From a basketball perspective how does this work?

If you haven’t, read Tom Ziller’s analysis of said situation. Read the fellow who runs At the Hive for a Hornets analysis. Zach Harper of CK hasn’t elaborate greatly (in terms of actual analysis and not cursory off the top of the head type thoughts), but I suggest you read that as well. Eventually Hornets247 may have something to say as well.

The deal is a straight swap of Kenny Thomas for Emeka Okafor according to Sam Amick. I don’t think the Kings would even consider adding any other players to this deal because the reason you do this deal (from the Kings vantage) is simply to add Okafor to the core of players you already have. If you’re the Hornets, you’re eliminating just over 53 million in salary obligations for the next 4 years.

According to Basketball Reference, Emeka Okafor averaged 13.2 points and 10.1 boards a year ago. Per 36 mins, Okafor is averaging almost 8 defensive boards a night. The Kings have no one, including Kenny Thomas and Jon Brockman, doing that.

I think you can expect defensive rebounding to improve against every NBA team. (It’s already very good as is. The Kings currently rank 8th in overall rebounding, 15th in defensive rebounding, and 2nd in offensive rebounding.)

Additionally, Okafor is a better shot blocker than any of the Kings on the roster, and that would be a help as well.

Post defense is the question, and I think it’s a question of HOW GOOD Okafor would be in defending the bigs out West like a Greg Oden, Andrew Bynum, and what not. One of the knocks on Okafor would be that he can’t defend those type’s of players, and if you cant defend those guys one on one on the interior, it’s going to be very difficult to make the Kings a championship team without someone who can.

Thankfully we have splits, and we can check those numbers.

In the road game vs the Blazers, Okafor scored 18 and had 5 boards. That was the 2nd night of a b2b though, and Charlotte had played the Lakers the night before. (They won that game.) Okafor had 18 & 11 in a 2OT game. (Bynum had 24 & 14 in 7 less min’s on the floor.) In the rematch in March, Okafor had 13 points and 9 boards vs the Lakers who were not playing Bynum in that game. The Blazers against the Bobcats in Charlotte saw Okafor go for 22 & 11.

What strikes me is how steady Okafor is. He doesn’t have very high high’s, or very low low’s, and is pretty consistent. (It’s probably why Larry Brown doesn’t like him.)

Offensively, Okafor is not known for his passing skills. He also has a career FG% of just over 50%, but keep in mind that’s because he had several years well under 45% in his first 2 years in the League. You toss those out, and it’s much more like 53%. The one negative about Okafor is that he can’t shoot FT’s very well, and is a career 59.6% FT shooter. Lots of big men can’t shoot FT’s, and perhaps that’s something Okafor can work on as he comes to a situation where his hitting FT’s could be critical.

Okafor has a few post moves on the block, although nothing special, and has been characterized as a steady double double guy.

I would consider him a solid, very solid even, player who does many things very well, but nothing great.

So why would the Hornets get rid of Okafor when Chris Paul wants to make the team better?

According to John Reid of NOLA, Chris Paul will be out for the next 2 weeks with an ankle sprain. I’m not a doctor, but it sounds to me that Paul’s injury is worse than the Hornets originally advertised. You factor this in with Okafor’s long term, 53 million dollars owed beyond this season, and that’s a tough sell on why you would want to win more games in the interim when a higher draft pick can help you more. Frankly, I think the Hornets want to lose a lot of games to get a pick in what some are projecting to be a big heavy draft.

That would be the reason. You add that to two expiring contracts in Peja Stojakovic (14M), and Morris Peterson (6.3M), and suddenly you have 20M of expiring contracts that could net you a quality player (or two), along with a high draft pick that could rebuild the team. Or, you could let the two contracts expire, and sign someone in Free Agency in 2011.

More flexibility rarely hurts teams, and the Hornets are not in a position to say no to this.

From where I stand, the only holdup here is from the Kings end.

Financially, what does this do to any perspective Free Agents in 2010 or 2011?

This trade doesn’t diminish any prospects of acquiring a superstar Free Agent in 2010. The rub is it may in 2011 with several prominent players who perhaps could become Free Agents in the summer of 2011. I’ll quote TZ here:

I think free agency is a big risk. The best player the Sacramento Kings have ever acquired as a free agent (not including any extensions/re-signings) is Vlade Divac. At the time, the team overpaid for Vlade — he was making All-Star level money despite a reputation as an average starting center with a few special skills. No one (but Geoff Petrie, perhaps) knew how well Divac would mesh with Chris Webber and friends.

Who is No. 2 behind Divac? Bobby Jackson, who at the time of his signing was a three-year vet with a career 8 ppg average? Shareef Abdur-Rahim? John Salmons? The Kings, even when great, have never signed high-level free agents. This is not particularly Sacramento-specific, either: few great players move in unrestricted free agency. This coming summer is a bit of an anomaly that players are even getting to free agency … and it’s still unlikely many of the big names will move.

Yep. Sacramento is not LA, Miami, New York, or Chicago. That isn’t changing. You take risks such as Okafor when the time is right, in my opinion, because you need to take that risk.

The question: Is it time to take the risk? (I’ll put that off for a minute.)

Financially, it definitely changes the outlook of this team for the long term as Okafor instantly becomes the highest paid player on the Kings. You can bet that the Kings would be looking at 55-60 million dollars of salary for the next 2 seasons (10-11 & 11-12), and possibly more than that in 2012-13.

While it’s not necessarily enough to put the Kings into luxury tax, especially when the Kings aren’t even selling out Arco Arena with a fun young team now, it’s going to be difficult for the Maloof’s to justify a massive expense as Okafor.

What I can tell you is that the Maloof’s will be looking at a totally different team by trading Kenny Thomas for Emeka Okafor. This changes the complete financial outlook for a team that has been struggling at the box office, and it changes how the Kings spend money for the next 5-10 years potentially.

