Peja ( B ) -- strong effort in the first quarter as he more or less singlehandedly kept us in it with 12 pts and 4 rebs. Quieted therafter, but was still pretty solid in the second and third quarters, at least offensively (4 of his 5 rebs were in the first, and Lewis began to get on track as the game wore on after being saddled with early foul trouble). Certainly not scorching in the middle game, but generally involved and looked as comfortable as any King out there under the playoff pressure. Unfortunately made a few bad plays down the stretch -- including an airballed three and a critical turnover trying to feed Tag in the post -- and pulled one of his 4th quarter disappearing acts with only 2 pts in the final act.
Thomas ( C+ ) -- got off to a slow start, but was more effective therafter. Never really in rhythm though, and was unable to check Reggie Evans off the board (a tall order for anyone). Missed FTs late, 1 of 2 on back to back possessions -- that hurt. Was in there until the final buzzer, and made little contributions here and there. Think both Darius and Miller would have been better options tonight though. It was a struggle for Kenny this time out.
Skinner ( C- ) -- worked hard inside early, and had a few blocks inside in the first half to give us a few little bursts of life. But also had his hands full, and more, with the 7'1" Jerome James, who again looked too big for him. James is borderline incompetent on offense and missed shot after shot after shot for most of the game, but he also kept on grabbing board after board after board, and blocked Skinner at the rim repeatedly. Once Rick finally decided to try Tag that was it for Skinner for the rest of the night.
Mobley ( B+ ) -- Ok, this guy is starting to really pee me off now. I mean, inconsistency from game to game is one thing, but tonight Cat was once again both an early goat and our late hero. Another terrible start and whatever hope there was that the Phoenix explosion had cured his malaise quickly went away. Not only cold, but also just didn't seem to really have his head in the game in the first half and made a number of early mental errors, including a bad one to close the first half when it didn't look like he had any clue how much time was left on the game clock and more or less ran the half out dribbling rather than getting the shot up himself or getting it to Mike in time. But he began to wake up in the third and you could see him bouncing around looking energetic reentering the game in the 4th. And sure enough, our late run to close it was pretty much the Cat show with Peja invisible and Mike suffering through one of his worst games in memory. Carried most of the load to bring us to the brink of the comeback...and then missed the big one, the clenching three to complete the comeback (actually had also already missed a FT late which hurt too). So goat, hero, everything in between. Bad for those with weak hearts is what he is.
Bibby ( F ) -- Wow. I mean WOW. Absolutely miserable game for Mike tonight. Contrary to popular myth, I can distinctly recall him having bad playoff games before, even a couple of very bad playoff games. But nothing like this. Just could not hit ANYTHING, and really unable to even efficiently direct the offense. 1-16!!! And just never felt like he was really dialed in mentally. No idea what happened. Sonics defense was solid, but it wasn't GREAT, and Mike certainly wasn't locked up on all his shots. But missed from all over, never looked comfortable. Just a horrible outing for him. Did play decent defense for the most part, although he got hung up on picks at times.
Miller ( A ) -- Welcome back Brad! Came in surpisingly early in the first quarter and immediately contributed at both ends of the floor. Picked up a couple of fouls, but at least they were good defensive fouls trying to stop the Sonics. Returned in the 3rd, and it was more of the same. Rick even (thank God) went with the mega Tag/Brad lineup for a while, and it was by far our best big man pairing of the night. May have even pulled this one out if we had stuck with it, but I understand Rick not wanting to press the issue in Brad's first game back.
Jackson ( D- ) -- got off to an ineffective first half start, missed all his shots and was too small to check Allen on defense. Was slightly more effective in the second half, although still could simply not hit his shot. Also got stripped several times inside. This was the huge comedown game that I feared might happen after the emotional home debut. Its entirely possible that the combined 1-23 tonight is the single worst shooting performance from our PGs in the entire history of the Kings, let along the normally very successful Bibby/Bobby duo.
Songaila ( B+ ) -- did a nice job of hustling on the glass in particular, and played physically in there against the Sonics very physical front line. Really felt like as much as anything else he just got caught in a numbers game tonight with us having more big bodies to play than there were minutes. Laid a questionable flagrant foul on Antonio Daniels that seemed to pretty much end his night.
Williamson ( B- ) -- fought hard in there in the first half, but only modestly effective. Generally held the bigger Sonics at bay but wasn't able to hurt them at the other end. Did not return in the second half.
Ostertag ( A ) -- and may the Ostertag idiocy by Rick finally end. This is why he is on the playoff roster. Came in and again immediately made a huge difference for us inside. The game entirely changed after he was inserted. We went from Skinner being too small to handle Jerome James, to Nick Collison being too small to handle Tag. Size matters. And we gave the Sonics a little dose of their own medicine. Wasn't able to keep up the same pace after the Sonics finally recountered with their own size, but was strong enough and big enough to earn the minutes all the way to the final buzzer, and continued to defend the rim and contribute. Set a nice pick to free up Cat for what could have been the tying three with 12 seconds to go.
