Rest Reke?

Should we give Tyreke a break?

  • Yes! Dude is hurting!

    Votes: 37 80.4%
  • No! Play through the pain!

    Votes: 9 19.6%

  • Total voters
    46

gunks

Hall of Famer
#1
Tyreke is clearly not the player he was last season. Now, a lot of that is a result of teams being ready for him this season, but honestly I remember teams packing the paint against Reke last year and it didnt slow him this much.

The guy is obviously hurting. Ankles are one thing, but plantar fasciitis is an entirely different animal. I've had it before, and it hurts - badly. And it isnt going to get better if we keep Reke on the court.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plantar_fasciitis


So... Tyreke isnt winning us any games playing the way he is now. It has been 7 games since he's shot over 39% from the field, he is also turning the ball over a lot. He isnt helping himself by playing either. That plantar fasciitis isnt going to go away on its own.

But if we rest him with the purpose of easing his foot pain, it is going to take longer than a week. I think Noah was out last season with plantar fasciitis pain for over a month. It might kinda stink in the short term to be without Reke, but long term this could be a good thing. We're currently 4-12. Its not like we could be much worse.
 
K

Kingz4Days

Guest
#2
IMO i agree with you, i mean he just hasn't been the same Tyreke we know, even though he tallied 16 pts 7 rebs 9 ast vs the Pacers (some pretty decent stats if you ask me). im Sure if he was healthy we could of had a W. As of right now we're not doin to good, so why not rest Evans for a bit to heal his ankle problems and see where it goes from there. HOPEFULLY he gets better soon and get back to his dominant ways.
 
#3
Is a there a "No! Find a way to play Tyreke where he can contribute but isn't made to create the offense, and teach him to pass on the break" option?
 

Bricklayer

Don't Make Me Use The Bat
#4
I think he needs rest, and at the same time I don't think we can afford to give it to him. Despite all the sky is faling stuff, the seson is not totally lost yet. Teams have come back from worse starts than this and actually made the playoffs. We won't of course, but point being that there is still plenty of time to turn it around and still have a solid season. But without Reke there is very little chance of that. And by the time he got back from rehabbing the injuries we could be done. Particualry for a team scrambling for steady lineups and effective offense, his going can only lead to further and further experimentation and just a mess. Right now I can see how we can turn this. The defense has been snapping into place, we've played good halves here and good halves there -- normally directly corresponding to Reke playing well BTW. I to a certain degree know what we can do to get competitive. Take Reke, or the potential of Reke, away, and I no longer do, the chaos grows, there will be another major adjustment when he comes back since his skillset is unique and he is going to have the ball etc. If we could just get into a nice long rhtyhm of playing well, maybe we could rest him and hope the momentum would carry over until he came back. But sitting at the bottom of the well, resting him now might just open that trapdoor beneath our feet.
 
#5
I think he needs rest, and at the same time I don't think we can afford to give it to him. Despite all the sky is faling stuff, the seson is not totally lost yet. Teams have come back from worse starts than this and actually made the playoffs. We won't of course, but point being that there is still plenty of time to turn it around and still have a solid season. But without Reke there is very little chance of that. And by the time he got back from rehabbing the injuries we could be done. Particualry for a team scrambling for steady lineups and effective offense, his going can only lead to further and further experimentation and just a mess. Right now I can see how we can turn this. The defense has been snapping into place, we've played good halves here and good halves there -- normally directly corresponding to Reke playing well BTW. I to a certain degree know what we can do to get competitive. Take Reke, or the potential of Reke, away, and I no longer do, the chaos grows, there will be another major adjustment when he comes back since his skillset is unique and he is going to have the ball etc. If we could just get into a nice long rhtyhm of playing well, maybe we could rest him and hope the momentum would carry over until he came back. But sitting at the bottom of the well, resting him now might just open that trapdoor beneath our feet.
Agreed. I wouldn't opt for resting him as in not playing entirely, but rather letting him play while adjusting the offence and defensive assignments to make it less strenuous on him. His stats and touches will naturally be affected, but it may serve well in giving him more experience playing either without the ball or passing the ball more. The only problem is the adjustments necessary for this to happen, and given the state of our team I doubt the adjustments will happen smoothly. But hey, not like we're going to win many more games either way...
 

