Kings notes: 4th point guard has camp invite (merged)

[VF21]

Kings notes: 4th point guard has camp invite

http://www.sacbee.com/content/sports/story/13567542p-14407965c.html

Kings notes: Fourth point guard has a camp invitation
By Sam Amick -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PDT Thursday, September 15, 2005

The influx of maybe-Kings that comes with every preseason could begin with point guard Luis Flores. He has been invited to training camp, beginning Oct. 4.

Flores, a second-year player who was waived by Denver last month, would be the 14th player under contract with the Kings, though his offered deal has no guaranteed money.

Flores will have to fight his way up to No. 13 to be around for the regular season, unless Kings president of basketball operations Geoff Petrie changes his roster plans. Petrie, who could not be reached for comment, has said he wants to keep the roster at 13 players come opening day, while the training camp count can be as high as 20 by league rules.

Flores, who also couldn't be reached but told the Associated Press in August that Toronto and the Kings were interested, showed little last season, playing in just 16 games (15 with Golden State) and averaging 4.8 minutes. But he showed plenty in the Vegas Summer League in July, prompting Nuggets general manager Kiki Vandeweghe to say at the time, "He definitely helped himself," and apparently gaining Petrie's notice.

But the Nuggets are overloaded with point guards Andre Miller, Earl Watson and Earl Boykins, making Flores expendable. The Kings are no less stocked at the spot. Behind starter Mike Bibby, new additions Jason Hart (fifth season) and rookie Ronnie Price have contracts that extend beyond this season. Hart is set to make $1.54 million this season, with a player option for $1.68 million in 2006-07, while Price was signed at the league minimum for two seasons.

Should Flores make the cut, he would join rookie guard Francisco García and make the Kings the only team in the NBA with two players from the Dominican Republic.

'Cisco sizzle - García protected his home court with pride in the recent FIBA Americas Championships, leading the host Dominican Republic team in scoring (18.9 points average in eight games) en route to its 3-1 record in the tournament that ended Sept. 4.

After struggling with his shot throughout the summer league, the Kings' first-round draft pick out of Louisville was 19 of 42 from three-point range, while shooting 57.6 percent from inside the arc. He was the lone bright spot in the Dominican's only loss, scoring 29 points against the United States in an 111-86 defeat Aug. 30.

Can I buy a vowel? - Bibby will be asked to offer an assist of a different kind today, as he partners with a Kings fan from Sacramento on the game show "Wheel of Fortune."

The taping in Culver City is part of NBA Week, with Pat Sajak and Vanna White hosting 15 NBA players and their partners, Hall of Famer Bill Walton, former NBA player and TNT analyst Kenny Smith, and Becky Hammon of the WNBA's New York Liberty. The fans are playing for cash and prizes, while the players' winnings will go to charities, including a minimum of $100,000 to assist Hurricane Katrina relief efforts. The episodes will air from Oct. 31 through Nov. 4.

New Orleans no more - The New Orleans Hornets are much like the hundreds of thousands of hurricane victims wondering when they can return home and looking for a new one in the meantime. The Hornets are leaning toward playing some of their home games this season in Baton Rouge, La., or Oklahoma City, according to the New Orleans Times-Picayune. The Kings are scheduled to play in New Orleans in their second regular-season game Nov. 4.

The Bee's Sam Amick can be reached at (916) 326-5582 or samick@sacbee.com.

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At least that clarifies one thing. Although we can - and probably will - have up to 20 players at training camp, at least 7 of them won't be around on opening day.

And thanks to Amick for the info about the status of Price and Hart as far as guaranteed contracts.

 

[hrdboild]

The taping in Culver City is part of NBA Week, with Pat Sajak and Vanna White hosting 15 NBA players and their partners, Hall of Famer Bill Walton, former NBA player and TNT analyst Kenny Smith, and Becky Hammon of the WNBA's New York Liberty.

I didn't know they tape that in Culver City. That's my neck of the woods.

 

[Kings113]

Glad to hear "18, no higher" isn't as much anymore. I'd like to see a group/the rest be bigger players be invited into camp.

 

[SacTownKid]

What ever happened to Anwar Ferguson? I remember last season, while clearly far underdeveloped, he had some potential. I was a little disappointed the Kings didn't at least hang on to him. He had some nice shot blocking ability, not much else, but a Dalembert type of player.

