I am going to try to break the question into two: How do you rate (judge) a player and why do you like/dislike the player:
1. I make up my mind about liking/disliking a player, based on my own values and of course influenced by my own sensibilities - but you can call it biases. I can like I a player for no more then the fact that we share something - like common background. I can really like a player if I think he is high-character, take for example Doug Christie - weirdness abounds with this guy, with his relationship with Jackie and what not. But this is the guy who publicly admitted to cacking his pants in a most important game of his life and came back from it as a _leader_. I have to respect that. Then, there are guys like Steve Smith. Not a superstar, but a good pro. Spent most of his money (of which he earned a lot in the NBA) on helping others who are underpriviledged and who do not have the talent to make it in the NBA. I just like that. And he did it quietly, on the side, no big deal to him.
I don't necessarily like a player because he is of same ethnicity and/or same cultural background like me, but invariably I would like them to do well. That is why I absolutely love Vlade, I like Pedja and I detest smug little $**** like Radmanovic and Jaric. Nothign wrong with that.
2. I rate/judge players the same way that Bricklayer grades them: relative to their talent level and expectations. I cannot work myself up angry about Cisco or Kevin having a bad game. I don't expect them to come out there and take over. I can wait on them to mature into their roles. On the other hand it infuriates me when talented, veteran players underperform. Luckily, there is not a single player on the Kings who is consistently, game in and game out, mailing it in. It's just that we lost Webb, Vlade, DC and Bobby and we haven't replaced them with equal talent yet. You can froth at your mouth as much as you like about Pedja, Bibby and Brad, but they are doing the same thing that they always were, it is just that now it is not quite as valuable as it was before. Now they are not adding to a great core, now they ARE the core. End of the story for me. You can cheer Pedja, Bibby, Brad or Reef as much as you like - or bag on them - the simple fact remains that they are neither as great as some people would like you believe nor as bad as others would want you to think. Now, Bonzi fans may be onto something. Bonzi may prove to be a renessance man.
