I dislike Eric Mussleman's benching of Martin

[nbrans]

I really don't care at this point that Musselman can't construct an offense, has apparently abandoned all defensive schemes, and generally walks around looking constipated. The Kings aren't going anywhere anyway, so hey, let's lose games and get a good draft pick. Musselman has been a major bust, but at least it doesn't matter in the long run that he's a bust.

But look. At this point there are only two things that matter: draft position and developing Kevin Martin. So... YOU DON'T BENCH KEVIN MARTIN.

Kevin Martin is not aggressive enough in most games. We all want him to shoot more. There are going to be games where he doesn't shoot well. He has an off night once in a while, just like it happens to Mike Bibby every single game. You don't reward aggressiveness and a few missed shots by benching him.

It's not like he's even teaching Kevin a lesson. Kevin Martin goes 1-7 but otherwise was pretty actively defensively. He gets benched. Bibby goes 2-8 in the first half and generally sucks defensively. What's the lesson? The lesson is that it sucks to be Kevin Martin if you miss some shots. Better not be aggressive or you might get benched.

Look, Musselman, I would be perfectly content with you being a bush league coach if it meant that you just didn't get in your own way and kept playing the players that matter while losing again adn again. But all this high school benching stuff needs to stop, particularly when you're messing with the one player that is most important to the future of this franchise.

 

[Salmondave]

Amen

 

[Salmondave]

There is a high school in Scottsdale looking for a girls head basketball coach for next year.

 

[Kingzrool]

I agree with all, but hate is such a strong word. I prefer to save my energy for more important things.

 

[6th]

While I try to keep "hate" out of my life, I sure understand your frustration, nbrans. I try...I really do........but, Musselman is an idiot as a coach, and I'm beginning to think that the Maloofs are idiots for getting rid of a respected, winning coach, for a snot nose kid, just because that winning coach wasn't their best friend. Geez!!

 

[nbrans]

Maybe a mod can change it to "loathe." I can see how hate is a bit of a loaded word.

 

[BigWaxer]

Am I the only one here that doesn't agree? I think it has a lot more to do with this mix of players

KM not being agreesive... WELCOME to the world of Kmart. He will and never has been agreesive. A coach is not going to change that.

Look at past years and the major complaints about RA was he wouldn't play more then 7 players. Muss gets most involved and now they are complaining... IMO it is about this group of players. I dont see any coach that would make us win with this group. In the east this is a #1/#2 team. In the west we have no players that could really compete.

Hey it is nice to see Webb doing well. 10+ boards, if anything you have to blame Petrie and the Maloofs not the coach. Even with Muss's past record, at this point IMO its not fair to him unless he has a real team to work with.

 

[SacKings384]

If I'm Kevin Martin I'm looking elsewhere if Muss stays..

 

[nbrans]

Am I the only one here that doesn't agree? I think it has a lot more to do with this mix of players

KM not being agreesive... WELCOME to the world of Kmart. He will and never has never been agreesive. A coach is not going to change that.

Look at past years and the major complaints about RA was he wouldn't play more then 7 players. Muss gets most involved and now they are complaining... IMO it is about this group of players. I dont see any coach that would make us win with this group. In the east this is a #1/#2 team. In the west we have no players that could really compete.

Hey it is nice to see Webb doing well. 10+ boards, if anything you have to blame Petrie and the Maloofs not the coach. Even with Muss's past record, at this point IMO its not fair to him unless he has a real team to work with.

1. Kevin was aggressive tonight, but he missed some shots he normally makes (yes, a few forces too), and he got benched. Artest and Bibby forced and missed shots and they didn't get benched. There's a big problem there, especially when you WANT Kevin to be aggressive.

2. I was not one of those people who criticized Rick for his rotations. Every good coach has a rotation. The team benefits much more in the longterm from the stability of knowing their role than in the short term from just playing guys with the hot hand.

 

[BigWaxer]

2. I was not one of those people who criticized Rick for his rotations. Every good coach has a rotation. The team benefits much more in the longterm from the stability of knowing their role than in the short term from just playing guys with the hot hand.

I agree with that point. Still in the end, no coach is winning with this group of bandits. Reminds me of our '98 team. When corliss is getting major mins we have some problems.

 

[JJ_Evans]

We should have gotten Mario Elie. Not Mr. I am a really good INTERVIEWEE! I hope hes not back next year.

 

[Kingzrool]

I agree with that point. Still in the end, no coach is winning with this group of bandits. Reminds me of our '98 team. When corliss is getting major mins we have some problems.

