Summer League Observations

[PurpleHaze]

Gavin & Joe partitioned off a section of the stands opposite the Kings bench "Reserved for Kings Fans". Fun cluster of folks there, all from Sacramento and area.

Does Joe or Gavin sit with the Kings fans? Reason I ask is the Maloof's said last season that they wanted to be "more out in the local community to be with fans." I've never really seen them get out "regularly" in Sac, as they're usually either rarely out in the community or just doing an occasional drive by appearance here or there.

 

[origkds]

Does Joe or Gavin sit with the Kings fans? Reason I ask is the Maloof's said last season that they wanted to be "more out in the local community to be with fans." I've never really seen them get out "regularly" in Sac, as they're usually either rarely out in the community or just doing an occasional drive by appearance here or there.

My family and I were at Tuesday nights game and so were Joe and Gavin Maloof. We felt a little self conscious because it seemed like we were the only Kings fans there (correct me you were there also) and we were screaming at the top of our lungs every time we made a basket. After the game as we were leaving, Joe (whom I've never met) and I looked at each other and at the same time gave the thumbs up sign. He called my family over and asked if we wanted to take our picture with him. Anyway, it was an exciting game and that was a fun ending to the evening.

PS I'm by no means a Douby supporter but I can tell you that without his efforts on both offense and defense, we would not have even come close to winning that game. JT really gives me something to look forward to this season.

 

[Gary]

you are depressing

I'm just saying... Kevin Love is a stud and I have been saying it for a year now I just wish he had a sub par freshman year so the Kings had a chance to get him.. UGH!

In summer league Love is averaging only 20ppg 15rpg 2apg 1bpg... That's it I know it's not the regular season, but if this is a preview of what we will get with Love then I think he is going to have a lot of fans jump on board. (Of course I am already on the Kevin Love bandwagon)

Speights looks pretty nice as well. Caught his games and he's a friggin monster.

Edit: Anyone been watching Alexander? He looks lost out there.

 

[ZZE916]

Quincy Douby has been scoring a lot but he has to control his ballhandling and decision-making, but overall he's a good person and will continue to develop and get better.

I'm reasonably sure he's a good person, but that doesn't make him a good player. I just don't see him getting better. Remember, this is summer league. I see a bright future for him in Europe.

 

[Sptsjunkie]

I'm kind of worried about Thompson's low post game. He hasn't really shown much of anything with his back to the basket in summer league so far.

In fact, his offensive game as a whole kind of bothers me. Of all the first round PFs, only Darrell Arthur is averaging less PPG.

I wouldn't be too concerned about this. It's largely a function of how we are using him. A lot of the rookies coming in are being featured in their team's offense, giving them the ability to look alternatley very good or bad (witness Donte Green putting up 40 one game and shooting 4-17 the next). Meanwhile the Kings are running the majority of the offense through their veteran kids, so Douby and Hawes are getting most of the touches and shots. Having watched a few of the games, I think Thompson has looked good and has been very efficient with limited touches. This is a good sign, since Thompson will play a similar role on the actual team this year, with most touches and shots going to the Artest/KMart/Salmons/etc. group.

This is why Summer League always needs to be taken with a grain of salt. Some of your other observations were spot on though, Thompson does need to be more patient with his release. I've noticed him rushing some of his shots too.

 

[CruzDude]

DMJ, in the game Tue I saw Jason make some really great runners just inside the FT line over several of the Blazer's bigs. As to playing the low post, the Kings team is not being set up that way. Hawes is the 5 and JT the 4 which is different for him as he played the 5 all the way through college. He did a few backing down to the paint but only a few.

Wednesday's game was the same. Not really any low post plays in which Hawes would be the key. I think for now, based on watching him off the ball, he is just trying to get introduced to the NBA style and working as a 4 instead of a 5. He will be able to sub for the 5 at times but for now just working his overall game. The Wed game was pretty much a waste all the way round with the Kings unable to defend the pick-and-roll or the perimeter. Two games left. Watch JT without the ball sometimes. He moves incredibly well and is very, very quick and will cause matchup problems for a lot of 4's in the league.

 

[gunks]

I'm just saying... Kevin Love is a stud and I have been saying it for a year now I just wish he had a sub par freshman year so the Kings had a chance to get him.. UGH!

In summer league Love is averaging only 20ppg 15rpg 2apg 1bpg... That's it I know it's not the regular season, but if this is a preview of what we will get with Love then I think he is going to have a lot of fans jump on board. (Of course I am already on the Kevin Love bandwagon)

Speights looks pretty nice as well. Caught his games and he's a friggin monster.

