Mr Hollingsworth
Prospect
This season almost reminds me of 1999. You know? The year things turned around...
GO KINGS!
GO KINGS!
The way things have been going...
- Thread starter Mr Hollingsworth
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Kev.in
Starter
I feel that way too. There was a unique excitement in '99, the feeling of finally having something to work with. People knew the Kings weren't that good but they knew it was a team with the potential to really build something. The pieces were all so new and different from what was there before. It's a very similar feeling to '99. I think it'll just get more intense. Down the stretch, the players are going to taste that playoff spot and the fans will too. People who were sleeping on the Kings will wake up and ARCO is just going to get even rowdier.
The first half of the season was nothing like it, that actually reminded me more of the way the Kings limped into the 2000 playoffs after a relatively strong start. The pre-Artest Kings were about as disappointing and depressing to watch as the Nick Anderson/Jason Williams backcourt. At least that team had the Bench Mob going for them.
The first half of the season was nothing like it, that actually reminded me more of the way the Kings limped into the 2000 playoffs after a relatively strong start. The pre-Artest Kings were about as disappointing and depressing to watch as the Nick Anderson/Jason Williams backcourt. At least that team had the Bench Mob going for them.
slugking50
All-Star
Mr Hollingsworth said:
Umm.... No.. Talent is no way comparable.
Circa_1985_Fan
All-Star
Totally, couldnt agree more. Definetely not the same feel between the two.slugking50 said:
There's no comparison, IMHO. Back then, we had no idea what it felt like to get to the Western Conference finals. We had NOT experienced an overtime game 7...
This team is exciting and fun but they have a long way to go before they can begin to compare with the emotions from back then. I was afraid someone would pinch me and I'd wake up. I don't feel that way right now. We still have warts and wrinkles. I'm just very, very glad we don't totally suck any more.
This team is exciting and fun but they have a long way to go before they can begin to compare with the emotions from back then. I was afraid someone would pinch me and I'd wake up. I don't feel that way right now. We still have warts and wrinkles. I'm just very, very glad we don't totally suck any more.
uolj
Starter
Different feeling, but I would love it if this turned out to be like 1999. Only a couple of the players from that team were on the championship contending teams of 2002-2003, but it was a slow build with pieces being exchanged here and there until a contender was ready three years later. I'm looking forward to the ride to 2009.
Kev.in
Starter
slugking50 said:
I disagree with that. I think this team would win a 7 game series vs. the '99 team. If you count what they went on to become and project out that this years team won't get much better then I guess you could say it's no comparison. But in '99 there were plenty of people who couldn't see a way for the Kings to climb into the elite level. This year's team is pretty close to that level, the championship contender tier of teams.
slugking50
All-Star
Kev.in said:
Again theres the difference. Level of talent. That 99 team has loads of it and were a few pieces away... this team isnt near that level. We had Vlade, Webb, and Peja. We have now 1 player... maybe 2 if you count bibby an a bunch of good players but not good enough.
I have to agree with Kev.in on this one; the point is that the team in 1999 was nowhere near as good as the team that it would become. Stojakovic, in particular, wasn't nearly as good in 1999 as he would grow to become...slugking50 said:
The '99 team had a star in Webber and a leader in Divac... and that was pretty much it. Williams had a pretty good season for a rookie, but he was still a rookie... Williamson had had the best season he would ever have the year before, and was already on the way down by '99... our starting SG was the living legend Tariq Abdul-Wahad, for cripes sake... Our bench wasn't any better than it is now.
Bibby '06 >> Williams '99
Martin '06 >> Abdul-Wahad '99
Artest '06 >> Williamson '99
Thomas '06 << Webber '99
Miller '06 -- Divac '99 (push, with a slight edge towards Divac for the leadership)
Wells '06 >> Barry '99
Abdur-Rahim '06 >> Funderburke '99
Garcia '06 >> Stojakovic '99 (yeah, I said it)
Hart '06 << Maxwell '99
Williamson '06 -- Pollard '99 (push)
The talent level of the team in '99 was not "a few pieces away" when you account for their level of development relative to the era; not even close. I think that the talent level of the '06 team may actually be superior to the '99 team, and I'm pretty confident that the '06 team would win a seven-game series.
slugking50
All-Star
Mr. S£im Citrus said:
Must be a miscommunication by myself. I should say potential. I dont see the same potential comparively to the 1999 team. Apples and oranges from my perspective.