Is the time right?

It’s a matter of opinion and faith. If you believe the Kings can contend for a playoff spot THIS season, get better as the next several years go by, and your young core develops along with the acquisition of Okafor, than yes obviously it is. But, if you haven’t noticed, that’s a lot of if’s.

That’s IF Jason Thompson is an All-Star and one of the 10 best big men in the NBA for the next 5 years regardless of price. (Since when price doesn’t matter?)

That’s IF Emeka Okafor fits in with his teammates, and he doesn’t suffer a major catastrophic injury the way Chris Webber did. (I have little fear of a Webber injury with Okafor.)

You also assume that Spencer Hawes gets better as the 3rd big man (as it’s clear he doesn’t have the same level of effect offensively that Jason Thompson has right now) and becomes that great 3rd big every contending team needs.

Another assumption is that Tyreke Evans is in fact a franchise player, and the issue’s surrounding that particular point in of itself.

This isn’t just one move to pick up a very good player with an expensive contract; it’s a paradigm shift in how the Kings will be doing business for the next 5 years. That’s a question that, frankly, I don’t want hinging solely on Emeka Okafor’s contract. I especially don’t want that question hinging on whether Tyreke Evans and Jason Thompson become All-Star/Franchise Level players so quickly into their career’s. The preferable time would to be doing this over the summer. I’m not sure this deal can be achieved over the summer, for several reasons, but mostly because there isn’t any 2011 luxury tax relief for the Hornets by waiting, which is why the Kings are considering doing it now.

What’s the risk of not doing this deal now?

The risk of not doing a deal for Okafor now is several fold.

1. New Orleans may change their mind down the road and decide they A) want more for Okafor or B) find a different taker willing to accept their terms of the deal at some point during the season.
2. Sacramento may not have a better taker for using Kenny Thomas’ expiring contract as a trade chip.

So what other “ripple” effects are there?

Ripple effects are, by definition, small issue’s that build up to larger one’s as time goes on. The larger this issue becomes in terms of overall effect, the more difficult it is to see the Kings doing this deal.

Consider that Spencer Hawes new contract will come into play starting in the 2011-12 season. Jason Thompson and (possibly) Donte Greene would be in line for a new contract in the 2012-13 season. Tyreke Evans and (possibly) Omri Casspi would be in line for a new contract in the 2013-14 season.

Emeka Okafor has a contract for the next 3 seasons, and a player option in 2013-14 as well. That’s the risk. 38.3 million for the next 3 years, plus the option year with another 14 1/2 million tacked onto that. (Given that the current CBA is not likely to give more flexibility on a new contract, I don’t think it’s likely that Okafor will turn down his option.)

I think the first question that this does for the Kings is how they would negotiate any contract with Spencer Hawes, and then in turn with JT and the others down the road. With the new CBA looming in 2011, the advantage is that you could set a negotiating precedent and claim (rightfully) that you didn’t negotiate Okafor’s contract. I suppose this is one way the Kings could decide to solve the issue in terms of bringing Okafor in.

The other issue’s remain with the other bigger contracts on the roster: Kevin Martin, Francisco Garcia, Andres Nocioni, and Beno Udrih.

Of the 4, Martin will be the most valuable, and Udrih may be the most difficult to command return value in a trade. This is especially true in relation to what Garcia does as opposed to what Udrih does. I think it also means that Andres Nocioni may be the most vulnerable to Emeka Okafor’s presence and what Okafor means to the offense. Right now Nocioni is a tough presence who provides a willing, if not steady, presence offensively while not usually creating for others. With Nocioni and Okafor, you would have 2 players with similar skill’s offensively, and Nocioni will be most likely a player you’re looking to move. Because Garcia can handle the ball, and shoot from deep, it may be much easier to fit Garcia long term within the offensive and defensive schematic that the Kings are running.

Nocioni is versatile, but part of his value stems from playing the 4. If he isn’t able to initiate more of the offense with Okafor on the court, suddenly he isn’t as valuable to the Kings. With acquiring Okafor, you’re certainly going to play Hawes more at the 4, and Thompson already is eating 35-40 min’s a night there as is.

Let’s say you acquire Okafor. You’re looking at this kind of depth chart:

C: Okafor, Hawes, Thompson, Brockman, May
PF: Thompson, Hawes, Brockman, May, Nocioni, Greene
SF: Nocioni, Garcia, Casspi, Greene, Evans
SG: Martin, Evans, Garcia, Udrih, Casspi, Greene
PG: Evans, Udrih, Rodriguez, Garcia, Casspi

The only players who arent listed beyond anything other than their primary position is Okafor and Martin. And, who cares given what they do produce? No one in the Orlando Magic organization will ever ask of Dwight Howard to be a PF just so they can play Marcin Gortat 30 min’s a game. That’s stupid. (Bad example I realize. Move on.)

The point here is that Okafor doesn’t necessarily make the team more versatile, but by not being able to play Hawes at one spot, that makes the front line more versatile. And, so on and so forth.

Finally, what are the chances that the Kings will do this deal?

My gut tells me that they won’t do this deal without thinking about this and deliberating about it first. The Hornets don’t play again until Tuesday against the Clippers and the Kings will be hosting the Bulls the same night.

Given that the Hornets are not likely to change their mind within the next 3 days, I think the Kings will be okay in taking some amount of time to deliberate this about first. I’m sure the Kings will make a decision on Monday though, either way.

I think this deal hinges on any number of things that I have very little way of checking or even knowing whether it rings true or not.

I think the first aspect to the Kings doing this deal is that they think Okafor makes them a playoff team this season. Period. Otherwise, what’s the point of taking long term money this early in a season when you’re contending for a playoff berth?

The second aspect is that you think Okafor is what you need to combat the size out West for the next 3 seasons (including this season) to help Hawes & Thompson develop as players.