Edit: Anyone been watching Alexander? He looks lost out there.

I was really hoping we'd get Speights...Ah well.

 

[bajaden]

DMJ, in the game Tue I saw Jason make some really great runners just inside the FT line over several of the Blazer's bigs. As to playing the low post, the Kings team is not being set up that way. Hawes is the 5 and JT the 4 which is different for him as he played the 5 all the way through college. He did a few backing down to the paint but only a few.

Wednesday's game was the same. Not really any low post plays in which Hawes would be the key. I think for now, based on watching him off the ball, he is just trying to get introduced to the NBA style and working as a 4 instead of a 5. He will be able to sub for the 5 at times but for now just working his overall game. The Wed game was pretty much a waste all the way round with the Kings unable to defend the pick-and-roll or the perimeter. Two games left. Watch JT without the ball sometimes. He moves incredibly well and is very, very quick and will cause matchup problems for a lot of 4's in the league.

I agree with you completely. I think Some people are reading way too much into what they're seeing in summer league. Some of these guys are just getting their feet wet. They're going to look good at times and they're going to look bad at times, but mostly its just a learning expierence.

In wednsday's game the Kings were just getting killed by Dallas on the outside. I swear, at times I thought Dallas had 10 players on the floor shooting from everywhere. Unfortunately the Kings had only one player with a decent 3 pt shot and he couldn't hit anything in that game. I did like what I saw of Hawkins, and would like to see more.

How much longer are you going to be there? And have you put that quarter in the slot machine for me yet? And, here's the question. Would you tell me if I won??

 

[bajaden]

I'm kind of worried about Thompson's low post game. He hasn't really shown much of anything with his back to the basket in summer league so far.

In fact, his offensive game as a whole kind of bothers me. Of all the first round PFs, only Darrell Arthur is averaging less PPG.

He looks like he does have range on jumpshot, but it hasn't been terribly accurate so far, though he hasn't attempted that many long range shots.

One thing that does look promising is his ability to take opponents off the dribble, something that could present huge mismatch problems. Even so, he tends to finish these moves with an awkward looking jumpshot/runner, usually jumping well before he should and not elevating very high. If he would go all the way to the basket and then finish strong, I think this move would be much more productive.

I wouldn't worry too much about it. In college he played with his back to the basket quite a bit, as he played center at Rider. He's being asked to play a little differently by the Kings because they have him projected at the PF position. His outside shot is actually pretty good as long as he stays within his range, which is from around 18 feet in. I also think he's been rushing his game a little bit on the offensive side. Not unusual for a rookie, when everything appears to be moving at a faster pace than your used to

Some people in LV have compared him favorably to a young Karl Malone. That remains to be seen, but its a nice compliment. But while on the subject of Malone, I wonder if anyone remembers that when he came into the league, he had no outside shot and was a terrible free throw shooter. His main attribute, was that he could run the floor like no PF before him and was a great finisher.. Hmmmm. That part does sound familiar.

Anyway, Hawes, Thompson, Randoff, Greene, Speights, etc. Are a long way off from finished products. So for those among us that want to start wishing we had drafted someone else, based on one summer league game. Well, thats complete lunacy.

 

[gunks]

^^^ I can agree with that last line. I did like Speights predraft, and he is seeming to produce. But it IS just summer league. And I really like what I'm seeing/hearing about JT.

 

[CruzDude]

Does Joe or Gavin sit with the Kings fans? Reason I ask is the Maloof's said last season that they wanted to be "more out in the local community to be with fans." I've never really seen them get out "regularly" in Sac, as they're usually either rarely out in the community or just doing an occasional drive by appearance here or there.

Answer is sorta. Below is a pic showing where the two Maloofs sat courtside for every Kings game. Joe and Gavin apparently bought 4-6 of the $100/game courtside seats at summer league and were at every Kings game with a different set of guests each time. In this photo Gavin was actually dribbling the basketball the whole time talking to the Rap singer. The second pic shows the "Kings Fan" section that was set aside for the Wednesday game that was behind and to the left of the Maloofs and directly opposite the Kings bench.

 

[CruzDude]

I'm just saying... Kevin Love is a stud and I have been saying it for a year now I just wish he had a sub par freshman year so the Kings had a chance to get him.. UGH!

In summer league Love is averaging only 20ppg 15rpg 2apg 1bpg... That's it I know it's not the regular season, but if this is a preview of what we will get with Love then I think he is going to have a lot of fans jump on board. (Of course I am already on the Kevin Love bandwagon)

Speights looks pretty nice as well. Caught his games and he's a friggin monster.

