[Pre-season] Kings @ Clippers - Thursday, Oct. 12 - 7:30 PDT
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Mason based on preseason play has to be part of the rotation in the second unit guy looks rock solid out there. His play imo sort of forces Fox/Hill into the starting line up together.
One thing with Skal even when he was playing well that concerns me is no matter what he does he always seems to be a split second late in his decision making, it's like there's some sort of noticeable delay which at times if he's playing well he can offset due to his length/skill but really shows during mediocre/bad games
One thing with Skal even when he was playing well that concerns me is no matter what he does he always seems to be a split second late in his decision making, it's like there's some sort of noticeable delay which at times if he's playing well he can offset due to his length/skill but really shows during mediocre/bad games
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One more preseason game tonight
!
The team is playing about like I expected. I am a little down over the injuries to Fox, Hill and Bogdan. Hopefully they are not serious. The upside is that Frank Mason III has gotten extended minutes and looks like a stud out there. He is tough and I see the Bobby J comparison I have read elsewhere.
Onward into the crucible!
!The team is playing about like I expected. I am a little down over the injuries to Fox, Hill and Bogdan. Hopefully they are not serious. The upside is that Frank Mason III has gotten extended minutes and looks like a stud out there. He is tough and I see the Bobby J comparison I have read elsewhere.
Onward into the crucible!
Quick view of the game for those who didn't get the absolute pleasure of getting to listen to the Clippers announcers for two and a half hours last night. Lawler and Bowen put on one of the more annoying performances that's ever spewed from an announcers table in the history of sports.
Vince Carter gave everyone a flashback to the 90's on that fast break before quickly making us realize it's 2017 when he didn't get up high enough and blew the fast break. Him and Griffin shared a laugh together on the other end before Griffin realized Carter was guarding him and promptly demolished him in the post for an And 1.
Justin Jackson, welcome to Reno. I had high hopes for the guy but you simply cannot have a guy on the roster who gives you nothing every 3 out of 4 games. I hope he tightens his game up in Reno. Would do the kid a lot of wonder to scrap the floater (unless you have a DJ type shotblocker in front) and start going for contact to get to the line. At least give your team something when your shot isn't going in.
WCS certainly wasn't good but he wasn't really bad either. Had some good defensive moments on DJ and had some bad ones. Blew an easy layup to start the game that kind of set the tone for the next quarter or so with everyone else missing as well. Boarded adequately and still has mind numbingly low block numbers for a guy with his build.
Hield started slow but had a nice 3rd quarter, I believe, with 9 points in the quarter. His long ball finally started falling. Did some nice things on the court but had too many turnovers. I thought his defense was average.
I thought Skal gave good effort out there. He just had a bad game. His boarding is still concerning considering he didn't play many minutes with Griffin or DJ out there. Shot wasn't falling and his hook was way off but those are the least of my concerns with his game.
Koufos was great out there. Everyone keeps harping on him because he'll do a dumb thing once in a while but this guy is rock solid. My only real gripe on him (other than having a hand in Bogs getting hurt) was him not boxing out on DJ to keep those lobs from happening. Outside of that he rebounded and played really good defense for most of the game. He's one of only a couple Kings who didn't have a negative in the +/- category.
Bogdan. As is our luck as Kings fans, we just aren't allowed to have anything nice. He finally starts shooting like he's supposed to shoot and he goes down with an ankle injury. Hopefully it isn't serious. His defense was ok out there and he didn't give us much other than shooting but it was nice to see him hit the bottom of the end a handful of times.
Frank Mason shouldn't play a minute in Reno. He's an NBA player. This guy shouldn't be our steadying presence as a rookie but he already is. My only gripe with him is I wish he would "chuck" some more. The guy has a great shot and even his 28ft shots at the end of the shot clock over much taller players are very close to going in.
Temple is ready for the season. His shot looks good in preseason and he's out there doing Temple like things, which is basically overall average.
Vince Carter gave everyone a flashback to the 90's on that fast break before quickly making us realize it's 2017 when he didn't get up high enough and blew the fast break. Him and Griffin shared a laugh together on the other end before Griffin realized Carter was guarding him and promptly demolished him in the post for an And 1.