 

[Amory]

What ever happened to Anwar Ferguson? I remember last season, while clearly far underdeveloped, he had some potential. I was a little disappointed the Kings didn't at least hang on to him. He had some nice shot blocking ability, not much else, but a Dalembert type of player.

Ya, my family and I really started to live him and we sad when he didn't make. i can see why though......very underdeveloped and most likely won't make it too far in the NBA. BUT, it would have been nice to hold on to him because he does look like he has some potential.

 

[VF21]

When you're an elite team in the NBA, you can't settle for very underdeveloped players with minimal skills. There are always going to be players who have heart and desire, but just can't make it in the pros. You've described Ferguson as someone with "nice shot blocking ability not much else" and "very underdeveloped but loks like he has some potential."

Sorry, but that's NOT the player I want taking up roster space on my Kings team.

 

[SDKing]

'Cisco sizzle - García protected his home court with pride in the recent FIBA Americas Championships, leading the host Dominican Republic team in scoring (18.9 points average in eight games) en route to its 3-1 record in the tournament that ended Sept. 4.

After struggling with his shot throughout the summer league, the Kings' first-round draft pick out of Louisville was 19 of 42 from three-point range, while shooting 57.6 percent from inside the arc. He was the lone bright spot in the Dominican's only loss, scoring 29 points against the United States in an 111-86 defeat Aug. 30.

I still like Martin as the backup 2 guard until I see Cisco play, but these are impressive.

 

[Kings113]

Kings notes: Petrie: Flores will be in camp

By Sam Amick -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PDT Friday, September 16


CULVER CITY - Point guard Luis Flores will be with the Kings for training camp, president of basketball operations Geoff Petrie confirmed Thursday.


"We wanted to bring a fourth point guard in, and it looks like he'll be with us," Petrie said.http://ads.sacbee.com/RealMedia/ads/adstream_lx.ads/www.sacbee.com/content/sports/basketball/kings/1937220020/Button20/Sacbee/accessbee_300_ros_nov_4/accessbee_300x250_1295.html/34323431636166643432373933383530?_RM_EMPTY_ Flores, who played in 15 games with Golden State and one with Denver in his rookie season, was waived by the Nuggets last month. He was drafted by Houston in the 2004 second round out of Manhattan.



Shooting guard Rickey Paulding also will be in the Kings' camp, the Detroit Free Press reported.

A Detroit native who was picked 54th overall by the hometown Pistons in the 2004 draft, Paulding played collegiately at Missouri. Detroit renounced his rights Monday.

The Kings open camp Oct. 4.

Songaila watch - The only thing missing in Darius Songaila's transition to Chicago is a contract. The Kings' restricted free-agent forward has been on the brink of joining the Bulls for weeks, yet Petrie - who has no plans to match an offer - said he still expects Songaila to land in the Windy City.

Bulls guard Ben Gordon, who worked out with Songaila in Chicago on Wednesday, said he has been fitting in nonetheless. "He brings a big man who can shoot from the perimeter, and that's going to help us a lot," said Gordon, who - with Kings point guard Mike Bibby - was a guest on the show, Wheel of Fortune. "I think he's going to be a big part of our success this year."

http://www.sacbee.com/content/sports/basketball/kings/story/13572921p-14413269c.html

 

[sono]

one thing is for sure, the Kings would take the 1st place by the # of PGs.

yet Petrie - who has no plans to match an offer - said he still expects Songaila to land in the Windy City.

hoped GP had some other intentions rather than letting him walk away.

 

[Padrino]

i'm really having a hard time figuring this out. we're letting darius walk for nothing...and the frontline is where the kings are weakest. darius is not the cure for all of our ills, but he was definitely consistent and a hard worker. but stranger still, we're inviting more PG's to training camp...and we're already guard-heavy. i dont know whats in GP's skull right now...but i hope his plan has frontline defense in its future.

 

[ForlornKing]

I really am not looking forward to having a log-jam at the PG, like Boston.

 

[Kings113]

Well, Petrie did say a bunch of times that "back-court play-making skills" was one of the areas of focus for the off-season and in improvement. But also said "need to get bigger up front" or something like that.

BTW, Paulding is no PG. I think he's in there for a look at his athleticism.