Edit: Anyone been watching Alexander? He looks lost out there.

One reason he was a "monster" was the other team didn't bother to put a body on him or even guard him very well. He did well in that game so will be interesting to see how he does next game with better competition.

 

[Gary]

One reason he was a "monster" was the other team didn't bother to put a body on him or even guard him very well. He did well in that game so will be interesting to see how he does next game with better competition.

The games I saw he was looking real good.. He was being guarded about as well as he was in college.. I am waiting though for better opposition like you said. It's a bummer I was not going to make the trip. Personal issues came up here in Sac and I couldn't make the trip

The good thing out of all of this though is that I might get to move to Las Vegas soon.. I love it there, and used to live in Reno.. I loved it in Reno too

 

[Gary]

Oh yah... For all those that missed Kevin Love against the Blazers here are some highlights.

http://broadband.nba.com/cc/playa.p...m/summer_league/love_double_double_080718.asx

Amazing passes, and amazing dunks..

 

[GeraldWallace#3]

Man, did anyone see Dahntay Jones' performance against the Rockets.

Dang, I wish we kept him!!!!!!!!!

 

[Gary]

Man, did anyone see Dahntay Jones' performance against the Rockets.

Dang, I wish we kept him!!!!!!!!!

Yah, he reminds me of Jamario Moon but better. Not sure why the Raptors didn't get Jones instead of Moon. The only reason teams shy away from players like Jones and Moon is because SFs nowadays need to be able to hit 3s. I think that's why the Bobcats are shopping Wallace. At least the fans say so.

 

[Entity]

A little observation of my. Jason Thompson (haven't heard his name mentioned much around here lately) I noticed that he hasn't been playing over his head. Example- alot of summer league players just go all out flying around pading stats trying to make themselves look sooooo good. With Jason it just seems to be his natural flow. He doesn't look to be doing anything he is uncapable of doing at any time. He lets the game come to him and plays within himself. I just wonder how many rebounds he would be averaging in summer league if he didn't guard the SF on defense for 15 min a game. I think if he was playing the PF position for all of minutes he would be averaging 12-14 rebounds in this summer league.

I makes me wonder, how would Mikki Moore do if he were in the summer league this year? would he be getting over 10 boards? I am anxious to see Jason in pre-season and I would LOVE to see him in practice 1 on 1 with Mikki or Sheldon.

 

[dmj]

I feel better about Thompson after last night's performance, though I am still somewhat bothered by his lack of explosiveness when he makes moves inside the paint. As some of you pointed out, he would likely be scoring a lot more if guys like Douby and Williams didn't gobble up so many possesions.

Personally, I don't see why Douby or Williams are participating at the summer league. They aren't going to develop playing against this caliber of competition--what they (douby in particular) need to prove is that they can compete against actual NBA players and not just the Jared Jordans and Pape Sows of the world.

It really would be better to just not play them at all, so we could get a better look at Thompson and also Singletary, who has not been getting the ball nearly enough.

 

[CruzDude]

In each game I saw 5-6 times that Jason made quick (explosive? don't know, depends on definitions I guess) moves in the paint that got him by his defender and his running jumper barreling down the lane when the defense clogs it up is awesome. Made every one of the 4 or 5 I saw in couple of games. He, as any rookie below the top couple in the draft, needs time to adapt to the NBA game.

Every writer, Kings and otherwise and both announcers on NBA TV love his game and all to a person say he will really be something. I agree. He doesn't rush or push but flows at a wide variety of speeds. Seeing him in preseason will be great. Glad we got out tickets for the Kings-Lakers preseason on the 10th of October. Too bad its so early this year.

 

[OptimusRhyme]

I have never seen a PF with skills like JT, I think a comparison of a bigger Odom is accurate.. They really weren't over-hyping him when they said he had three skills.. Its crazy cuz we can play him at 3,4 or 5 so he wont have a problem getting minutes this year. Especially if injuries occur at any of those positions. Does anyone else agree with me that JT has the tools to be a superstar if he puts them together right?

 

[PurpleHaze]

I have never seen a PF with skills like JT, I think a comparison of a bigger Odom is accurate.. They really weren't over-hyping him when they said he had three skills.. Its crazy cuz we can play him at 3,4 or 5 so he wont have a problem getting minutes this year. Especially if injuries occur at any of those positions. Does anyone else agree with me that JT has the tools to be a superstar if he puts them together right?