The third aspect is purely financial: There is no way the Kings can keep the current crop of players together, bring in Emeka Okafor and not expect to be paying luxury tax within 3 years. It’s just not possible with the likelihood of the following:

• Okafor’s contract as part of the team salary
• Extensions for Hawes and Thompson kicking in
• The salary cap for the entire NBA going down for the next 4 seasons

Whatever the reality of the 3 bullet points actually means to the Kings management and ownership, it does mean that time will be needed before making a final decision. Saying “yay” or “nay” in a very short amount of time does not help a team. Looking at any and all options should be discussed. And, knowing Geoff Petrie, they will.

That being said, I think the 4th problem to this deal is how the Kings deal with any basketball lingering issue’s of how Okafor fits into the team, and that how impacts any other SF/SG in this deal. I don’t think the Kings will do this for certain unless they know they can dump Nocioni or Garcia’s contract by next summer. Given the financial difficulties of the team, not to mention playing time, it seems prudent that finding an expiring contract in exchange for either Cisco or Noc at this point.

If the Kings feel that any of the 4 points I just mentioned (Evans/Thompson become All-Star’s/Franchise players), Okafor makes the team better by adding more versatility everywhere else, that after thinking about it hard you believe you have a playoff team, and that you’re confident you can move Garcia/Nocioni for relief at some point, than I think the Kings will do this deal.

What is your opinion of all this?

I have no fucking clue whatsoever. None.

Ideally you would like a player with more talent for the money than Okafor. If that was the case, though, you would not be getting Okafor for Kenny Thomas’ contract.

Ideally you would like to get a top 5 pick and pick a young big man like Cole Aldrich, Derrick Favors, Donatas Motiejunas, Ed Davis among others. The issue here is that if the Kings are attempting to win every game possible this season and  make the playoffs (a worthwhile goal), than perhaps Okafor is a major piece in accomplishing such a feat. Additionally, if all those players declare for the draft (pretty likely), than if the Kings don’t have a top 5-10 pick, they’ll likely miss out on all of the aforementioned names.

I do not envy the Maloof’s and Geoff Petrie/basketball staff in making this decision. This is a very difficult proposition that could have immense repercussions down the line. Either way. By not taking Okafor, it could mean that the Kings have punted away an opportunity to make the team better, add a very good player at a slightly inflated price, and underestimated how good Jason Thompson and Spencer Hawes really were as players. Plus, with Tyreke Evans around, it may not be the worst thing in the world to try and add someone who can be counted on for consistent production night in and night out.

I don’t know. That’s my final answer. The final grade to a trade of this magnitude will not be answered at the end of this season, or even next season. When the Kings move Okafor, or move on several years down the road past next season, we will know how effective, in hindsight, this trade really was.

Ever want to be a GM? Here’s a good chance to prove how intelligent of an armchair GM you are.

Here is the Kings box score. Here is the 4 Factors:

 

	Pace	Eff	eFG	FT/FG	OREB%	TOr
Houston	95.0	105.3	46.1%	20.2	19.1	10.5
Sacramento		114.7	53.1%	28.4	38.1	18.9

 

In case you want to read real recap’s, read TZ’s at StR or Zach Harper’s at Cowbell Kingdom.

* Jason Thompson had a great offensive game. He had 27 points on 9-15 shooting, 9-10 line (can’t say I didn’t tell you so), and grabbed 9 offensive boards. Plus, he had 2 assists.

Defensively? I thought he formed a part of a coherent group with the same game plan. But as TZ noted, the balance on the glass defensively kept the Rockets off the offensive rebounds, while Jason Thompson matched the Rockets total for the game by his lonesome.

Even if this team doesn’t have a top 10 individual rebounder right now, it’s very clear that gang rebounding will rue the day. Given that only Jason Thompson is a top 5 in any rebounding category (offensive rebounding) in the NBA, it’s not that surprising.

At the same time, you have Spencer Hawes leading the Kings with 7 defensive rebounds. Ime Udoka, Tyreke Evans, Andres Nocioni, and Kenny Thomas all had 6 defensive rebounds. Beno Udrih, Jason Thompson and Jon Brockman each had 2 defensive rebounds a piece, and Omri Casspi had 1. B-A-L-A-N-C-E.

* Look at the point distribution for this game. You have 81 points for the top 4 Houston scorers (Ariza-28, Battier-23, Scola-20, and Brooks-10), and the Kings had 84 points for their top 4 scorers (Thompson with his career high 27, Udrih-22, Evans-20, and Nocioni-15). The bench for the Rockets had 19 points overall; The Kings had 25 points off their bench.

* The Kings had 18 turnovers, and none in the last 7 mins. One of those TO’s was a 24 shot clock violation with 7 mins remaining in regulation.

* Kenny Thomas is an official part of the rotation until otherwise notified; ditto with Ime Udoka (but I think we knew that)

* Omri Casspi went out with a sprained ankle, and Paul Westphal said in his post-game presser that the team wouldn’t find out until today. At some point today, we’ll find out.

* I wonder if Donte Greene’s performance earned him back into the doghouse. Hopefully not, but it was not very good minus a drive to the basket that earned him a pair of FT’s (that he made).

* If I had to sum it up in one word with regards to WaBeno, not too bad in the grand scheme of things. (In fact damn good.)

* Thanks Heavens for Tyreke Evans

I think that’s about it. You’ve already of the Okafor rumors. I’ll have to get my head together to say something more coherent than what TZ already has said. (Probably a lobotomy too, but whose counting?)

Tonight the Rick Adelman led Rockets burst their way into town. 3 key matchup’s, and I’ll leave you alone.

Aaron Brooks vs Beno Udrih

Whoever wins this matchup might win the game for either club. Brooks is currently responsible for a large percentage of Houston’s offense, and if WaBeno plays the same level of defense on Brooks that WaBeno deployed vs Westbrook (Westbrook also has had shooting struggles recently), that could change the nature of Houston’s offense.