I expect to see 2-3 bigger players come into camp. Certainly aren't too strong at back-up center. Would really like to see another SF or SF/SG player as well. Like any of the players in my signature.

 

[Bricklayer]

I really am not looking forward to having a log-jam at the PG, like Boston.

We'll be ok as long as we have Bibby -- Boston has no starter, where we've got a guyh who's going to eat 38 of the 48 minutes. The rest of the guys are just filler. Hart should be the #2, and the rest irrelevant barring injury.

Darius really cannot help us with our frontcourt problems -- shotblocking and rebounding. His weaknesses as well. So with both SAR and KT in town, just no room for him. Sure am glad we traded for those flexible contracts though. Have a lot of value around the league I see. Wonder how many players we'll have to shed or avoid over the years to make room for the "flexible three" and their deals?

 

[ONEZERO]

I think we can convince shag and duncan to come into camp, don't u guys think? Lol.

 

[Kings113]

I've only heard Skinner mentioned in the news a few times. That's it though.

In the future? Who knows

 

[Padrino]

I've only heard Skinner mentioned in the news a few times. That's it though.

In the future? Who knows

this is precisely the problem. the webber trade concerned two unknown quantities: webb's future health and the "flexible pieces" actual tradeability. i would've rather taken the "who knows?" of webber's health and shed his contract all at once when it expired. having to deal with trying to move just one of the three we got in return for webber seems to be about as much of an arduous process as trading webber in the first place. at least webb's a star-caliber player, and his playoff/leadership experience is a known quantity. what do thomas/williamson/skinner have that any team could possibly want? its so frustrating. i really expected to see one of them gone this offseason.

 

[Circa_1985_Fan]

this is precisely the problem. the webber trade concerned two unknown quantities: webb's future health and the "flexible pieces" actual tradeability. i would've rather taken the "who knows?" of webber's health and shed his contract all at once when it expired. having to deal with trying to move just one of the three we got in return for webber seems to be about as much of an arduous process as trading webber in the first place. at least webb's a star-caliber player, and his playoff/leadership experience is a known quantity. what do thomas/williamson/skinner have that any team could possibly want? its so frustrating. i really expected to see one of them gone this offseason.

I thought Corliss would be gone long ago, contrary to most folks who think we should get rid of KT. But who knows...we have a pretty damn good bench with him included, even though he isnt prototypical for our offense.

 

[SacTownKid]

i'm really having a hard time figuring this out. we're letting darius walk for nothing...and the frontline is where the kings are weakest. darius is not the cure for all of our ills, but he was definitely consistent and a hard worker. but stranger still, we're inviting more PG's to training camp...and we're already guard-heavy. i dont know whats in GP's skull right now...but i hope his plan has frontline defense in its future.

The Kings are weakest in the frontline? As far as I can tell, Darius would average about 2 minutes a game this season. He is far behind Shareef and Kenny in the depth charts. It wouldn't be fair to Darius, and it wouldn't be worth paying him 4mil. a year (after taxes, b/c we'd be in the lux. tax zone) to wave a towel.

Why does everybody think that Corliss, Kenny, and Skinner were brought in and only seen as moveable deals? That may have been the case at one point in time, but as I see it, with additions of SAR and Bonzi Wells, we have an awesome bench with the Philly 3. Besides, next season both Corliss and Brians contracts are expiring deals, with Brians having a team option after next year.

 

[Kings113]

I thought at least one of Corliss/KT would be gone... I'm not against them staying around though, and like what they can bring. Just that there are some better out there for their spots.

Good points STK.

 

[Packt]

I'm not sure why there's such an attachment to Darius. Whether we had signed Rahim or not, as long as Kenny is here Darius is not a good fit. He's third on the depth chart with Rahim and even without it would not have been a good idea to bring in a tweener for a tweener. Behind Webber, he was able to change the pace up while still playing within our system- an advantage for us and for him. Behind a guy who plays almost like him, except more athletic and grittier, he struggled to keep pace and had no impact. I said earlier in the off-season that he probably played his way out of town. I think Petrie would've resigned him if it was for a really small contract. They hinted they would match offers, and that was probably to scare off potential suitors. Still you always want to get as much back from your players as possible, but of the couple of FA's we had, Darius was the least likely to bring us something.

