[Game] Kings @ Minnesota Timberwolves, 3/1/2024, 5:00p PT/8:00p ET

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Mr. S£im Citrus

Doryphore of KingsFans.com
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Is it true what the G man said on the radio about the Kings being in last place in the NBA when it comes to missed free throws?
Well, if you want to be pedantic, no. There are at least two teams that have missed more free throws than the Kings, but both of those teams have also made more free throws. The Kings are DFL in free throw percentage.
 
Fox was coaching his friend from the sidelines. And boy, did he deliver! It was thrilling to watch. Kayte said it was Monk's career high in field goal attempts.

I just wish they had tried to run a pick-and-roll or backdoor cut at the end of regulation. Or something Globetrotters. An isolation three was the worst possible play.
I didn't mind the 3, honestly. Monk was hot and he can hit that shot. The problem with it was it didn't hit the rim. If he at least hits the rim then it's probably a long rebound and the T-Wolves would have very little time left if they got the rebound.
 
Shout-out to Keon Ellis. He had those eye-catching four steals and a block, but I just looked at the box score, and Keon notched seven dimes in only 19 minutes.
I'm excited about Keon's future with this team. Dude just absolutely nails the exact archetype we want to be putting next to Fox/Domas/Keegan/Monk offensive core.

Not quite sure he's starting-caliber yet, but I'm damn sure he's going to be a good NBA rotation player and directly addresses what our team sucks at.
 
Great win. I got busy at work at the end of the third with the nine point lead, come back 5 minutes later and it is a one or two point game. We couldn’t string together that make, stop, make we needed to end the game several times and I wasn’t super confident in overtime. Three missed free throws will put your heart in your stomach but we pulled it out.

I was begging for 4-5 during this stretch, 5-4 is fantastic!
 
I'm excited about Keon's future with this team. Dude just absolutely nails the exact archetype we want to be putting next to Fox/Domas/Keegan/Monk offensive core.

Not quite sure he's starting-caliber yet, but I'm damn sure he's going to be a good NBA rotation player and directly addresses what our team sucks at.
Mike Brown trusting him enough to start him tonight is just big time stuff. I'll never not praise Mike Brown when he deserves it as well
 
Well, if you want to be pedantic, no. There are at least two teams that have missed more free throws than the Kings, but both of those teams have also made more free throws. The Kings are DFL in free throw percentage.
That’s awful, for sure, but it would’t matter if they were top 3 when even their best shooters miss when it matters most.

That’s twice now that Malik Monk missed a pair in the biggest moment of game. And he’s a career 84%+ shooter. It cost them against Milwaukee at the buzzer but they got somehow away with it tonight.

That area has me most concerned wrt a potential playoff series or play-in game.
 
The box score doesn't support this, but I thought we played good defense in the 4th quarter. The hustle and effort were there despite the Wolves getting fouled or playing better offense. The PnR and screen action between Monk and Sabonis is unstoppable if they're both on the same page. The only way teams can stop it is by gambling for a steal or roughing them up and hoping the ref doesn't blow a whistle.

Really love how they came out and played after two disappointing games. Can the Kings please finish up the season strong and get the 6th seed?
 
So much concern about free throws. I'm going to say it one last time. Poor free throw shooting, by otherwise able shooters, is a COACHING issue. How it is taught and practiced, how it is rewarded/punished, how it is mentally prepared for, all factor into results. The King's coaches need a comprehensive course in educational and performance improvement techniques.

Now all the rabid fans on here can chime in about how wrong this take is while without a clue about a real solution to this year-long weakness. Flame away.
 
So much concern about free throws. I'm going to say it one last time. Poor free throw shooting, by otherwise able shooters, is a COACHING issue. How it is taught and practiced, how it is rewarded/punished, how it is mentally prepared for, all factor into results. The King's coaches need a comprehensive course in educational and performance improvement techniques.

Now all the rabid fans on here can chime in about how wrong this take is while without a clue about a real solution to this year-long weakness. Flame away.
I'm not particularly inclined to "flame away", but I'm pretty sure this is the first time I've ever seen someone so dedicated to making the argument that coaches are responsible for their players' mental lapses. This isn't a middle school rec league. These are professional basketball players. They need to be responsible for their own weaknesses at the line, particularly in clutch moments. It's some kind of strangeness to blame Mike Brown for Malik Monk's newfound inability to hit either of his free throws when presented with clutch opportunities at the end of a game.
 
So much concern about free throws. I'm going to say it one last time. Poor free throw shooting, by otherwise able shooters, is a COACHING issue. How it is taught and practiced, how it is rewarded/punished, how it is mentally prepared for, all factor into results. The King's coaches need a comprehensive course in educational and performance improvement techniques.

Now all the rabid fans on here can chime in about how wrong this take is while without a clue about a real solution to this year-long weakness. Flame away.
Mechanics can be fixed over time. Mental cannot be fixed over time. If it were mechanics, why are we all still here, in the beginning of March, talking about Monk's free throw struggles if these free throw struggles have existed since the beginning of the season? Surely, if the coaching staff saw mechanical flaws in Malik's free throws, these would have already been addressed. You agree with me?

It's all mental at this point, my friend. Any other argument is just a last gasp attempt at putting blame on someone just for the sake of putting blame on that person.
 
McDaniels is a good underrated player but those statements are not so "efficient". He always plays well against us somehow.

The easy answer was to say the kings are a good team but we have full confidence in the guys in this locker room. Instead we get a smirk and a declaration that they will likely beat us 4 times in a row in a series. Good to have confidence but also sounds like a good way to lose to us or another team you don’t respect come playoff time.
 
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