Defense starts inside unfortunately. Mentioned in another thread that we are absolutely dead LAST in the entire league in shotblocking. And that's with a PG supposedly letting his man into the paint every time down the floor (hence in theory more chances for blocks). Its the much larger problem, especially with Artest and Bonzi around now to be able to take some of the tougher matchups on the perimeter.
I'm all for the basic premise of this thread, that its utterly ridiculous the way everytime somebody has a bad game a new trade him thread pops up. But its nonetheless 100% clear to anybody who has watched the NBA that our interior defense is not remotely tenable and something needs to be done. That "something" quite likely being a trade of some sort.
None of the above excuses Mike's defense, but it does put it in perspective as a priority. Mike was the starting PG for the best defensive team the Kings ever fielded. He was also perhaps THE pivotal player in the greatest playoff series the Kings ever played. Whatever his very real defensive issues, you can be very very good with him out there, and indeed because of him being out there.
P.S. to put "time" in perspective, our guys are mostly 27, 28, 29. That means they've got maybe 4-5 years to go before they begin to decline. If you waste a year, that's 20-25% of their remianing peak years. Waste 2 years, that could be 50% of their remaining peak years. You can waste time with 22 yr olds, not with middleaged vets.
