[Grades] Grades v. Cavs 2/11/2014

[Kingster]

Biggest defensive fail?

Cousins has to be included on the list. In the two games prior to the All Star selection I thought Cousins played the best defense of his career. It was inspired defense. Inspired probably by the inducement of an All Star berth. After the selection he's been thououghly uninspired. Like night and day. It looks like he's had a death in the family.

 

[The_Jamal]

A professional team this is not. If starts with Cuz and trickles down. Things are falling apart quickly. When he goes into pout mode, the team follows. I thought he'd grown up but he's reacting to the the all star snub in the worst way possible. Disinterest. He just doesn't care right now. Take a dominant engaged cousins out of the mix, and, well, you get a very bad team. They measure engagement levels in the corporate world. Basically, do you care about your job? Do you do the right things cause it's the right thing to do or are you going though the motions? Right now, he's going through the motions.

So is most of the team.

That said, hardly the first nba team to take off the week before the all star break. Teams playing for nothing tend to show their true colors while they're busy planning their 3 day vacations.

The pro we brought in to regulate the locker room (Landry) doesn't even play enough minutes to get a grade. Someone help me out there. We are paying him a lot to be a non factor. If Acy is actually better, then we made a gargantuan mistake. Acy is not very good, an undersized, under skilled effort guy. Landry is also those things but supposedly a scorer. When will that be happening? Team is too deep to find him minutes? Really? Gray and Acy are nba filler, just taking roster spots. Williams is really not very good either and is wildly inconsistent and somehow gave up career highs to Bennet. Landry can't get minutes with those 3 on the team?

I strongly believe Landry is simply not ready for action yet due to the injury. You don't go from being a top 5 6 MOY candidate 1 year, to super scrub the next. Also, as a skill guy, I imagine he's not in a rhythm at all. So i'll give him a pass for the rest of the year and let him take the off-season to fully rehab and get back to playing form.

 

[Padrino]

You can't have a real team when your star player is a baby and everybody is afraid of him including his own teammates. If they aren't afraid, then they just don't like him. I have no doubt that IT and many others besides Gay dislike Cousins.

in what version of the nba does it matter if a team's scrubs dislike the team's top tier players? should the kings really care if marcus thornton, jimmer fredette, quincy acy, aaron gray, travis outlaw, etc "dislike" cousins? more than half of the roster is up for grabs, the same half of the roster that's been an outright disappointment all season long. it's not hard to understand or appreciate cousins' impatience, though it's terribly easy to "tsk tsk" at his visible frustration from the fan's side of the argument...

but if you put talent around demarcus cousins and rudy gay, if you consider pieces that constitute a complementary and balanced roster (on the offensive and defensive sides of the ball), then you're much more likely to see a winning culture take root, and you're much less likely to see the team's franchise cornerstone get upset at his teammates when they're not pulling their weight. this is a rebuild. the territory comes with it's fair share of bumps in the road. that said, it was always going to be an uphill battle for the new regime; they got stuck with one of the least workable rosters in the entire league...

the situation was so ridiculously dire, in fact, that pete d'allesandro had to trade for the disgraced ghost of rudy gay's reputation in the hopes that a simple upgrade in talent would begin to turn the team's fortunes around, regardless of the cost. considering gay's general level of play since arriving in sacramento, PDA was right (or lucky, depending on how you want to view it). both cousins and gay have had a rough stretch in the last few games, but what are you all watching out there, exactly? you do realize that it doesn't matter how poor the opposition is, a road game is a road game. lengthy road trips on the other side of the country are often tough on young, struggling teams, particularly teams in flux...

and, as i will continue to beat the drum, it is maddeningly difficult to shove three 20 ppg scorers, none of whom are particularly gifted defenders, into a starting lineup together. on top of that, you throw marcus thornton, an unrepentant chucker and yet another weak defender, into that same starting lineup? given a consistent number of shots, thornton has proven himself capable of putting up 20 ppg, as well. so what we're really talking about is four major scorers in the same starting lineup, none of whom are particularly gifted defenders. and you've got the likes of jimmer fredette, ben mclemore, derrick williams, and carl landry backing them up, yet another set of players who are poor defenders. who seriously expected this to work? rightfully, PDA has been hedging his bets since the rudy gay trade, saying that he knows he still has a lot more work to do. kings fans would do well to take note...

ya know, like much of kf.com, i got caught up in a few impressive wins several weeks back, got caught up in the near-instant chemistry between demarcus cousins and rudy gay. i forgot myself a bit, forgot that this roster still remains an imbalanced mess that's dreadfully short of tradable assets. i forgot how important the upcoming draft is, either because it could net the kings a long-term contributor, or because that pick, as long as it's in the top 12, only becomes a tradable asset on draft day. again, the situation that the new regime inherited has been so ridiculously dire that they weren't even left with the flexibility to own their 2014 draft pick in its entirety. if we're frustrated as fans, why wouldn't cousins be frustrated? and now some of you are saying that the kings should consider trading cousins if the chemistry falls apart on a team that acquired its second-best player in a big time midseason shake-up? a team that, even with so many changes already, will still likely look entirely different at the beginning of next season? man, i know being a fan is an up-and-down experience, but some of this is complete inanity...

