Open letter to the Sacramento Kings

[VF21]

Dear Sacramento Kings,

I've been a Kings fan since 1985. Four generations of my family have cheered for you. My granddaughters both have middle names that start with K, because K is for Kings. I have bowed out of social functions because there was a Kings game on TV. I have made vacation plans around your schedule. I have a collection of Kings memorabilia that takes up way too much space in my small home, but I would never part with any of it. I view my annual trips to Sacramento to see you play with the same kind of fervor as a zealot starting out on a pilgrimage.

In other words, I AM KINGS FAN.

And, for this Kings fan, ENOUGH IS ENOUGH.

Where the hell is your pride? How can you even put on the uniform and step out on the court and then play with such a lack of heart or hustle, energy or effort that even your most devoted fans find it hard to watch until the end?

Kings fans deserve much, much better than what we've had this year. Yes, I know very well there are excuses and reasons for some of the losses but remember the old saying? Excuses are like ---holes, everybody's got them.

I'm tired of excuses. I'm tired of millionaire players not giving their all. I'm tired of spending my hard-earned money to watch the games, buy the jerseys, pay exorbitant prices at the arena, etc.

I'm tired of the drama and I'm tired of the bullcrap. You guys are capable of much better and we, the Kings fans of the world, have more than earned the right to expect better.

Remember us? We're the fans who would not allow crappy owners to sell the team and move it to another city where its identity would have been lost forever. We're the fans who keep coming to Sleep Train night after night, cheering you on and trying our best to will you to win.

Well, it's not our job to will you to win. IT'S YOURS. You're getting paid obscene amounts of money, money that comes in part from all of us - the little people, the fans who are still trying to find something to believe in - to play a freaking game. When you do it well, it takes our breath away. When you do it as you have for most of this season, it puts such a stench in the air that we find it difficult to breathe.

You owe us much more than what we've seen so far. It's time for you to suck it up, stop the drama and DO YOUR JOBS. Play the game to the best of your ability each and every time you step on the court. We deserve nothing less.

I LOVE THIS TEAM but it's pretty hard right now to find much to like.

Please find a way to give me back my Kings. It'd be the best Christmas present ever.

Thank you.

 

[Bricklayer]

Ok, I have to say this here too: tonight was largely a one time thing (thus far).

Defensively the whole team deserves to be slapped around with a rotting fish, but we haven't seen any untoward signs of real quitting. A lot of signs of not understanding how to win, confusion about roles, awkward lineups etc., but we really haven't had many uncompetitive games.

 

[funkykingston]

Pretty much.

I turned the game off almost midway through the 2nd quarter.

Terrible offense, low energy and unacceptable defense. Awful.

And I refuse to watch it.

Get it together guys.

 

[VF21]

Ok, I have to say this here too: tonight was largely a one time thing (thus far).

Defensively the whole team deserves to be slapped around with a rotting fish, but we haven't seen any untoward signs of real quitting. A lot of signs of not understanding how to win, confusion about roles, awkward lineups etc., but we really haven't had many uncompetitive games.

They're freaking professionals. At some point, if they cannot do the job they were hired to do, they ought to at least feel guilty about it. Maybe I finally just snapped but I'm mad as hell and I'm not gonna take it any more. Life is too short ... and I'm getting too old.

 

[Bballkingsrock]

They're freaking professionals. At some point, if they cannot do the job they were hired to do, they ought to at least feel guilty about it. Maybe I finally just snapped but I'm mad as hell and I'm not gonna take it any more. Life is too short ... and I'm getting too old.

Lets become Warriors fans! You with me?!

 

[VF21]

Lets become Warriors fans! You with me?!

Um, no.

How you doing, kid? (And yes, I know you're not a kid anymore.) It's been a long time since I've seen you post.