Andres Nocioini vs Shane Battier.

This should be a fun matchup to watch period. Especially if you like gritty, off the ball tough guys going at it.

Trevor Ariza vs Tyreke Evans

Ariza is a quality player and Evans a quality player. The difference? Ariza was taken in the 2nd round by the Knicks in 2003, eventually traded to the Magic in 2006, and was traded to the Lakers in 2008. Tyreke Evans path to potential stardom will go far easier than Ariza’s. He was taken 4th overall in last June’s draft, and the Kings believe he is a franchise player.

I think the benefit of this matchup for the Rockets is that they can switch Battier and Ariza anytime a Pick & Roll between Evans & Nocioni happens. That’s a major advantage for the Rockets, and how Evans recognizes it will be the difference between being successful & not tonight. The Rockets are well coached, understand their game plan, they play as a 5 man unit, and they’re mentally tough.

So with that said, I think the adjustment that the Kings will have to make is using Spencer Hawes and Tyreke Evans on pick & pops and/or pick & rolls. Spencer will have hit to his outside shot tonight, and Jason Thompson MUST make his layup’s.

The Kings will have to rebound well, and because the pace is about even for both teams (Houston is 11th, Sacramento 12th), the Kings will have to make a large percentage of their open shots to win. Additionally, moving the ball will be critical, and rebounding from a poor practice yesterday as well may have to be in the cards for this young team. (If this were a veteran team, I wouldn’t be nearly as worried.) Houston offers all kind of matchup problems offensively and defensively, and it should be fun to see the type of matchup’s Paul Westphal and Rick Adelman attempt to will their teams to victory.

It’s a tough game, apparently people are going to be in the building tonight, and it should be loud. The Kings haven’t been .500 for a very long time, and winning tonight could go a long way to convincing people that this team is worth watching out at Arco. I look forward to seeing it all transpire.

Tip is now on CSN and 1140. Enjoy.

A year ago, the Kings were 3-5, and Kevin Martin had an ankle injury that the franchise either covered up, or the diagnosis was so out of line with the eventual reality, that something smelled funny. A year ago, Reggie Theus was starting Mikki Moore instead of Jason Thompson. A year ago, Kenny Thomas couldn’t get playing time because Theus was afraid it would tick his bosses off. A year ago, Brad Miller was coming off a suspension. A year ago, it was about a month until Reggie Theus himself got fired. A year ago, Joe Maloof called out Reggie Theus on the radio.

So let’s play: “Stupendous shit that shocks the shit out of you after 8 games”.

I’m going to quote what I wrote at StR earlier today with regards to Evans and his USG to TOV% ratio:

Does assists matter? Therefore, does assist to turnover ratio matter if assists mean less? I focus on TO’s far more because TO’s mean far more in the grand scheme of things.

If you want to accurately show something, you might want to use the TOV% to USG rate and that will tell you something about how effective each player is.

I’m going to pick 6 players: Dwyane Wade, Tyreke Evans, Rajon Rondo, Jonny Flynn, Joe Johnson and Kobe Bryant. Most of them turn the ball over at a very high rate (Flynn & Wade extremely high) and ALL of them have the ball in their hands A LOT.

Wade: USG: 37.1% TOV%: 10.1
Evans: USG: 25.3 TOV% 12.5
Rondo: USG: 17.2% TOV% 19.3
Flynn: USG: 25.2 TOV% 20.6
Johnson: USG: 27% TOV%: 12.7%
Bryant: USG: 37.1% TOV%: 10.1%

Note: In another comment just below I also added WaBeno Udrih and Kevin Martin’s to for some team reference points:

Here is Wabeno’s: USG: 19.2 TOV% 16.1
Martin’s: USG: 29.1 TOV% 5%
USG is pretty simple. It’s the amount of possessions a player uses while on the floor. TOV% is how many of those possessions, per 100 possessions, you turn the ball over. Here is the glossary if you don’t trust my explanation.

Simply put, Rajon Rondo is not as effective as a ball handler as his reputation says. Jonny Flynn is a turnover machine. Joe Johnson, Kobe Bryant and Joe Johnson are not. Tyreke Evans and Jonny Flynn are rookies, and until they get a few season’s under their belt it’s impossible to say how they will project. But if you take the early returns (and it’s way too early to note anything but the numbers) Flynn is a high TO machine and Evans is clearly not.

I picked all these guys out because they all do different things, but in every case they either initiate the offense or are the major source of where the offense looks to base it’s productivity off.

WaBeno is back to his old 3 hitting self. In 2007-08, WaBeno hit .387% of his 3’s. Last season, Beno Udrih (that fool), hit 31% of his 3’s. This season, so far, WaBeno his .389% of his 3’s. Clearly, there’s a correlation between WaBeno and shot making. (Don’t say you weren’t warned.)

Jason Thompson is currently hitting 81% of his FT’s. According to NBA.com, that ranks JT 6th out of all NBA F’s.

Spencer Hawes was said to have his best game by Paul Westphal. Funny, I thought he had a bigger effect than Memphis, but you’ll have to watch what PW said after the Presser vs OKC to figure out what he meant. (He also talked about Noc playing great defense on Durant despite the 37 points dropped. I agree actually. No jokes.) 1 note about Spencer. He’s already averaging 2.4 FT’s this season, and that’s up by more than half a game from last season. Thankfully, Spencer is also hitting his FT’s at an 84% clip. Unfortunately, Spencer’s FG% is still too low. I have a feeling that will change as he, and Paul Westphal, get more comfortable with each other.

Omri Casspi has missed a lot of FT’s (12 out of 15 attempts taken), but as Paul Westphal noted, PW made 15 in practice. It’s all mental with Casspi at the FT line. The interesting thing? Casspi’s TS% is just above 60%. It would be amazing to see what Casspi’s TS% would be if he was hitting 80% from the line right now. (Astronomical would definitely be the word.) Apparently, Omri Casspi is so popular he has to tell fans how to buy his jersey. So if he can’t hit those FT’s, he can always sell his jersey as a fallback option.