I just cannot help but disagree. These players could be doing better if they were being used in the correct manner. Geez, if in any manner. At this point, the "testing the waters" theory does not cut it. Tell us, what is he doing? How does it make any sense? Players do not know their role. Is it collectively their fault and Muss is a victim? 50 games will be around shortly, and all excuses are out the door then.

 

[DETON8ER]

The kings are playing like theyre in a video game and they're team overall is 62..

 

[BigWaxer]

I just cannot help but disagree. These players could be doing better if they were being used in the correct manner. Geez, if in any manner. At this point, the "testing the waters" theory does not cut it. Tell us, what is he doing? How does it make any sense? Players do not know their role. Is it collectively their fault and Muss is a victim? 50 games will be around shortly, and all excuses are out the door then.

I respect that opinion, I don't agree and seem to be in the minority here.

IMO this is just a bad mix of players. Again though, I understand the feelings against muss and I don't work in the NBA so just IMO...

And anyway, the more we lose the better right? Gets us closer to getting a real superstar.

 

[VF21]

I really don't care at this point that Musselman can't construct an offense, has apparently abandoned all defensive schemes, and generally walks around looking constipated. The Kings aren't going anywhere anyway, so hey, let's lose games and get a good draft pick. Musselman has been a major bust, but at least it doesn't matter in the long run that he's a bust.

But look. At this point there are only two things that matter: draft position and developing Kevin Martin. So... YOU DON'T BENCH KEVIN MARTIN.

Kevin Martin is not aggressive enough in most games. We all want him to shoot more. There are going to be games where he doesn't shoot well. He has an off night once in a while, just like it happens to Mike Bibby every single game. You don't reward aggressiveness and a few missed shots by benching him.

It's not like he's even teaching Kevin a lesson. Kevin Martin goes 1-7 but otherwise was pretty actively defensively. He gets benched. Bibby goes 2-8 in the first half and generally sucks defensively. What's the lesson? The lesson is that it sucks to be Kevin Martin if you miss some shots. Better not be aggressive or you might get benched.

Look, Musselman, I would be perfectly content with you being a bush league coach if it meant that you just didn't get in your own way and kept playing the players that matter while losing again adn again. But all this high school benching stuff needs to stop, particularly when you're messing with the one player that is most important to the future of this franchise.

Bravo.

 

[PoundForPound]

it might be a little bit premature to be hating coach musselman but he has dissappointed many fans thus far. we would have been better off if we signed John Whisenant, i'm 100% serious here.

 

[Kingzrool]

And anyway, the more we lose the better right? Gets us closer to getting a real superstar.

With you on this one!

 

[HighFlyingMonkey]

it might be a little bit premature to be hating coach musselman but he has dissappointed many fans thus far. we would have been better off if we signed John Whisenant, i'm 100% serious here.

We would have been so much worse with Whisenant it's not even funny.

You know that powder-keg lockerroom we have? Yeah, it would have exploded by now under him.

 

[pdxKingsFan]

I respect that opinion, I don't agree and seem to be in the minority here.

IMO this is just a bad mix of players. Again though, I understand the feelings against muss and I don't work in the NBA so just IMO...

And anyway, the more we lose the better right? Gets us closer to getting a real superstar.

I'm with you. Sure I'm disappointed in some of Muss's judgements but I don't think he's a snot nosed punk nor do I wish him any physical ill will. We just don't have a quality lineup right now. I'm sure next season will be a lot different and if he's still not cutting it at that point he'll be gone. Hopefully in the interim a high profile coach will actually become available for all of you who won't tolerate a younger guy and we'll have a roster worthy of attracting that coach to actually come here.

 

[SkinnerBox]

Hopefully in the interim a high profile coach will actually become available for all of you who won't tolerate a younger guy and we'll have a roster worthy of attracting that coach to actually come here.

What's Rick Adelman doing? That guy's a great coach.

 

[pdxKingsFan]

What's Rick Adelman doing? That guy's a great coach.

He's back in Portland and he's not coming back. I actually posted an article I found in a local Portland paper last night over in the NBA section.

 

[Diabeticwonder]

Uh, Rick Adelman won with basically this same group. Muss uses way too many players and his rotations are not consistent at all. The reason why so many people complained with Adelman's 7-8 man rotation is that for most of his 8 years in Sac the Kings had the deepest benches in the league.

 

[Rug King]

It doesn't look good for Muss. I'm still hoping things will work out but to be honest, tonights game was pathetic by all accounts. Much like the old days where everybody looks lost and half hearted play. At one point when they went to a commercial, Muss was in a R.C.Willey commercial saying how he bought all his new furnishings from them. I was thinking the Rent-A-Center would have been the smarter choice..