I try not to get carried away, but I had already mentioned that JT does have superstar potential. The fact that he was a guard or swingman for much of his b-ball career before a spurt of late growth pushed him to near 7 ft is a major reason. In some ways, he reminds me of a young Chris Webber the way he runs the floor effortlessly excelling in an up-tempo game. Still needs to pass better, be a little more fluid in his driving post move - but what he shows all around is rather amazing.

 

[Gary]

I notice that pretty much he's on like 8 shots a game and averaging 15ppg. That in itself is pretty nice. All the other rookie PFs that are averaging the same amnt of points are well over 10 shots a game. Just think if he was taking 15 shots like the others... 20+ ppg?

 

[mac]

As mentioned in other threads what I really like is how he knows what his limits are. Other than the occasional 3 pointer he mostly scores on drawing fouls cos of his quickness or on put backs from his hustle. As he puts on muscle I think he'll be really really good. Right now I want to see him be more agressive in finishing around the basket. We know you got that soft touch Jason, but dunk the ball hard!

 

[Emma]

Can you visualize a team which has a player at each position that doesn't need to have a play called for them to be able to score?

Kevin Martin and Jason Thompson could jack up 40+ per game on 22 shots. Whats the average # of shots per game? 70 or so? (with about 18- 25 misses?) That is, of course, if we can be rid of black holes. Brad and Spencer are perfect compliments to a free flowing offense, Beno is an intelligent point with scoring ability and $$ might pan out...

I can't wait, I'm already getting all hyped for the season!!!

 

[sactownfan]

Jason Thompson didn't even start all the games... that also has to be put into consideration...

 

[Jechtsphere]

Mr. Clutch of Summer League: Jason Thompson, Kings
Thompson hit not one, but two game-winning shots. His three-point play in overtime helped the Kings top the Blazers, and he had a tip-in and free throw in the final 20 seconds of a three-point victory over the Warriors. The 6-foot-11 forward out of Rider averaged 16.2 points and 8.6 rebounds per contest.

http://myespn.go.com/blogs/truehoop/0-33-74/Maurice-Brooks--Summer-League-Wrap-Up.html

 

[fnordius]

Personally, I don't see why Douby or Williams are participating at the summer league.

Maybe TPTB want to showcase them a little, help their trade value? Either one of those guys is likely to be filler any time now.

 

[CruzDude]

Personally, I don't see why Douby or Williams are participating at the summer league. They aren't going to develop playing against this caliber of competition--what they (douby in particular) need to prove is that they can compete against actual NBA players and not just the Jared Jordans and Pape Sows of the world.

The Kings have not seen very much of what Williams can do given some minutes. His summer league stint was necessary to get a better handle on his game and style. I personally think he has a bit of a Brad Miller type personality, quiet, not a lot of visible emotion, big and able to bag but not consistently. He has the tools but does he have the drive to use those tools to advantage? Not sure how much of that he did last week but at least the Kings got a chance to see.

Douby is on the bubble and needs to up his game and show that he is the #2 SG on the team behind Martin and the main scoring guy off the bench due to Cisco's inconsistency scoring last year. His summer stint helped him big time, helped the Kings to see what he can do given the minutes (the overall best scorer in the summer league and an excellent defender), and showcased his skills for everyone else.

I think there will be 3 main issues going into training camp in October:

1. RonRon and who (or what) we get for him. This affects everything else the team has to be looking at or considering. Until that is resolved, will be difficult to make any plans or decisions about anyone else.

2. Douby. His defense is excellent especially on the perimeter and may be the only King that can be said about, and he can be a major scorer. Can he become the main bench guy for Kevin or when Kings want to go with 3 guards? Does he compete with Salmons for playing time? yes. But who gets more and why are the big questions.

3. Mikki. He will be the starter. But when can Jason get enough of his minutes to warrant starting? After the all star break maybe. More minutes than Mikki before that? that will be his goal. Then at the 4 what happens to Shelden? Did summer league help him or not? Difficult to say. Probably stays unless he is part of a trade package with RonRon.

Brad-Mikki-Jason-Spencer-Shelden are the 5 "bigs" for now assuming SAR retires and they somehow dish KT.

Kevin, Beno, John, RonRon (or his replacement), Cisco, "Q", and Sean are the 7 others. That leaves 2 spots. Now we will see Reggie and GP earn their salaries in the next couple of months.

