http://www.sacbee.com/content/sports/story/13798520p-14640066c.html
2005 Kings Preview: It's a puzzle: Will old pieces fit with new?
Veterans, newcomers look to mesh with contracts and reputations on line
By Sam Amick -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PST Tuesday, November 1, 2005
Nate McMillan has played this game before.
While coaching the Seattle SuperSonics last season, McMillan was in the final year of his contract, facing the same uncertain times as nine of his players. They all were soon-to-be free agents, all wondering how so many pieces of the puzzle would fall into place. So McMillan strategized, imploring them use their common bond to unify rather than divide. Thus, the Sonics became a surprise team in the Western Conference, calling checkmate on the Kings in the first round of the playoffs and sparking all sorts of new moves in Sacramento.
"The two times I've been in that situation, I've been successful, because guys do the right thing in those situations," said McMillan, who went to the NBA Finals as a player with the 1995-96 Sonics team that had seven players facing free agency. "When you're in your last year, you don't come late, you come on time. You play together, you don't mouth off at the coach.
"You do the things that you're supposed to do because you want things to be right."
As the Kings prepare to piece together their own puzzle for the 2005-06 season, pursuing an eighth straight playoff berth and sixth straight 50-plus win season, they could be playing a similar game. There are contracts and reputations on the line, with the only means to another playoff run coming if all the pieces play together.
Or, as Kings coach Rick Adelman said, "We've got a lot of guys with a lot to prove."
Adelman is atop the list, with a contract that expires after this season and the challenge of a roster that has six new faces from when the Kings lost in five games to Seattle. Like Sonics shooting guard Ray Allen last season, Kings small forward Peja Stojakovic is a superstar on the verge of shopping the market, in the last year of his deal and coming a season of many struggles.
Shooting guard Bonzi Wells arrived in Sacramento with a name in need of rectification and a game still capable of helping the cause. Also in the last year of his deal, he wants be associated with both winning and harmony for once. At the end of the list is center Jamal Sampson, with his fourth team in four years and, like the rest, hoping his game turns around.
Beyond the free-agent factor, the Kings have a handful of players at a crucial crossroads in their careers. New forward and 10th-year player Shareef Abdur-Rahim has his first realistic opportunity to contribute on a winning team. Point guard Mike Bibby - who has played well in a side game of survivor after the departures of Vlade Divac, Chris Webber, Doug Christie and others - could enter a new echelon of recognition should he lead the charge. Young gunners Kevin Martin and Francisco García are eager to produce as the pawn and the rook, possibly setting up their next move for greater riches in games that lie ahead.
"You can expect those guys to give an effort, which is what you want, what you're asking for," McMillan said. "I think most betting people would predict that Stojakovic will have his best season. I'm sure Rick is going to do what he's always done, which is try and win ballgames."
For the moment, Stojakovic might be bluffing, insisting his contractual status will have little impact on his performance.
"I didn't approach this camp any different than I did in previous years," Stojakovic said. "I'm going to come out and play my game. That's the reality of what it is.
"You can't really push yourself to be something that you're not, suddenly change your style of play in a couple of months after playing for seven years with one style of the game. You step on the court and play your game."
Yet incentive won't be enough for the Kings, who must themselves also defend if there is any hope of a postseason.
Adelman and his staff have harped on defense more than the norm throughout training camp, though no one even is close to satisfied.
Backup point guard Jason Hart, a fifth-year player signed in the offseason from Charlotte, has brought a steady source of defense. But since he can't score like Bibby, Adelman would be happier if his starter defended more than ever. Center Brian Skinner also has shown an ability to protect the paint. But he'll never help the offense like Brad Miller, meaning defense might come only in doses.
"That's a problem you always have - that you've got a lot of offensive players, so you're good offensively, (but) the area where you break down is the other end," Adelman said. "It's just a fact of life. We don't have the Detroit Pistons out there. But we have to be better than we have been. I think we have enough quickness to be a lot better, but it's going to have to take effort night after night."
Or maybe all the right pieces just have to come together.
"We didn't necessarily like each other," McMillan said of last season's Sonics team. "But they respected each other. The same thing happened when I played. I remember saying that (the 1995-96 Seattle team) was one of the easiest teams I've ever played on, simply because guys did what they were supposed to do."
Could the Kings be saying the same thing come May?
"You never know," Stojakovic said. "You never know. So far, we're getting along well. It was never a problem with this team sharing the ball, so I don't think that's going to be a problem this year. We'll see what's going to happen. It'll be an exciting year."
About the writer: The Bee's Sam Amick can be reached at (916) 326-5582 or samick@sacbee.com.
