Having League Pass allows me to occasionally watch the other team’s broadcast and it’s interesting to get their relatively unbiased perspective on the Kings. The Kings have earned a lot of respect this year. They are sometimes referred to as “these are not your father’s Kings anymore” or something along the lines of that. Thoughts on their perspective:
- They are generally amazed by Fox and pretty much go “ga-ga” over him.
- They recognize Buddy as an elite shooter.
- They have good things to say about Bogi, but probably aren’t as high on him as most Kings fans, (but Bogi brings a lot of subtle things with his all-around game that may not be appreciated as much when you do not watch him play regularly).
- Unlike a very outspoken subset of the Kings online fans, they have good things to say about WCS for the most part with about the only negative being his FT shooting.
- They are impressed with Bagley and think he has a lot of potential, but many still question passing on Doncic.
- Same impression for Giles as Bagley, but with a shorter sample size, they are just starting to see Giles play. Again, high potential, but in Giles case, they question whether his knees will hold up.
- They are not generally as enthusiastic (overly enthusiastic?) as Grant and Doug are about either Bagley or Giles play, not to say they are down on them, they just aren’t “amazed” like Grant and Doug, but they are certainly amazed by Fox, so I don’t think that is necessarily a homer thing on their part.
- The rest of the Kings players are for the most part kind of invisible to them, they may comment on Bjelica’s high 3-point percentage, Shump’s defense, or even Jackson’s college career and potential, but that’s about it.
- They recognize the job Joerger and his staff have done with the young players.
Sometimes, I think Grant and Doug, with Grant in particular, feel they have a mandate to hype certain players and influence Kings fans maybe to sell tickets or to justify the front office decisions, I don’t know, just a feeling. I do think too much hype by the team media and social media is not good, especially for young players, it can raise the fans expectations to unrealistic levels and then when the players fail short of those expectations can do more harm than good.
I think that after Harry had a good summer league, he was way over hyped, going to start right away, going to be ROY, etc. and he had played almost no games competitively in around 3 years. Then when he got into the real NBA it was quite a shock to him when he couldn’t produce, couldn’t even stay on the court and then saw his playing time drastically reduced with DNPs, etc. I think it destroyed his confidence. He is only now starting to adjust and show his true potential.
Bagley had the good fortune to have a less than stellar performance in the summer league and also suffered an injury. So, the hype was not as great for him coming into the season and possibly because of all the Luka drama, there was even quite a bit of unwarranted criticism on social media before he even played an NBA game. It may have humbled him a little bit, which isn’t a bad thing. He has shown steady progress and become an integral part of the Kings rotation.
However, I am concerned that the hype machine is starting up again for both players. Some fans act like they have already arrived and are already the next big thing. Bagley has been good all season and has steadily improved. Giles has just started to show what he can do. Both players have a lot of potential, but both have a long way to go. Player development is measured in years, not weeks. With extremely young players like one-and-dones, it takes years to even see what kind of player they will grow into. They have a lot of physical growing to do yet.
Anyway, that’s my rant for the day. As for player ranking, from a where do they fit into the Kings future perspective and based on my own humble opinion plus what I have absorbed from watching other broadcasts and from other non-King related sources:
- Tier 1 (Pretty much untradeable, future of the franchise)
- Fox -- Future Franchise player. Outstanding offensive PG, scorer and playmaker. Superb defender, but, needs to work on defensive consistency. He’s already surpassed his “floor” and is well on his way to becoming that franchise player.
- Tier 2 (Core players who meld extremely well with the “franchise player”, trade at your own risk)
- Buddy-- Elite shooter. Dogged defender but still gets lost too much. Has improved his ball handling but still needs work. Tighten up his defense and ball handling and he becomes an elite player approaching tier 1.
- Bogdanovic-- Really good all-around player. Not an elite shooter, but an excellent shooter, clutch shooter. High BBIQ player, very good playmaker. Not a great defender, but adequate. May be close to his ceiling already. A “glue guy”.