 

[bench_blob]

The Kings have not seen very much of what Williams can do given some minutes. His summer league stint was necessary to get a better handle on his game and style. I personally think he has a bit of a Brad Miller type personality, quiet, not a lot of visible emotion, big and able to bag but not consistently. He has the tools but does he have the drive to use those tools to advantage? Not sure how much of that he did last week but at least the Kings got a chance to see.

Douby is on the bubble and needs to up his game and show that he is the #2 SG on the team behind Martin and the main scoring guy off the bench due to Cisco's inconsistency scoring last year. His summer stint helped him big time, helped the Kings to see what he can do given the minutes (the overall best scorer in the summer league and an excellent defender), and showcased his skills for everyone else.

I think there will be 3 main issues going into training camp in October:

1. RonRon and who (or what) we get for him. This affects everything else the team has to be looking at or considering. Until that is resolved, will be difficult to make any plans or decisions about anyone else.

2. Douby. His defense is excellent especially on the perimeter and may be the only King that can be said about, and he can be a major scorer. Can he become the main bench guy for Kevin or when Kings want to go with 3 guards? Does he compete with Salmons for playing time? yes. But who gets more and why are the big questions.

3. Mikki. He will be the starter. But when can Jason get enough of his minutes to warrant starting? After the all star break maybe. More minutes than Mikki before that? that will be his goal. Then at the 4 what happens to Shelden? Did summer league help him or not? Difficult to say. Probably stays unless he is part of a trade package with RonRon.

Brad-Mikki-Jason-Spencer-Shelden are the 5 "bigs" for now assuming SAR retires and they somehow dish KT.

Kevin, Beno, John, RonRon (or his replacement), Cisco, "Q", and Sean are the 7 others. That leaves 2 spots. Now we will see Reggie and GP earn their salaries in the next couple of months.

The problem with Douby that won't go away based on a few scoring outbursts in summer ball is he can't be trusted with the ball more than 1-2 dribbles max, then his handles get shaky, his decision making is poor, if he can't get to the hoop he launches up low percentage floaters that have less than 25% of going in.

Side note: I saw all the games in Las Vegas on NBA TV. He's the same player, so don't get excited thinking he has taken his game to a new level.

If Douby is going to make it in the league, he has to become like K-Mart and keep the defense off balance, draw fouls when he goes to the hole, take contact, and not bail out the defense by launching 3-pointers in a defenders face with 18 seconds left on the shot clock.

My prediction for Douby is Garcia and Beno continue to grow as they did during late last season, take his minutes, Coach Theus gets frustrated with Quincy, can't find a place for him on the court because he can't play the point. Get used to DNP-CD, Quincy.

A trade to a team that better fits his skill set will be warranted to salvage his career. Of course, undersized 2 guards are a dime a dozen, I don't see many teams knocking down his door for his services.

He will have to discover his shot at the clip he displayed (allegedly) in pre-draft workouts, and practice games (allegedly) if he is going to remotely flourish as a King.

Man, it must be TDOS to type all this.

 

[bench_blob]

3. Mikki. He will be the starter. But when can Jason get enough of his minutes to warrant starting? After the all star break maybe. More minutes than Mikki before that? that will be his goal. Then at the 4 what happens to Shelden? Did summer league help him or not? Difficult to say. Probably stays unless he is part of a trade package with RonRon.

Shelden Williams, er Mr. Candice Parker, (Mr. Candy if you will ) stunk it up in Las Vegas, if you ask me. When your career is in limbo, you don't go to the ESPYs.

Also, he gave up more than one and-1 to total scrubs. There is no heart and desire to allow a scrub school you like that when all the league GM, scouts, coaches, owners, are waiting to see you prove something.

Some players obviously don't have the heart and desire or talent. It's not anything personal against the guy. The skills are lacking which I rightfully asserted about 1 1/2 games into his career as a King.

And a few other posters on this board will all too willingly to proclaim Mr. Candy as "just what we need..." "blah blah blah" "tough guy, space eater we were lacking..." blah blah blah, and I had this guy figured out from Day 1. Not to say I told you so or anything

When a 21 year old rookie from a second tier school clearly outclasses you (Jason Thompson) going up against NBA level talent for the first time, and you have been in the league 2 years and were picked 7 spots higher (#5 versus #12), you better take a look in the mirror.

Speaking of JT, I compare this guy to a cross between Carlos Boozer and Amare Stoudamire. He knows how to find the space in the defense, and use his quickness to get high percentage looks at the hoop. Coach Theus has said in the past players decide on who gets PT, so if that's the case JT will be our starting 4 approximately 15-20 games into the season.