Willie Cauley-Stein: the 2018-19 Season watch

ppine said:
I have been a little too harsh with Willie. He is a frustrating player for me to watch. We thought we were getting the defensive leader and rim protector. We got a guy who focuses on offense because it is safer. Last year he fell down a lot. He has worked hard on offense with his footwork. He is much improved. But he takes games off. He gets 4 rebounds. He does not rotate from the weakside. He swats at the ball instead of moving his feet. He is the main reason the Kings are weak under the basket and give up too many layups. He is a gifted player in many ways, but does not use his physical skills very well on defense, and is the lowest achieveing rebounder in the league considering the fact that he is a fast 7 footer that can get off his feet quickly.
Click to expand...
He is frustrating for most of us to watch.
There is probably more posted about Willie on this forum then any other kings player.
 
Sorry.. I have no idea what you guys have been talking about...
IMO, if that 7 foot athletic freak can't grab more than 13 boards a game he is a waste. But we all know he avgs what.. 8? It's nice he can score... but man.. we are losing games because we can't rebound the ball after a miss. I just don't get it with him. An other thing is what is he going to get in free agency? He might be worth more in a trade depending on what we could get back. Sorry WCS, we need more.
 
ppine said:
I have been a little too harsh with Willie. He is a frustrating player for me to watch. We thought we were getting the defensive leader and rim protector. We got a guy who focuses on offense because it is safer. Last year he fell down a lot. He has worked hard on offense with his footwork. He is much improved. But he takes games off. He gets 4 rebounds. He does not rotate from the weakside. He swats at the ball instead of moving his feet. He is the main reason the Kings are weak under the basket and give up too many layups. He is a gifted player in many ways, but does not use his physical skills very well on defense, and is the lowest achieveing rebounder in the league considering the fact that he is a fast 7 footer that can get off his feet quickly.
Click to expand...

Thank you. This is what I was talking about. Much more conducive to discussion if you elaborate on your problems with WCS rather than just saying he's gutless and afraid.
 
The Hammer said:
If he can defend 5's he can play the 5. He can already defend 5's better than WCS. He can also score on them better down low. Am I wrong?
Click to expand...

if we can defend the 5 yeah, but I'm not sure he is better at it than WCS is at this point. yes, he does block more shots, but it seemed to me he had trouble against the larger 5s. I'll pay more attention when is up against big 5s.
 
burekijogurt said:
if we can defend the 5 yeah, but I'm not sure he is better at it than WCS is at this point. yes, he does block more shots, but it seemed to me he had trouble against the larger 5s. I'll pay more attention when is up against big 5s.
Click to expand...

Me too. Something to look at. And, he's really still just getting a feel for the NBA game. 20 games. I have a hunch that he will develop into a very good defender, just my eye test.
 
kingsfan1984 said:
And seems to rebound better
Click to expand...

he will be an even better rebounder when he learns the importance of boxing out. to me it seems that he rebounds defensively like he rebounds offensively, that is floating around, following his instincts trying to put himself in the best position to grab the board. and when the ball bounces unexpectedly he can be caught in nowhere land. end of that Warriors game is a case in point. If he puts a body on his man once the shot goes up instead of drifting towards the basket ( I think thats his instinct) he would have had that board.
 
Offer him to the Celtics as the piece to help them in the East for Robert Williams a headcase but he will protect the rim, WCS has stopped playing Grown Man basketball.
 
I totally disagree, despite the solid points made about WCS not yet playing up to his potential. The fact is that we have in Willie a guy who can run, loves his teammates, contributes to the positive chemistry of the team, and has not yet reached his potential. The team we're building has a good chance of unlocking what years of dysfunction have stymied. Do we trade him if we can get someone back who can do all of that and more? Of course! But that's true for everyone. I hereby invoke the Whiteside Protocol, and suggest we unwad our panties and give this some time.
 
MizzouKing said:
I totally disagree, despite the solid points made about WCS not yet playing up to his potential. The fact is that we have in Willie a guy who can run, loves his teammates, contributes to the positive chemistry of the team, and has not yet reached his potential. The team we're building has a good chance of unlocking what years of dysfunction have stymied. Do we trade him if we can get someone back who can do all of that and more? Of course! But that's true for everyone. I hereby invoke the Whiteside Protocol, and suggest we unwad our panties and give this some time.
Click to expand...
The thing is...
WCS is due for a contract. We (the FO) have to make a decision about the direction of the team very soon. He wasn't a one-and-done, so he is a little older than most top 10 picks these days coming in to their free agent period. I think if we can find a way to get value out of trading him, it maybe better than pay him 16 million next year not to rebound from the center position/be a defensive anchor/rim protector. Anyone (I believe) that is critical of him is looking ahead of the looming contract he may get from us.
 
