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http://kings.realgm.com/articles/162/20050719/off_the_rails_off-season
Off The Rails Off-Season
Logan Flowers - 19th July, 2005 11:32 AM
Many teams would kill for the Kings recent success. Seven straight trips to the playoffs, including a 2002 run that nearly ended in an NBA finals appearance (and likely a championship). However, this overview ignores the fact that the Kings performance since 1999 has followed a bell curve. Starting at the bottom, with first round losses to the Jazz and Lakers, the Kings reached the apex of the curve with the afore mentioned 2002 conference finals appearance. Unfortunately, since that appearance, the Kings have been traveling down the curve, last year turning in a dismal performance in falling to the Sonics in the first round.
The Kings have gone from one of the deepest teams in the league to having only three players they can truly count on: Brad Miller, Peja Stoyakovic, and Mike Bibby. None of the three play even average defense. It almost seems like a disease. Miller was known for his physical play in Indiana. Yet with Sacramento, he sometimes seems to literally retreat from players driving to the basket. He (and the rest of the Kings interior D) was tooled by Jerome James in last year’s playoffs. Jerome James! Stoyakovic and Bibby both give good effort, but are constantly beaten off the dribble. When your best three players are this defensively deficient, this starts to become part of the entire team’s identify.
The rest of the team consists of, well, bench players. These are guys who can contribute (Skinner, Thomas, Songaila), but should not start on a team serious about contending.
All of these facts make this off-season a critical one, if the Kings wish to reverse their slide down the curve.
Let’s begin with number one draft pick Francisco Garcia. The consensus seems to be that he was something of a steal at number 23. While he may eventually develop into a solid player, Garcia is exactly what the Kings do not need. That is, another slow-footed defensive liability who settles for the jump shot too much. He fits the Kings mold almost too perfectly, and that is most definitely not a good thing.
Turning now to the free agent market, the Kings lack the money to make any significant splash. Additionally, they lost their only viable option at the two-guard (Mobley) to the Clippers. To this point, the Kings have made no moves. The rumor mill has them potentially acquiring Michael Finley or Antoine Walker. Either player would be a poor fit. Finley is inconsistent offensively, has been slowed defensively by age, and is too often injured of late. The last thing the Kings need is another injury prone player who does not guard anyone. While I dislike the idea of signing Finley, Antoine Walker would be even worse. The idea with the Walker signing would be, ostensibly, to place Walker into the high post and run the offense through him, just as the Kings often did with Chris Webber.
This is a bad idea on so many levels. Webber, for all is faults, was probably the best passing big man of his generation. Walker, while he has flashes of vision, is far more turnover prone than Webber. Additionally, the only thing Walker has on Webber is durability. Just like Webber, Walker constantly floats on the perimeter, and will not post up unless begged. When he does post up, like Webber, he has absolutely no lift. As a result, Walker is reduced to a variety of ineffective and frustrating flick shots when around the basket. Just like Webber, Walker is a poor post defender. Like Webber, Walker is a chucker, taking way too many shots to get his points. Oh, and by the way, he’s a horrible free throw shooter, too.
Other than that, the free agent pool is pretty well depleted, especially with the Kings’ budget. If Petrie is determined to stick it out with this core group, the best he can do is supplement this team with bargain free agents, preferable those that can play defense. The Kings no longer have the fire power to gun teams out of the building, and need to take a more balanced approach. Greg Buckner is one option that comes immediately to mind, though his game is offensively limited. Dan Gadzuric and Devin Brown are two restricted free agents worth looking into, though they are both likely out of the Kings’ price race. The problem is that this strategy would require Rick Adelman to instill a defensive mindset, hardly an encouraging prospect. That being said, barring a huge improvement, a coaching change is likely after the 2005-06 season. So a reasonable strategy would be to supplement the current core with defensive-minded players, and hope that Adelman can do the job. If he fails (and he likely will) then the job falls to someone else. This may be the safest strategy, as no huge gambles in terms of signings or trades are required.
The only other option would to pursue a trade. The only way to get meaningful players in return would likely require giving up one of the big three. There are so many permutations that Petrie could pursue, and there is more than one “winning strategy.” Honestly, I doubt Petrie would do it. He seems committed to this core unit. However, it may be the only way to shake this team out of its lethargy. Waiting too much longer will likely lessen the trade value of Miller, Bibby, or Stoyakovic.
As it stands right now, the Kings are squarely behind the Spurs, Suns, Sonics, Rockets, and Mavs. The Nuggets are not far behind. Without some sort of decisive strategy this off-season, the Kings may find themselves at the bottom of the playoff heap for a long time to come.
