear is the Kings miss leading scorer Kevin Martin, who missed the Dallas game because of a sprained ankle. He is expected to play Thursday night against Washington at Arco.
Musselman experimented with the lineup against Dallas, at times using John Salmons at the point, Ron Artest at shooting guard, Brad Miller at center and Kenny Thomas and Shareef Abdur-Rahim at forward.
"It was the biggest we've been all season," Musselman said. "With the absence of Kevin, we were searching for things, and that lineup got us back into the game."
Kings players will practice today, with one eye on those standings. Then they will embark on shopping sprees throughout the community as part of Big Brothers/Big Sisters to Shriners hospitals and other affiliations. In short, there's not a lot of reason to frown today.
"Hey, last year we were in far worse condition when I got here," Artest said. "We were 18-24. No, I'm not encouraged about the losses. Definitely not happy with the losses, but we're better off than we were last year, too."
About the writer: The Bee's Joe Davidson can be reached at (916) 321-1280 or jdavidson@sacbee.com.
Musselman sees hope for struggling Kings
By Joe Davidson - Bee Staff Writer
Published 12:00 am PST Wednesday, December 20, 2006
Eric Musselman grimaces and frets in defeat, and there has been a lot of that lately: eight setbacks in 10 outings, some of the close, white-knuckle variety, others sheer beatdowns.
But during the holiday season, the Kings' coach hasn't attended practice following losses wearing a Grinch-like visage. Or outlook. He preaches the positive, and Tuesday's lesson before practice was that December doesn't necessarily have to be all about doom and despair.
There's hope because the season remains young -- and because a number of other playoff hopefuls are packed into the same boat tossing about in mediocrity and frustration.
"I have to be upbeat," Musselman said. "We came in today and talked about the standings. We're a game out of the eighth seed."
He cited a clear-cut top seven -- San Antonio, Phoenix, Utah, Dallas, the Los Angeles Lakers, Houston and Denver -- but then "there's this whole other lump."
Musselman numbers the Kings (10-13) among that next bunch, along with the Los Angeles Clippers, New Orleans, Minnesota, Portland and Seattle, all with at least 10 victories.
"Reality is reality," Musselman said. "We're not playing at home as well as we'd hope. That's a reflection of our record, and we're not happy with that."
The Kings, so often a sure thing at Arco Arena, have only a 7-6 home record, poorest in the Pacific Division. Another reality is the Kings are not the most athletic team around, meaning fast teams are a real challenge. Further, veteran floor leader Mike Bibby continues to struggle with his shot, which only helps the opposition.
It is no secret that when Bibby is hot, or at least warm to the touch as he was late against Utah on Friday, the Kings are formidable. Not so when he's cold, which his career-low 35.7 field-goal percentage this season shows is often.
The Kings started slowly against Dallas on Monday, with Bibby making just one of his first six shots. They made a run in the third quarter, then buckled and lost 109-91. The Kings shot just 39.8 percent.
But Musselman isn't about to call out his team for a collective lack of effort. He's the first to say the Kings can play better, and he's also first to say they have to if they want to join the top tier.
"When your offense is clicking, it gives you more energy," Musselman said. "There's been a lot of nights we've been pleasantly surprised with the effort on poor shooting nights. Last night (against Dallas), it was tough. They can demoralize you, and they did that to us. Thirty seconds to go in the third quarter, and it was a six-point game, then we had a bad fourth quarter."
Also clear is the Kings miss leading scorer Kevin Martin, who missed the Dallas game because of a sprained ankle. He is expected to play Thursday night against Washington at Arco.
Musselman experimented with the lineup against Dallas, at times using John Salmons at the point, Ron Artest at shooting guard, Brad Miller at center and Kenny Thomas and Shareef Abdur-Rahim at forward.
"It was the biggest we've been all season," Musselman said. "With the absence of Kevin, we were searching for things, and that lineup got us back into the game."
Kings players will practice today, with one eye on those standings. Then they will embark on shopping sprees throughout the community as part of Big Brothers/Big Sisters to Shriners hospitals and other affiliations. In short, there's not a lot of reason to frown today.
"Hey, last year we were in far worse condition when I got here," Artest said. "We were 18-24. No, I'm not encouraged about the losses. Definitely not happy with the losses, but we're better off than we were last year, too."
About the writer: The Bee's Joe Davidson can be reached at (916) 321-1280 or jdavidson@sacbee.com.