bajaden

Hall of Famer
#6
Agreed. I wouldn't opt for resting him as in not playing entirely, but rather letting him play while adjusting the offence and defensive assignments to make it less strenuous on him. His stats and touches will naturally be affected, but it may serve well in giving him more experience playing either without the ball or passing the ball more. The only problem is the adjustments necessary for this to happen, and given the state of our team I doubt the adjustments will happen smoothly. But hey, not like we're going to win many more games either way...
I guess only Tyreke really knows whether he can play and be close to the same player he was last year. Frankly, I could fall into either camp. I mean, were only 2 losses in a row away from the worse start in the history of the Kings. So I'm not sure it really matters. Were losing with him. The worse that can happen is that we'll lose without him. It might be worth it to see the real Tryeke emerge again. I do know this. All the good will that was built last season, much of it due to Tryeke, is just about used up. There's unrest amongst the fans, and also on the team. Not a good combination.
 

gunks

Hall of Famer
#7
I think he needs rest, and at the same time I don't think we can afford to give it to him. Despite all the sky is faling stuff, the seson is not totally lost yet. Teams have come back from worse starts than this and actually made the playoffs. We won't of course, but point being that there is still plenty of time to turn it around and still have a solid season. But without Reke there is very little chance of that. And by the time he got back from rehabbing the injuries we could be done. Particualry for a team scrambling for steady lineups and effective offense, his going can only lead to further and further experimentation and just a mess. Right now I can see how we can turn this. The defense has been snapping into place, we've played good halves here and good halves there -- normally directly corresponding to Reke playing well BTW. I to a certain degree know what we can do to get competitive. Take Reke, or the potential of Reke, away, and I no longer do, the chaos grows, there will be another major adjustment when he comes back since his skillset is unique and he is going to have the ball etc. If we could just get into a nice long rhtyhm of playing well, maybe we could rest him and hope the momentum would carry over until he came back. But sitting at the bottom of the well, resting him now might just open that trapdoor beneath our feet.
You make a good point here, we do have a chance to turn it around. I've been able to watch the games this year, so I too have seen the flashes the team shows (I think we average maybe 1.5 quarters of good ball per game). However, I dont think a turnaround is very likely. And for all those little spurts of good play from Reke that we see, I think he hurts us just as much by trying to do too much.

So say the allstar game comes around and Reke is still looking a bit hobbled/playing poorly, would you rest him then?

I feel like I could have added a couple more options to my poll... :p
 

Bricklayer

Don't Make Me Use The Bat
#8
You make a good point here, we do have a chance to turn it around. I've been able to watch the games this year, so I too have seen the flashes the team shows (I think we average maybe 1.5 quarters of good ball per game). However, I dont think a turnaround is very likely. And for all those little spurts of good play from Reke that we see, I think he hurts us just as much by trying to do too much.

So say the allstar game comes around and Reke is still looking a bit hobbled/playing poorly, would you rest him then?

I feel like I could have added a couple more options to my poll... :p
Oh yeah, if we've hobbled along at this pace until then, it will be past due. The season WILL be over then, so might as well get him healthy for a month or something and try to finsh strong and set up the next season. 4-12 though? For all the misery and woe is us stuff, that's still doable. We aren't going to win our next 4 games, but that is all it would take to go from 4-12 aargh we're so terrible! To 8-12, hey, maybe we can make the playoffs. Its just way too early to toss int he towel, although you'd never know it from some of the hormonal excesses we're had around here of late. This is dig in time and try to save the season.
 