Off The Rails Off-Season
Logan Flowers - 19th July, 2005 11:32 AM
Many teams would kill for the Kings recent success. Seven straight trips to the playoffs, including a 2002 run that nearly ended in an NBA finals appearance (and likely a championship). However, this overview ignores the fact that the Kings performance since 1999 has followed a bell curve. Starting at the bottom, with first round losses to the Jazz and Lakers, the Kings reached the apex of the curve with the afore mentioned 2002 conference finals appearance. Unfortunately, since that appearance, the Kings have been traveling down the curve, last year turning in a dismal performance in falling to the Sonics in the first round.
The Kings have gone from one of the deepest teams in the league to having only three players they can truly count on: Brad Miller, Peja Stoyakovic, and Mike Bibby. None of the three play even average defense. It almost seems like a disease. Miller was known for his physical play in Indiana. Yet with Sacramento, he sometimes seems to literally retreat from players driving to the basket. He (and the rest of the Kings interior D) was tooled by Jerome James in last year’s playoffs. Jerome James! Stoyakovic and Bibby both give good effort, but are constantly beaten off the dribble. When your best three players are this defensively deficient, this starts to become part of the entire team’s identify.
The rest of the team consists of, well, bench players. These are guys who can contribute (Skinner, Thomas, Songaila), but should not start on a team serious about contending.
All of these facts make this off-season a critical one, if the Kings wish to reverse their slide down the curve.
Let’s begin with number one draft pick Francisco Garcia. The consensus seems to be that he was something of a steal at number 23. While he may eventually develop into a solid player, Garcia is exactly what the Kings do not need. That is, another slow-footed defensive liability who settles for the jump shot too much. He fits the Kings mold almost too perfectly, and that is most definitely not a good thing.
Turning now to the free agent market, the Kings lack the money to make any significant splash. Additionally, they lost their only viable option at the two-guard (Mobley) to the Clippers. To this point, the Kings have made no moves. The rumor mill has them potentially acquiring Michael Finley or Antoine Walker. Either player would be a poor fit. Finley is inconsistent offensively, has been slowed defensively by age, and is too often injured of late. The last thing the Kings need is another injury prone player who does not guard anyone. While I dislike the idea of signing Finley, Antoine Walker would be even worse. The idea with the Walker signing would be, ostensibly, to place Walker into the high post and run the offense through him, just as the Kings often did with Chris Webber.
This is a bad idea on so many levels. Webber, for all is faults, was probably the best passing big man of his generation. Walker, while he has flashes of vision, is far more turnover prone than Webber. Additionally, the only thing Walker has on Webber is durability. Just like Webber, Walker constantly floats on the perimeter, and will not post up unless begged. When he does post up, like Webber, he has absolutely no lift. As a result, Walker is reduced to a variety of ineffective and frustrating flick shots when around the basket. Just like Webber, Walker is a poor post defender. Like Webber, Walker is a chucker, taking way too many shots to get his points. Oh, and by the way, he’s a horrible free throw shooter, too.
Other than that, the free agent pool is pretty well depleted, especially with the Kings’ budget. If Petrie is determined to stick it out with this core group, the best he can do is supplement this team with bargain free agents, preferable those that can play defense. The Kings no longer have the fire power to gun teams out of the building, and need to take a more balanced approach. Greg Buckner is one option that comes immediately to mind, though his game is offensively limited. Dan Gadzuric and Devin Brown are two restricted free agents worth looking into, though they are both likely out of the Kings’ price race. The problem is that this strategy would require Rick Adelman to instill a defensive mindset, hardly an encouraging prospect. That being said, barring a huge improvement, a coaching change is likely after the 2005-06 season. So a reasonable strategy would be to supplement the current core with defensive-minded players, and hope that Adelman can do the job. If he fails (and he likely will) then the job falls to someone else. This may be the safest strategy, as no huge gambles in terms of signings or trades are required.
The only other option would to pursue a trade. The only way to get meaningful players in return would likely require giving up one of the big three. There are so many permutations that Petrie could pursue, and there is more than one “winning strategy.” Honestly, I doubt Petrie would do it. He seems committed to this core unit. However, it may be the only way to shake this team out of its lethargy. Waiting too much longer will likely lessen the trade value of Miller, Bibby, or Stoyakovic.
As it stands right now, the Kings are squarely behind the Spurs, Suns, Sonics, Rockets, and Mavs. The Nuggets are not far behind. Without some sort of decisive strategy this off-season, the Kings may find themselves at the bottom of the playoff heap for a long time to come.
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