 

[pdxKingsFan]

Uh, Rick Adelman won with basically this same group. Muss uses way too many players and his rotations are not consistent at all. The reason why so many people complained with Adelman's 7-8 man rotation is that for most of his 8 years in Sac the Kings had the deepest benches in the league.

"Basically" the same group minus one of our top players from last season. People write this off because it appears we made the right move in not resigning Bonzi. That doesn't change the fact that we lost one of our two biggest defensive and rebounding presences on the floor. Throw in all the injuries to Bibby, Artest and Miller its a much different team. Even if Adelman is good for an extra 20 wins that just means a first round playoff exit and another swingman in the draft.

This lineup sucks and there's no getting around that. When you visit the trade forum people talk about bringing in all kinds of PF and Cs that aren't fit to carry prime Webber and Vlade's jocks. That kind of talent isn't likely to fall into our laps again. We've fallen so far behind that people actually want to trade for backup players on other middle of the road teams to replace our starting front court. Just think about what that actually means. I want ping pong balls or at the least a mid-lottery pick in this deep draft.

 

[Kev.in]

We should have gotten Mario Elie. Not Mr. I am a really good INTERVIEWEE! I hope hes not back next year.

I agree and I'll just say: Hold tight, next year we'll have a real power forward, a real center and the coach we should've hired last summer (Elie).


Loathe is definitely the right word for how I feel about these random mysterious Martin benchings.

 

[Bricklayer]

I agree and I'll just say: Hold tight, next year we'll have a real power forward, a real center and the coach we should've hired last summer (Elie).


Loathe is definitely the right word for how I feel about these random mysterious Martin benchings.

Look, this...I was upset about a Kevin benching earlier in the year. This time? He was terrible. The team was terrible. This is like getting upset about chipping a nail after you just got run over by a train.

 

[bozzwell]

Look, this...I was upset about a Kevin benching earlier in the year. This time? He was terrible. The team was terrible. This is like getting upset about chipping a nail after you just got run over by a train.

OK now, your example here and your more detailed explanation in the grades thread make perfect sense - logically, basketball wise, as in trying to do your best in a bad situation. Kevin played mega minutes in a difficult series of games and on a road trip and he was bad against Detroit.

But, I will still have to go with nbrans on this. I neither hate nor intensly dislike Muss as a person, and I wish him no ill as a coach - in Kingland or elsewhere. It's just that every time I look up at our coaching situation it gets depressing. I don't really understand what are we trying to so there. Kevin is as close to a young star as we have on this team. If he is tired or playing poorly I still want him in. I still want *his* coach to wisper in his ear, to try to cajole him into giving us something. You know like when we had a *real* coach who would let Webber shoot through his droughts because it is Chris - our only superstar. Or coach who would get something, at least something out of Pedja when he would start running away from the ball under pressure. Not to mention ehandling Artest...

I am sick to my stomack that the chief architect of our recent successfull run is "retired" in Portland while other coaches of similar profile were given opportunity to go through rebuilding/bad times and now their teams are reaping benefits (Sloan in Utah). All the while we have Muss and his marry bunch of novices "running" our team. So, no - no free passes for Muss and everything can and should be second guessed. Until proven otherwise.

 

[LA King Fan II]

He has been good this season. He was bad on offense and defense last night, but more importantly he was pouting. His droopy walk to the bench when substituted was high schoolish.

Because of his build, he's going to get physically overmatched time to time. Still, his head should not hang and I swore I saw it doing that last night.

 

[VF21]

I am sick to my stomack that the chief architect of our recent successfull run is "retired" in Portland while other coaches of similar profile were given opportunity to go through rebuilding/bad times and now their teams are reaping benefits (Sloan in Utah). All the while we have Muss and his marry bunch of novices "running" our team. So, no - no free passes for Muss and everything can and should be second guessed. Until proven otherwise.

That pretty much sums up my feelings, too. I posted an article in the NBA forum written by Mark Kreidler, which is a fitting end to his career at the Bee, IMHO. It's an in-depth piece about Rick Adelman and I think it speaks volumes.

I don't dislike Eric Musselman, the man, but I am NOT in any way impressed by Eric Musselman, the head coach of the Sacramento Kings.

 

[pdxKingsFan]

With the way the Maloofs were treating Adelman you have to wonder how long he would have stuck around if it were up to him. I'm actually somewhat happy for Rick that he got out when he did even if it wasn't his choosing. He comes off looking like roses no matter what actually happened internally whereas if Rick were here now and we were still struggling it would really not end pretty.

I think Sloan is a special situation - no other coach survives a complete tear down like he did and the Maloofs don't even have the patience to execute the tear down.