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bajaden

Hall of Famer
#10
Oh yeah, if we've hobbled along at this pace until then, it will be past due. The season WILL be over then, so might as well get him healthy for a month or something and try to finsh strong and set up the next season. 4-12 though? For all the misery and woe is us stuff, that's 4 games under .500. We aren't going to win our next 4 games, but that is all it would take to go from 4-12 aargh we're so terrible! To 8-16, hey, maybe we can make the playoffs. Its just way too early to toss int he towel, although you'd never know it from some of the hormonal excesses we're had around here of late. This is dig in time and try to save the season.
I guess the question would be, is Tryeke hurting the team more than he's helping it. In other words, are the mistakes he's making, and at times his inability to attack the basket the way he used to, add up to a detriment as oppossed to having a Beno or a Cisco filling in for him. I'm not sure how you can measure that, so I don't have the answer. I know he said that when his foot has loosened up it doesn't bother him that much. But sometimes when hs sits too long, the pain returns. Hell, maybe we should just play him in the first half. Just kidding!

My second question would be, if you rest him to let his foot heal, how long would that take? A week? A month? If a week would help, then I'd say go for it. Somehow I feel that a week won't do the job, and it would probably take closer to a month, maybe more. I'm still not sure what I would do. If we continue to lose like this for another couple of weeks, then I think we need to revisit this.
 

Bricklayer

Don't Make Me Use The Bat
#11
I guess the question would be, is Tryeke hurting the team more than he's helping it. In other words, are the mistakes he's making, and at times his inability to attack the basket the way he used to, add up to a detriment as oppossed to having a Beno or a Cisco filling in for him. I'm not sure how you can measure that, so I don't have the answer. I know he said that when his foot has loosened up it doesn't bother him that much. But sometimes when hs sits too long, the pain returns. Hell, maybe we should just play him in the first half. Just kidding!

My second question would be, if you rest him to let his foot heal, how long would that take? A week? A month? If a week would help, then I'd say go for it. Somehow I feel that a week won't do the job, and it would probably take closer to a month, maybe more. I'm still not sure what I would do. If we continue to lose like this for another couple of weeks, then I think we need to revisit this.
I do know that whether he is hurting or not, there is NO way that Beno and Cisco ir whoever is going to be able to save the season. None. So in some ways it doesn't matter. If he's hurting us now he's hurting us from a 25 win team pace with Beno/Cisco to a 20win pace. In other words, it doesn't really make a significant difference in the end. On the other hand if he gets going maybe we can approach decency. If he's gone, we probably have to scap the defensive lineup to get more scoring punch, so we are off into lineup limbo again. Landry becomes our #1 option? Gotta ride this horse until it rights itself.
 
#12
I do know that whether he is hurting or not, there is NO way that Beno and Cisco ir whoever is going to be able to save the season. None. So in some ways it doesn't matter. If he's hurting us now he's hurting us from a 25 win team pace with Beno/Cisco to a 20win pace. In other words, it doesn't really make a significant difference in the end. On the other hand if he gets going maybe we can approach decency. If he's gone, we probably have to scap the defensive lineup to get more scoring punch, so we are off into lineup limbo again. Landry becomes our #1 option? Gotta ride this horse until it rights itself.
Not sure I agree with this "save the season" stuff. The problem is not just that we are losing - I can live with that - it is that we are playing god-awful. If we showed some coherency and something more than short spells of offensive prowess, I would consider it a "saved" season. Tyreke is simply not helping us in that regard right now; and imho, he is hurting us. There are quarters where we are scoring 9 -17 points. That's why you see the meltdown, we sometimes revert to bad pee wee basketball status. We don't appear to be a professional basketball team. it's the chemistry issues that have to change, the roles players are willing and able to play, our ability to run offense sets, and this true whether Tyreke is in the game or not. If players (feel they are) improving as a team, that is enough for me. maybe i'm just settling for low-hanging fruit, i don't know.
 
