[Game] Kings @ Pelicans - Friday, Oct. 19 - 5 PDT

the Pels are better, and more talented, than people realize. good game. Marvin's only misses came from 3 pt territory.

It's hard for me to kill this team with Bogdan out while they score so much. Everyone knows the Kings need all hands on deck to be competitive.
Well I thought they were #3 or #4 in West last year. It'll be interesting.
 

Kingster

Hall of Famer
Bagley is going to be fantastic. He and Fox are going make some beautiful music together for years to come.

The Pels are no joke. If Mirotic shoots like he did against Houston and the Kings, they can beat anybody in the league.
 
New Orleans looks really good.

Hopefully the scoring, not just given up by the Kings or scored by the Kings, but the entire league is just an opening week aberration and we’re not entering an age where these finals are the norm. I’d like to see a little grit and grind and actual strategy mixed in.

Every year this league becomes more like those video games I played back when teams used to play defense.
 

Tetsujin

The Game Thread Dude
Bagley is going to be fantastic. He and Fox are going make some beautiful music together for years to come.

The Pels are no joke. If Mirotic shoots like he did against Houston and the Kings, they can beat anybody in the league.
Thought Payton looked really good too. Not really sure why the Suns traded for him then preceded to just let him go in the offseason despite not having a point guards on their roster.
 
Well to me it looks like there is a clear path for this team..

last year it was about kids getting to know NBA on and off court, keeping their "training wheels on", hence veterans.

this year so far it looks it is more about offense, getting kids to get familiar of a flow of offense, showing what each player can do and what can you expect from each player.

if this is true, and not something that it is just happened random, next part will be working on defense (as it is easier to teach than offense) and then defining roles for each player. now when you look at Vlade's biggest mistake, that trade with Philla where he wanted cap space for win now situation, man that was bad.. one more high draft pick or leverage for trade, for a gaping hole in SF, it would be something.

and while we are talking about bad trades, how 'bout Pelicans trade four Cousins? they are so much better without him, offense is flowing, and this team with Buddy plus a 10th pick from last years draft would be something..
 
The NBA looks like 1985. Fast pace and token defense. High scoring is back.
The Kings are ahead of schedule on offense. Bagley has stepped right in. The Fox, Willie and Buddy are playing well. They rebound better.

The bad news is that the Kings can't stop anyone. They are playing the "The Sieve" on the defensive end. AD, Randall and Mirotic ate us alive. It was a clinic.

So the question is, in the new NBA how many points can a team give up and still be competitive? Certainly 42 points in the first quarter are too many. 108 after three quarters are too many. Shaq says that the Warriors will score 175 points this year and maybe 200.

The Kings need to start using their time off to work on their defensive schemes. They need to learn to play together. They need to act like they have seen a back door cut before. They need to decide when to switch, when to front someone and when to bang on the opponent. They have tons of potential. They are actually very athletic. They need to learn to start playing defense ASAP or they may not win 20 games.

Special shout out to Harry Giles. Relax man. You are your own worst enemy. Take it easy and show a little more patience. We know you can play.
 
The balance of the roster is all skewed with Bogi out. Things will flow significantly better once Buddy is reduced to a sixth man role. If we decide to play Bogi and Buddy at 2-3 instead, Yogi will provide the much needed spark off the bench and it will also reduce Mason's minutes, thankfully. Either way, the starting lineup and bench will make more sense.