Speaking of Kenny Thomas, last season he played in 8 games. In 8 games so far this season, he’s already played in 4 games.

Sean May talks about Paul Westphal and what he feels is important:

In general, this team has a different feel to it than it has in years past. If those reason’s, among other things, aren’t the reason why, I don’t know what is. Ah the culture of season’s past is no more. Thank (insert god of choosing here).

Opening night for the Kings, Tyreke Evans struggled in his initial NBA debut. He was too slow initiating the offense, couldn’t figure out where he wanted to go, and looked very much like the criticism that he couldn’t play the PG in the NBA.

******

7 games later, and that criticism seems silly for several reasons. First, there are myriad examples in the history of the NBA where a team without that pure “PG” has gone on to win championships. With the exception of the Bob Cousy/Sam Jones Celtic’s, it’s difficult for me to remember WHEN a team had that player. Isiah Thomas was certainly that kind of player, and the Pistons did win 2 championships. John Stockton is certainly another player in that mold, but the Jazz never won a ring despite Stockton and Malone’s sustained success well into their late 30’s.

Maybe the most famous basketball team of all time, the Chicago Bulls of the late 90’s, didn’t have a pure PG. Neither did the Lakers of the 80’s, but they had some guy named Earvin who always seemed to be making this pass to another guy named James or Byron. The problem was that the Lakers just couldn’t shake this idea that this 6′9 prodigy from Michigan State could handle the basketball and run the basketball team despite his size. Early offense, late offense, it didn’t matter to those Laker teams. They ran over you, around you, under you, in you. All day all ways. You know the names. Byron Scott. James Worthy. Magic Johnson. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Kurt Rambis. Maybe not Kurt Rambis. Maybe more Michael Cooper.

The Celtics in the 80’s had a pure PG. His name was Larry Bird, and the problem was he that he ended up being the most dominant combo F of all time. He just also happened to be the only F in history of basketball to ever average 6 assists a game over a 3 year span. Who were the G’s of the Larry Legend title teams? Tiny Archibald. (Before Danny Ainge and Dennis Johnson got there. What years did Larry Legend get those 6+ assist years? Without Tiny Archibald there.) After Tiny it was Danny Ainge or Dennis Johnson–take your pick– because they brought the ball up the court.

The one team in those early 80’s with a pure PG, some guy named Maurice Cheeks, a tiny combo G bomber named Andrew Toney who every Celtics fan, including Bill Simmons who probably has nightmares about Toney still, does not remember fondly. At one point, the incomparable Moses Malone led the Fo-Fo-Fo Sixers to a title back in good ‘ole ‘83. They also had some guy named Dr. J who managed to defy gravity once by doing his all famous windmill layup. He palms the ball and goes up like he’s dunking, and in the same motion manages to hang long enough to bank the ball off the glass. It is easily the most amazing incredible play you’ll ever see, and yet, it’s quite too often not even realized unless you’re talking about the hallows of greatness. Erving was in his prime, his fantastic prime, on the way to losing another Finals game while eventually watching Magic Johnson, the unpure pure PG, manage 42 points, 16 boards and 12 assists in his rookie year to win the Finals for LA. This, of course, was just the start of Magic’s legend.

If you watch that play in real time, the most amazing thing about it is that it was entirely unexpected. It was a part of the game, a play that only scored 2 points. Yet, you have the NBA making commercials like this many years later:

The irony of course is that you can hear Chick Hearn talking in the background in absolute amazement. (Anyone that has heard Chick knew how much of a NBA fan he was despite the fact he announced for the Lakers.)

Philadelphia goes on to win game 4. Maybe the Sixers don’t win that series, maybe that Finals victory alludes Erving for another 3 years, but Erving has his legend. It’s something that most people can never claim.

I alluded to DJ earlier, but a playoff moment, the playoff moment that includes Larry Bird stealing an Isiah Thomas inbounds pass, shoveling it to Dennis Johnson, a moment that Bill Simmons considers a far more difficult play than can be remembered and said as eloquently as you’ll ever find a Simmons column (he writes the RIP columns impossibly well) about a single subject.

Like everything else about his career, few remember his defining moment: The waning seconds of Game 5 in the ‘87 Eastern finals, when Bird famously picked off Isiah’s pass and dished to DJ for the winning layup. Everyone remembers the steal and Johnny Most’s call; nobody remembers DJ standing near midcourt, seeing Bird moving for the pass. Even as Bird snatched the ball out of Laimbeer’s hands, DJ was already moving toward the basket with his hands up, ready to make the winning shot. From the mid-’70s to right now, I can only pinpoint a handful of players who would have instinctively known to cut toward the basket even as that steal was in the process of happening — MJ, Magic, Frazier, Stockton, Reggie, Mullin, Rick Barry, Isiah (ironically, the one who threw the pass), Robert Horry, Dwyane Wade, Jason Kidd, Iverson, Nash, Kobe, and that’s about it. Nobody else starts moving until after the steal happens. And by the way, if DJ never made that cut, Bird would have been forced to launch a fall-away 10-footer over the backboard to win the game — which he probably would have made, but that’s beside the point.

