Fire Walton

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Prior to the season I expected the Kings to finish in the bottom third of the league and I was ok with that if it meant we could acquire a franchise level player in the draft.

6-7 games in I adjusted my position. The kings were playing good defense, Barnes was the player he was drafted to be, Fox had taken a step and we had our super rookie. I said I could root for this team to win because I was entertained! That’s the point as a fan, no?

At this point, we are too talented to be bottom 5 and more than likely not talented enough to make the playoffs. Tough position to be in but I guess we will have to see how it plays out. Monte will have major decisions to make at the deadline.

As far as Walton, we really don’t know what his relationship with Monte is like. At this rate, we won’t find out until after the season.
nor do we know what Vivek will allow Monte to do.
 
Maybe turning buddy into the so called all around player with a 37 FG% is one of them.

btw, i would take take Joerger’s version of buddy than Walton’s version in a heartbeat.
Sometimes I hope for Buddy to break out and become his old eite shooting version of himself again. But I have to remind myself that this is the version of Buddy Walton wants.
 
I think it’s fair to assume Monte was told upon his interview that the team couldn’t afford to pay another head coach for a season or so, so I am not holding my breath waiting for a coaching change anytime soon.
I'm not sure that they would've phrased it exactly that way but have very little doubt that was a pre-qualifier for employment.
 
Seriously, what has Luke Walton done except being the coach of a team where De’Aaron Fox went supernova for a few weeks? Is there actually anything there at all besides the players liking him?
He did stay out of the way, and that's all he has to do. Unfortunately for him and the Kings is that it's a really hard thing for him to do.
 
Maybe turning buddy into the so called all around player with a 37 FG% is one of them.

btw, i would take take Joerger’s version of buddy than Walton’s version in a heartbeat.
He was back for a bit and even starting to ram pnr down teams throats with the pass as teams doubled him like he's freaking Kobe or Jordan. Then, right back to curls, screen plays, and pin downs, as Fox waits up top so the action can play out.
 
Monte has a very important decision ahead of him in the next month.

Option 1- He believes the Kings are the 7 of 8 team and not the Lose to the Magic and Grizz team. Believes in Walton, at least for this year. If it's this option, we make very few if any deadline moves and no coaching changes. We ride out the season and try to get to the playoffs.

Option 2- He thinks this is a playoff level squad but believes Luke is holding the team back and isn't making the necessary in game adjustments. Mcnair fires Luke and hopes for the new coach bump to help turn the fortunes around. Probably sits tight on personnel.

Option 3- Monte determines the team is unlikely to make the playoffs and decides to unload a couple players for future assets and flexibility. Barnes to Boston and Belly to the Sixers makes the most sense. Heck a team might even take on Cojo for a second rounder if they are lacking bench depth. If this is the choice, he probably rides it out with Walton for the remainder of the season. Fires and hires in the off season.
 
Monte has a very important decision ahead of him in the next month.

Option 1- He believes the Kings are the 7 of 8 team and not the Lose to the Magic and Grizz team. Believes in Walton, at least for this year. If it's this option, we make very few if any deadline moves and no coaching changes. We ride out the season and try to get to the playoffs.

Option 2- He thinks this is a playoff level squad but believes Luke is holding the team back and isn't making the necessary in game adjustments. Mcnair fires Luke and hopes for the new coach bump to help turn the fortunes around. Probably sits tight on personnel.

Option 3- Monte determines the team is unlikely to make the playoffs and decides to unload a couple players for future assets and flexibility. Barnes to Boston and Belly to the Sixers makes the most sense. Heck a team might even take on Cojo for a second rounder if they are lacking bench depth. If this is the choice, he probably rides it out with Walton for the remainder of the season. Fires and hires in the off season.
My noni will go to Monte's house and personally deliver a lasagna if he goes with Option 2. Someone get this message to McNair.
 
Monte has a very important decision ahead of him in the next month.

