Uncle Keegs

2

206Fan

All-Star
#61
#61
PorchSurfin said:
Guilty. But I will say that the looks Keegan was getting were much improved from last year. By simply dribbling into a side step or step back you can see the bag is growing. You can also see how when he comes off screens he is looking to square up instead of holding the ball looking for an outlet or cutter.

One other thing that I think is noteworthy is he knows his shots are going in. With the first corner 3 he shot it and was heading back down court when it went in.

There is a lot to unpack from his 2 games at the Cali Classic, but the fact he upped his game in game 2 this year versus last year when he laid an egg shows the improvement in his game and mentality.

Dude is a robot. Keeg-bot. You program him with what he needs to learn and work on and he gives you a little smirk, an "OK Coach, I got a little wiggle", and goes to work.

He might not be that lengthy 3 and D wing we keep hearing get harped about, but he right now projects as a mid 20s ppg 7 reb per game player on high efficiency. And on a team with Fox, Sabonis, Monk, and Huerter projecting as your other high level scorers.

I wouldn't be shocked if Sabonis takes a step back into a 16 ppg guy, 10 assists, 12+ rebs in order to compensate for more Keegan volume and all the movement Vezenkov will create.

I have NO idea what is going to happen next year, but on paper the Kings have probably the most prolific offense ever seen, with a dagger split of 2 man action having either Fox or Monk holding the ball in crunch time. Might not even have to consider a wing defender if you just run everyone out the building by the 3rd quarter because of the wave after wave of scoring from all levels being thrown at them.
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The most impressive thing about Keegan is how quickly he improves. It's scary. Earlier in the season Coach Brown called out Keegan for not rebounding. What does he do for the next 10 games? Grabs every rebound in sight. Mid-way through the season, Keegan got called out for not attacking aggressively.. he ends up responding with one of his best dunks of the season.

His growth in the playoffs was also insane. He was dreadful in the first 3 games and it looked like the moment was too big for him. How does he respond? Drops 23pts and 7rebs in an important game 4 where we were 1 bounce away from winning. In the next game, he was very efficient on 4-5 shooting, but everyone questions why he didn't shoot more... what does he do immediately in the next game? Puts up 17 shots in a blow-out win. He didn't have the greatest shooting efficiency, but his shots were some of the most important in the game.

Fast forward to this summer and he's doing exactly what's being asked of him...again.

The kid is special. There's probably not another rookie in his draft class who would be able to take constructive criticism and immediately improve on a whim like this. Some guys take years to figure it out.. some don't figure it out at all. I was in the crowd of "low ceiling Keegan" but I was 10000000% wrong. Maybe this is a biased take, but I think his ceiling is sky high.
 
kingsboi

kingsboi

Hall of Famer
#62
#62
PorchSurfin said:
Guilty. But I will say that the looks Keegan was getting were much improved from last year. By simply dribbling into a side step or step back you can see the bag is growing. You can also see how when he comes off screens he is looking to square up instead of holding the ball looking for an outlet or cutter.

One other thing that I think is noteworthy is he knows his shots are going in. With the first corner 3 he shot it and was heading back down court when it went in.

There is a lot to unpack from his 2 games at the Cali Classic, but the fact he upped his game in game 2 this year versus last year when he laid an egg shows the improvement in his game and mentality.

Dude is a robot. Keeg-bot. You program him with what he needs to learn and work on and he gives you a little smirk, an "OK Coach, I got a little wiggle", and goes to work.

He might not be that lengthy 3 and D wing we keep hearing get harped about, but he right now projects as a mid 20s ppg 7 reb per game player on high efficiency. And on a team with Fox, Sabonis, Monk, and Huerter projecting as your other high level scorers.

I wouldn't be shocked if Sabonis takes a step back into a 16 ppg guy, 10 assists, 12+ rebs in order to compensate for more Keegan volume and all the movement Vezenkov will create.

I have NO idea what is going to happen next year, but on paper the Kings have probably the most prolific offense ever seen, with a dagger split of 2 man action having either Fox or Monk holding the ball in crunch time. Might not even have to consider a wing defender if you just run everyone out the building by the 3rd quarter because of the wave after wave of scoring from all levels being thrown at them.
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I see Keegan's career trajectory in the same mold of a Antawn Jamison, Keegan is the better three point shooter but Antawn was able to mix it up inside and out and be crafty around the rim because he wasn't that athletic.
 
funkykingston

funkykingston

Super Moderator
Staff member
#76
#76
KingsFanSince85 said:
BUT ….. I’ve read on this very site that Keegan has a “low ceiling”. So how could Monte McNair or anyone else in operations foolishly believe this? </s>

FWIW, Luke clearly explains the Kawhi comparison in terms of what it is and what it isn’t.
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Yeah, we joked about it here, but Loucks was very clear that the scout who made that comment was just talking about their respective leaps from Year 1 to Year 2.

And honestly, I think that's one of the only paths for the Kings to go from good team to potential contender. They need a third star and I think guys like OG Anunoby or Siakam are not quite good enough while also costing too much to acquire. Having Keegan make that leap is the best possible scenario.
 