Case in point:

Simmons is right. You hear the call by Johnny Most, you see Isiah Thomas somehow not see Bird sprinting at full speed for 10 steps, but you never see DJ run from half court. Why? Because he was standing casually at the 3 point line waiting to foul anybody who came near him. DJ was a smart player; an impossibly gifted G who shit on you like you were swirling on the toilet bowl when you tried to score on him. Of all the great G’s in history, Dennis Johnson might be the less appreciated because he didn’t play with a pure PG style. Lenny Wilkens knew it; hell Simmons knows it. But, it worked because the teams DJ played on, with John Johnson and Gus Williams in Seattle, Walter Davis in Phoenix, and Danny Ainge and Larry Bird in Boston all worked around it by being incredibly good at either handling and/or passing. (Plus, it’s not like DJ couldn’t handle the ball AT ALL.) DJ’s passing stats aren’t necessarily pedestrian; they’re quite good for a guy who wasn’t that adept at times running the offense. But I’ll give Simmons a chance to redeem himself for a slight error (DJ never took a step past the 3 point line; he’s not a bullet train) in what was a terrific overall point:

One more thought on that layup: the replay never does it justice. DJ was going full speed, hauled the pass from the left, then had Dumars coming at him from his direct right, so he had to shield the ball from Dumars, turn his body to the left and make a reverse layup that was much harder than it looked. My father and I were sitting on the opposite side of the main CBS camera, right in the tunnel where the players entered and exited (you can even see us at the end of this particular game), so you have to believe me on this one: that layup almost missed. Dumars changed the angle at the last second; DJ’s layup struck the right side of the rim and somehow dropped home. Believe me, the layup was just as tough as the steal.

Simmons is generally thought of as a Boston homer. To a very real extent, because he’s a C’s, Sox and Pats fan, he will always remain that way. He spent a childhood where the Celtics, the greatest overall franchise in Boston history with a city rich of sports history, were the dominant team, and that’s just the way things were. When the rest of the NBA become the “black” league, Boston had 2 of the most dominant “white” players to ever play the game. Ironically, Boston’s long term fortunes died along with Len Bias. In some ways it would have been far greater for the NBA to have a foil to Michael Jordan; in some ways Jordan’s legend has grown because the ultimate foil didn’t exist. If Jordan doesn’t have a team (other than the Pistons) with that swagger to beat along with championship pedigree, it’s difficult to say what happens. Like most championship teams, they own the day until they no longer can. Nature hates a vacuum; why should winning NBA championships be different?

Either way the point about Simmons is that while he got 1 detail wrong (saying he’s near the half court line is not the same thing as saying he was at the 3 point line, sorry), he did get that DJ’s layup nearly misses. (You can see everything Simmons talks about minus DJ being at the half court line.) Because the ball had so much on it I think that sometimes it doesn’t look like DJ’s layup almost fell off the rim.

Needless to say, regardless of the eulogy Simmons gave, it was a great play on Dennis Johnson’s part. One of many that may, or may not, be remembered much as time goes on. (It was on the NBA’s 4th all time Playoffs play list. I don’t think too many people have forgotten it because of Bird & Most. But, as Simmons says, it’s wrong to forget that DJ made a great play too.)

******

You’re probably wondering what this has to do with the Kings, and Tyreke Evans and what he’s done over the last 3 games. One of the reason’s that the whole name “Michael Ray Richardson” freaks me out when connected with Tyreke Evans is because how good Richardson was. As good as Chris Webber has been in the Sacramento era, or even Mitch Richmond, Tyreke may leave both in the dust by the time it’s said & done. He has the talent, and perhaps drive, to get as close to Oscar Robertson as any player could. (I know.) When it comes to players hanging in the rafters, Robertson remains the gold standard for this franchise. Which is saying something, but whatever. Not every NBA franchise can have a “B” team of Hall of Famers like the Lakers or Celtics.

I’m not here to tell you that any comparison with Michael Ray “Sugar” Richardson doesn’t freak me out; Holy god awful shitballs Batman does it ever. But, there are 2 reasons for this.

The first is obvious for any knowledgable basketball fan who remembers the late 70’s & 80’s vividly. Here are the list of G’s who were high impact game changing superstar players: Michael Jordan, Isiah Thomas, Magic Johnson are usually the 3 that comes off immediately. When Sugar was at his best, he was right there with all of them. Sugar had Magic’s passing, Isiah’s feistiness, Michael’s penchant to overcome obstacles.

The second is also obvious to any fan who remembers the 80’s as well: Sugar had a bit of an addiction to white powder better known as cocaine. Of the players who’ve gotten suspended for it (Chris Washburn, David Thompson, Walter Davis) and ultimately hounded out of the NBA, or a player like Len Bias who died from using it, it’s clear that Sugar’s life took a different turn.

Unfortunately, I see that in Tyreke Evans too. Make no mistake. Evans is good; lord is he beyond good at this point. I’m just thankful he isn’t part of the NBA at a time where cocaine is as common as afro’s.

******

At the end of 8 games, the Kings stand 4-4. The won a single game with Kevin Martin and Tyreke Evans in the lineup. That game, Memphis, was the first of Allen Iverson’s 3 game career with the Blue Bears, also saw the emergence of Beno Udrih as a reasonable player in the rotation.

Beno UdrihWabeno Udrih has been a major cause for the resurgence for the Kings in the last 3 games. It’s true that Evans has averaged 25 6 & 6, but WaBeno has been nearly as important in ways that stats don’t nearly measure as often or as well: Simply put he allows Evans to be comfortable. Evans being comfortable makes him be Dwyane Wade lite at 20 years old.

Even Andres Nocioni value to the franchise long term could be questioned in framing it in that who has more value right now: Nocioni or Francisco Garcia? Honestly, it’s a unreasonable to ask right now for any real number of reason’s.

The first is that Garcia is hurt, and nobody should lose stature after how Garcia got hurt. Nobody. The second part is that the question of whether Garcia’s versatile, fiery skill is more important than Nocioni’s fiery toughness with some 3’s and a few layup’s sprinkled in. I have no idea. But, if Noc continues to succeed it makes it reasonable that the Kings may decide to hold onto Nocioni long term and move Garcia once the season ends.