Option 1- He believes the Kings are the 7 of 8 team and not the Lose to the Magic and Grizz team. Believes in Walton, at least for this year. If it's this option, we make very few if any deadline moves and no coaching changes. We ride out the season and try to get to the playoffs.

Option 2- He thinks this is a playoff level squad but believes Luke is holding the team back and isn't making the necessary in game adjustments. Mcnair fires Luke and hopes for the new coach bump to help turn the fortunes around. Probably sits tight on personnel.

Option 3- Monte determines the team is unlikely to make the playoffs and decides to unload a couple players for future assets and flexibility. Barnes to Boston and Belly to the Sixers makes the most sense. Heck a team might even take on Cojo for a second rounder if they are lacking bench depth. If this is the choice, he probably rides it out with Walton for the remainder of the season. Fires and hires in the off season.
Those are the rational options.....

option 4: he is told to win at all costs but save money in the meantime and slogs home to a predictable 10 seed in the lottery plus or minus a spot.
 

Tetsujin

The Game Thread Dude
I think we’re a clear option three that got blinded by two weeks of DeFo going supernova.

But Fox and Hali are a helluva place to start. Maybe Bagley as well.
Yep. As far as starting lines go, Fox and Hali and Bagley are probably as good a starting point since at least the time PDA somehow failed to build anything out of Boogie/Rudy/IT and decided to trade IT for absolutely nothing and fire the future all-NBA coach guiding his franchise to its first winning record in years because of jazz.
As the team has shown, it’s probably capable of squeezing into the expanded postseason now if the bad coach and random crappy bench players get out of their star’s way long enough for him to drag them to victory but it probably does need one or two more big contributors and a coach who isn’t obsessed with running the offense through Richaun Holmes to really make some noise.
 
Gentry is absolutely fine to finish this weird season with and at least let guys settle into proper roles. But the larger issue is the roster itself of course and Vivek's obsessions. He simply is not cut out for running a good basketball team as it turns out, whatever he had to do with the property development and broader business elements in handing the team to more local interests instead of permitting the relocation. Seattle is ready and will get their team back in time we can all hope, so this is fine and the new Kings arena is really great. Lots of hope. But time to get past that keep-the-team-in-town transition era and get down to business. Right now Vivek seems like an op from Silicon Valley lol. Gores in DET too. Light years :D

Seriously though, got to make big changes to win moving forward and clean up the remnants of Vivek/Divac's drafting, trading, signing, and stubbornly clinging (looking at you especially, Buddy and Bagley). Walton's silver spoon ego is a huge part of all of that.
 
I think we’re a clear option three that got blinded by two weeks of DeFo going supernova.

But Fox and Hali are a helluva place to start. Maybe Bagley as well.
Very clear IMO. It takes gargantuan efforts from Fox and good performances by everyone else to win games by 4 or 5 points, forget blowing teams out. A slightly below .500 record seems like the cap on this team. Enjoying the season overall though.
 
Very clear IMO. It takes gargantuan efforts from Fox and good performances by everyone else to win games by 4 or 5 points, forget blowing teams out. A slightly below .500 record seems like the cap on this team. Enjoying the season overall though.
you are probably right that this team tops out around there. As far as winning by 4 or 5 instead of blowouts, a lot of those wins were against the best teams so probably not a surprise we didn’t blow them out. However, the fact we are getting blown out by teams with half a roster is very concerning.
 
you are probably right that this team tops out around there. As far as winning by 4 or 5 instead of blowouts, a lot of those wins were against the best teams so probably not a surprise we didn’t blow them out. However, the fact we are getting blown out by teams with half a roster is very concerning.
Clippers didn't have Paul George, Nuggets were missing Murray, and Celtics were missing Kemba and Smart. I agree with this overall though.
 

gunks

Hall of Famer
Monte has a very important decision ahead of him in the next month.

