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http://www.sacbee.com/content/sports/basketball/kings/story/12031558p-12901732c.html
Mark Kreidler: On-time arrival trumped by a delayed takeoff
By Mark Kreidler -- Bee Sports Columnist
Published 2:15 am PST Friday, January 14, 2005
As of now, you'll just have to take Cuttino Mobley's word for it.
For what?
Well, for starters, everything.
You'll just have to believe Mobley when he says he's thrilled to be in Sacramento, and you'll have to trust his self-evaluation that he is a scorer who can play a little defense, not the other way around and not one to the exclusion of the other.
You'll have to leave it to Mobley to prove, eventually, that his addition to the Kings is not a subtraction of team character or team chemistry or any of that rot.
Of course, Mobley would like nothing better than to begin proving all of that himself.
As of this minute? No go.
Assist: Doug Christie.
The wily veteran strikes back. Four days after the surprising news that Christie had been traded to Orlando in the deal that brought Mobley and forward Michael Bradley to Sacramento, Christie is only just today hopping on the jet that will take him into the first day of the rest of his Magic life.
Christie didn't want to go, hadn't planned to go, didn't expect to be traded and certainly wasn't prepared to uproot his family. Not only is that a natural reaction, but you'll get a line down the street of Kings fans prepared to say that Christie had richly earned every day in between teams that he decided to take.
Fair enough. But because Christie hasn't yet reported to the Magic, the Mobley experiment cannot begin with the Kings. What's good for Christie is bad for the Kings - and when you consider Christie's legacy of almost 100 percent pure team play over the years, that may actually stand as a first.
And thus: the ghost in the machine. Mobley drifted through Arco Arena on Thursday night, a player without an official team, a hooper without a uniform.
There was something almost poetic about it.
"I'm having fun right now," Mobley said at halftime of a game whose score he was not allowed to affect except by his absence. "Just can't wait to play."
Mobley and Bradley got over their shock at being dealt from the Magic, got on planes, got to Sacramento and cleared their physicals. Then, basically, nothing happened for a while. The two sat at Arco on Thursday night in street clothes, which makes sense considering they cannot officially be added to the Kings' roster until Christie is officially a member of the Magic.
And what that makes all of this, officially or not, is the transition period.
It's the entry room in the hallway that leads to the rest of the season. And if it feels a bit strange, it ought to, because the Kings don't really do this.
Geoff Petrie, the man charged each year with putting together a roster that is relevant to the Western Conference race, doesn't do it. The Christie deal marked his first significant in-season trade in forever. Petrie and coach Rick Adelman, as a pair, have almost always followed the same pattern with the Kings: offseason building or replenishing, competition in training camp, then a set roster that would be tweaked during the season only in the event of catastrophic injury - and even then rarely to a major effect.
That Petrie felt compelled to act and acquire Mobley, at the cost of one of his favorite players, tells you all you need to know about how the general manager viewed Sacramento's playoff chances with the bunch the Kings were running out there - and especially in light of Bobby Jackson's unavailability.
"I'm just going to bring what I do," Mobley said. "I score. I can play a little bit of 'D.' I'm not Doug ...
"I respect and admire Doug a lot, so I'm not trying to fill his shoes. I just want to be Cuttino, and if everybody loves me, I'm gonna love you back."
There was at least a little lust in the air on Thursday, when Mobley received a huge ovation from the Arco fans after being introduced by the public-address announcer. If Mobley's 46-percent shooting from three-point range allows Adelman to once again build an offense capable of blowing opponents off the floor, full-fledged love is certainly an option.
But it won't happen today, or even tomorrow, when Mobley and Bradley might finally be allowed to begin practicing with their teammates. It won't happen Saturday against the Clippers no matter how many points Mobley scores.
Adelman gets docked style points all the time for a system that occasionally appears to favor the inmates running the asylum, but the cool fact is, not everyone can play the Kings' way. Mobley is a natural scorer, and you'd say the odds favor him. But even at that, it won't happen overnight.
"We've seen him play on different teams, but they had their own styles, not like ours," said forward Darius Songaila. "With Doug, we had a player that we knew very well - and a person. I guess you'd say it's a time to be curious." To say nothing of a curious time: The Kings, Cuttino Mobley and Doug Christie, all playing the transition game.