Justin Jackson, welcome to Reno. I had high hopes for the guy but you simply cannot have a guy on the roster who gives you nothing every 3 out of 4 games. I hope he tightens his game up in Reno. Would do the kid a lot of wonder to scrap the floater (unless you have a DJ type shotblocker in front) and start going for contact to get to the line. At least give your team something when your shot isn't going in.
WCS certainly wasn't good but he wasn't really bad either. Had some good defensive moments on DJ and had some bad ones. Blew an easy layup to start the game that kind of set the tone for the next quarter or so with everyone else missing as well. Boarded adequately and still has mind numbingly low block numbers for a guy with his build.
Hield started slow but had a nice 3rd quarter, I believe, with 9 points in the quarter. His long ball finally started falling. Did some nice things on the court but had too many turnovers. I thought his defense was average.
I thought Skal gave good effort out there. He just had a bad game. His boarding is still concerning considering he didn't play many minutes with Griffin or DJ out there. Shot wasn't falling and his hook was way off but those are the least of my concerns with his game.
Koufos was great out there. Everyone keeps harping on him because he'll do a dumb thing once in a while but this guy is rock solid. My only real gripe on him (other than having a hand in Bogs getting hurt) was him not boxing out on DJ to keep those lobs from happening. Outside of that he rebounded and played really good defense for most of the game. He's one of only a couple Kings who didn't have a negative in the +/- category.
Bogdan. As is our luck as Kings fans, we just aren't allowed to have anything nice. He finally starts shooting like he's supposed to shoot and he goes down with an ankle injury. Hopefully it isn't serious. His defense was ok out there and he didn't give us much other than shooting but it was nice to see him hit the bottom of the end a handful of times.
Frank Mason shouldn't play a minute in Reno. He's an NBA player. This guy shouldn't be our steadying presence as a rookie but he already is. My only gripe with him is I wish he would "chuck" some more. The guy has a great shot and even his 28ft shots at the end of the shot clock over much taller players are very close to going in.
Temple is ready for the season. His shot looks good in preseason and he's out there doing Temple like things, which is basically overall average.
I got sick of hearing "Bingo!" before the first quarter ended. Frank Mason impresses me more every time I see him. He just doesn't look like a rookie out there and that's awesome. Bogdan's injury is a bummer but it should just give another young guy more opportunity to prove himself.
I have a hard time feeling confident about projecting what these guys will be into the regular season at this point. Back in the mid-2000s the Kings picked up Jason Hart as a veteran back-up PG and he had a really good pre-season and nearly everybody was excited to have him and then the regular season started and he immediately started to suck. I'm not sure if scouting reports matter that much or what, but pre-season basketball can be deceiving even for veteran players.
I know there is a lot of excitement and anticipation about what these guys will become, but I'm actually excited to watch them develop. I know this year is not necessarily about wins so I'm not overly concerned about the playoff race or even draft position really. I want to see our young talent get better and the team figure out how to play together.
I have a hard time feeling confident about projecting what these guys will be into the regular season at this point. Back in the mid-2000s the Kings picked up Jason Hart as a veteran back-up PG and he had a really good pre-season and nearly everybody was excited to have him and then the regular season started and he immediately started to suck. I'm not sure if scouting reports matter that much or what, but pre-season basketball can be deceiving even for veteran players.
I know there is a lot of excitement and anticipation about what these guys will become, but I'm actually excited to watch them develop. I know this year is not necessarily about wins so I'm not overly concerned about the playoff race or even draft position really. I want to see our young talent get better and the team figure out how to play together.
It is a bad sign that the guy (Hill) gets injured on a non-contact play. He took a bad step and tweaked his groin? Someone with better flexibility or youthful legs is unaffected. That's an over-30 type of play. The Kings could regret his contract when they realize De'Aaron and Mason are better than they anticipated and more ready for minutes than anticipated.
Mason looks incredible out there, prancing and dancing and creating space to create havoc. He's comfortable in traffic, in the open court, coming off screens. He has tremendous balance and strength to get where he wants to go. This is the opposite of impression Willie often makes. He often looks like a giraffe on roller skates.