#13
Is a there a "No! Find a way to play Tyreke where he can contribute but isn't made to create the offense, and teach him to pass on the break" option?
I agree with your thought. Tyreke is not only "obviously tired" but he is not making his jumper no matter where he takes it from. And when he hasn't been hurting or tired he hasn't been making his jumper. Ask him to choose another option to taking a jumper, like cut it from 6 or 8 a game to, say, 2 to 3 a game. Pass the ball 4 or 5 more times a game. However you do it , change what you (the coach) ask of him in the game plan. Change emphasis from Tyreke 20 per game to something less, more assists. Another way to put it is stop having Tyreke be the No. 1 option. Take the pressure off him. Some say he puts it on himself. I think he does. But him some room to breath and find other ways to help win the game.
 
#14
Yea, I think he needs a rest right now. Maybe rest him for a week and let him watch film with coachie. There was an article on Realgm where Reke was working with coachie to fix his game right now. A week of just watching film and watching his teammates from the sideline may help him heal and understand the team better. It will also help the rest of the guys to not rely so much on Reke all the time and actually run around once in a while.
 
#15
All the good will that was built last season, much of it due to Tryeke, is just about used up. There's unrest amongst the fans, and also on the team. Not a good combination.
But completely natural and understandable. I hope you are wrong, that the "combination" works for the better, improvement of our play. It's yet to be seen whether that happens but we will continue with unrest until there is some improvement.
 
#16
And for all those little spurts of good play from Reke that we see, I think he hurts us just as much by trying to do too much.
p
Agree. I wish I felt confident that the coach, Tyreke and the team could just tweak the offense enough to add to Tyreke's positives and lessen his negatives.
 

Kingster

Hall of Famer
#17
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plantar_fasciitis

I said a few days ago, if it would help to shut him down a few weeks prior to All-Star break, then do it. The only way to salvage any part of this season is with a healthy Tyreke. He's the difference maker - when healthy. So do you want to limp along all season with Tyreke, or have him take time off to get the foot healed so that at least for a portion of the season we can have fun again? Heck, I'd take one month of a healthy Tyreke than the remaining season with an unhealthy Tyreke.

There's also the risk that this condition could get worse. Not a happy prospect. Another factor that persuades me that I'd like him to shut it down.
 

kingsboi

Hall of Famer
#18
If indeed it is true about Tyreke and his plantar fasciitis, then he should most definently give it a rest for a little while. He is only hurting himself and the team at this point and it's not like we are going to win with him anyways. He should sit out a good month or more if need be and let him heal so we can see where he is at and if it's really his foot and/or just his lack of adjusting to the oppositions defense. Another thing to keep in mind, we don't want him to aggravate the foot and make it a career threatning injury to the point where he just cannot get any lift or speed. Some rest will do this guy wonders.
 

gunks

Hall of Famer
#19
Yeah, I remember your post Kingster. I also remember the dread I felt when I first read that Reke had plantar fasciitis a couple months ago. Anyways, sorry to be a biter, I just thought this whole foot thing deserved its own thread :p
 

Bricklayer

Don't Make Me Use The Bat
#21
If Tyreke does have plantar fasciitis we need to shut him down. Didn't Peja try to play through this and the condition was worsened?
We don't know how big a problem it is or is not.

And again this is a place where ou organization's tradiitonal secrecy is doing ti no favors -- if he is hurt, then for his sake and the organization's you should let it leak to calm a jittery fanbase and take some of the heat off of him. Of course maybe its just more lingering soreness than debiliating pain, but he certianly does not look himslef on most nights. Just no reason to hide it -- this isn't hockey where some goon will target your injury, and plantar fasciitis isn't something that can be targeted anyway.
 
#22
I say yes. We gotta be sucking this year anyways with westphal at the helm.
Although I'm starting to believe its not only his pains & fatigue that making him look so bad. Hope that I'm wrong though.
 

rainmaker

Hall of Famer
#23
If it was strictly an ankle problem that is affecting Tyreke, I would sit him without hesitation. But when it comes to plantar fasciitis, I feel he has to find a way to work around it. The full recovery time for this condition is 2-3 months. How many of you are comfortable with sitting Tyreke until late Feb, or early March?