 

[Letsgokings13]

What did I miss between Thornton and Cuz?

 

[Chubbs]

A pass for the year for Landry? That's an expensive pass. I'll take one of those please.

There's something seriously wrong with this offense when scorers like Landry can't even score. And MT. Even Will. Jimmer. Yet none of them are scoring like they can.

Cousins is our cornerstone, like it or not. That's the reality. He needs to pull his head out of his arse and play like he cares. IF the whole charade of looking like a franchise player was ONLY to make the all star team, then we have a real problem here.

Our pg can declare himself leader all he wants, but he is not and never will be. The big moody boogie monster is the guy who can bring the whole ship down with him. Right now that appears to be the situation. Why is pure speculation.

 

[whozit]

What did I miss between Thornton and Cuz?

Cousins caught on the air barking at Thornton (as reported, didn't catch myself who it was) about defensive breakdown.

 

[Letsgokings13]

Landry is useless

 

[kupman]

I guess that I am not nearly so depressed and upset with the team as others. This season, especially since the Gay trade, is an extended training camp. As such, with losses piling up, no hope for the playoffs and the All-Star break looming I rather expected the lull in team focus resulting in poor play. It is a very long season to be "in training." Add to it, I would not doubt that some of the poor play has been due to players playing under the weather. There has clearly been a bug going around in the locker room.

I stil think that the team on a whole is on the right track with DMC, Rudy and IT (yes, IT). Having a top center (perhaps the best) in the league, a top 5 SF and a good playmaker is nothing to sneeze at. We all know that other changes need to be made. In my opinion we need 1) a SG that can shoot, play D and even pass 2) another/additional PG and 3) a defensive rim protector to play next to DMC.

It is a tall order, but if we add those 3 pieces in addition to the 3 players mentioned above this will be a very good team IMHO.

 

[Kingster]

in what version of the nba does it matter if a team's scrubs dislike the team's top tier players? should the kings really care if marcus thornton, jimmer fredette, quincy acy, aaron gray, travis outlaw, etc "dislike" cousins? ...

If a few "scrubs" dislike Cousins, it's no big deal. If your starters don't like Cousins, especially Gay and IT, it is a big deal. In particular, if Gay and Cousins really don't get along, all other things being equal, Gay is going to want to go elsewhere. I think you'll agree that if everybody dislikes the guy it's literally demoralizing. It also depends on the extent of the dislike. Is it mild dislike, as in not wanting to hang out with the guy, or extreme antipathy, as in "I hate his guts"? The nature and degree of his relationship with others is up for question, although Napier flat out said last year that nobody wanted to play with him. That's pretty strong stuff from an announcer that typically likes to qualify everything he says.

 

[Chupacabra]

I would only trade a dominant bigman for a more dominant bigman. So my answer would be no, I wouldn't trade Demarcus.

 

[whozit]

If a few "scrubs" dislike Cousins, it's no big deal. If your starters don't like Cousins, especially Gay and IT, it is a big deal. In particular, if Gay and Cousins really don't get along, all other things being equal, Gay is going to want to go elsewhere. I think you'll agree that if everybody dislikes the guy it's literally demoralizing. It also depends on the extent of the dislike. Is it mild dislike, as in not wanting to hang out with the guy, or extreme antipathy, as in "I hate his guts"? The nature and degree of his relationship with others is up for question, although Napier flat out said last year that nobody wanted to play with him. That's pretty strong stuff from an announcer that typically likes to qualify everything he says.

Conjecture. That announcer also had his job on the line and might have been singing the poison party line. I haven't been aware of him saying anything of the sort this year (but I also don't listen to his radio program).

And no, I don't know the cause(s) of the funk.

 

[Padrino]

If a few "scrubs" dislike Cousins, it's no big deal. If your starters don't like Cousins, especially Gay and IT, it is a big deal. In particular, if Gay and Cousins really don't get along, all other things being equal, Gay is going to want to go elsewhere. I think you'll agree that if everybody dislikes the guy it's literally demoralizing. It also depends on the extent of the dislike. Is it mild dislike, as in not wanting to hang out with the guy, or extreme antipathy, as in "I hate his guts"? The nature and degree of his relationship with others is up for question, although Napier flat out said last year that nobody wanted to play with him. That's pretty strong stuff from an announcer that typically likes to qualify everything he says.