Option 1- He believes the Kings are the 7 of 8 team and not the Lose to the Magic and Grizz team. Believes in Walton, at least for this year. If it's this option, we make very few if any deadline moves and no coaching changes. We ride out the season and try to get to the playoffs.

Option 2- He thinks this is a playoff level squad but believes Luke is holding the team back and isn't making the necessary in game adjustments. Mcnair fires Luke and hopes for the new coach bump to help turn the fortunes around. Probably sits tight on personnel.

Option 3- Monte determines the team is unlikely to make the playoffs and decides to unload a couple players for future assets and flexibility. Barnes to Boston and Belly to the Sixers makes the most sense. Heck a team might even take on Cojo for a second rounder if they are lacking bench depth. If this is the choice, he probably rides it out with Walton for the remainder of the season. Fires and hires in the off season.
I like option 3 if we don’t right the ship.

Just trading HB would probably get us back into top 8 draft pick territory. He was the unsung hero of our hot streak. I don’t think we win as many games as we did, even with Fox blowing up, without Barnes’ production. Now he seems to have reverted back to who he’s been his entire career, might be a good idea to sell high.

And as fun as the recent streak was, I wouldn’t mind another high ceiling prospect, as I’m not sure Bags is that dude. Hali has shown more in less than half a season than Marvin has in 3 years. Of course Hali is a number 12 pick that should have gone 2 overall, and Bagley is a number 2 pick that should have gone.... well, you know.
 
Why is anyone complaining about Buddy at this point? Ya he's not the kind of player who will carry the team. But he is a great shooter and his defense has improved. He turns the ball over sometimes but he makes up for that by getting turnovers himself. Really, who could we get to replace him that is any better? Some fans are a bit ridiculous with they're expectations sometimes.

Trade buddy and Barnes for a real sf
Start rookie
Trade cojo
Start Whiteside instead of Holmes

Ride with the young talent on the bench.
And fire Walton.

My wish list
 
Trade buddy and Barnes for a real sf
Start rookie
Trade cojo
Start Whiteside instead of Holmes

Ride with the young talent on the bench.
And fire Walton.

My wish list
You are not going to trade for a Barnes replacement. Quality SF’s are the hardest commodity to obtain in basketball. You need to draft well enough and high enough to find them.

Look at this year. I was hoping Patrick Williams would fall to us as a SF with upside. The Bulls grabbed him at 4. To get a decent wing you really need to be top 8 or really top 4.
 
Forgot: Joseph's deal is only partially guaranteed ($2.4 million) next year. Can waive him after trade deadline this year and save more than $10 million for next year. Easiest call on the roster.

Why is Walton playing him... at all????
 
Forgot: Joseph's deal is only partially guaranteed ($2.4 million) next year. Can waive him after trade deadline this year and save more than $10 million for next year. Easiest call on the roster.

Why is Walton playing him... at all????
Good question. I am sure it is a pet peeve of many more than just me.......... :mad: Hopefully McNair can unload him. On that front, I trust he will either be a buyer or seller 'cause doing nothing ain't going to cut it. Take a path and stick to it.
 
Forgot: Joseph's deal is only partially guaranteed ($2.4 million) next year. Can waive him after trade deadline this year and save more than $10 million for next year. Easiest call on the roster.

Why is Walton playing him... at all????
One of the best things Vlade was able to get done in his time here IMO was making the contracts decrease in value per year and partially guaranteeing contracts like Joseph’s so we are not hampered down by it when it’s time to move on. I reckon he learned his lesson first time around giving those massive contracts to George Hill & Zbo
 
One of the best things Vlade was able to get done in his time here IMO was making the contracts decrease in value per year and partially guaranteeing contracts like Joseph’s so we are not hampered down by it when it’s time to move on. I reckon he learned his lesson first time around giving those massive contracts to George Hill & Zbo
I think Ken Catanella had a hand in that. Still here, thankfully.
 
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