Mark Kreidler: On-time arrival trumped by a delayed takeoff
By Mark Kreidler -- Bee Sports Columnist
Published 2:15 am PST Friday, January 14, 2005
As of now, you'll just have to take Cuttino Mobley's word for it.
For what?
Well, for starters, everything.
You'll just have to believe Mobley when he says he's thrilled to be in Sacramento, and you'll have to trust his self-evaluation that he is a scorer who can play a little defense, not the other way around and not one to the exclusion of the other.
You'll have to leave it to Mobley to prove, eventually, that his addition to the Kings is not a subtraction of team character or team chemistry or any of that rot.
Of course, Mobley would like nothing better than to begin proving all of that himself.
As of this minute? No go.
Assist: Doug Christie.
The wily veteran strikes back. Four days after the surprising news that Christie had been traded to Orlando in the deal that brought Mobley and forward Michael Bradley to Sacramento, Christie is only just today hopping on the jet that will take him into the first day of the rest of his Magic life.
Christie didn't want to go, hadn't planned to go, didn't expect to be traded and certainly wasn't prepared to uproot his family. Not only is that a natural reaction, but you'll get a line down the street of Kings fans prepared to say that Christie had richly earned every day in between teams that he decided to take.
Fair enough. But because Christie hasn't yet reported to the Magic, the Mobley experiment cannot begin with the Kings. What's good for Christie is bad for the Kings - and when you consider Christie's legacy of almost 100 percent pure team play over the years, that may actually stand as a first.
And thus: the ghost in the machine. Mobley drifted through Arco Arena on Thursday night, a player without an official team, a hooper without a uniform.
There was something almost poetic about it.
"I'm having fun right now," Mobley said at halftime of a game whose score he was not allowed to affect except by his absence. "Just can't wait to play."
Mobley and Bradley got over their shock at being dealt from the Magic, got on planes, got to Sacramento and cleared their physicals. Then, basically, nothing happened for a while. The two sat at Arco on Thursday night in street clothes, which makes sense considering they cannot officially be added to the Kings' roster until Christie is officially a member of the Magic.
And what that makes all of this, officially or not, is the transition period.
It's the entry room in the hallway that leads to the rest of the season. And if it feels a bit strange, it ought to, because the Kings don't really do this.
Geoff Petrie, the man charged each year with putting together a roster that is relevant to the Western Conference race, doesn't do it. The Christie deal marked his first significant in-season trade in forever. Petrie and coach Rick Adelman, as a pair, have almost always followed the same pattern with the Kings: offseason building or replenishing, competition in training camp, then a set roster that would be tweaked during the season only in the event of catastrophic injury - and even then rarely to a major effect.
That Petrie felt compelled to act and acquire Mobley, at the cost of one of his favorite players, tells you all you need to know about how the general manager viewed Sacramento's playoff chances with the bunch the Kings were running out there - and especially in light of Bobby Jackson's unavailability.
"I'm just going to bring what I do," Mobley said. "I score. I can play a little bit of 'D.' I'm not Doug ...
"I respect and admire Doug a lot, so I'm not trying to fill his shoes. I just want to be Cuttino, and if everybody loves me, I'm gonna love you back."
There was at least a little lust in the air on Thursday, when Mobley received a huge ovation from the Arco fans after being introduced by the public-address announcer. If Mobley's 46-percent shooting from three-point range allows Adelman to once again build an offense capable of blowing opponents off the floor, full-fledged love is certainly an option.
But it won't happen today, or even tomorrow, when Mobley and Bradley might finally be allowed to begin practicing with their teammates. It won't happen Saturday against the Clippers no matter how many points Mobley scores.
Adelman gets docked style points all the time for a system that occasionally appears to favor the inmates running the asylum, but the cool fact is, not everyone can play the Kings' way. Mobley is a natural scorer, and you'd say the odds favor him. But even at that, it won't happen overnight.
"We've seen him play on different teams, but they had their own styles, not like ours," said forward Darius Songaila. "With Doug, we had a player that we knew very well - and a person. I guess you'd say it's a time to be curious." To say nothing of a curious time: The Kings, Cuttino Mobley and Doug Christie, all playing the transition game.
