[Game] Kings vs Raptors, 10/8/2025 7PM Pacific 10PM Eastern (Pre-Season)

[Srzly]

“Defend 94 feet” is this years “Spray 3’s”

I agree. 94’ is so pointless if only 1 or 2 guys is doing it. How many times did Keegan and Dennis press up only to have DDR or LaVine’s guy just walk the ball up the court because they are waiting in half court defense.

If this continues and if this is the lineup we are stuck with then I’d prefer if we abandon this “defense-first” approach and just go back to beam team of trying to outscore everyone.

You’ll never be a good defensive team with a lineup that includes Zach, DDR, and Sabonis. It isn’t in the cards.

 

[ESP47]

How'd it look? I stayed up past my bedtime to watch this stupid team into the 3rd quarter, but apparently missed the only fun quarter of the game?

I didn't think Maxime looked very good, especially on defense. He looked to be about as effective as Sabonis out there. It's the main reason why I wasn't a fan of taking him in the draft. Big men that can't defend normally aren't winning players.

Cardwell looked every bit the fan favorite that I figured he would be. Tons of energy, effective defense, some huge throw downs and even took a Raptor to suplex city when trying to pry the ball away from him. His free throws have the same difficulty as a half court shot for most players. Poor guy shoots like I do.

Carter was a little up and down but he showed some handles out there that I didn't know he had and had a nice step back 3. Also dropped a few dimes and was a bright spot on defense.

Clifford was a bit wild but was fun to watch run the point.

I think I'd much rather watch these guys lose than watch our veterans play .450 ball.

 

[macadocious]

There were some new beers on the concourse, so that was something!

 

[Caccia]

There were some new beers on the concourse, so that was something!

Why did the starters look so out of sorts? Sabonis, in particular, looked frantic at times, and that is not his personality.

 

[macadocious]

No clue, from jump it was bad. Schroeder looked like he was trying to fit in, same w Demar. I think Demar had 2 shots in the first half. Offense was clunky. Defense was lazy and late. Missed some shots early that might have led to that, but that’s a bad sign if a bad few shooting minutes crushes a team’s motivation.

 

[Srzly]

No clue, from jump it was bad. Schroeder looked like he was trying to fit in, same w Demar. I think Demar had 2 shots in the first half. Offense was clunky. Defense was lazy and late. Missed some craps early that might have led to that, but that’s a bad sign if a bad few shooting minutes crushes a team’s motivation.

Agree. I know it’s only one preseason game so I won’t overreact but we did not look like a well-coached team last night. They weren’t doing the things we’ve been hearing about all camp.

Offense was clunky, stagnant, often having Keegan stand in the corner again. Just didn’t seem to be well directed and I expected a lot more from Dennis as a PG but he looked bad.

Team defense was atrocious with the starters.

It was our first game and raptors 2nd so I’m holding out hope we were just shaking off rust and will look better next game.

 

[Jdbraver137]

I didn't think Maxime looked very good, especially on defense. He looked to be about as effective as Sabonis out there. It's the main reason why I wasn't a fan of taking him in the draft. Big men that can't defend normally aren't winning players.

Cardwell looked every bit the fan favorite that I figured he would be. Tons of energy, effective defense, some huge throw downs and even took a Raptor to suplex city when trying to pry the ball away from him. His free throws have the same difficulty as a half court shot for most players. Poor guy shoots like I do.

Carter was a little up and down but he showed some handles out there that I didn't know he had and had a nice step back 3. Also dropped a few dimes and was a bright spot on defense.
It was his first NBA game bro. He’s was a 2nd round pick. Did you see cardwells fts? Ugly!
Clifford was a bit wild but was fun to watch run the point.

I think I'd much rather watch these guys lose than watch our veterans play .450 ball.

 

[ockingsfan]

I'm also a little confused why you've seemingly identified Nique Clifford as the one two-way (offense-defense) player on the team and then hidden him at the end of the rotation. I agree that he is effective on offense because of his playmaking ability and is at worst an average defender so shouldn't that make him a guy you want starting for you? I've got Ellis, Clifford, and Murray as the three players that I for sure want to see starting

I really like Clifford’s game and think he will be a two-way player for this team. However, unless we can move DDR, LaVine, Monk or Keon, it’s hard to see him getting a lot of PT, especially not starting anytime soon.

I think Clifford will get spot minutes to begin the season and if Perry can move one or more of the vets by the trade deadline, his opportunity and PT will increase in the 2nd half of the year.