I like both and what they bring. Before the season, I was far more in favor of moving Noc because I thought he would be far easier to move. Now, with Garcia’s injury taking a part of this, I think the organization has a possibility to make a decision on which move will mean more long term. The only move I think I disagree with is that the Kings don’t move one of either. Given the salary situation on the roster, it’s also difficult to justify PT for 6 guys at the SG/SF spots consistently. There just isn’t that much time to go around even when you have a 9 man rotation with at least 5 of those guys being able to play a minimum of 2 spots, and the other 4 able to play 3 spots. It’s a good problem to have. It’s also a problem that needs to be addressed as the Kings move forward.

*****

Here’s what I know. The Kings have won 3 games in a row. There is considerable question of whether Tyreke Evans can consistently facilitate for other teammates. There is even more considerable question of whether it matters if Omri Casspi can fit a more play making ball handling SF type mold. Or, in the sense that Garcia is part of this equation, do you favor Garcia over Nocioni for this type of reason?

What I know is that history says that special talent will win you games in the NBA because that special talent was unique. Larry Bird was drafted 6th overall in 1978 for those who remember Bird in those times. (That was mostly due to Bird not coming out of Indiana St though. GM’s knew how good he was then.) Special talent requires special circumstances from teams looking for them.

So, while you hear people talk about Tyreke Evans not being a pure PG, or something like that, or even a facilitating PG (a reasonable question given how the Kings have marketed him as that), keep in mind that maybe the answer isn’t to make Tyreke Evans a facilitator, to bring Kevin Martin off the bench, or expect WaBeno Udrih to keep appearing.

Somewhere in the middle ground the Baby Royals exist. Enjoy them while you can. Their innocence won’t be around for much longer.

I’m not really sure I can do this recap justice that it should take to write. So, I’ll just write some thoughts and hopefully leave with less than 500 words. Box Score.



	Pace	Eff	eFG	FT/FG	OREB%	TOr
Oklahoma City	97.0	101.0	43.6%	38.5	18.2	15.5
Sacramento		104.1	46.1%	40.8	34.9	21.6

 

 

If you look at the 4 Factors, you’ll pretty much see how the game was won. Kings were slightly more efficient, shot a bit better, kicked the shit outta the Thunder on the boards 51-36, including 15 to 8 in offensive rebounds, and turned the ball over a season high 21 times.

I think TZ’s recap of this game did justice to this particular game in that it had something of an emotional belief with a hump being conquered.

Some notes that I think shouldn’t be forgotten in the game’s aftermath.

* Spencer Hawes shot well except from 3. Eventually he’ll start making them as at least 1 of the attempts was almost down and popped out. It’s clear that Paul Westphal wants Hawes taking those. Eventually he’ll hit a few, and get on a streak. The thing about Spencer I liked is that he shot well otherwise from 2 point land as he was 5-8. One of those missed attempts was with the shot clock winding down after a bad possession. The redeeming part about Spencer’s game tonight was that he grabbed 8 rebounds and had 4 blocked shots. Even though Jason Thompson’s stat line looks far better, Spencer’s game is quietly becoming underrated in terms of all around value.

* I love Jason Thompson’s game. His energy, his attitude, his desire are things that cannot be taught. And, the alternative to JT’s style is not necessarily something I would quickly embrace. On the other hand, I just wish he made 75% of his layup’s. His FG% would be far better than 43% coming into the game if it were not for those repeated blown layup’s and tip attempts. That happens on the tip attempts, but when it’s consistently happening it’s not a random occurrence. That being said, very rarely has JT gotten blocked as often as Spencer inside, and JT’s activity is a big component for what he brings to the table. I’m not sure if I believed he’s capable of being an All-Star other than at the early stages of last season, but right now it seems like he’s far closer than I have given him credit for. If it’s not already been said somewhere, I’ll say it again: At 12th overall JT’s become a steal at where he was taken. Even if JT doesn’t improve at all during his career, minus the FG% and somewhat inflated O-Boards, this JT is a terrific fun player to have on our team. Good to be the Kings I guess. (I feel like I’m repetitive with the same JT stuff.)

* Tyreke Evans is an incredible for a 20 year old learning the league. He had 20 points, 8 assists and rebounds. He also managed 5 TOV’s and 5 Fouls too. Hardly the perfect game on Reke’s part. On the other hand, for a guy not playing the “perfect” game he did pretty well. He is so fun to watch play the game as he goes full throttle all the time. (If that sounded as stupid as it looks, I apologize. There isn’t enough superlatives to throw Tyreke Evans way right now. He’s got it all in front of him as they say.)

* I thought part of Beno Udrih’s game rarely got mentioned tonight, but the defense he did on Westbrook was superb. It allowed the Kings to live through a 5 foul night by Evans without having to put Evans on Westbrook. Udrih shot pretty well (5-11), turned the ball over 4 times and did enough things to help the team win. Pretty much the tale of the tape really. Offensively, Beno had it going early on when the Kings jumped out to the 8-2 lead and did a lot less offensively as the game wore on.

* Grant Napear and Jerry Reynolds slobbered all over for the job Andres Nocioni did defensively on Kevin Durant. Thankfully, tonight Noc was worth it. Plus, his aggressiveness helped really set the tone to keep the Thunder from running away with the game early when it was there for the taking. Right now, I don’t think Noc is going to have too much trouble finding a DD.

* Omri Casspi is struggling mentally from the FT line. Although he hit a technical FT tonight, missing those 2 FT’s towards the end of the game will surely bother Casspi. That’s the good part about this kid. Even though he’s making mistakes left & right, and is not effective as some would like, PW trusts Casspi to make good basketball plays consistently.

* Donte Greene had a few moments, both good & bad, but he was a net positive in helping the Kings bench out do the Thunder bench consistently all night.

* Ime Udoka is not the most talented, or youthful, player on the roster. (Udoka is just 15 days younger than Kenny Thomas.) But, the energy and tone that Udoka sets by playing with his natural style has rubbed off on every player on the roster.