 

[mac]

Yeah one game blip or not the level of standing around and matador defense deserves to be called out. Time and time again they went to the hoop completely uncontested. This one is on the players. Officiating was terrible as well

 

[Capt. Factorial]

Dear Sacramento Kings players:

I'm a die-hard Kings fan, and I have been since 1998. I remember watching the Webber/Vlade/JWill team losing its first series from a hotel room in Florida. I remember watching Robert Horry sink us with a three at my father's house. I remember watching Webber destroy his knee at a bar down a lonely country road and I remember hearing the news of the inevitable Webber trade in a hotel room in a very snowy Washington D.C., only hours before I had to wake up for a job interview. I remember watching Kevin Martin's layup to beat the Spurs in a sports bar in San Francisco. I remember watching from my couch as we came back from 35 down in Chicago, and I remember being in the building (and jumping so high that I nearly fell by landing on the seat in the aisle in front of me) when Tyreke hit the game-winning shot from beyond half-court. I've watched every draft lottery since we fell back into it in 2007, and I've watched every draft since I can remember. I was a founding member of Crown Downtown, and I attended countless City Hall meetings (despite not even living in Sacramento county) in what seemed at the time like a futile attempt to keep our team in its rightful home. I watched Grant and Jerry tear up on what might have been the final Kings game in Sacramento and could not get up off the couch, punched in the gut and feeling like a close personal friend had just died. I lost countless days of work to refreshing twitter, and rejoiced when we were saved, both from Anaheim and from Seattle.

Tonight, I turned the game off before the end of the first quarter. It didn't even hurt.

I've bled purple for the last 17 years, but it's getting really hard for me to care when I can't convince myself that you do. If you feel as hollow inside about the game of basketball as I do right now, then by all means keep making lazy passes. Keep playing terrible defense. Keep whining to referees and keep making the same boneheaded mistakes that you've been making for years. Keep the throttle on low, keep on collecting that NBA paycheck and keep on enjoying your mansions, your cars, your entourages, your supermodels. But please, don't do it here. Request a trade, leave in free agency, it doesn't matter how you do it - but if you're going to not care, go not care somewhere else. Don't do it wearing the word "Sacramento" on your jersey. Kings fans deserve better. I deserve better.

 

[IfAt1st]

I literally cannot get near the persuasiveness and intimate betrayal you guys are getting across here.
My hat's off to you.

I just wish that the ownership of the Kings had listened to those of us who were telling them last year how close to losing the longtime fans they were.
We've had too much of this bullcrap to stick it out any longer.
This is their last go-round before they have to re-build this fanbase from scratch, but with more expensive seats and more years of losing looming.

Don't tell me they can't see what's going on. If us yahoos can see what's failing on the court, so can they (and they have WAY more of a financial incentive to get this right).
They know what happened last year with the Malone firing, and they know how the players truly feel.
They know what it will take to get this team playing hard on the court with strong defense. They know what is done during practices, what's covered in video sessions, etc.
Something is massively different between what Malone got them to do and what Karl is not doing.
It's not rocket science.

If the players on the Kings cannot succeed with Karl as the coach, the owners HAVE to get someone in to replace him- they cannot waste yet another season.

 

[Letsgokings13]

I was filled with absolute optimism this year. It's still here in spurts, but it's dwindling pretty fast again this year, like all the years before. I'm finding myself turning these games off early, because after watching for 17 years (except the window we had in early 2000's) I can tell how a game will turn out based on body language and the repeated SAME mistakes over and over. I turned last nights game off with 5 min left in 2nd Q. In watched the first quarter of the Warriors recent game vs us, you saw how that would go anyways. I saw how we were playing the the Minny game, turned that off. My willingness to stick through a tough game right now is equivalent to that of our Kings - pretty low. Please Kings, change your crap. It's getting old. Every year.

 

[King Baller]

I hope the Fellas had fun in Mexico.

The Celtics kicked their butts. Now it is time to play some tough physical defense and win some games.

GO KINGS!!!

 

[thingfish]

Last year, after the first 5 games, I purchased league pass for the first time ever, because I wanted to see that kind of hustle and effort on D in hi def. it may not have been pace ball, but it was exciting to me to watch my team stifle others with hard nosed defense and then win games they were not supposed to win. Man, I miss that. Miss it really bad. This sucks!

 

[k_dubb90]

Lets become Warriors fans! You with me?!