I could copy and paste a lot of commentary on Willie from last year to this year. Where's the confidence? Stand up tall my man! Show some competitive fire. And tuck in your damn shirt! This is the NBA not the rec league! Correct your body language and establish yourself in the paint. Yes this is practice, but you tend to play for real like you do in practice. Say what you want about Buddy, but this man brings it. His effort is unquestioned and this is going translate more often than not.
One thing you could NOT question about Boogie was the competitive instinct, his willingness to sacrifice his body. It was always there. There was one play Willie drew a charging foul on Griffin. But at the last minute Willie turned his shoulder into the offensive player. The refs view was shielded. That was a blocking foul on Willie. You would NEVER see Boogie cower like this away from contact. Boogie sacrificed his body. I don't see Willie having this fortitude. Bad sign!
This was Cousins team for 6+ years. Now Willie is in role more or less previously occupied by the franchise player. Is this any opportunity he is going to seize or squander? I don't like what I am seeing so far. I see someone nonchalant and timid and incapable of securing dominant space on the floor. By this stage he should be challenging more shots AND anticipating and securing early position. There has to be MORE fight.
I wish we would have picked Myles Turner and we would not be subject to this "flotsam and jetsam". It was obvious his skill set was more diverse and upside more tantalizing. Total misread by Vlade.
Now back to Hill. I understand the logic to Hill and supported his signing. It was a conservative move to ease the burden on the rooks. Hill is a very good defender and very good at running the offense. He's prudent and fundamental. But there may be lack of explosiveness that only young legs can provide. This team is in trouble if they do not define their primary scoring threats and only one who steps forward is Z-Bo and Buddy. Then the team will score 85 points per game and games will be over by the start of the third quarter.
What we need is more guys who are proactive and efficient in creating offense. The guys who do this by nature are Buddy, Skal and Z-Bo. The other guys can do this are Fox, Mason and Boggy. Boggy needs to assert himself as a scorer. We need 10 to 15 PPG from him. He is in the process of feeling out what he can do. Give him time. I like his confidence and poise. I would like to see him do a better job of breaking down his man off the dribble but he may lack the requisite quickness. He has the savvy but the speed of the game may mean he is more of spot shooter than creator. I am not sure yet. One thing I really like about Boggy however: good defender and deceptively strong. He's not going to get pushed around much. Very impressive in this regard.
The dynamic of the team changes when we have Fox or Mason to help get easy shots for guys like Jackson and Skal and Willie. It is a bit disconcerting that there is NOT a clear separation between Hill and two rookies feeling their way. Shouldn't Hill be head-and-shoulders better? If anything the team should run most smoothly with Hill at the helm. The coach is still trying to figure out who is going to mesh best. Based on the preseason I do not see how you do NOT find minutes for Mason AND Fox. This means Malachi is out of the rotation. I don't see Carter as part of rotation. So 10 or 11 guys will play with Mason as the 11th guy depending on effectiveness or ineffectiveness of the offense.
1-3
Hill
Hield
Mason
Fox
Boggy
Jackson
Temple
------
4-5
Skal
Z-Bo
Willie
Koufos
Bench
Carter
Papa G
Malachi (Jackson will be given first crack at SF minutes and if he does not seize after 2-3 weeks or 10-15 games then Malachi will get his chance)
Giles
This team can be solid defensively. Rebounding is going to be struggle. Running and transition is the strength. Perimeter shooting is potential strength. Half court is highly questionable unless Mason, Fox and Boggy become consistent threats to make up for the fact that along the frontline we do not have anything resembling (yet) capable starters.
Running the offense through Willie and Koufos from top of the key seems futile. There are a lot more questions than answers. I said for the team to surprise and win 40 games that we need two of three frontcourt starting positions to be represented favorably. I don't see much in the preseason that gives me a lot of optimism. Skal, Z-Bo, Willie and Koufos ALL currently look like back-ups and this before addressing the small forward spot and conspicuous vacancy there.
Um....go Kings!
Mason looks incredible out there, prancing and dancing and creating space to create havoc. He's comfortable in traffic, in the open court, coming off screens. He has tremendous balance and strength to get where he wants to go. This is the opposite of impression Willie often makes. He often looks like a giraffe on roller skates.
