I
Ideally, what do your Kings look like next season?
- Thread starter Showtime
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LA King Fan II
Bench
They played really well at times, blew a couple giant leads and were actually on the brink of bring competitive. Collison and Cuz had chemistry (nowadays cousins is so in love with rondo's "wisdumb" that he will barely acknowledge a play from collison.
Malone is no genius imo the kings were better in a small sampling, but cousins would have pulled his samw schtick regardless of how much malone kissed his arse. Malones biggest asset to his fans was to provide a nice cuddle to cuz and keep him happy.
Malone is no genius imo the kings were better in a small sampling, but cousins would have pulled his samw schtick regardless of how much malone kissed his arse. Malones biggest asset to his fans was to provide a nice cuddle to cuz and keep him happy.
whozit
Starter
Amazing is correct. There was hope. And it was ripped right off like a band-aid, exposing the wound of despair.
This team right now, what has your coach done?
I
Im Still Ballin
Guest
Coached nearly 30 seasons in the NBA, making the playoffs 90+% of the time, multiple teams across different eras, NBA finals appearance, multiple conference finals appearances, one of the best W-L marks as a coach + win totals, turned around a 17-25 2005 Denver team, and finished the season 32-8. Turned around a 20-20 Seattle team and made them into a perennial 60+ win team for majority of the decade. Pretty good resume if you ask me.
Even had this team playing pretty well when they actually gave a damn.
Just maybe, Cousins is the problem for once? Sacramento will sink to a new low if they fire George Karl. He deserves so much better.
whozit
Starter
I don't give a damn about the resume. The resume only gets you the job, once you have the job results is what matter. His results with this team, right now, leaves one wanting.
The only part of the question I asked that you addressed was "Even had the team playing well when they actually gave a damn." I'm glad you put that in the past tense.
Is Cousins THE problem? No. Is Cousins' attitude on the court A problem? Yes. Just like George Karl, Cousins is a high maintenance person.
George Karl got himself fired after winning Coach of the year. Why? As far as we know, no other team came knocking at his door. He came begging thru the media/social media for the job. He got the job and right now, he is failing. If he deserves better, do better. The team deserves better than to have ALL the blame put on them by the coach, again thru the media. He's done it before and he is doing it again. Old habits are hard to break. And we don't know if he even wants to break them. Cousins at least you can see he is trying to change. George Karl not so much if even any.
Bajaden said Cousins crossed a line with him. George Karl crossed a line with me, not owning up to his part in this circus. I hope for the Team's success with or without George Karl.
I think Karl just simply doesn't have enough left in the tank at this point.
Being forced to delegate most of the in game communication to his lead assistant, not showing a willingness to alter his offense to best utilize the team's talent and having to be asked by his own players to be more communicative and energetic.
Right now I see a HOF coach and hoops lifer that can't bring himself to walk away from the game even though he probably should.
In Cousins I see a massively talented player who is being misused on offense and who seems clearly banged up, limiting his production. But I also see a guy who lacks the mental toughness to carry a team or be a leader. He is so easily taken out of the game by opposing players, coaches or calls by the refs. He hasn't become any more efficient on offense and he hasn't cut down on his ridiculously high number of turnovers at all. To his credit he HAS improved dramatically as a defender.
Rudy Gay is still a smooth scorer that can be very useful when he's shooting efficiently but who has the ability but not the desire to be a good defender night after night.
Rondo has been amazing in terms of orchestrating the offense and (while still poor) has shot significantly better this season. But he no longer has the lateral quickness to be a good defender and doesn't put much effort into that side of the ball.
Ben is a guy I root for but who just doesn't have the ball handling, feel for the game or the killer instinct to ever be more than an average SG at best.
Marco has been disappointing this season.
I love Collison, Casspi, Cauley-Stein and Koufos but they are all role players. Acy and Curry are low cost deep bench players that give effort when in the game and worth hanging onto for that reason.
Butler's impact was never going to be on the court and he's pretty much done as a player. I had high hopes for Moreland as a spot minutes backup but he can't seem to stay healthy.
The Kings owe first round picks to Chicago and Philadelphia and despite the salary cap increase I don't see Sacramento improving too significantly via free agency. I mean Vlade did a nice job this summer and I think he can pick up another useful role player or two but it won't be a path of great improvement.
In short I don't see a fix.
Short of this team getting some heart and the players being on the same page with their coach leading to an improbable playoff run I can't see a better team next year.
I see either a complete tear down (if Cousins is dealt Gay has to be because he's inefficient to the point of being a detriment as a primary option and Rondo would almost certainly not resign without them - and isn't valuable without high level players around him) or I see this same team wallowing in mediocrity either with Karl at the helm or yet another new coach with yet another new system.
The hardest part for me (and why I'm not going to watch games for a while) is that this was always a make or break season. And failing (which the team currently is) likely means another five years of being awful.
It's incredibly frustrating to think about.
Being forced to delegate most of the in game communication to his lead assistant, not showing a willingness to alter his offense to best utilize the team's talent and having to be asked by his own players to be more communicative and energetic.
Right now I see a HOF coach and hoops lifer that can't bring himself to walk away from the game even though he probably should.
In Cousins I see a massively talented player who is being misused on offense and who seems clearly banged up, limiting his production. But I also see a guy who lacks the mental toughness to carry a team or be a leader. He is so easily taken out of the game by opposing players, coaches or calls by the refs. He hasn't become any more efficient on offense and he hasn't cut down on his ridiculously high number of turnovers at all. To his credit he HAS improved dramatically as a defender.
Rudy Gay is still a smooth scorer that can be very useful when he's shooting efficiently but who has the ability but not the desire to be a good defender night after night.
Rondo has been amazing in terms of orchestrating the offense and (while still poor) has shot significantly better this season. But he no longer has the lateral quickness to be a good defender and doesn't put much effort into that side of the ball.
Ben is a guy I root for but who just doesn't have the ball handling, feel for the game or the killer instinct to ever be more than an average SG at best.
Marco has been disappointing this season.
I love Collison, Casspi, Cauley-Stein and Koufos but they are all role players. Acy and Curry are low cost deep bench players that give effort when in the game and worth hanging onto for that reason.
Butler's impact was never going to be on the court and he's pretty much done as a player. I had high hopes for Moreland as a spot minutes backup but he can't seem to stay healthy.
The Kings owe first round picks to Chicago and Philadelphia and despite the salary cap increase I don't see Sacramento improving too significantly via free agency. I mean Vlade did a nice job this summer and I think he can pick up another useful role player or two but it won't be a path of great improvement.
In short I don't see a fix.
Short of this team getting some heart and the players being on the same page with their coach leading to an improbable playoff run I can't see a better team next year.
I see either a complete tear down (if Cousins is dealt Gay has to be because he's inefficient to the point of being a detriment as a primary option and Rondo would almost certainly not resign without them - and isn't valuable without high level players around him) or I see this same team wallowing in mediocrity either with Karl at the helm or yet another new coach with yet another new system.
The hardest part for me (and why I'm not going to watch games for a while) is that this was always a make or break season. And failing (which the team currently is) likely means another five years of being awful.
It's incredibly frustrating to think about.
I believe he asked, "This team, right now, what has your coach done"?
Karl has a fine resume. He didn't get all those wins by being a dummy. But somewhere along the way, he forgot that coaching isn't about implementing a system but working with what he has. He is square-peg-roundholing this team like none I've ever seen before.
It's blatantly clear that this team isn't built to run like his team in Denver. Bulking up Gay to play the 4, while we draft a legit 4 to start next to Cousins? Dribble drive w/ Belli or Ben? They're not ball handlers.
Listen, Karl is a smart dude, but your resume only gets you to today. And today looks pretty ugly. If he's anything, he's too tired to go back to the drawing board and say, "well, this crap won't work with this team." He's the one who needs a 180 right now.
Karl has a fine resume. He didn't get all those wins by being a dummy. But somewhere along the way, he forgot that coaching isn't about implementing a system but working with what he has. He is square-peg-roundholing this team like none I've ever seen before.
It's blatantly clear that this team isn't built to run like his team in Denver. Bulking up Gay to play the 4, while we draft a legit 4 to start next to Cousins? Dribble drive w/ Belli or Ben? They're not ball handlers.
Listen, Karl is a smart dude, but your resume only gets you to today. And today looks pretty ugly. If he's anything, he's too tired to go back to the drawing board and say, "well, this crap won't work with this team." He's the one who needs a 180 right now.
I
Im Still Ballin
Guest
thingfish
Bench
2 things we have in common:
All of what you just said and I also like Toots and the Maytals
Sac.1989
Starter
Good points...especially the point where he won coach of the year and then got fired.
I have no problem with the notion that Karl has had the more successful career but if we are talking about who is more important to the team right now and whose strengths I would build around that's an obvious answer of cuz.
When he doesn't play, we almost always lose whereas I'd actually be relieved if Karl took an extended break
KingsFanGER
Starter
Ideally next season my Kings look back on a regular season, where they reached the 8th seed due to coming together as a team and due to some adjustments mainly on the defensive end from our coaching staff. They look back on a hars fought first round exit versus Golden State. The management and owner show patience start from there. They manage to attract some FA's and manage to fix the hole on the wing.
Exactly......a younger Karl would be able to make this work, I think. Right now, and especially after his comments to the media, he's going to run his schemes....period. Even if its not the best way to utilize the teams talents, it could be a clash of wills or ego at this point.
Come on, man. Bring a little more to the table.
This is arguably the first year in which we've had a roster suited to his talents, and now the coach won't create a system suited to those players.
I
Im Still Ballin
Guest
This would mean something if Cousins actually gave a damn. Every game I hope he brings the effort. But alas, it never changes. Not even when the 8th seed is within arms reach.
Which raises the question as to who is "chasing stats".
Years from now, no one (save Kings fans) will remember his last few wins. They'll just see his name atop the list and say, "wow, Karl won a lot of games." He really only needs about 36 more wins a year for the next 5 to reach the mark. Is he content to limp to the finish line?
km23
Bench
I know I do not comment a lot on here but I am on this page everyday and have been for around 10 years now. But that stuff is pointless, on to my point.
I absolutely cannot believe what some people are posting. I'm gonna share how I feel about our team. Yes Karl has been a great coach in the past during the regular season but we have to throw all of that out the window now. First off its not the players fault it is simply our coach not utilizing them properly.
I don't think some people understand the world of difference it makes when Cousins has the ball in triple threat from the three compared to when he has has it at the elbow. When Cousins is at the three that extra dribble it takes to get to the rim allows other defenders to converge and make it a very tough shot or draw a charge. When he was at the elbow last year that jump shot was MONEY, but as he has expanded his game to the 3 it seems he has lost a little touch on his mid range shot. Also when he drIves from the elbow (quicker then most bigs) there is less time for the help to get there and more of a chance for him to finish at the rim or draw a foul. If I had my choice I would only want to see cousins and at the elbows, shortcorners, and of course posting up. But that's just my opinion.
I'm not gonna go to much into Rudy but his struggles are obvious, Rudy also was a monster last year from the elbows short corners when he drove, because his length covers up for his lack of dribble (many don't want to admit but he struggles as times with handles) as we see how he turns it over often when he starts his drive from the perimeter. I also think we need to put rudy back in the post because he had a killer fade and hook, of course depending on matchups, which then if the defender is bigger put rudy at the elbows or short corners to take him off the dribble.
If you think this team is lacking talent you are out of your mind, we are loaded and I love. We just need a coach to coach to his team's strengths. I would perefer this solely based on his defensive mind.
And lastly for those of you who want to trade our boy DMC, get lost... he is the greatest thing to happen to Sacramento in a long long time. He actually wants to be here in Sac and turn it back into a winning franchise. Oh your sick of his attitude? Well how about we START WINNING and I can promise you that attitude would dissappear. He just wants to win like all of us upset peed off fans that so badly Want to see this franchise turn it around.
Sorry for the book, just had to get that off chest! Sorry for any Grammer issues as I am sure there are many, did this on my phone haha.
Happy new year everyone! I'm sure as hell #SacramentoProud let's hope 2016 we see great things!!
I absolutely cannot believe what some people are posting. I'm gonna share how I feel about our team. Yes Karl has been a great coach in the past during the regular season but we have to throw all of that out the window now. First off its not the players fault it is simply our coach not utilizing them properly.
I don't think some people understand the world of difference it makes when Cousins has the ball in triple threat from the three compared to when he has has it at the elbow. When Cousins is at the three that extra dribble it takes to get to the rim allows other defenders to converge and make it a very tough shot or draw a charge. When he was at the elbow last year that jump shot was MONEY, but as he has expanded his game to the 3 it seems he has lost a little touch on his mid range shot. Also when he drIves from the elbow (quicker then most bigs) there is less time for the help to get there and more of a chance for him to finish at the rim or draw a foul. If I had my choice I would only want to see cousins and at the elbows, shortcorners, and of course posting up. But that's just my opinion.
I'm not gonna go to much into Rudy but his struggles are obvious, Rudy also was a monster last year from the elbows short corners when he drove, because his length covers up for his lack of dribble (many don't want to admit but he struggles as times with handles) as we see how he turns it over often when he starts his drive from the perimeter. I also think we need to put rudy back in the post because he had a killer fade and hook, of course depending on matchups, which then if the defender is bigger put rudy at the elbows or short corners to take him off the dribble.
If you think this team is lacking talent you are out of your mind, we are loaded and I love. We just need a coach to coach to his team's strengths. I would perefer this solely based on his defensive mind.
And lastly for those of you who want to trade our boy DMC, get lost... he is the greatest thing to happen to Sacramento in a long long time. He actually wants to be here in Sac and turn it back into a winning franchise. Oh your sick of his attitude? Well how about we START WINNING and I can promise you that attitude would dissappear. He just wants to win like all of us upset peed off fans that so badly Want to see this franchise turn it around.
Sorry for the book, just had to get that off chest! Sorry for any Grammer issues as I am sure there are many, did this on my phone haha.
Happy new year everyone! I'm sure as hell #SacramentoProud let's hope 2016 we see great things!!
I won't speak for @VF21, but what I think is that D'Alessandro thought (incorrectly IMO) that it wasn't sustainable, and so he had to go ahead and do the asinine "fail fast" thing, before it "fell apart", and convinced Ranadivé to fire Malolne, on the basis of a faulty premise. Not evil, not malicious, just stupid. Or, at best, misguided; I think that he was trying to preemptively avoid a collapse and, in doing so, inadvertently created one.
I also think that he, and @Im Still Ballin, and whoever else still believes that Malone's system wasn't sustainable were and are wrong.
I'll say that your most likely right although it appears that maybe, just maybe the ulterior motive was also to get Chris Mullin in as head coach.....admittedly I have a lot of distrust in PDA and Mullin.
upinsmoke
All-Star
Notice how you don't have any "likes" for this comment because the truth is the firing of Malone looks to be haunting right now.
Albatros
Starter
Firing Malone was idiotic and we'd be in a much better place with him but Im_still.... is right, the same old problems were present during Malone's "glory days" throughout his whole tenure and after Cuz's unfortunate illness.
That's not what I said...or meant. See Slim's comment.
Sorry for the misinterpretation. While I don't fully agree with Slim's take (and hence yours), it's not an unreasonable one.
gunks
Hall of Famer
This may be insane paranoia talking (but really, what are message boards for if not the airing of crackpot theories? ) .... but I still think Vivek is a major part of the problem.
And I'm responding to this post in particular, because I'm Still Ballin did a good job of highlighting Karl's credentials. ..
... anyways. ..
Karl was COTY his last season in Denver. He led a rag tag bunch to an amazing record. He's been a brilliant coach his entire year.
Now all of a sudden he gets here, and it's nothing but pace, pace, pace... The same nonsense Vivek tried to force on Malone (who was fired because he didn't play ball).
Are we supposed to think future HOFer Karl is blind to the fact that our stars and roster aren't built for that? It's so obvious that every 15 year old aspirant sports blogger has already pointed this out.
You know who is stubborn enough to still push this wannabe warriors pace nonsense? Our little goblin owner.
Just because Vivek has learned to keep his yap shut, doesn't mean he's learned anything about basketball. Vivek himself has even admitted he still wants to be "the irritant" behind the scenes.
He's the owner. So, to him, The Kings are his toy, to play with as he sees fit.
Fire Karl. Trade Cuz...
Doesnt make a difference. We will suck as long as we have that little goblin as an owner.
Hoovtrain
All-Star
This would pee me off...however I am all about trying to get in on Barnes
http://nba.nbcsports.com/2016/01/01...ign-with-warriors/?ocid=Yahoo&partner=ya5nbcs
http://nba.nbcsports.com/2016/01/01...ign-with-warriors/?ocid=Yahoo&partner=ya5nbcs
As soon as I saw Chris Broussard's name attached in that article, I dismissed it.
I
Im Still Ballin
Guest
DMC for Brooklyn pick, Bradley and Kelly O
Rudy for whatever we can get for him
Rudy for whatever we can get for him
That is grand theft larceny for the Celtics.