uhm... what? the faith you continually put in grant effing napear, he who is only out-hyperbole'd by jerry reynolds in the great isaiah thomas lovefest of 2014, absolutely astonishes me. it doesn't boost your credibility like you think it does, and never has. in my opinion, it only hurts your credibility, because grant has always had an axe to grind with one king or another in his radio broadcasting history in sacramento. always. such controversy is ratings fodder, and he knows it. you should certainly know better, as well...

beyond that, there isn't a shred of evidence that suggests that cousins and gay don't get along. there's not even any evidence that cousins and IT don't get along. in fact, their friendship is well-chronicled. what we've seen in the last few games is an imbalanced roster in free fall. nothing more. cousins has struggled, gay has struggled, and it would be just as easy for me to speculate without a shred of evidence that the two of them "dislike" playing with isaiah thomas, and that thomas' shot-happy mentality is getting under their skin. it's all mindless conjecture, and has nothing to do with the work that needs to be done in reshaping the roster...

 

[whozit]

Pure speculation, but just as good as any other given:

Dave Deuce Mason ‏@DeuceMason 22m
The Toronto curse? After playing the Raptors, Gay missed a game with the flu and has shot 6-23 from the field since his return.

 

[Glenn]

Or maybe nothing big is happening, and this is how they react...

I agree with this.

 

[Kingster]

Conjecture. That announcer also had his job on the line and might have been singing the poison party line. I haven't been aware of him saying anything of the sort this year (but I also don't listen to his radio program).

And no, I don't know the cause(s) of the funk.

Sure it's conjecture. Just as your explanation of Napear is conjecture. I didn't think my post said anything otherwise.

Padrino's contention: If everybody dislikes Cousins, it's no big deal
My contention: Yes it is.

That's the rub.

 

[Kingster]

uhm... what? the faith you continually put in lovegrant effing napear, he who is only out-hyperbole'd by jerry reynolds in the great isaiah thomas fest of 2014, absolutely astonishes me. it doesn't boost your credibility like you think it does, and never has. in my opinion, it only hurts your credibility, because grant has always had an axe to grind with one king or another in his radio broadcasting history in sacramento. always. such controversy is ratings fodder, and he knows it. you should certainly know better, as well...

beyond that, there isn't a shred of evidence that suggests that cousins and gay don't get along. there's not even any evidence that cousins and IT don't get along. in fact, their friendship is well-chronicled. what we've seen in the last few games is an imbalanced roster in free fall. nothing more. cousins has struggled, gay has struggled, and it would be just as easy for me to speculate without a shred of evidence that the two of them "dislike" playing with isaiah thomas, and that thomas' shot-happy mentality is getting under their skin. it's all mindless conjecture, and has nothing to do with the work that needs to be done in reshaping the roster...

You can eliminate the Napear sentence entirely. My argument still holds. Your contention is that even if there was evidence to teamwide dislike, it's no big deal. I don't think that's the case at all. Whether there is massive dislike is up for question.

 

[ppine]

The last three games have been played by a team that is thinking more about going home for a break, than about basketball. Cousins and Gay are most obviously disinterested, but so are most of the other players, they aren't relied on as much. The defense against Cleveland was a new low. Bennett has a break out game and no one should be surprised. Watching other teams like the Warriors play is becoming more attractive all the time.

The fact that Cousins still has mental issues should surprise no one. Talk of trading him is way out of line. He has learned to play through people a la Shaq, which is very effective. Until he runs into a player like Gortat that took it all away from him. Cousins has been pouting since.

 

[Padrino]

Sure it's conjecture. Just as your explanation of Napear is conjecture. I didn't think my post said anything otherwise.

Padrino's contention: If everybody dislikes Cousins, it's no big deal
My contention: Yes it is.

That's the rub.

You can eliminate the Napear sentence entirely. My argument still holds. Your contention is that even if there was evidence to teamwide dislike, it's no big deal. I don't think that's the case at all. Whether there is massive dislike is up for question.

no, because that's incredibly reductive. my contention is not that "it's no big deal." my contention is that this roster is full of spare parts that will likely be jettisoned across the remainder of 2014 and into 2015, and because of that roster instability, the puppy-dogs-and-rainbows chemistry that everyone wants to see is going to be very hard to come by. demarcus cousins has struggled in the last few games, but he's been playing at a very high level since training camp. he's been the season-long constant, which is why his current malaise is so jarring...

but you don't start panicking just because cousins snaps at lesser teammates who have not fulfilled their roles adequately across the same stretch in which cousins has, largely, been so dominant. more to the point, those lesser teammates will be cut loose over time, and it is the front office's every intention to replace them with more reliable and better-fitting pieces, so there's no need to sweat a frustrating stretch in a lost season. if the kings become a winning team in which both the core talent and the bench are pulling their weight, then yes, it would be cause for concern if big cuz was upsetting the stability of the locker room. but that locker room is currently in flux, so all i see are mountains being made of mole hills in a season in which we all knew that cousins was likely to get frustrated with the losses and the inadequacies of his teammates...