I could copy and paste a lot of commentary on Willie from last year to this year. Where's the confidence? Stand up tall my man! Show some competitive fire. And tuck in your damn shirt! This is the NBA not the rec league! Correct your body language and establish yourself in the paint. Yes this is practice, but you tend to play for real like you do in practice. Say what you want about Buddy, but this man brings it. His effort is unquestioned and this is going translate more often than not.
One thing you could NOT question about Boogie was the competitive instinct, his willingness to sacrifice his body. It was always there. There was one play Willie drew a charging foul on Griffin. But at the last minute Willie turned his shoulder into the offensive player. The refs view was shielded. That was a blocking foul on Willie. You would NEVER see Boogie cower like this away from contact. Boogie sacrificed his body. I don't see Willie having this fortitude. Bad sign!
This was Cousins team for 6+ years. Now Willie is in role more or less previously occupied by the franchise player. Is this any opportunity he is going to seize or squander? I don't like what I am seeing so far. I see someone nonchalant and timid and incapable of securing dominant space on the floor. By this stage he should be challenging more shots AND anticipating and securing early position. There has to be MORE fight.
I wish we would have picked Myles Turner and we would not be subject to this "flotsam and jetsam". It was obvious his skill set was more diverse and upside more tantalizing. Total misread by Vlade.
Now back to Hill. I understand the logic to Hill and supported his signing. It was a conservative move to ease the burden on the rooks. Hill is a very good defender and very good at running the offense. He's prudent and fundamental. But there may be lack of explosiveness that only young legs can provide. This team is in trouble if they do not define their primary scoring threats and only one who steps forward is Z-Bo and Buddy. Then the team will score 85 points per game and games will be over by the start of the third quarter.
What we need is more guys who are proactive and efficient in creating offense. The guys who do this by nature are Buddy, Skal and Z-Bo. The other guys can do this are Fox, Mason and Boggy. Boggy needs to assert himself as a scorer. We need 10 to 15 PPG from him. He is in the process of feeling out what he can do. Give him time. I like his confidence and poise. I would like to see him do a better job of breaking down his man off the dribble but he may lack the requisite quickness. He has the savvy but the speed of the game may mean he is more of spot shooter than creator. I am not sure yet. One thing I really like about Boggy however: good defender and deceptively strong. He's not going to get pushed around much. Very impressive in this regard.
The dynamic of the team changes when we have Fox or Mason to help get easy shots for guys like Jackson and Skal and Willie. It is a bit disconcerting that there is NOT a clear separation between Hill and two rookies feeling their way. Shouldn't Hill be head-and-shoulders better? If anything the team should run most smoothly with Hill at the helm. The coach is still trying to figure out who is going to mesh best. Based on the preseason I do not see how you do NOT find minutes for Mason AND Fox. This means Malachi is out of the rotation. I don't see Carter as part of rotation. So 10 or 11 guys will play with Mason as the 11th guy depending on effectiveness or ineffectiveness of the offense.
1-3
Hill
Hield
Mason
Fox
Boggy
Jackson
Temple
------
4-5
Skal
Z-Bo
Willie
Koufos
Bench
Carter
Papa G
Malachi (Jackson will be given first crack at SF minutes and if he does not seize after 2-3 weeks or 10-15 games then Malachi will get his chance)
Giles
This team can be solid defensively. Rebounding is going to be struggle. Running and transition is the strength. Perimeter shooting is potential strength. Half court is highly questionable unless Mason, Fox and Boggy become consistent threats to make up for the fact that along the frontline we do not have anything resembling (yet) capable starters.
Running the offense through Willie and Koufos from top of the key seems futile. There are a lot more questions than answers. I said for the team to surprise and win 40 games that we need two of three frontcourt starting positions to be represented favorably. I don't see much in the preseason that gives me a lot of optimism. Skal, Z-Bo, Willie and Koufos ALL currently look like back-ups and this before addressing the small forward spot and conspicuous vacancy there.
Um....go Kings!
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Again I'm reminded of Gerald Wallace, who ended up being a good player but only after he left Sacramento. I have yet to see WCS put forth 100% effort for an entire game. He's too relaxed out there a lot of the time, and just doesn't seem to have a sense of urgency. I hope somebody can get through to him.[/quote]