[Game] Kings @ Pacers 2/3/2023 4pm Pacific 7pm Eastern

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Pels have lost 10 straight so if we can take can of business we can finish this road trip 5–2. We badly need these next 3 games since those are immediately followed by dates with Dallas Pho and Pdx, a critical stretch run that might determine if we hold on to playoff seeding or fade back into the pack
The Kings always seem to lose to teams on long losing streaks and to teams playing the 2nd night of their back to backs.

It’s really mind boggling to see the Kings lay eggs in these games they should have the clear advantage. I’m hoping they break out of this bad habit, but I wouldn’t hold my breath.
 
Wish there was a quality of shot stat that was easily accessible. It seems as if the Kings are the superior shooting team but get outshot because they leave their opponents wide open for 3 on a routine basis. It seemed like the Pacers had wide open 3s on half their possessions.
 
This team is regressing.

Opposing teams are attacking closeouts and perimeter defenders like they are not there. Rebounding is atrocious (beyond Sabonis) and our playmaking with Fox out is JV.

Monk lost us this game.
The team is not getting Keegan in position to contribute if he's not open for 3.
Barnes was very winded at the end of the game.

We have needed a shot in the arm defensively and people are saying we need Collins and McBucketts. What game are you (or aren't you) watching?
Collins is a good defensive C so I’m not sure why you’ve included him in that statement.

Agree on McDermott though. I don’t want anything to do with him. He doesn’t address the issues on defense or rebounding and he’s not an expiring (cutting into our cap by $14 mil). He’s a horrible target in my opinion.

I posted it in another thread but I think this deal would be solid for us…

Richaun Holmes
Davion Mitchell

For

Josh Richardson
Zach Collins
2023 SAS 2nd

…which gives us a roster of…

PG - Fox / Monk / Dellavedova
SG - Huerter / Davis
SF - Murray / Richardson / Okpala
PF - Barnes / Lyles / Metu
C - Sabonis / Collins / Len


It helps in many ways:
  • Richardson & Collins are both good defenders. Richardson is very versatile & long and can guard 1-3 very effectively. Collins is big & long but also fairly nimble on the perimeter. He’s a solid shot blocker and rebounder (something we desperately need behind Sabonis)
  • Collins is a solid rebounder while Sabonis is resting but I think the improvement in rebounding will come from not having to play so small. We’ve been playing two small guard lineups for ~37 mpg. With Mitchell gone and Monk sliding in as the backup PG spot, you’re probably only playing a two small guard lineup (Fox & Monk) 10-12 mpg with Huerter, Davis, and Richardson getting the rest of the minutes at SG.
  • Richardson & Collins are both good shooters. One of the issues with the defenders we do have (Mitchell, Okpala) is they aren’t reliable from outside. Richardson will be able to help the defense while not sacrificing our spacing. Collins’ ability to shoot also gives us another dynamic on offense as it can allow us to play a 5 out scheme with Fox attacking the paint.
  • Richardson & Collins are both good passers averaging 5.0 (Richardson) and 4.3 (Collins) assists per 36 min. Richardson gives us another passer/ball handler in the 2nd unit so the onus isn’t all on Monk to make plays for everyone. Collins allows us to run the same sets that we do with Sabonis and is decent in the DHO game.
  • Richardson & Collins can help with the bench scoring as they’d be an upgrade over Mitchell & Metu in that department.
  • It helps with our cap space next year as it clears the salary of Holmes & Mitchell (Richardson & Collins are expiring). We go from $26 mil in cap space to $43 mil in cap space.
  • That 2023 SAS 2nd is likely to be a very early 2nd round pick in a deep draft. Well hopefully be able to grab a solid young talent that will be on a rookie deal for the next 3-4 years.

I think this trade undoubtedly helps our team be better this year as it improves the defense, rim protection, size/length, rebounding, bench scoring, shooting, and playmaking/passing. I could easily argue that it would be better for the future as well considering the cap flexibility and the early 2nd round pick.
 

gunks

Hall of Famer
I’d say the KINGS lost because Malik started throwing the ball up for grabs the last 2 minutes.

The game was there for the taking, but too many errant passes and bad decisions late.
Monk the new Buddy...

... but without the **** personality so hard to really stay mad at the guy!
 

Not sure if this got posted yet but lol… also that voice crack when he says “we got to light the beam tonight” is a little funny. For as frustrating as he could be I’ll always appreciate all the good things Buddy did for this franchise so can’t imagine it’s not a little bitter seeing us emerge right as he got traded out (and as an afterthought / salary dump part of the trade no less)
 
Didn't hear that many boos? Does that idiot know the game was played in Indiana? LOL @ the light the beam reference - that made me giggle because he's clearly jealous we've ascended without his 5 threes and 20 stupid moments a game.
 
Davion isn't a complete player but I've seen multiple games where his defence has given us, an otherwise inept defensive team, a fighting chance/ a win. It would be great if we had a backup point guard that could replicate his defence, hit their shots, get to the line, and be tall, but you know, that player is kind of hard to get.



We played a motivated team, on the road, without Fox, and lost it on the last possession. It's disappointing but doesn't mean we can't move forward with Davion.
His defense right now doesn't make up for his lack of offense. At all. It's a really bad look for him. I honestly feel sorry for him as he has fallen as much as Lucifer did from heaven.
 
His defense right now doesn't make up for his lack of offense. At all. It's a really bad look for him. I honestly feel sorry for him as he has fallen as much as Lucifer did from heaven.
Disagree. He's shown he can impact games as a reserve guard who is extremely talented as a point of attack defender. He hasn't shown himself to be a well rounded, starting quality point guard in this system, but that does not mean he is without value.
All players are going to have ups and downs throughout the season, especially the ones who have less professional experience. If you throw out every player who falls from heaven you would finish the season with only Domas.
 
Davion isn't my favorite right now and the bad offense hurts us, but, he has absolutely made an impact in some games this year. We need more from him though, no doubt. And with Fox missing multiple games we're gonna need tons more smh.
 
Davion's game just doesn't fit Mike Brown's system. It's really unfortunate because of how great of a defender he is, not mention how likeable and hard working. He isn't a good shooter and doesn't provide offensive value if he isn't attacking the paint on iso or PnR. I'm not sure if there's a solution to that when Fox is playing because there just aren't minutes to shift into that sort of offensive scheme, but I think we are much better off starting Monk vs. NO and allowing Davion to play that kind of offense in backup minutes alongside Metu (lob threat), Lyles (pick and pop), or Holmes (if he still has a push shot).

On a related note, I wonder if there's any use in Coach Brown exploring allowing our bench to play more to those kinds of strengths. We saw at the end of last year how effective Davion was playing that kind of offense and Holmes' push shot was the highest percentage shot on the team at one point not so long ago. And it probably still is...again, assuming it still exists. I would have thought Brown would have been better at putting Holmes in a position free throw line in to utilize the push shot but I've maybe seen it once or twice this year. And I think having Davion attack the paint would make him more effective, though both of those may be tough to incorporate while maintaining the offensive system we currently run. But at worst I think it would make us less predictable offensively and give defenses another look to defend throughout the 48 minutes.
 
Holmes might get more court time after the trade deadline. Protecting his value by avoiding injury will not be so much of a factor then. His recent lack of playing time is likely coming from front office orders (already discussed on the forum). Hope he finds a decent landing spot and the Kings can get something or someone of value.
 
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