 

[Caccia]

Eubanks played so well, I wonder if a lineup of Sabonis-Eubanks-Murray-LaVine-Schröder might be worth trying? It would certainly help to move Keegan back to the three spot.

Too early to panic, but last night was unsettling.

 

[The_Jamal]

I didn't think Maxime looked very good, especially on defense. He looked to be about as effective as Sabonis out there. It's the main reason why I wasn't a fan of taking him in the draft. Big men that can't defend normally aren't winning players.

Cardwell looked every bit the fan favorite that I figured he would be. Tons of energy, effective defense, some huge throw downs and even took a Raptor to suplex city when trying to pry the ball away from him. His free throws have the same difficulty as a half court shot for most players. Poor guy shoots like I do.

Carter was a little up and down but he showed some handles out there that I didn't know he had and had a nice step back 3. Also dropped a few dimes and was a bright spot on defense.

Clifford was a bit wild but was fun to watch run the point.

I think I'd much rather watch these guys lose than watch our veterans play .450 ball.

To me, a really fun team comp idea would be all these young guys starting around Domas and then Monk babysitting the bench unit with the rest of them.

Carter
Keon
Nique
Keegan
Domas

Monk
IJ
Max

This year would be so much more productive ending the year with all these guys at 1000+ minutes and consistent rotation roles. Would have a very clear picture where we'd need to address

 

[pdxKingsFan]

There were some new beers on the concourse, so that was something!

as long as they're not on the court.

 

[Joshyjosh31]

Eubanks played so well, I wonder if a lineup of Sabonis-Eubanks-Murray-LaVine-Schröder might be worth trying? It would certainly help to move Keegan back to the three spot.

Too early to panic, but last night was unsettling.

Eubanks playing more than 10min is wild Eubanks starting I have no words

 

[Tetsujin]

Eubanks playing more than 10min is wild Eubanks starting I have no words

Domas was in early foul trouble last night so that probably added to Eubank’s minutes (thought he looked good his first stint but he looked spent in the second half stint.

 

[sactowndog]

Congratulations! This post has been awarded the inaugural Golden Eeyore Award for exemplifying the ability to find the raincloud in every silver lining!

That is funnier than crap!

I humbly accept!

 

[TheMobb]

No clue, from jump it was bad. Schroeder looked like he was trying to fit in, same w Demar. I think Demar had 2 shots in the first half. Offense was clunky. Defense was lazy and late. Missed some craps early that might have led to that, but that’s a bad sign if a bad few shooting minutes crushes a team’s motivation.

Agreed. Domas wants the offense ran thru him, Schroder is the PG so he will have the ball in his hands a good amount, then DeMar is also ball dominant. LaVine needs his shots, and we haven’t even got to Keegan yet. If the offense continues to look like this DC needs to really consider swapping Keon for DeMar in the starting lineup.

 

[Jdbraver137]

Agreed. Domas wants the offense ran thru him, Schroder is the PG so he will have the ball in his hands a good amount, then DeMar is also ball dominant. LaVine needs his shots, and we haven’t even got to Keegan yet. If the offense continues to look like this DC needs to really consider swapping Keon for DeMar in the starting lineup.

The roster construction of this team is so horribly bad. We don’t really have any 2 way players. Think about it. Keegan has stunk offensively. Keon while a good spot up shooter can’t play pg or create for himself. The guys that can put the ball in the bucket or initiate an offense, didn’t even give effort on the defensive end. Except Zach. The Schroeder euro party hasn’t carried over. If anything I thought he would be in the best game shape. King identity is just talk and empty promises.

 

[dude12]

With that starting unit, you got 1 guy who can knock the 3 down at a good clip in Lavine…..great tbh…..but then Keegan, when off, adds to the others who are inconsistent and it just looks like the opponents will pack the paint.

Doug Christie has to mix it up before the end of the preseason and not wait a whole month while this team buries itself. I think there is enough there for them to do it right but vets have to sacrifice a little. Do they want to win or just get theirs?

 

[Tetsujin]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1976369123937640905

 

[Joshyjosh31]

The roster construction of this team is so horribly bad. We don’t really have any 2 way players. Think about it. Keegan has stunk offensively. Keon while a good spot up shooter can’t play pg or create for himself. The guys that can put the ball in the bucket or initiate an offense, didn’t even give effort on the defensive end. Except Zach. The Schroeder euro party hasn’t carried over. If anything I thought he would be in the best game shape. King identity is just talk and empty promises.

