Berger/CBS Article: Kings May Finally Be Getting Out of Their Own Way

[Bricklayer]

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/writer...s-may-finally-be-getting-out-of-their-own-way

 

[IfAt1st]

Great quote:

Divac befriended quixotic owner Vivek Ranadive two years ago and became a trusted advisor -- so much so that Ranadive turned this wayward ship over to him while undercutting then-GM Pete D'Alessandro in the process. D'Alessandro returned to a front office job in Denver, which then hired Michael Malone as head coach -- the same Michael Malone who D'Alessandro had fired in Sacramento a few months earlier.

As the kids say, you can't make this stuff up.

I find it curious that this article suggests the Kings may be turning a corner - maybe.

That either suggests the writer has been watching the Kings as closely as some of us have and see how close they are to putting it together, or it may be the vanguard of the national media starting to turn favorable to us.

 

[bcobbus]

Kind of nice to see optimism for once! One gets the feeling that perhaps we are one move away from being a scary team to contend with.

 

[kingsboi]

a positive article on the Kings? that's something new for the week. They've played better no doubt, but they still have some digging to do to get to .500 and then maybe start over taking a 8th or 7th seed team.

 

[ParniValjak]

Gaining attention now for good reasons. We now just need to pinch that play off spot. This roster has more talent now, than at any point in the last 9-10 years. In terms of talent, this should be a play off team. That brutal 1-7 start is KILLING us.

 

[IfAt1st]

Well, the start was brutal, but to be honest - all they had to do was show up and play hard and they would have beat Charlotte, the TWolves, the Blazers, and the 76ers.

Even allowing for the late-game f-ups that cost them multiple games (like Dallas), those 4 games are the only difference between 9th seed w/ teetering on the playoffs, and fighting for the 5th seed alongside Dallas and the Rockets.

 

[VF21]

A couple of interesting comments:

"My belief was, I never, ever thought I was not going to coach Cuz this year," Karl said. "Did you have philosophical discussions? We talk about everything. We meet for 2-3 hours every day and talk about every scenario in the world. And I think Cuz worked his tail off this summer. Vlade and I got together with Cuz in the summertime, and I think what happened in the locker room after the San Antonio game was him maybe venting all that anger that he had through the process. Vlade's done a good job of being a good bridge between he and I."

"I feel like the new group of guys who are running the show now, from Vlade and Peja and the guys out front to our coaching staff and everything in place, it's kind of taken the ship out of the mud, out of the icebergs that we've been in," Casspi said. "To turn an organization around that's been in the mud for eight or nine years, it's not just an overnight thing."

Incredible article. I'm very impressed with the writer, who obviously took the time to ask the right people the right questions. Ken Berger just moved way up my list of respected journalists.

 

[gunks]

Vlade is the man. I think that his effect on this organization cannot be overstated. If PDA was still calling the shots last summer, Cuz would probably be a Laker right now.

And, as always, I love Omri's enthusiasm. Dude talks like he's been, and will be, a King for life.

Also, props to the writer for actually doing his job as a journalist... unlike certain BSPN and yahoo sports hacks who just regurgitate the hateful narrative.

 

[Merdiesel]

The weather is starting to change in Sacramento.
DeMarcus is playing his best ball of the season. Rudy and Marco are scoring like they should. Willie and Omri are coming back. Our offense has been a lot more fluid. Coach Karl seems to have really woken up with some beautiful late game play calling. Above all those things though, these guys have shown fight. For the first time all season, we've seen that fire. If we can improve our team defense just 25%, we could be a scary team. Not just an 8th seed charity case but a scrappy group of guys that could possibly win a couple games and make it interesting.

 

[alonshin]

Good article! Thank you for sharing it.

 

[John Galt]

There are better franchises in the NBA, and there are worse, but there is no sillier one.

Fusilli Vivek

 

[Amaranth]

Makes me feel good. And Casspi is the best.

 

[lwc]

Great article

 

[ParniValjak]

A couple of interesting comments:



Incredible article. I'm very impressed with the writer, who obviously took the time to ask the right people the right questions. Ken Berger just moved way up my list of respected journalists.

I started respecting him when he was covering the Kings sale/relocation to Seattle. He was one of the very few who from memory did cover the story fairly from both sides, rather than go with the national medias line of "it's Seattle and it's Ballmer/Hansen money, $30 million deposit already paid...blah blah blah".

 

[ArcoKings]

Good article.

All the team needs to improve on is playing defense. Defense wins games and the Kings can win more games than lose from this point forward. The Karl/Cousins issue was way over blown.