Vlade understood what the basketball is all about. Team play. It's so simple : move the ball to the open man, be unselfish and truly support your teammates. Today we have a bunch of selfish guys stuffing their own stats. Thats how Bibby have 0 assists, thats why Peja dissapears and thats why we are where we are.
Vlade made everyone around him better player to the point where average players performed at an ALL star level. (CHris , Peja, Brad, Mike etc..)
It was so apparent that when he was chased out of Sac ( anyone remember Ostertag "investment") the things turned the way they are now.
Vlade made everyone around him better player to the point where average players performed at an ALL star level. (CHris , Peja, Brad, Mike etc..)
It was so apparent that when he was chased out of Sac ( anyone remember Ostertag "investment") the things turned the way they are now.
Chased out of Sac?? I love peoples misguided perceptions of things that happened. The organization simply didn't see him as worth 5 mill, and by the way they were right. He didn't play most of his last season, because of herniated discs, and when he came back he was useless and out of shape. It was a sound decision.
Vlade got old. Happens. He basically was out of the league as soon as he left Sacto.
And we went on without him and still had a very good team the next year. No doubt weakened, but an easy 50+ win Kingslike team. And everybody but Peja was playing quite well thank you (Peja obviously did, and has, missed Vlade immensely -- the old man should have been getting part of his paychecks for all those years). Wasn't until the series of followup moves ripped out the rest of our heart (Doug, Webb, Bobby) that things reached this point. Nearly everything that made us Kingsish was moved in the space of 12 months.
And we went on without him and still had a very good team the next year. No doubt weakened, but an easy 50+ win Kingslike team. And everybody but Peja was playing quite well thank you (Peja obviously did, and has, missed Vlade immensely -- the old man should have been getting part of his paychecks for all those years). Wasn't until the series of followup moves ripped out the rest of our heart (Doug, Webb, Bobby) that things reached this point. Nearly everything that made us Kingsish was moved in the space of 12 months.
Vlade is in our past, Petrie must get a handle on this team and find something new to define itself. We can talk all we want about the last 6 seasons...Chris this, Vlade this...but neither is here, or is coming back...so Petrie needs to really get started on his 3rd wave of a Kings team since he's been here...first it was the Mitch/Olden/Grant years, then the Chris/Vlade years...now comes the 3rd wave. Whatcha got up youre sleave, Geoff??
Krstic is not now, nor will he EVER be the player Vlade Divac was. And I'm not just talking about statistics. Vlade was unique, special and the Kings were lucky to have him come here and be part of the team that was.
It's time to move on. Vlade isn't coming back; Chris isn't coming back; Doug isn't coming back; Bobby Jackson isn't coming back; Hedo Turkoglu isn't coming back; Scot Pollard isn't coming back; Jon Barry isn't coming back; Lawrence Funderburke isn't coming back.
Petrie made the right decision about Vlade and he made the right decision about Doug, especially when you consider how very little basketball either of them played after leaving.
The current Kings aren't missing Vlade at all. Why? Most of them never stepped on the court with him.
It's time to move on. Vlade isn't coming back; Chris isn't coming back; Doug isn't coming back; Bobby Jackson isn't coming back; Hedo Turkoglu isn't coming back; Scot Pollard isn't coming back; Jon Barry isn't coming back; Lawrence Funderburke isn't coming back.
Petrie made the right decision about Vlade and he made the right decision about Doug, especially when you consider how very little basketball either of them played after leaving.
The current Kings aren't missing Vlade at all. Why? Most of them never stepped on the court with him.
I am not sure anyone said that Krstic is or ever will be Vlade. They are 2 totally different players. The only similarities they have is that they both play/ed center, grew up through the ranks of Partizan, wore #12 and are Serbian. As far as their games are concerned, they are totally different in a lot of ways.