I bring this up because I speak from experience. I have dealt with plantar fasciitis. I was a strength and conditioning coach for a while, and have dealt with this injury in others, as wella s myself. It is one of the worst, nagging injuries an athlete can have. Think turf toe times 10. But some days are much better than others. It's not an injury where you can sit out for a week or two and it goes away. It lingers. It re-appears.

Tyreke could rest for the entire month of Dec, and it still could bother him the rest or the year. Doug Christe went through it, as I mentioned in another thread, and didn't rest. To be honest, it's more of a condition than an injury. Playing with an injury comes with the risk of hurting yourself more. Plantar fasciitis won't get worse. There's no risk of hurting it further. Almost like shin splints for those of you who have experience with it. Not an injury, but pain you need to ignore and push through. Shin splints don't get worse. Some days are better than others. Same thing here.
 
#24
And there is that other way.
All this injury talk is probably just bunch of crap to cover things up.

His game looks exhausted. His decision making is slow and consecutively he is getting in troubles all over the place.
PW should lighten his burden, give him smaller tasks and cut his minutes to regain his freshness. Fresh head will do miracles for his legs and his game. Guy just squeaked under pressure and expectations.

Give the man some air!
 

Kingster

Hall of Famer
#25
If it was strictly an ankle problem that is affecting Tyreke, I would sit him without hesitation. But when it comes to plantar fasciitis, I feel he has to find a way to work around it. The full recovery time for this condition is 2-3 months. How many of you are comfortable with sitting Tyreke until late Feb, or early March?

I bring this up because I speak from experience. I have dealt with plantar fasciitis. I was a strength and conditioning coach for a while, and have dealt with this injury in others, as wella s myself. It is one of the worst, nagging injuries an athlete can have. Think turf toe times 10. But some days are much better than others. It's not an injury where you can sit out for a week or two and it goes away. It lingers. It re-appears.

Tyreke could rest for the entire month of Dec, and it still could bother him the rest or the year. Doug Christe went through it, as I mentioned in another thread, and didn't rest. To be honest, it's more of a condition than an injury. Playing with an injury comes with the risk of hurting yourself more. Plantar fasciitis won't get worse. There's no risk of hurting it further. Almost like shin splints for those of you who have experience with it. Not an injury, but pain you need to ignore and push through. Shin splints don't get worse. Some days are better than others. Same thing here.
Since you're asking, I'm totally comfortable with him sitting out until March. It's like he's a cripple out there now, and that's a spectator sport I've never been interested in. I'd rather have the "old Tyreke" for one month rather than this crippled one for the rest of the year.
 

rainmaker

Hall of Famer
#26
Since you're asking, I'm totally comfortable with him sitting out until March. It's like he's a cripple out there now, and that's a spectator sport I've never been interested in. I'd rather have the "old Tyreke" for one month rather than this crippled one for the rest of the year.
I see that side of it. But don't you think this is the perfect opportunity for Tyreke to learn to play through pain? He just turned 21, and has well over a decade of basketball left in him. Some years he should be healthy, others he will have nagging injuries, just like every player. He's not exactly hobbling around, or limping all over the place. This will force him to make adjustments to his game, which will only help down the road.
 
#27
I think resting him for however long it takes for his plantar fasciitis to become better may be good.

I dont know how much his ankles are bothering him, but i cant imagine it being that debilitating. Curry had his ankles nearly broken by Eric Gordon a couple weeks ago and he's playing pretty well i'd say. But again Curry and Reke has different games, and an ankle could make all the difference with Reke's skillset.
 

Kingster

Hall of Famer
#28
I see that side of it. But don't you think this is the perfect opportunity for Tyreke to learn to play through pain? He just turned 21, and has well over a decade of basketball left in him. Some years he should be healthy, others he will have nagging injuries, just like every player. He's not exactly hobbling around, or limping all over the place. This will force him to make adjustments to his game, which will only help down the road.
I think you make an excellent point. This is going to be "good" for him down the road. It will toughen him up. Also, if you can't do things physically, you've got to do more thinking on the court, which is a good thing for his long term development.

I guess what really worries me is if this thing gets worse. Heaven forbid.