Nah I'm gonna hop on the Pelicans bandwagon they have a good excuse for a crap record due to injuries

 

[Gliesian]

Man the Kings, especially Karl, are getting ripped by fans far too much. We have a whole new roster and Cuz has missed a ton of games. Last nights game was an outlier, and I do think it was bc of altitude and the fact that the Celtics blew up early bc IT probably rented out a holodeck and practiced for this game for the last 3 months.

I'm still being patient and have faith in this team and coach. Everyone needs to chill out after bad losses! If we are not where we should be by all star break, then it's time to bring out the pitch forks.

 

[Hoovtrain]

Glad I never made it to Vegas to bet the over on W/L for the season

 

[kupman]

We have been through many years of losing basketball, but this year is the most frustrating to me. The team has quite frankly not had a lot of talent in the past 10 years. However, this year we have a top 5 PG (maybe top 3), we have a top 5 big man (probably top 3), we have a strong SF and we even have talent coming off the bench. Yet, we continue to lose. Watching IT eat our lunch last night was not only frustrating, it was straight-up embarrassing.

I want to see these guys start playing like their lives depend on a win.

 

[bajaden]

Well, I watched the game today, because thank god, I attended a Christmas party last night. The party was far more entertaining. This morning I actually watched the whole game. Not because I thought we would come back and win, but to see if anyone on the team was willing to bust his butt, even in a lost cause. Curry leaped out at me, but since he was largely ignored by Collison, his impact was small. Here's the thing, on paper, the Kings are the better team, but the Celtics looked like world beaters and the Kings looked like a tired, disinterested, highschool team.

Yes they had to play at 7000 feet in altitude, but you know what, so did the Celtics, and I saw little hint that the altitude was having much of an effect on them. The Celtics looked like a well coached team, while the Kings looked like a bunch of inept individuals running around out of control. That includes Cousins, who seemed to enjoy trying to post up against triple teams and getting his shot blocked. If that's the best you can do, then sit your big butt down and let someone else play. What's that definition of insanity?

Like VF21, I'm close to the end of my rope. I have little or no enthusiasm to watch the next game, or the one after that. Oh I'll watch, but I'm not optimistic. I'm tired of the bickering and in fighting. I'm tired of selfish basketball, or hero ball. I don't give a damm who scores or who gets minutes. I only care about winning. Please, someone tell Collison that he's not a star, and he can't carry a team. Maybe, just maybe, he should try passing the ball to a teammate that's open. I'm going to stop before I say something I shouldn't.

 

[k_dubb90]

Like I said before if we don't get 35 wins this year, I think I might consider being done with this franchise

 

[ArcoKings]

I feel everyone's pain.

I watched the game completely. The Kings made the same mistakes all game long. The lack of defense was key to the loss. I don't understand how the Kings players and coaches could allow Boston to have open looks OVER AND OVER AND OVER. The Rondo ejection was the icing on the cake.

 

[pshn80]

Good letters on a very unpleasant subject. The players and the whole organization should feel utter imbarrassment for the extreme lack of energy, effort, and maybe even interesr displayed by Cuz, Rudy and all that played in the first quarter. We can stick by the stars, the team and coach but last night was so bad it approached unforgivable. If this sounds over-dramatic it is intended to be. A public apology is called for and a dramatic turn around. Go do it Kings.

 

[peacelate]

I feel everyone's pain.

I watched the game completely. The Kings made the same mistakes all game long. The lack of defense was key to the loss. I don't understand how the Kings players and coaches could allow Boston to have open looks OVER AND OVER AND OVER. The Rondo ejection was the icing on the cake.

They've been doing it all season. Why stop now?

 

[kingsboi]

Great points. I mentioned in another thread that my tolerance for watching Kings games diminishes with every passing season because things just stay the same and at some point you get tired of losing and watching atrocious basketball. There are too many other teams you can watch instead, does not mean I will root for any other team...I never will. However, I have no problem turning Kings games off as soon as they are down by 20 because I know 9 out of 10 times they won't come back from that type of deficit. I can't sit here and tell you the effort wasn't because of the altitude but let's be honest...the Celtics didn't seem to have any issues with their conditioning so something has go to give. Are the players on this team just not hungry to win? what can it be? I'm not going to go around and start screaming at the sky...I'm just going to minimize the time I spend watching this team until I see strides in the right direction.