Vinny Basketballerino

Vinny Basketballerino

Starter
#77
#77
Hoovtrain said:
Would be a huge boon for this team if he could be a #1
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Insane to think about this team, as good as it is offensively, that our number one hasn't even matured into that yet. The Kings sure are doing a good job of hiding how excited they must be internally - though the hint came out from Loucks.

I wasn't joking when I said this could be the greatest offensive team in the history of the sport. That's something guys will sacrifice to be a part of.

Keegan as your number one, and the best fourth quarter finisher in the game on your team? I'll take that and twice on Sundays.

Loucks doesn't strike me as a hype man. I'm sure he believes in his guys - but I don't think he'd be sharing this little story about the scout unless he 100% was sure Keegan's progress was legitimate. All of this is extremely encouraging.

You ever play against guys that were just "good"? I've even been that guy in some sports at some times (6th grade four square comes to mind). "Improving" just isn't difficult, and really it's more a matter of figuring out what the coach wants. You've already got the tools - you're just figuring out how to deploy them at the next level. I believe Keegan is this way. That's why, when coach says "Hey Keegan, do you not know how to dribble or what man?" And then Keegan goes out and takes it to the hole time and time again. This is a matter of the coach just telling him what switch to flip. It's a process, but it's not a struggle.

The kid is gifted.
 
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gunks

gunks

Hall of Famer
#78
#78
I'll gonna temper expectations, because Fox was flashing superstar stuff towards the end of the year and Domas (when not playing the Warriors) is Joker lite....

But if Keegan DOES end up talented enough to be our number 1, we probably don't have to give a **** about defense anymore because we'll be dropping 150 a game.

Vivek's dream scenario :p
 
Insomniacal Fan

Insomniacal Fan

Starter
#79
#79
If Keegan becomes a shot creator, the main benefit the Kings get is robustness.

Health is the one thing from last year that isn't sustainable in the long term. Domas played for months with a broken finger, because if he went out, there wasn't much chance of us making the playoffs. Having the ability to sit guys and load manage will be key to the duration of the Kings' run
 
SacTownKid

SacTownKid

Hall of Famer
#80
#80
To be a true superstar you have to not only score out of pick and roll at will but make plays for others as well. If they think he can be that type of player, we need to actually see it next year. Less DHO more PNR.
 
KingsFanSince85

KingsFanSince85

All-Star
#82
#82
Hoovtrain said:
Would be a huge boon for this team if he could be a #1
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The boon being that this team would be a legit title contending favorite. Because we already know how good Swipa and Domas are. If they somehow became #2 and #3, this team just became otherworldly.

What other teams have a #3 as good as Swipa or Domas?
 
2

206Fan

All-Star
#83
#83
SacTownKid said:
To be a true superstar you have to not only score out of pick and roll at will but make plays for others as well. If they think he can be that type of player, we need to actually see it next year. Less DHO more PNR.
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One thing at a time. Kawhi and KD weren’t much of playmakers earlier in their careers. It took Kawhi until his 9th season to crack over 4apg.

I don’t think playmaking is necessary to be a superstar SF in the NBA. Keegan’s game doesn’t fit in that mold either.
 
PorchSurfin

PorchSurfin

Starter
#84
#84
206Fan said:
One thing at a time. Kawhi and KD weren’t much of playmakers earlier in their careers. It took Kawhi until his 9th season to crack over 4apg.

I don’t think playmaking is necessary to be a superstar SF in the NBA. Keegan’s game doesn’t fit in that mold either.
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I agree with this. If the Kings see him as a Peja/Dirk Nowitzki type of player, then it makes sense. And we would be a damn dynasty if that comes to happen.
 
SacTownKid

SacTownKid

Hall of Famer
#85
#85
206Fan said:
One thing at a time. Kawhi and KD weren’t much of playmakers earlier in their careers. It took Kawhi until his 9th season to crack over 4apg.

I don’t think playmaking is necessary to be a superstar SF in the NBA. Keegan’s game doesn’t fit in that mold either.
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They always had the legit triple threat out of pnr though and they're talking superstar stuff here. Look at the top 10 scorers and not a single one these days is averaging less than 5.3 assists and/or is basically running a team. The game is pretty different than even when Kawhi and KD were starting off. Keegan statistically did very well as a scorer out of the pnr in the playoffs but it was all pretty much that one game. The potential is there but if they are putting that kind of pressure on the dude they need to have to give him more rope to run things so hopefully that is the case.
 
Vinny Basketballerino

Vinny Basketballerino

Starter
#87
#87
KingsFanSince85 said:
The boon being that this team would be a legit title contending favorite. Because we already know how good Swipa and Domas are. If they somehow became #2 and #3, this team just became otherworldly.

What other teams have a #3 as good as Swipa or Domas?
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And what if... your number four is the Euroleague MVP and his game translates.... :eek::eek::eek:

Like I said... if this thing clicks... it's going to click HARD!
 
SacTownKid

SacTownKid

Hall of Famer
#90
#90
Vinny Basketballerino said:
I see Keegan as a much more dynamic player than Peja. I've already seen better handles, better in transition, etc.
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Whoa, I think you're misremembering some of Peja's game, although he probably didn't have the guard skills to truly carry any team which is why Artest was such a step up for the Kings needs. Then again, Pejas back probably played a part as well.

 
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