2005 Kings Preview: It's a puzzle: Will old pieces fit with new?
Veterans, newcomers look to mesh with contracts and reputations on line
By Sam Amick -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PST Tuesday, November 1, 2005
Nate McMillan has played this game before.
While coaching the Seattle SuperSonics last season, McMillan was in the final year of his contract, facing the same uncertain times as nine of his players. They all were soon-to-be free agents, all wondering how so many pieces of the puzzle would fall into place. So McMillan strategized, imploring them use their common bond to unify rather than divide. Thus, the Sonics became a surprise team in the Western Conference, calling checkmate on the Kings in the first round of the playoffs and sparking all sorts of new moves in Sacramento.
"The two times I've been in that situation, I've been successful, because guys do the right thing in those situations," said McMillan, who went to the NBA Finals as a player with the 1995-96 Sonics team that had seven players facing free agency. "When you're in your last year, you don't come late, you come on time. You play together, you don't mouth off at the coach.
"You do the things that you're supposed to do because you want things to be right."
As the Kings prepare to piece together their own puzzle for the 2005-06 season, pursuing an eighth straight playoff berth and sixth straight 50-plus win season, they could be playing a similar game. There are contracts and reputations on the line, with the only means to another playoff run coming if all the pieces play together.
Or, as Kings coach Rick Adelman said, "We've got a lot of guys with a lot to prove."
Adelman is atop the list, with a contract that expires after this season and the challenge of a roster that has six new faces from when the Kings lost in five games to Seattle. Like Sonics shooting guard Ray Allen last season, Kings small forward Peja Stojakovic is a superstar on the verge of shopping the market, in the last year of his deal and coming a season of many struggles.
Shooting guard Bonzi Wells arrived in Sacramento with a name in need of rectification and a game still capable of helping the cause. Also in the last year of his deal, he wants be associated with both winning and harmony for once. At the end of the list is center Jamal Sampson, with his fourth team in four years and, like the rest, hoping his game turns around.
Beyond the free-agent factor, the Kings have a handful of players at a crucial crossroads in their careers. New forward and 10th-year player Shareef Abdur-Rahim has his first realistic opportunity to contribute on a winning team. Point guard Mike Bibby - who has played well in a side game of survivor after the departures of Vlade Divac, Chris Webber, Doug Christie and others - could enter a new echelon of recognition should he lead the charge. Young gunners Kevin Martin and Francisco García are eager to produce as the pawn and the rook, possibly setting up their next move for greater riches in games that lie ahead.
"You can expect those guys to give an effort, which is what you want, what you're asking for," McMillan said. "I think most betting people would predict that Stojakovic will have his best season. I'm sure Rick is going to do what he's always done, which is try and win ballgames."
For the moment, Stojakovic might be bluffing, insisting his contractual status will have little impact on his performance.
"I didn't approach this camp any different than I did in previous years," Stojakovic said. "I'm going to come out and play my game. That's the reality of what it is.
"You can't really push yourself to be something that you're not, suddenly change your style of play in a couple of months after playing for seven years with one style of the game. You step on the court and play your game."
Yet incentive won't be enough for the Kings, who must themselves also defend if there is any hope of a postseason.
Adelman and his staff have harped on defense more than the norm throughout training camp, though no one even is close to satisfied.
Backup point guard Jason Hart, a fifth-year player signed in the offseason from Charlotte, has brought a steady source of defense. But since he can't score like Bibby, Adelman would be happier if his starter defended more than ever. Center Brian Skinner also has shown an ability to protect the paint. But he'll never help the offense like Brad Miller, meaning defense might come only in doses.
"That's a problem you always have - that you've got a lot of offensive players, so you're good offensively, (but) the area where you break down is the other end," Adelman said. "It's just a fact of life. We don't have the Detroit Pistons out there. But we have to be better than we have been. I think we have enough quickness to be a lot better, but it's going to have to take effort night after night."
Or maybe all the right pieces just have to come together.
"We didn't necessarily like each other," McMillan said of last season's Sonics team. "But they respected each other. The same thing happened when I played. I remember saying that (the 1995-96 Seattle team) was one of the easiest teams I've ever played on, simply because guys did what they were supposed to do."
Could the Kings be saying the same thing come May?
"You never know," Stojakovic said. "You never know. So far, we're getting along well. It was never a problem with this team sharing the ball, so I don't think that's going to be a problem this year. We'll see what's going to happen. It'll be an exciting year."
About the writer: The Bee's Sam Amick can be reached at (916) 326-5582 or samick@sacbee.com.