Were people expecting it to this is what happens every time he plays euro ball

With that starting unit, you got 1 guy who can knock the 3 down at a good clip in Lavine…..great tbh…..but then Keegan, when off, adds to the others who are inconsistent and it just looks like the opponents will pack the paint.

Doug Christie has to mix it up before the end of the preseason and not wait a whole month while this team buries itself. I think there is enough there for them to do it right but vets have to sacrifice a little. Do they want to win or just get theirs?

Keegan might hold the nba record for three point air balls

 

[NewArena]

Sounds like this was the toughest training camp any of them have had for a while, so I’ll give the older guys a touch of grace even though that defense can’t be excused if they’re ever going to be decent this season.

 

[NewArena]

No clue, from jump it was bad. Schroeder looked like he was trying to fit in, same w Demar. I think Demar had 2 shots in the first half. Offense was clunky. Defense was lazy and late. Missed some shots early that might have led to that, but that’s a bad sign if a bad few shooting minutes crushes a team’s motivation.

Eh, DeMar shooting twice let’s me know that game isn’t indicative of too much going forward lol not saying we should completely ignore it, but i wouldn’t put tons of stock behind all the negative we saw, just like I’d be cautious over us putting up 160 points and Keon suddenly being the Ingram stopper last night.

 

[Jdbraver137]

Sounds like this was the toughest training camp any of them have had for a while, so I’ll give the older guys a touch of grace even though that defense can’t be excused if they’re ever going to be decent this season.

Uh no, they are professionals, especially the old vets. They should know how big conditioning is all year round.

 

[sactowndog]

Congratulations! This post has been awarded the inaugural Golden Eeyore Award for exemplifying the ability to find the raincloud in every silver lining!

Personally I think you should trade mark that puppy and sell it. It perfectly captures the essence of being a Kings fan.

 

[TheMobb]

Uh no, they are professionals, especially the old vets. They should know how big conditioning is all year round.

True but are the vets even taking preseason serious? Maybe some do but most probably don’t care about wins and losses until it counts.

 

[Joshyjosh31]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1976404589848269265

 

[pdxKingsFan]

Sounds like this was the toughest training camp any of them have had for a while, so I’ll give the older guys a touch of grace even though that defense can’t be excused if they’re ever going to be decent this season.

Not making excuses, did we go 0-4 in Brown's first pre-season and then stumble out of the gate like 1-5 or something? If we acknowledge practice time will be limited once the season kicks in, it makes sense to get all kinds of new schemes and also do a little throw it all on the wall and find out what sticks at this stage.

And not to put much credence in Anthony Davis who showed up overweight to Mavs camp but there is something to the regular season kicking you into gear and therefore offseason recovery means you don't show up at camp in mid-season form, or else you may be blown up and malnourished by mid-season.

also if this team is as bad as they looked yesterday for most of the game that should make everyone that just wants picks happy?

at least our top rookie this year seems to be the one highlight of the night.

 

[NewArena]

This is just delusional. We don't have the personnel to defend 94 feet. You need long athletic personnel and a deep rotation to pull that off. We are a small and older team that's better off sticking to opponents like a gnat once they are past half court. Be pesky and play the percentages. There's no point in exhausting yourself playing 94 feet which opens up bigger holes in the defense. The first order of business for a coach is Know Your Personnel (KYP) and tailor your schemes for them instead of the other way around. This is unacceptable.

Coach DC seems like the type to adjust almost immediately! I’m not worried. First game of the preseason is exactly where you can and probably should experiment. No harm, no foul so far.

 

[NewArena]

Why did the starters look so out of sorts? Sabonis, in particular, looked frantic at times, and that is not his personality.

Could be all sorts of reasons for this, including eagerness to be back out there. Many things can be true at once, but a healthy Sabonis i don’t worry about one bit.

 

[NewArena]

Agreed. Domas wants the offense ran thru him, Schroder is the PG so he will have the ball in his hands a good amount, then DeMar is also ball dominant. LaVine needs his shots, and we haven’t even got to Keegan yet. If the offense continues to look like this DC needs to really consider swapping Keon for DeMar in the starting lineup.

I think that needs to be considered anyhow. DeMar and LaVine just doesn’t seem like a combo that makes sense for this particular squad but hopefully I’m wrong. Either way, i want LaVine and sweet looking shot to stick around for now.

 

[sono]

This is 1st preseason game and where "the hardest training camp ever" narrative ends.