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http://www.sacbee.com/content/sports/basketball/kings/story/12589623p-13444064c.html
Kings remain an on-again, off-again team
It's a slow process to find the chemistry and cohesion needed to earn victories.
By Sam Amick -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PST Saturday, March 19, 2005
Derek Fisher has been on cohesive teams, on which chemistry and talent combine with chance to form a championship formula.
That, however, was with the Los Angeles Lakers. But he's a Golden State Warrior now, meaning every night is a new mystery: Which team will show up?
Not so different, in other words, than the light-switch Kings. They're on, they're off, on, off. A work in progress. A work in regress. Winners of four of eight. Mediocrity in motion.
"Those guys weren't part of the Sacramento Kings I was so familiar with," Fisher said of new Kings Brian Skinner, Kenny Thomas, Corliss Williamson and Cuttino Mobley. "You can't substitute a team knowing how to win together. You've got to be together. Change does that to you."
A team learning on the fly can take one of two paths: soar higher or go crashing below. After losing 100-97 to the Warriors on Thursday night, the Kings' nose is again teetering downward. Next up is a Los Angeles Clippers team as athletic as the Warriors, with the added incentive that comes with having an outside shot at the Western Conference's eighth playoff seed. The Clippers were a missed Mike Bibby three-pointer away from downing the Kings last week, losing 113-112 on his buzzer-beater.
And in Sacramento, they're still getting past the handshakes and introductions, all while dealing with life without center Brad Miller (fractured fibula).
Bibby's potential game-tying attempt with 2.9 seconds left in Oakland was a microcosm of the larger challenge. He dribbled down court, unable to facilitate a screen from Skinner near the top of the key. Bibby free-lanced instead, forcing a shot that would've been much easier without a hand in his face. His shot missed, and coach Rick Adelman had another case of collective confusion to remedy.
"You've got to rely on Mike, Peja (Stojakovic) and Cuttino, but we're still not sure what Kenny and these other guys can do," Adelman said. "We find that out every game, and maybe then you can add some things. ... The more success we have now, the more we'll have in the playoffs. It'd be a lot easier with Brad. Trust me."
Guard Maurice Evans blames the absence of Miller and the traded Chris Webber for the occasional disappearance of the high-post offense.
"We haven't played together for that long, and there's so many different units," Evans said. "When Webb and Brad were here, they'd knock down that elbow jumper consistently, and that opens up a lot for everybody. Then we'd get those easy looks - a dunk or a three in the corner. I can't remember the last time I got those looks."
Forward Darius Songaila said the Kings' offense - which is second in the NBA at 102.4 points per game but is averaging 97.5 in the last eight - can right itself.
"With Brad and Chris, those were the guys the ball was going through, from Mike to them," he said. "But it's kind of hard to get the whole picture right now. Once we're back to normal, it's going to be very good."
Then there's the ever-present struggle with defense, which has an improved look on some nights and is status quo on others. Adelman said the offensive load on Bibby has hurt him on defense.
"One of the problems when you've got a guy with that load offensively on his shoulders is he tends to relax on the other end," Adelman said. "We keep talking about the defensive end, and we're a little more active than we were, but our perimeter people still aren't doing the job they need to do defensively."
Check in again tomorrow, though. The story may change. "There are games we're going to look really good and games we're going to look really bad," Mobley said. "Down the line, we'll be OK."
Kings remain an on-again, off-again team
It's a slow process to find the chemistry and cohesion needed to earn victories.
By Sam Amick -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PST Saturday, March 19, 2005
Derek Fisher has been on cohesive teams, on which chemistry and talent combine with chance to form a championship formula.
That, however, was with the Los Angeles Lakers. But he's a Golden State Warrior now, meaning every night is a new mystery: Which team will show up?
Not so different, in other words, than the light-switch Kings. They're on, they're off, on, off. A work in progress. A work in regress. Winners of four of eight. Mediocrity in motion.
"Those guys weren't part of the Sacramento Kings I was so familiar with," Fisher said of new Kings Brian Skinner, Kenny Thomas, Corliss Williamson and Cuttino Mobley. "You can't substitute a team knowing how to win together. You've got to be together. Change does that to you."
A team learning on the fly can take one of two paths: soar higher or go crashing below. After losing 100-97 to the Warriors on Thursday night, the Kings' nose is again teetering downward. Next up is a Los Angeles Clippers team as athletic as the Warriors, with the added incentive that comes with having an outside shot at the Western Conference's eighth playoff seed. The Clippers were a missed Mike Bibby three-pointer away from downing the Kings last week, losing 113-112 on his buzzer-beater.
And in Sacramento, they're still getting past the handshakes and introductions, all while dealing with life without center Brad Miller (fractured fibula).
Bibby's potential game-tying attempt with 2.9 seconds left in Oakland was a microcosm of the larger challenge. He dribbled down court, unable to facilitate a screen from Skinner near the top of the key. Bibby free-lanced instead, forcing a shot that would've been much easier without a hand in his face. His shot missed, and coach Rick Adelman had another case of collective confusion to remedy.
"You've got to rely on Mike, Peja (Stojakovic) and Cuttino, but we're still not sure what Kenny and these other guys can do," Adelman said. "We find that out every game, and maybe then you can add some things. ... The more success we have now, the more we'll have in the playoffs. It'd be a lot easier with Brad. Trust me."
Guard Maurice Evans blames the absence of Miller and the traded Chris Webber for the occasional disappearance of the high-post offense.
"We haven't played together for that long, and there's so many different units," Evans said. "When Webb and Brad were here, they'd knock down that elbow jumper consistently, and that opens up a lot for everybody. Then we'd get those easy looks - a dunk or a three in the corner. I can't remember the last time I got those looks."
Forward Darius Songaila said the Kings' offense - which is second in the NBA at 102.4 points per game but is averaging 97.5 in the last eight - can right itself.
"With Brad and Chris, those were the guys the ball was going through, from Mike to them," he said. "But it's kind of hard to get the whole picture right now. Once we're back to normal, it's going to be very good."
Then there's the ever-present struggle with defense, which has an improved look on some nights and is status quo on others. Adelman said the offensive load on Bibby has hurt him on defense.
"One of the problems when you've got a guy with that load offensively on his shoulders is he tends to relax on the other end," Adelman said. "We keep talking about the defensive end, and we're a little more active than we were, but our perimeter people still aren't doing the job they need to do defensively."
Check in again tomorrow, though. The story may change. "There are games we're going to look really good and games we're going to look really bad," Mobley said. "Down the line, we'll be OK."