Well see, that's the thing; to echo what QF said, it seems like you're taking what that team became and transposing it onto what that team was. You can't possibly have thought that team was only a few pieces away from being a contender in 1999; the only way that that team, at that time, was a few pieces away from being a contender is if those few pieces were Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman.slugking50 said:
slugking50
All-Star
Mr. S£im Citrus said:
I had the feeling that that team could be more then a team that almost went to the second round. I saw alot of potentiial and there was definately room for improvement. We had decsent size athleticism and they were blowing my mind with their play on the court as I was used to the old kings who looking back were slow and small.
i dont see that room for improvement here. I dont see the great size and overall ability. Thats the point im trying to get across. This team has the potential to get to to the second round and maybe just maybe if we can get really lucky, get to the WCF.
But Of course.... I could end up being completely wrong and looking like an idiot.
Kev.in
Starter
The potential was there, but by the summer of 2000 a lot of Kings fans were feeling kind of desperate. I remember a lot of people hoping we had a shot at signing Jalen Rose, or thinking it might be worth it to take a chance on JR Rider. They were looking for anything that could give the perimeter scoring a boost. Webber and Vlade became such a great pair and Peja came a long way, but without the trades for Bibby and Christie (plus the FA signing of Bobby Jackson) the Kings would've been looking at an occaisional first round victory in those years from 99-03.
So when you say you saw the potential, it's not anything visionary. Everyone saw that there were some very good pieces and if we could find a way to shore up the weak spots the sky would be the limit. You can say the same thing with this team, except that they're significantly more mature and light years ahead on defense. Shore up the weak points, get them playing together for a few seasons and they're back in shape to compete for the title.
So when you say you saw the potential, it's not anything visionary. Everyone saw that there were some very good pieces and if we could find a way to shore up the weak spots the sky would be the limit. You can say the same thing with this team, except that they're significantly more mature and light years ahead on defense. Shore up the weak points, get them playing together for a few seasons and they're back in shape to compete for the title.
slugking50
All-Star
Kev.in said:
Eh... Fair point. I certainly wasnt one who wanted Rider or Rose...
DC was the difference... and Getting Mike.
Unless we get some size(talented size) We are doomed to be just a secong round team. But that doesnt grow on trees.....
Bricklayer
Don't Make Me Use The Bat
slugking50 said:
I do think that is the difference. Teh single most exciting thing about the 1999 team was what seemed to be the potential to be who knows how good. Maybe even win 50 someday! Woot!
Thsi team is not built that way. Most of its mainstays are already as good as they will ever be, so there is a lot more of what you see is what you get with it.
bozzwell
Starter
As far as potential goes, nobody really knows how far Artest can go with a coach like RA and a on a team where he is a centerpiece. What if he starts producing what he did last night in every big game and in every play off game?
What's Kevin's and Cisco's headroom to grow?
There is a lot of potential there and I believe that Ron's talents have been largely untapped by Bulls and Pacers (Pacers for obvious reason's).
Ron said in his first or second year out of college that he wants to be the best player in the NBA. I don't think he will stop trying.
What's Kevin's and Cisco's headroom to grow?
There is a lot of potential there and I believe that Ron's talents have been largely untapped by Bulls and Pacers (Pacers for obvious reason's).
Ron said in his first or second year out of college that he wants to be the best player in the NBA. I don't think he will stop trying.
Bricklayer
Don't Make Me Use The Bat
bozzwell said:
Well obviously if Ron has the potential to be the best in the league then we have all kinds of potential.
But good as he is...that's just highly unlikely. Just as a neither here nor there:
Artest
03-04 IND 18.3pts (.421 .310 .723) 5.3reb 3.7ast 2.1stl 0.7blk
05-06 IND 19.4pts (.460 .333. 612) 4.9reb 2.2ast 2.6stl 0.7blk
05-06 SAC 17.7pts (.409 .298 .706) 5.5reb 4.1ast 2.2stl 0.7blk
The point just being that Ron is just being Ron here. He's turned around our season, but its not as if he is playing at some level he has never reached before because he was being held down, and now he's on his way to Jordandome. I can definitely see him improving just because he is so wildly inconsistent offensively. But he's always been that way.
bozzwell
Starter
Bricklayer said:
At Bulls he was held back by his teammates and coaches. At Indy he was held back by micromanagement and his own errors. I do not think that he has Jordan potential, but he does have Jordan's ability to attack deficiencies in his own game with determination that yields improvements.
I would rate him as high as top 15 player right now with potential to crack top 10, maybe even top 5. There a are players that are better then him in terms of pure basketball ability, but Ron will have their lunch if he is consistent threat on Offense and just does his thing on defence.
Not trying to make Ron into something that he is not, nor am I to eager to become too much of a player fan here (again). But I just love that kid. Since he came to the Kings even my game changed (3 times a week in the local gym). I am not a soft euro hanging around 3 point line no more. I am mixing it in with the big boys down low and playing D ( for the first time in 13 years). And I have bruises to prove it.
Not Jordan, but Ron is a talismanic presence not a liability IF he is given the chance and respect that RA and Kings have given him. Mark my words.
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