- Tier 3 (Players with high potential, but not established yet. If they reach that potential, they will become Tier 2 Core players possibly even approaching Tier 1. Any or all of these players could become Tier 2 Core players)
- Bagley-- Sky’s the limit. Probably most suited to PF with some time at Center, but the question is as his body and game matures could he possibly play SF or will he bulk up and play Center more. Of all the Tier 3 players he is probably the closest to untradeable, Kings really need a couple of years to see what they have.
- Giles-- Similar to Bagley, but questions about his knees, can they take the stress of the long NBA season? I remember Bill Walton’s knees. Like Bagley, probably most suited to PF with some Center, but may be over matched by some of the bulkier centers. Needs to cut down on fouling and make better shot selection, sometimes forces too much on offense.
- WCS-- Actually, with this team’s current construction and development a Tier 2 player, this season. Kings would not be where they are this season without WCS contributions. However, to actually become a full-fledged Tier 2 player he needs to provide more consistency with rebounding and defense. Offensively, needs to work on touch around basket and FT shooting. Elite athleticism, but, needs to continue working on improving mental aspect of game. Has shown improvement every season and has provided more consistency this year. Not nearly as bad as his detractors claim, not nearly as good as he could be. Physical limitations, stamina and recovery time may be impacted by sickle-cell trait.
- Jackson-- Has good size and reach to play the SF, but lacks overall strength to guard tougher, bigger SF. Needs to bulk up more. For the most part shows good BBIQ, rarely turns the ball over. Can be a good spot up 3-point shooter, but, lacks consistency. Has a nice floater in the lane. Even if he reaches his full potential, may be best suited as a solid bench rotational player.
- Tier 4 (Key pieces on the current team, Bjelica and Shumpert should be considered part of this season’s Tier 2 core. Mature, veterans, but not “old” players. Probably already reached their ceilings, what you see is what you get. Could be part of near future, probably not long term.)
- Bjelica-- Excellent 3-point shooter, really helps spread the floor. At times, a surprisingly good rebounder, especially on the offensive end. With the right matchups, a decent defender, blocks quite a few shots.
- Shumpert-- Great teammate, leader in the locker room and on the floor. Provides that veteran presence. Scrappy dogged defender, really a shooting guard pressed into service as a small forward. Over matched at times by bigger SF (but who isn’t?). Inconsistent offense, streaky 3-point shooter, continues to shoot when he is off.
- Ferrell-- As a backup to Fox, Ferrell has shown the ability to run the team at Joerger’s pace. Has also shown the ability to hit the 3-pointer. An adequate backup to Fox, generally exercises good judgement. Provides scrappy defense.
- Tier 5 (Unlikely to be part of the Kings future)
- Koufus-- Pains me to put Koufus here. I thought at one time, he might provide an adequate backup for the Kings against more beefy centers for the near future. But sadly, his game has regressed, probably in part due to the pace the Kings play. I think with the right team he can still provide some reliable depth at center. Expiring contract, may be a good trade chip.
- McLemore-- What can you say about Ben? Good guy, good teammate. His expiring contract may provide some value as a trade chip.
- Mason-- Don’t know what to think about Mason. Undersized, very quick, a bulldog, but poor BBIQ. Just continues to show poor judgement. Haven’t totally given up on him, but right now, don’t see him as part of the future. Not sure how much trade value he has.
- Randolph-- The forgotten man. Loved watching his “old man” game last year, although it did grow tiresome. Expiring contract may provide some value as a trade chip.
- Skal-- All that potential. Beautiful jump shot out to 3-point range. Just never could get a grasp of the team concept, not a selfish player, just a lost player on both ends of the court. Hard worker, really bulked up in the off-season, but unfortunately, with the Kings glut at the power positions, no opportunity for him to play. His time with the Kings may have passed. I wish someone would make the Kings an offer and he would get a chance at a fresh start. He might excel, yet.
- Tier 6 (Two-Way Players, unknown future)
- Williams-- High energy, shows some promise, but still plays out of control a lot.
- Gabriel-- Intriguing player. Haven’t seen him play much as a pro. But from watching him at UK, very energetic, long and athletic. Can hit the 3. Depends on how he develops in the G-League, may have some future value. Another PF, could he possibly play some SF?