House ( INC ) -- got the surprise call in the 4th quarter after we had already played 10 other guys. And while I felt it was really to give us a kick in the pants on offense with Bibby/Bobby awful and Peja disappearing , House actually came in at OG and was paired with Bobby. He hustled hard and flailed about, but was not able to really make many plays nor give us that shooting boost. Just bought us a few minutes.
Adelman ( B- ) -- Lot to talk about, I'll ty to be semi-brief. Early on I immediately raised an eyebrow when Rick went deep into the bench at the 8 minute mark of the first quarter. We were off to a slow start, but still a sign that he was going to be active tonight. Most of the changes were for the better, but one did intially irk me when he took out Skinner just after he had started to change things in there with his shotblocking. But Brad came in and played better than we could have hoped, so turned out to be a good move after all. Did bumble into another short frontline with Darius at C, KT at PF and Corliss at SF, but it did not last long (thankfully since Corliss was guarding 7'1" James at one point ) . Looked like he was going to play 9, with Mo, Tag and House being left out, but liked Rick thinking outside of the box this time out (even if I still fundamentally disagree with the self-imposed mental box he has built for himself). With us dying in the third quarter and getting mauled by the much bigger Sonics on the glass Rick DID finally go to Tag to keep us from turning Jerome James into yet another superhero. An obvious move, yes. And one I would have gone to much earlier. But Rick did finally stumble upon it, and even seemed to develop some enthusiasm for it as he then gleefully inserted Brad next to Tag to throw out the biggest we're-not-in-high-school frontline we have on our roster. And better yet, Rick stuck with Tag after he started to succeed and rode the big guy all the way to the end of the game despite what had to be a nearly overwhelming urge for him to insert another shooter. He also surprised me by inserting House into the lineup in the mid-4th after he had not seen the floor before. Rick was looking for a little offensive pop with Peja (by that point), Mike and Bobby all silent late. Again, a substitution by need rather than rote. I think Tag/Brad was our best frontline, but I understand why Rick did not want to put too much pressure on Brad's leg the first time back. We DID play Mike right to the end, but really, that was understandable too. He has been so clutch for us, you kept on expecting him to do something other than suck. And with Bobby really struggling, Eddie certainly not doing anything special in his minutes (nor being the type of player you close out a playoff game with), Mike was the man. Rick did have the wisdom to run plays for Cat rather than Mike late though. Not unhappy overall with this coaching job. Tough situation with SO many players, so many injured guys, everybody trying to settle in, and Rick played 11 guys searching for answers, found a big one in Tag, stuck with him etc. Things I would have done different, but Rick tried tonight, and maybe learned a few things about some of his guys (although in Tag's case there appears to be some sort of selective amnesia whereby within 3 days it will shock the hell out of Rick that the big oaf can walk and chew gum at the same time once again).
Thomas ( C+ ) -- got off to a slow start, but was more effective therafter. Never really in rhythm though, and was unable to check Reggie Evans off the board (a tall order for anyone). Missed FTs late, 1 of 2 on back to back possessions -- that hurt. Was in there until the final buzzer, and made little contributions here and there. Think both Darius and Miller would have been better options tonight though. It was a struggle for Kenny this time out.
Skinner ( C- ) -- worked hard inside early, and had a few blocks inside in the first half to give us a few little bursts of life. But also had his hands full, and more, with the 7'1" Jerome James, who again looked too big for him. James is borderline incompetent on offense and missed shot after shot after shot for most of the game, but he also kept on grabbing board after board after board, and blocked Skinner at the rim repeatedly. Once Rick finally decided to try Tag that was it for Skinner for the rest of the night.
Mobley ( B+ ) -- Ok, this guy is starting to really pee me off now. I mean, inconsistency from game to game is one thing, but tonight Cat was once again both an early goat and our late hero. Another terrible start and whatever hope there was that the Phoenix explosion had cured his malaise quickly went away. Not only cold, but also just didn't seem to really have his head in the game in the first half and made a number of early mental errors, including a bad one to close the first half when it didn't look like he had any clue how much time was left on the game clock and more or less ran the half out dribbling rather than getting the shot up himself or getting it to Mike in time. But he began to wake up in the third and you could see him bouncing around looking energetic reentering the game in the 4th. And sure enough, our late run to close it was pretty much the Cat show with Peja invisible and Mike suffering through one of his worst games in memory. Carried most of the load to bring us to the brink of the comeback...and then missed the big one, the clenching three to complete the comeback (actually had also already missed a FT late which hurt too). So goat, hero, everything in between. Bad for those with weak hearts is what he is.
Bibby ( F ) -- Wow. I mean WOW. Absolutely miserable game for Mike tonight. Contrary to popular myth, I can distinctly recall him having bad playoff games before, even a couple of very bad playoff games. But nothing like this. Just could not hit ANYTHING, and really unable to even efficiently direct the offense. 1-16!!! And just never felt like he was really dialed in mentally. No idea what happened. Sonics defense was solid, but it wasn't GREAT, and Mike certainly wasn't locked up on all his shots. But missed from all over, never looked comfortable. Just a horrible outing for him. Did play decent defense for the most part, although he got hung up on picks at times.