It stings a lot more to lose those SG's, who I won't name, for nothing.

 

[SacTownKid]

I'm not sure why there's such an attachment to Darius. Whether we had signed Rahim or not, as long as Kenny is here Darius is not a good fit. He's third on the depth chart with Rahim and even without it would not have been a good idea to bring in a tweener for a tweener. Behind Webber, he was able to change the pace up while still playing within our system- an advantage for us and for him. Behind a guy who plays almost like him, except more athletic and grittier, he struggled to keep pace and had no impact. I said earlier in the off-season that he probably played his way out of town. I think Petrie would've resigned him if it was for a really small contract. They hinted they would match offers, and that was probably to scare off potential suitors. Still you always want to get as much back from your players as possible, but of the couple of FA's we had, Darius was the least likely to bring us something.

It stings a lot more to lose those SG's, who I won't name, for nothing.

Actually, if we hadn't have lucked into signing Abdur-Rahim, I bet Darius would still be a King. That move changed a whole lot of things going into next season in regards to the PF position.

 

[Warhawk]

The Kings are weakest in the frontline? As far as I can tell, Darius would average about 2 minutes a game this season. He is far behind Shareef and Kenny in the depth charts. It wouldn't be fair to Darius, and it wouldn't be worth paying him 4mil. a year (after taxes, b/c we'd be in the lux. tax zone) to wave a towel.

Why does everybody think that Corliss, Kenny, and Skinner were brought in and only seen as moveable deals? That may have been the case at one point in time, but as I see it, with additions of SAR and Bonzi Wells, we have an awesome bench with the Philly 3. Besides, next season both Corliss and Brians contracts are expiring deals, with Brians having a team option after next year.

Exactly - a lot of folks (including me) initially thought "flexibility" meant for trade purposes (and it still might), but more and more I can see the benefits of having an extra guy or two on the bench to come in for a change of pace or if fouls are an issue.

 

[Circa_1985_Fan]

We'll be ok as long as we have Bibby -- Boston has no starter, where we've got a guyh who's going to eat 38 of the 48 minutes. The rest of the guys are just filler. Hart should be the #2, and the rest irrelevant barring injury.

Darius really cannot help us with our frontcourt problems -- shotblocking and rebounding. His weaknesses as well. So with both SAR and KT in town, just no room for him. Sure am glad we traded for those flexible contracts though. Have a lot of value around the league I see. Wonder how many players we'll have to shed or avoid over the years to make room for the "flexible three" and their deals?

Exactly...Boston has an old GP and a bunch of kids at point guard, we have an All-Star in Bibby. No comparison at all, IMO.

 

[ForlornKing]

Exactly...Boston has an old GP and a bunch of kids at point guard, we have an All-Star in Bibby. No comparison at all, IMO.

You guys are right, my bad.

 

[Bricklayer]

Exactly - a lot of folks (including me) initially thought "flexibility" meant for trade purposes (and it still might), but more and more I can see the benefits of having an extra guy or two on the bench to come in for a change of pace or if fouls are an issue.

That sound like just an attempt at justification -- you do NOT trade your franchise player for bench fodder, and immensely expensive bench fodder at that. If that/this was even remotely the plan, then all I have to say is that Geoff was IMMENSELY lucky that the Nets panicked before signing Shareef so we could at least end up with someone vaguely credible. But of course now all that means is we get to have the most expensive bench full of tweener forwards this side of the Knicks, and one that is unlikely to ever log the minutes to justify the money to boot.

 

[HndsmCelt]

Im still not sure I see the whole Webber trade the way most of the other fans do. In my mind it was a difficult but clear decison to take what could well have been the LAST opertunity to shed his contract IF Webber proved to be damaged goods in his post operative state, and to be honest I am not too convinced that his is both capible and dependable. Were the 3 new contracts bad, yes. Were they hard to move? obviously. BUT they are still easier to move than an Allan Houston type contract. I still suspect some of those contracts will be done in then near future, but it will take the right time/situation. But at the moment Brick is right GP lucked out with the SAR deal and now the Kings have the most over paid bench in the NBA.

