Has Natt had enough?

[VF21]

In an article in today's Bee, Sam Amick says that Coach Kenny Natt sent a message to the team after yesterday's practice. The message was simple...either play some defense or grab a seat on the bench.

Natt reportedly said he'll be pulling guys who don't show the effort in favor of those who do.

While this isn't anything we haven't heard at various times before, there was a tantalizing bit way towards the bottom:

The ultimate example of an unlikely benching, of course, would be one involving Kings shooting guard Kevin Martin. While he is the team's leading scorer at 24.1 points per game, he is also routinely the player targeted in opposing team's scouting reports as a weak defender...

At this point, I have to wonder...

Do you agree with the idea of benching Martin?

And yes, of course, there's going to be a poll.

 

[SacTownKid]

Wasn't this one of Reggie's last moves before he was unceremoniously relieved of his duties? Hey, why not go 0-2!

 

[Nighthawk1]

I absolutely agree. I want to see how this team does without him again. What better way to send a message then to bench someone seen as a weak and lazy defender even though he's the team leading scorer. I think it'd drill the point home.

 

[Warhawk]

Not only drill the point home, but let him heal and lose us some more games while evaluating more talent on the bench if he does not give it his all.

 

[Kings Faithful]

I can't agree with benching Martin. I understand that he seems to not show effort on Defense but the fact of the matter is, he isn't that good of a defender. If he didn't try then we wouldn't see him get any of those steals he comes away with often. And if he is trying then benching him isn't going to make him better its going to make him want to leave.

 

[Packt]

Gotta step your tank game up with the Warriors, Wizards, Thunder going all out themselves.

 

[Monty'sBiggestFan]

Anybody who wants to give some level of effort can defend. There are those who just instictually are gifted (read: outstanding) defenders. There's a difference in expectation. I don't think Martin is expected to be the latter, but he sure as hell better be the former. And if he's not, sit his butt down or ship his butt out and find a bunch of players who can give the effort. No excuses.

 

[AleksandarN]

In an article in today's Bee, Sam Amick says that Coach Kenny Natt sent a message to the team after yesterday's practice. The message was simple...either play some defense or grab a seat on the bench.

Natt reportedly said he'll be pulling guys who don't show the effort in favor of those who do.

While this isn't anything we haven't heard at various times before, there was a tantalizing bit way towards the bottom:



At this point, I have to wonder...

Do you agree with the idea of benching Martin?

And yes, of course, there's going to be a poll.

Yes he has the ability to play defense and it is about effort. Hopefully this will help him be a better all around player. If we do not push our players to play better defense then they will never learn and get better.

 

[Warhawk]

I can't agree with benching Martin. I understand that he seems to not show effort on Defense but the fact of the matter is, he isn't that good of a defender. If he didn't try then we wouldn't see him get any of those steals he comes away with often. And if he is trying then benching him isn't going to make him better its going to make him want to leave.

Gambling for steals should not be confused with defense.

 

[6th]

If Natt is threatening to bench players who refuse to play defense, what better wake up call for the entire team is there than benching your leading scorer?

My mind says that Kevin is frustrated with the entire situation this year. Fine! Understandable! But, Kevin, you have a nice contract. Some effort on both ends of the court (you are a vet after all) is needed to show the young guys that you do not give up, or call it in, when things get tough (read: disappointing).

 

[Kings Faithful]

Gambling for steals should not be confused with defense.

Im not confusing it with defense. What I'm saying is that he is showing the effort. Thats what this is all about, whether he is really trying or not. The fact that he gets those steals consistently tells me he is indeed trying.

 

[rhythmless]

I can't agree with benching Martin. I understand that he seems to not show effort on Defense but the fact of the matter is, he isn't that good of a defender. If he didn't try then we wouldn't see him get any of those steals he comes away with often. And if he is trying then benching him isn't going to make him better its going to make him want to leave.

How is he not a good defender? And how is that a fact? If he can blow by a defender, he can stay in front of a defender. How often do you see him squatting low, squared w/the offensive player, and arms ready to swipe passes, swipe at the ball, and generally body up a player? How often do you see him standing straight up, arm extended towards his man, as his way of "guarding?" He is quick on the offensive end, but not at the defensive end? He can throw his body into a defender when he has the ball, but he cannot body up a guy? Too scrawny to defend, but not too scrawny to score the ball? I'm sorry, but that's the biggest load of s**t ever.

If you have the athleticism (which he does), the rest is mental. He needs a desire and pride to be a defender, and to be a student of the game. Defense comes from studying your opposing player and team, knowing tendencies, knowing how to defend the player, the team, and the plays that they run.

The only thing I don't like is all this media talk. If you're gonna do it, do it. Don't give me an announcement. Further, Martin is the star of our team. A star in general? Eh. But unquestionably, the star of our team. Instead of airing out my dirty undies, I would prefer he keep it between himself and the team. Don't play defense, bench them, fine. But you need to develop a trust, a relationship, an "us vs them" mentality, and telling the media about your player's ineptitude doesn't win you over for the player's coach award.

 

[mac]

Let's see the Team defence improve before we start talking about Martin's individual ability as a defender

 

[Andre87]

obviously no. what's the point of playing defense at this point of the season when we're aiming for the higher pick?! especially kevin's "defense" lol Natt is just ridiculous trying to win a couple of games to be at least considered for the job next year...
STFU Natt and play the young guys!

 

[mac]

I think by playing the guys who play D he will inevitably be playing the young guys

 

[PurpleHaze]

I like Kevin Martin overall. He's a very good basketball player who has made himself a top NBA player through dedication and hard work. When he came out of Western Carolina no one expected he would develop into one of the top scorers in the league. He now says he wants to be a leader. He complained earlier this season that the Kings were a "joke." Problem is, talk is cheap. Leaders not only show by example but they're vocal on the court, in huddles, in locker room, at practice. Kevin has acted like he wants to get there but can't seem to pull it off to be seen as a leader. For him it should start by talking it up aggressively on defense. Everyone in Kings country was utterly shocked when Andres Nocioni yelled out on defense in his first game to alert his teammates of a high pick. Maybe Nocioni should be starting at SF and Cisci Garcia at SG with their obvious D-up mentality.

I have no problem demoting ANY of the current Sacramento Kings starters who are too shy, too timid, too wimpish, to play tough, intense, hard nose D. So my vote is now recorded.

 

[MassachusettsKingsFan]

You cant single anyone on this team out, IMO.

The TEAM plays horrible defense. I see defensive effort from JT, Cisco, and Noch. To a lesser extent Hawes and Bjax. Then you have Udrih, Martin and everyone else playing soft as hell. Unfortunetly, JT and Hawes get in foul trouble because of there effort/ Understanding the NBA game .. and then were 'forced' into the worst small ball of all time, and thats when our defense breaks down. Night in and night out teams WORK these smallball match ups..

As far as Martin goes, he CAN be a good defensive player, but he isnt. Kind of reminds me of a Ray Allen defensive player. When its him vs. the world he cant stop anyone .. not a good man defender at all. But when you pair up ray, with Rondo, KG and Perk he turns into an above average team defender because he has spots on the court he can force his man too where he KNOWS there will be help.

 

[Aenadin]

one on one D pretty much Martin will have a difficult time but that doesnt mean martin cant defend... im pretty sure he can.. i just want him to be aggressive as he can be on the offensive end.. draw in those fouls from his defender hell im pretty sure he can force the bigs and 2s of the other team with his ability to draw fouls..

off the record i have been reading in the past topics how mccants and garcia had a bitter history.. whats up with that care to enlighten me? do they see eye to eye in the court?

 

[Warhawk]

Im not confusing it with defense. What I'm saying is that he is showing the effort. Thats what this is all about, whether he is really trying or not. The fact that he gets those steals consistently tells me he is indeed trying.

Gambling for steals isn't effort, either.

 

[mac]

Gambling for steals isn't effort, either.

Well I suppose it is compared to standing around and giving up layups... at least if you gamble for steals you have a chance of stopping the offense. So perhaps it is effort on the current Kings team but anywhere decent in the league it wouldn't count

 

[Entity]

Well if he plays them based on defensive effort then you can expect our lineup to look like this.

Soloman
McCants
Garcia
Nocionni
Hawes

 

[Bricklayer]

Okay, now I have highlighted Kevin's defense on many an occasion -- almost anything bad you want to say about it I would agree with. I'll even trump the bad and say that Kevin Martin often appears to be an essentially selfish basketball player, only interested in his scoring numbers, who considers himself above giving an effort on defense because he feels no responsibility to his teammates. That's a hell of a charge to level at a plyer, because it says that he is somebody that no self-respecting hard working team player would ever want to have as a teammate, let alone could ever respect as a leader.

And yet even so, I am here to say that benching Kevin for lack of defense is a very dangerous ploy. Its unclear to me how deeply Kevin's claws are sunk into this franchise, as opposed to merely how deeply he thinks they are. We were foolish enough to give him some sort of downtown parade or whatever, and then hire his agent (his freakin' agent!) to be part of the front office. But after a 13-49 season is the front office really sitting aouond making excuses for him and blaming it on everybody else but Kevin? Don't know. What I do know is that IF Kevin's claws are sunk too deeply into the franchise, then you cannot lose him. And by lose him I mean lose his loyalty, his interest -- if this is a player already teetering on a selfish shelf, and you bench/embarass him, he might just check out on you entirely. Reading his body language he often looks like he's half a step away from it already. Slouching around, looking disgusted, half assing it. And IF he is defintely going to be here long term, then burning that bridge through a public dressing down, no mater how deserved, is dangerous and could have lingering long term effects. Even if you are planning on trading him it has consequences -- 20 games before the beginning of the offseason when you might trade him you decide to publicly brand your trade asset as a horrible defender? Even if every team knows it already to actually bench the guy over the issue would have to raise red flags.

So yes, as I have raised the possibility that Kevin's defensive attitude could be at the heart of our incredible defensive issues this year -- not that he is the only one, just that if your team's best player doesn't give a damn it enables others to join him, and makes the few that would otherwise play hard wonder why they bother. So given that, it would be hypocritical of me to say that Kevin should be off limits in any sort of get tough strategy. But you have to be careful. He's too important a piece, either of the franchise going forward, or as a trade asset, to be publicly humilitating him. You can't just bench him for whole games, or start guys over him or whatever without just asking for trouble -- Kevin's too major of a player, with too big of an ego, and too much of a contract to accept that and just say "thank you sir, may I have another".

I do think you could get away with benching for a few minutes here or a few minutes there when he does something particularly pathetic -- would get most of the message across while still leaving open the possibility of reconcilliation. But much as making an example of Kevin would be the best and clearest way to get everybody else's attention -- if we are willing to bench the star, then you damn well better know we will bench you -- the potential consequences outweigh the upside, particularly in the last few games of a lost season. You are eventually going to need some way to recruit Kevin as an ally, and you can't do that if he is over on the end of the bench resenting the way he has been treated.

 

[Emma]

Kind of conspiracy theorist of you isn't it Brick? A small town boy from somewhere in the middle of Ohio plotting (perhaps unknowingly), against a major business brand by infiltrating an NBA team with his agent? All the while pulling wool over their eyes by fooling them with his nice guy (almost efeminette if you ask me), demeanor? (Okay, okay, I'm the theorist).

Maybe, Kevin Martin is just overwhelmed by his popularity, unsure of what to do with the spotlight. Remember, the spotlight amplifies his flaws as well.

 

[Bricklayer]

Kind of conspiracy theorist of you isn't it Brick? A small town boy from somewhere in the middle of Ohio plotting (perhaps unknowingly), against a major business brand by infiltrating an NBA team with his agent? All the while pulling wool over their eyes by fooling them with his nice guy (almost efeminette if you ask me), demeanor? (Okay, okay, I'm the theorist).

Maybe, Kevin Martin is just overwhelmed by his popularity, unsure of what to do with the spotlight. Remember, the spotlight amplifies his flaws as well.

How about a small town boy from somewhere in the middle of Ohio foolishly given the keys to the city by a desperate franchise who showed no respect for the intelligence of its fanbase in assuming they could pull the wool over the fans eyes a second time with another Peja nice-guy marketing gambit. How about that small town boy from somewhere in the middle of Ohio being turned into a multimillionaire grown man/corporate entity who takes advantage of the situation (as would we all) and not surprisingly develops a sense of entitlement along the way.

If there is a problem here, we as a franchise are the ones who have created it. But once you have done so, you need to take it into account in all your future actions. You can't treat Kevin like a small town boy from somewhere in the middle of Ohio who will just accept anything you do to him anymore, because he's not. You have made sure of that by spoiling him. He is not just happy to be here anywmore -- he has developed a sense of self worth. So now there is a different set of rules for Kevin and you have to negotiate with him, not dictate to him.

 

[Emma]

I know where you're coming from. If Martin is shunned, he will have the power to level the franchise. At least, he has that power at this moment due to the perfect storm of events which have made him our star. Petrie could not have failed more miserably if you look at all of this objectively.

1. Petrie guts the team.

2. He builds around a budding talent with a personality that just begs to be deviated from or worked against by most men. (I know I'm not alone in this vein of thinking, men in a traditional sense do not think of Martin as someone who should be respected and followed. It's his personality, that's just the way it is).

3. That young star creates an impression on the fan base, leading us around by the nose with his kindness and nice guy demeanor, creating a sympathetic following more than anything. Still he is impotent by all accounts in his purported quest to reach superstar level.

4. The franchise falls into ruin, the economy crumbles, we turn to our sports as a way of escape from the harsh realities of life. We as fans turn to the young star and ask: "do something besides be pretty", unfortunately, this is beyond his capacity, he is oblivious when it comes to his potential and power.

5. We realize our mistake, the franchise is in dissarray, everyone feels despair. We want to out our team's leader but we can't. He is still a star performer, but by no means is he someone to look towards as a leader going into the future. If we voice this opinion he will become aloof, detached, probably signalling to the franchise that we do not like the franchise any longer. The franchise threatens to leave...

6. Petrie is stuck with the ball. A toxic hot potato of blame.

Claws deep into the franchise not knowing he has claws. Indeed.

 

[Emma]

Petrie has created an environment which can only be cured by his departure. Too bad he is an incredible evaluator of talent. He just doesn't seem to "get" people.

 

[Kevin_Martin_23]

yes he should if he wont play d

 

[Kings Faithful]

Our team sucks because 3/4 our players suck, problem solved, now can we stop blaming everyone?

 

[kingsnation]

I have to say that if Natt goes through with what he is threatening, it would give me some new found respect for him.

 

[kpm308]

This is like getting married to a fat woman, filling up your cupboards with twinkies and Ho-hos, then a couple years later getting pissed off that she hasn't lost any weight and you have fat kids running around the house.

Don't blame the wife for not losing the weight you thought she would. You can divorce her but you still have fat kids. The twinkies and ho-hos need to be replaced with some vegetables, and someone needs to be brought in to teach everyone to eat right. Also, quit inviting all the fat kids in the neighborhood over and bring in some active healthy kids instead.