Miller ( A ) -- Welcome back Brad! Came in surpisingly early in the first quarter and immediately contributed at both ends of the floor. Picked up a couple of fouls, but at least they were good defensive fouls trying to stop the Sonics. Returned in the 3rd, and it was more of the same. Rick even (thank God) went with the mega Tag/Brad lineup for a while, and it was by far our best big man pairing of the night. May have even pulled this one out if we had stuck with it, but I understand Rick not wanting to press the issue in Brad's first game back.
Jackson ( D- ) -- got off to an ineffective first half start, missed all his shots and was too small to check Allen on defense. Was slightly more effective in the second half, although still could simply not hit his shot. Also got stripped several times inside. This was the huge comedown game that I feared might happen after the emotional home debut. Its entirely possible that the combined 1-23 tonight is the single worst shooting performance from our PGs in the entire history of the Kings, let along the normally very successful Bibby/Bobby duo.
Songaila ( B+ ) -- did a nice job of hustling on the glass in particular, and played physically in there against the Sonics very physical front line. Really felt like as much as anything else he just got caught in a numbers game tonight with us having more big bodies to play than there were minutes. Laid a questionable flagrant foul on Antonio Daniels that seemed to pretty much end his night.
Williamson ( B- ) -- fought hard in there in the first half, but only modestly effective. Generally held the bigger Sonics at bay but wasn't able to hurt them at the other end. Did not return in the second half.
Ostertag ( A ) -- and may the Ostertag idiocy by Rick finally end. This is why he is on the playoff roster. Came in and again immediately made a huge difference for us inside. The game entirely changed after he was inserted. We went from Skinner being too small to handle Jerome James, to Nick Collison being too small to handle Tag. Size matters. And we gave the Sonics a little dose of their own medicine. Wasn't able to keep up the same pace after the Sonics finally recountered with their own size, but was strong enough and big enough to earn the minutes all the way to the final buzzer, and continued to defend the rim and contribute. Set a nice pick to free up Cat for what could have been the tying three with 12 seconds to go.
House ( INC ) -- got the surprise call in the 4th quarter after we had already played 10 other guys. And while I felt it was really to give us a kick in the pants on offense with Bibby/Bobby awful and Peja disappearing , House actually came in at OG and was paired with Bobby. He hustled hard and flailed about, but was not able to really make many plays nor give us that shooting boost. Just bought us a few minutes.
Adelman ( B- ) -- Lot to talk about, I'll ty to be semi-brief. Early on I immediately raised an eyebrow when Rick went deep into the bench at the 8 minute mark of the first quarter. We were off to a slow start, but still a sign that he was going to be active tonight. Most of the changes were for the better, but one did intially irk me when he took out Skinner just after he had started to change things in there with his shotblocking. But Brad came in and played better than we could have hoped, so turned out to be a good move after all. Did bumble into another short frontline with Darius at C, KT at PF and Corliss at SF, but it did not last long (thankfully since Corliss was guarding 7'1" James at one point
) . Looked like he was going to play 9, with Mo, Tag and House being left out, but liked Rick thinking outside of the box this time out (even if I still fundamentally disagree with the self-imposed mental box he has built for himself). With us dying in the third quarter and getting mauled by the much bigger Sonics on the glass Rick DID finally go to Tag to keep us from turning Jerome James into yet another superhero. An obvious move, yes. And one I would have gone to much earlier. But Rick did finally stumble upon it, and even seemed to develop some enthusiasm for it as he then gleefully inserted Brad next to Tag to throw out the biggest we're-not-in-high-school frontline we have on our roster. And better yet, Rick stuck with Tag after he started to succeed and rode the big guy all the way to the end of the game despite what had to be a nearly overwhelming urge for him to insert another shooter. He also surprised me by inserting House into the lineup in the mid-4th after he had not seen the floor before. Rick was looking for a little offensive pop with Peja (by that point), Mike and Bobby all silent late. Again, a substitution by need rather than rote. I think Tag/Brad was our best frontline, but I understand why Rick did not want to put too much pressure on Brad's leg the first time back. We DID play Mike right to the end, but really, that was understandable too. He has been so clutch for us, you kept on expecting him to do something other than suck. And with Bobby really struggling, Eddie certainly not doing anything special in his minutes (nor being the type of player you close out a playoff game with), Mike was the man. Rick did have the wisdom to run plays for Cat rather than Mike late though. Not unhappy overall with this coaching job. Tough situation with SO many players, so many injured guys, everybody trying to settle in, and Rick played 11 guys searching for answers, found a big one in Tag, stuck with him etc. Things I would have done different, but Rick tried tonight, and maybe learned a few things about some of his guys (although in Tag's case there appears to be some sort of selective amnesia whereby within 3 days it will shock the hell out of Rick that the big oaf can walk and chew gum at the same time once again).
Last edited:
