Kings hire Luke Walton

Coach Luke Walton. What's your initial reaction?

  • Great

  • Pretty happy

  • Unsure

  • Not real happy

  • Bummed

Results are only viewable after voting.
The Effort Police said:
Unless I missed something, he mentioned how important Bagley and Giles were but never WCS.

Also, we're 2/2 on Grant being a mouthpiece this season (Vlade being extended, Joerger gone), and given that Grant was talking about WCS in the same way he was Joerger...
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if the trend continues, the majority of the fan base gets their wish and have Willie show his skills elsewhere
 
OPrime said:
With the depth of this free agent class I think Barnes will opt in to his player option. I feel like he enjoyed the team and the city but might want one more trial run for a cool $25 mill
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I would angle for an extension if I were his agent. Vlade and Luke, presumably both big Barnes fans, just got 4 year contracts. The best strategy would be to lock in a nice, big extension to coincide the GM/coach right now, while he can. In all likelihood, they will put him in position to succeed and earn one last, big contract at the end of this extension. Especially, when he’s fresh off of his Dallas experience.
 
Sactown ExPat said:
I would angle for an extension if I were his agent. Vlade and Luke, presumably both big Barnes fans, just got 4 year contracts. The best strategy would be to lock in a nice, big extension to coincide the GM/coach right now, while he can. In all likelihood, they will put him in position to succeed and earn one last, big contract at the end of this extension. Especially, when he’s fresh off of his Dallas experience.
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I would too but not sure they will be close on numbers.
 
VF21 said:
Educated guess/gut instinct. Luke talked a lot about effort, commitment, accountability. etc. I don't think he envisions Willie as an integral part of the Kings going forward.
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Or... although highly unlikely, I'm totally fine with a changed and humbled man next season.
 
Kangztillidie said:
Would be nice to hear about how he felt about that.
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Someone linked an article earlier in this thread that was written after exit interviews at the end of Walton's 1st season with the Lakers. Here are a couple quotes from Brewer.

“I’ve played for a lot of good coaches. If he wasn’t a good coach, I probably wouldn’t say anything. I wouldn’t put him down, I just wouldn’t say anything,” said Corey Brewer, who didn’t know what to expect when the Lakers acquired him at the trade deadline. "Luke is great."

Brewer on Luke Walton: "Luke’s great. He’s a great coach, man. He knows (how to talk to players) and he knows X’s and O’s."
 
Tetsujin said:
Luke's other assistants were Brian Shaw (famously bombed in his head coaching gig in Denver), Mark Madsen (got a head coaching gig in the NCAA), Jesse Mermuys (former Duane Casey disciple), Brian Keefe ( a long time coach who ran player development under Walton), and Miles Simon (who was retained by the Lakers after Luke got fired). To sum it up, that's two members of Luke's staff who definitely aren't making the trip and three others who might come along for the ride.
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Even tho I hate the Lakers, I'm not usually one of those "once a laker always a laker, keep them away from my team" but...
Minority owner: Shaq
GM: Vlade
Coach: Luke Walton
Possible assistant coach: Brian Shaw
TV color commentator: Doug Christie
:eek::eek::eek:
 
sono said:
I'm unsure.
Still can't shake off that awkward feeling seeing him next to Peja, Vlade, Bobby etc.. although they are not the same generation players.
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I mean, if nothing else, I see him employing multiple plays from Phil, Pop, and Steve Kerr. It sounds better than it is, of course. But you still can't discredit his intelligence, at the very least.
 
I am unsure as well but looking at this realistically, Walton is the best coach Vlade could get for what he is looking for in a coach. Vlade wanted someone to fit the style that he wants Kings to play and Luke ticks that box.

Vlade is also big on relationships and chemistry from front office to coaches and staff to players. Walton is known as someone who players (especially young ones) really like and respects. Vlade also has the relationship with Walton from the playing days. This is a case of all things aligning.

Now Walton is not perfect. He has his weaknesses but as long as he identifies those and tries to improve in those areas, good things will happen. Time will tell if he is the right coach for this team but on paper, he is the best coach that has the attributes that Vlade was looking for (rightly or wrongly)
 
I will say that after watching the presser and reading a bit more today (Sacramento Bee article by Anderson, etc.) I'm getting a better feeling about this decision. As a Kings fan I obviously want them to succeed. I just hope it was the right choice....looks like the players are at least outwardly supporting the change.
 
KainLear said:
I mean, if nothing else, I see him employing multiple plays from Phil, Pop, and Steve Kerr. It sounds better than it is, of course. But you still can't discredit his intelligence, at the very least.
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I won't, I'm not well informed about his coaching except his Warriors days. I think his success 39-4 as the interim head coach of Warriors is mostly because of the players, the team culture and chemistry that Kerr established.
 
sono said:
I won't, I'm not well informed about his coaching except his Warriors days. I think his success 39-4 as the interim head coach of Warriors is mostly because of the players, the team culture and chemistry that Kerr established.
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You know, people really need to give this a rest. (Just quoting you sono because your the latest to make that comment.) It doesn't matter how good the players are - a coach still has to keep the wheels turning. There are some pretty strong egos on GSW and Walton could easily have become a puppet in their eyes. He wasn't. From all reports, he was well liked and respected. Walton was calling the plays, setting the tone and making sure the guys didn't lose their focus. He also had to deal with Draymond Greene on a nightly basis. That's no easy task for anybody.

Was it easier because Kerr had culture and chemistry in place? Yes, it was a well-oiled machine. But somebody still had to drive it.
 
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