MizzouKing said:
I totally disagree, despite the solid points made about WCS not yet playing up to his potential. The fact is that we have in Willie a guy who can run, loves his teammates, contributes to the positive chemistry of the team, and has not yet reached his potential. The team we're building has a good chance of unlocking what years of dysfunction have stymied. Do we trade him if we can get someone back who can do all of that and more? Of course! But that's true for everyone. I hereby invoke the Whiteside Protocol, and suggest we unwad our panties and give this some time.
Click to expand...

He’s 25 and in his 4th season. The issues are immutable IMO, not something improved with repetition. He’s up for a contract now

He doesn’t have a strong motor/toughness, and is an unacceptable interior defender/rebounder

I’m starting to think the disconnect with WCS, throughout the entire season, is that more people simply pay more attention to interior defense. It’s not the flashiest point of the game, but it’s critical, and annoying, if your the team soft on it for us to see the layup line and constant offensive boards
 
I think Willie is getting blamed a lot for our defensive problems. Our guards still suck at containing penetration. He has to often help out on the perimeter player, which means our interior defense is completely poop because they don't know how to rotate over. How much of that blame goes on Willie?
 
206Fan said:
I think Willie is getting blamed a lot for our defensive problems. Our guards still suck at containing penetration. He has to often help out on the perimeter player, which means our interior defense is completely poop because they don't know how to rotate over. How much of that blame goes on Willie?
Click to expand...

I know you tend to be more supportive of him, it simply boils down to a perceptional difference in how interior defense is viewed, it seems
 
Section 101 said:
What I liked the most last night was Harry running back to the paint and turning around in transition. He wasnt jogging 2 steps in front of his man. Stopped the guard from even thinking about driving to the rim.
Click to expand...

I wanted to give you five "likes" but I couldn't find that button!
 
Kingsfan23 said:
I know you tend to be more supportive of him, it simply boils down to a perceptional difference in how interior defense is viewed, it seems
Click to expand...
I'm someone who has always been hypocritical of him. I didn't like the draft pick and thought he was Chris Andersen/Birdman Jr at best: spark energy big off the bench. His 1st year was ok but inconsistent. I questioned his motor from the get go after summer league. I was mad that he came up to SL unprepared and then came to training camp out of shape. Same crap happens his 2nd year mixed in with his inconsistent play. I've been ready to give up on him many times. I hated how much he's emphasized his offense rather than focusing on the defensive end.

However, my views have changed for him after the end of last season and the start of this season. Yes he lacks in several areas, but he's made large strides in others. He has unfairly become our scapegoat. Put him on a playoff team and he'd be a unanimous top 10 center.

The reason why I'm so defensive of his defense this year is because EVERYONE on our team is near-horrible on defense except for Willie and Shumpert. It becomes extremely nitpicky at this point..especially when he had a 17pt 10reb game. The only thing people take out of that is: we need to trade Willie.
I don't see the same criticism for any other player on this team.

Hes basically the QB of our defense. There's not much he can do when WRs are dropping balls and RBs offer minimal help. That's how I see it.
 
206Fan said:
I'm someone who has always been hypocritical of him. I didn't like the draft pick and thought he was Chris Andersen/Birdman Jr at best: spark energy big off the bench. His 1st year was ok but inconsistent. I questioned his motor from the get go after summer league. I was mad that he came up to SL unprepared and then came to training camp out of shape. Same crap happens his 2nd year mixed in with his inconsistent play. I've been ready to give up on him many times. I hated how much he's emphasized his offense rather than focusing on the defensive end.

However, my views have changed for him after the end of last season and the start of this season. Yes he lacks in several areas, but he's made large strides in others. He has unfairly become our scapegoat. Put him on a playoff team and he'd be a unanimous top 10 center.

The reason why I'm so defensive of his defense this year is because EVERYONE on our team is near-horrible on defense except for Willie and Shumpert. It becomes extremely nitpicky at this point..especially when he had a 17pt 10reb game. The only thing people take out of that is: we need to trade Willie.
I don't see the same criticism for any other player on this team.

Hes basically the QB of our defense. There's not much he can do when WRs are dropping balls and RBs offer minimal help. That's how I see it.
Click to expand...

WCS had 17/10. Bagley had 18/10. Those are solid numbers. Clippers were having a terrible time guarding our bigs as well.
 
WCS will not get a supermax. He won't even get a Porter like max deal for a rookie.

But that's what the Cousins situation could have turned into.
 
Ozymandias said:
Wall's deal is 4years40 million per szn... Willie's not gonna get anywhere near that. He's gonna get more like Bismack Biyombo 4 yrs $72MM money.... Which is much more palatable and makes him much easier to move if need be.
Click to expand...

click on the link and read the second paragraph.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

N
Willie Cauley-Stein was best Kings player in 2018-19, catch-all stat says
Replies
0
Views
336
NBC Sports BayArea
N
Blob
Our "Elite" Center
2
Replies
33
Views
3K
VF21
VF21
Back
Top