 

[SacTownKid]

That sound like just an attempt at justification -- you do NOT trade your franchise player for bench fodder, and immensely expensive bench fodder at that. If that/this was even remotely the plan, then all I have to say is that Geoff was IMMENSELY lucky that the Nets panicked before signing Shareef so we could at least end up with someone vaguely credible. But of course now all that means is we get to have the most expensive bench full of tweener forwards this side of the Knicks, and one that is unlikely to ever log the minutes to justify the money to boot.

Just a "what if" but, how much would you want to bet that if we didn't trade Webber last season, he would have been the "big name amnesty casualty" of the offseason? Where would we be then?

BTW, Corliss, Brian, and Kenny are FAR from bench fodder my friend. Maybe you watched different players than I did last season. I look at our team at this point and marvel at the possibilities, even with the multitude of questions. I also know that every day in practice the starting 5 is going to be challenged by some tough SOB's and they are going to HAVE to step their game up.

I don't care what any of those guys get paid. I don't sign their checks, but I will support them, not because they are just Kings, but because they earned it.

 

[Bricklayer]

Just a "what if" but, how much would you want to bet that if we didn't trade Webber last season, he would have been the "big name amnesty casualty" of the offseason? Where would we be then?

BTW, Corliss, Brian, and Kenny are FAR from bench fodder my friend. Maybe you watched different players than I did last season. I look at our team at this point and marvel at the possibilities, even with the multitude of questions. I also know that every day in practice the starting 5 is going to be challenged by some tough SOB's and they are going to HAVE to step their game up.

I don't care what any of those guys get paid. I don't sign their checks, but I will support them, not because they are just Kings, but because they earned it.

a) you can't earn $5mil a year playing 10 minutes off the bench.

b) Webber would not have been the amnesty victim because the Kings were not over the tax threshold, and there is absolutely no reason to go amnesty unless that is your situation. The only purpose of that whole rule is to save luxury tax dollars, and since we are still carrying Webb's entire contract and are not in taxland, obviously we would not have been with Webb either.

c) marveling at the possibilities of guys like Corliss Kenny and KT says something. Not sure what. But its odd. They are just bodies that fill up the league. Just guys. Not scrubs. But just entirely average players that shuffle from one city to another deserving a roster spot but making little if any impact. And even if average is somehow marvelous, there are still few "possibilities" when there are no minutes to be had for them. There could easily be 30-35 TOTAL minutes behind the 3 frontcourt starters this season. That's maybe 20min for $6million for KT, 10min for $5mil for Skinner, and 5min for $5mil for Corliss. Yay. For there to be any "possibilities" for our average overpaid contingent, we will actually have to look forward to getting injured this time around.

d) I agree the dollar figure makes no difference once those players step on the court. That's always been a silly claim. But it makes a very BIG difference when it comes to wise construction of a team by a GM/owner. Only a fool would willingly stock his bench with average players earning big $$$ for limited minutes. Zeke is such a fool. As it currently stands, one has to wonder about Geoff. Paying $16mil for 30min of Cornney Skomasson off the bench is bad planning that can be reflected directly in W's. That's more than 1/3 of your cap. For that much salary you should be getting back MUCH more bang for your buck. Maybe a star for instance.

 

[Warhawk]

This arguement has been beat to death. We are still in the middle of the first offseason after trading away one player playing on one leg earning 1/3 of the salary cap for 3 players (granted, not stars) who can play in the league, one of which who averaged 14.5 and 8.7 in 32 minutes since the trade. Chris averaged 21.3 and 9.7 in 36 minutes. If Webb got hurt again we'd have that ENTIRE AMOUNT just sitting on the bench AGAIN, instead of in 3 forwards - 2 of which were pretty healthy and the 3rd playing with jammed thumbs and PF, but playing. These guys played without a training camp just getting thrown into the Princeton offense. Give them some practice time and see if anything starts showing through. Sheesh, let Brad play uninjured and see what SAR and Bonzi can bring. Give them a chance to play together uninjured BEFORE hammering on their worthlessness. Please.

 

[Warhawk]

That sound like just an attempt at justification -- you do NOT trade your franchise player for bench fodder, and immensely expensive bench fodder at that.

You should trade it for whatever you can get if there is a serious concern that if you do not, 1/3 of the salary cap could be sitting on your bench injured, perhaps even career-ending. The risk vs. reward was just too great, IMHO. Obviously, you disagree.