Bricklayer
Don't Make Me Use The Bat
Yuck.
There is absolutely no reason we should have lost this game. It was all 1001 self-inflicted papercuts, and aside from the big guy who's fault it always is, a nearly complete failure by anybody to step up. We had chance after chance, but if #15 wasn't doing it tonight, it wasn't going to get done, and the the number of sloppy unfocused plays on both ends of the floor was just maddening. Blown dunks, missed FTs, loose TOs, going under screens on defense, losuy defensive rebounding, badly timed fouls...if the refs had money on the game last time, maybe we as a team did this time. Betting against ourselves.
The good news: the sky is not falling. Many poor little chickie littles running around tonight, traumatized by a decade of bad ball, but tonight stood out precisely because we did not do the things that we know we should have. There is a way we play now, and we didn't do it. And hey, we are disappointed. Perhaps that is progress too. Knowing you should beat a team and the only reason you lost to them is because you beat yourselves is a mark of some respectability.
Link to Boxscore
Starters
Gay ( C ) -- started off the game so strong as he and Cuz just pummeled the Magic in the early going. But then he completely disappeared. Completely. Had all of one bucket after half, late in the game. Never boarded or played tough. Seeing him get a flack jacket put on pointed to a physical issue however
Cousins ( A- ) -- a big big dominant offensive performance just rolling through the Magic's big front line play after play. But not perfect, as even Boogie's rebounding is off, and he missed several of them that he by all rights would normally grab.
Koufos ( C ) -- don't know what to say here. Seemed a fish out of water with the Magic bombing threes and us needing points, but we needed rebounds too, and I think we were better with him on the floor than off.
Featured Grade
Afflalo ( D- ) --I flirted with an F, but decided to be nice. Aaron struggled at both ends of the court tonight. He couldn't hit a shot, and he couldn't keep Fournier in front of him. He looked a step slow to me. It wasn't as though he only took tough shots. He managed to miss a couple of wide open threes. There were a couple of times he was guarding. Gordon, and he couldn't stay in front of him either. He only played 18 minutes, and there was a reason why. I hope he gets his legs back before Saturday's game. --Baja
Lawson ( C ) -- there is some bloom off this rose, as that inability to shoot has surprised in the number of problems it is creating. Eventually settled in and got productive. Scrapped harder on the glass than our 7'1" guy, but the size on defense is an issue. Missed two late FTs we needed.
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Bench
Casspi ( C+ ) -- well, he was back. Truly back this time, and playing aggressively. But not always effectively. Hit two threes on good kicks from Cuz, helpful. But take those away and he was 3-11 for 6pts on everything else, and couldn't finish in transition against the Magic length. At least there was some life, sloppy though it was.
Barnes ( D ) -- another bad outing for Matt, as he was right at the heart of our bench's first half meltdown that we seemed to never recover from mentally. more wild pay and bad turnovers, and the idiots were just playing too fast and loose against a young team that needs to run to win. Never returned after half.
Cauley-Stein ( D+ ) -- the last few games he has been having more defensive effect with his length, but the rebounding has reached such a pitiful peak now that I may never be able to justify giving him better than a D again. He actually flinched as one ball came toward him. Fumbled another as it his his hands. Just WTH. In other ways he actually looked marginally better, but...SMH.
McLemore ( C ) -- here was the issue tonight with Ben -- first, he was one of the very few Kings who made any application to provide Cuz some offensive support, and his newfound confidence survived the ugly Miami game. But Fornier lit him up badly as he trailed every time, and he was shaky down the stretch.
Temple ( D+ ) -- let Augustin light him up in his first stint, which had a lot to do with us chasing for most of the rest of the game.
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