 

[VF21]

Amen.

Unfortunately, this will never happen.

A. Davis is also the only player that I would ever trade Cousins for besides Lebron, Durant, and such quality players in the near future.
Davis would be so nice to have. Automatic in rebounding, scoring, and all around defense. His passing sucks but if you bring a pass first point guard who controls the floor.... If we draft a Wiggins or Parker then we'd be a serious contender. Now, we're just a joke. You can't have a real team when your star player is a baby and everybody is afraid of him including his own teammates. If they aren't afraid, then they just don't like him. I have no doubt that IT and many others besides Gay dislike Cousins.

You need to just stop. You're rapidly approaching manic-troll status.

 

[randymoss1881]

I would only trade a dominant bigman for a more dominant bigman. So my answer would be no, I wouldn't trade Demarcus.

Let alone a dominant big man who plays with zero talent around him, a selfish point guard who's trying to get paid, and said big man is just in his 4th year and figuring out how to play.

 

[Kingster]

no, because that's incredibly reductive. my contention is not that "it's no big deal." my contention is that this roster is full of spare parts that will likely be jettisoned across the remainder of 2014 and into 2015, and because of that roster instability, the puppy-dogs-and-rainbows chemistry that everyone wants to see is going to be very hard to come by. demarcus cousins has struggled in the last few games, but he's been playing at a very high level since training camp. he's been the season-long constant, which is why his current malaise is so jarring...

but you don't start panicking just because cousins snaps at lesser teammates who have not fulfilled their roles adequately across the same stretch in which cousins has, largely, been so dominant. more to the point, those lesser teammates will be cut loose over time, and it is the front office's every intention to replace them with more reliable and better-fitting pieces, so there's no need to sweat a frustrating stretch in a lost season. if the kings become a winning team in which both the core talent and the bench are pulling their weight, then yes, it would be cause for concern if big cuz was upsetting the stability of the locker room. but that locker room is currently in flux, so all i see are mountains being made of mole hills in a season in which we all knew that cousins was likely to get frustrated with the losses and the inadequacies of his teammates...

"should the kings really care if marcus thornton, jimmer fredette, quincy acy, aaron gray, travis outlaw, etc "dislike" cousins?" - Padrino.

That's what you said. Now you want to change it? Or not? Where do you draw the line?

 

[ninjabiscuit]

You need to just stop. You're rapidly approaching manic-troll status.

Whoever you guys are replying to is someone I have on my ignore list. Based on the responses I'm seeing to that person's posts, I suggest doing the same.

 

[Bricklayer]

"should the kings really care if marcus thornton, jimmer fredette, quincy acy, aaron gray, travis outlaw, etc "dislike" cousins?" - Padrino.

That's what you said. Now you want to change it? Or not? Where do you draw the line?

Don't really.

Its a team with the 4th worst record in the league. I have a dozen bus passes out of town and not a tear to shed if that really ever were the issue.

 

[Padrino]

"should the kings really care if marcus thornton, jimmer fredette, quincy acy, aaron gray, travis outlaw, etc "dislike" cousins?" - Padrino.

That's what you said. Now you want to change it? Or not? Where do you draw the line?

nah, see brick's post above. the kings are a crap team with two cornerstone pieces in place. ship out the garbage, move on from some of these one-way players, and then ask me again...

 

[Kingsfan23]

Pure speculation, but just as good as any other given:

Is Rudy fit or not? Grant said he believed Achilles discomfort lingering. Maybe he wasn't over the flu. I like the competitiveness and leadership of wanting to come back early if he isn't 100 but not needed in a season where losses don't hurt

 

[Kingster]

Don't really.

Its a team with the 4th worst record in the league. I have a dozen bus passes out of town and not a tear to shed if that really ever were the issue.

If Rudy Gay is on the bus, then, no problem?

 

[Kingster]

nah, see brick's post above. the kings are a crap team with two cornerstone pieces in place. ship out the garbage, move on from some of these one-way players, and then ask me again...

Nah, what? Are you changing the goalposts now? If Gay is one of many on the bus, that doesn't concern you? Where do you draw the line? Who falls under "etc"?

 

[Spike]

I think we're all pretty sure that Gay isn't "on the bus". No need to go after things that aren't there.

 

[VF21]

Nah, what? Are you changing the goalposts now? If Gay is one of many on the bus, that doesn't concern you? Where do you draw the line? Who falls under "etc"?

 

[twslam07]

Nah, what? Are you changing the goalposts now? If Gay is one of many on the bus, that doesn't concern you? Where do you draw the line? Who falls under "etc"?

Why don't we just get down to it then? Do you want the Kings to trade Cousins away?