* A team win in every sense of the word, this game was not about one thing in particular as it was generally an ugly game that was called tighter on the perimeter (in particular) as the game marched forward. What separated the Kings from the Thunder was that they out-worked the Thunder in every hustle category. Every loose ball was dug out by the Kings (and that’s usually how the Kings created separation for a 6 or 8 point lead at times), and it almost seemed like the Thunder felt like the only way they could win was to ride Durant’s coat-tails to a victory. It almost worked as Durant went for 37 including 18-18 from the line. Still, the extra effort didn’t translate to an easy victory, but it did translate to a “bar fight” game as one StR member put it. And, he’s correct. To win games in this league, sometimes you gotta stick it out when a few things aren’t going your way.

* The Kings are 500 again for the first time since Dec 4 2006. A fact I like even if it has no bearing on the rest of the season. It’s good to be a Kings fan tonight.

Andres Nocioni/Omri Casspi/Ime Udoka vs Kevin Durant

Tonight, the OKC Thunder Sticks bring their youthful high draft picks into the empty gas pump formerly known as Rockin’ Arco.

3 Matchup’s I’m interested to see:

I think this is self explanatory. (Right?) I think if the Kings keep Durant from ripping the shreds off the nets all night it will be okay.

Spencer Hawes and Jason Thompson vs Jeff Green and Nenad Krstic

Last game against OKC, Jeff Green scored 24 on 9-13 from the floor (and 4-5 from 3). That can’t happen again if the Kings are going to win tonight. Also, you could possibly see a lot of Donte Greene on Jeff Green (I know Green on Greene–hahaha) if J. Green gets hot early on. I think you might not see a lot of big play in this game given that Nenad Krstic, Nick Collison and Green are the 3 main bigs that (OKC Head Coach) Scott Brooks uses.

I don’t think JT’s foul rate in the 1st half of the game at OKC was a fluke. I think Spencer Hawes will have to be greatly effective defending either Collison or Krstic because I see JT having problems with Green. If Spencer plays well early, you could see JT sitting more minutes than you have been accustomed to seeing.

Another possibility is that Nocioni moves over to PF to defend Green. But, if he’s not scoring well Paul Westphal might opt to sub in Casspi and Greene at the 3 & 4 and see if that combination works.

Tyreke Evans vs Russell Westbrook

This is going to be fun to watch. Tyreke’s brilliance has been recorded throughout the world with regards to his last 2 games.

Against Westbrook in the previous game Evans looked indecisive, and didn’t really react well to Westbrook playing off the ball. Much has changed since then. That is something I’m hoping to see. The second thing I’m interested to see how he scores on Westbrook (RW0). Both guys are plus offensive/defensive players, and scoring/defending each other is hardly a simple task. I’m interested to see how Tyreke uses his size vs RW0.

More than that, I’m interested to see how Tyreke responds to having a bad game vs a quality player like RW0. It’s one thing to beat up on GS, but it’s quite another to beat up on OKC with RW0 having a good game.

All I know is it should be fun.

Anything else?

Nope. Game starts at 7. Can listen on 1140, watch on Comcast California, or do none of the above.

Lotta good stuff today. You can read any of the Bee’s paper articles about the blowout victory vs the Warriors.

You can read a recap of the Warriors/Jazz games at Cowbell Kingsdom and A Royal Pain as well.

The Funniest thing was the response Stephen Jackson had to Omri Casspi. Then Omri Casspi responded in a Jason Jones blog post.

One of Donte Greene’s layups from last night:

Tyreke Evans on what position he plays (if you live in Sacramento and get CSN you’ve already seen it–this is just for the out of towners who don’t get the opportunity to watch bullshit halftime shows):

Omri Casspi was interviewed at halftime by Kayte Christensen:

The Donte Greene to Jason Thompson oop one more time for your pleasure:

Donte Greene talking to Grant Napear & Jerry Reynolds after the Warriors game:

Donte keeps talking afterwards too (along with other teammates):

Paul Westphal talking after the Warriors game:

Paul Westphal talking about practice:

I thought it was interesting he chose to not make a distinction between Omri and Donte. Maybe I’m reading too much into it.

Tyreke Evans after practice today:

Andres Nocioni arraignment is set for December 21st. Yippee.

Kevin Martin had his surgery on his wrist, and official word says he’ll be out 8 weeks.

Jason Thompson was interviewed on Dime. (H/T to BearKing of StR.) Matt Moore of Hardwood Paroxysm fame (as opposed to AOL Fanhouse fame), got mad that Tyreke Evans didn’t get better numbers. (H/T to Aykis for that as well.)

Jeremy Tyler is not assimilating well in Israel so far. TZ had a piece up at Fanhouse yesterday, and so did a fellow at Free Darko.

Michael Beasley has a funny ‘fro. (H/T Skeets.) It’s suggested that you read why he doesn’t have a ‘black power pick’ any longer.

David Aldridge says that LeBron James that joining the Clippers would make a lot sense. (If you read this place regularly, you know how I feel about such. It falls somewhere between, yeah, and makes too much sense. Odds as I see it now: 95% Cleveland. 3% New Jersey and 2% LA Clippers. Yeah, I know.) H/T to Steve Perrin of Clips Nation. I would suggest reading through the whole piece which includes a reasonable diatribe against Donald Sterling.

A bit of retroactive activity, but if you’re ever curious how deals ever affect a franchise, I suggest reading this flowchart made back in February by Norsktroll of Blazers Edge. I found a written version of such by the feller (or fellers) who write Nets Daily.

Last but not least, if you’re interested in what people have from an OKC perspective have, read the Daily Thunder, Welcome to Loud City, and Blue Blitz.

Here is the Box Score. 4 Factors:

	Pace	Eff	eFG	FT/FG	OREB%	TOr
Golden State	100.0	107.0	54.2%	20.5	15.9	14.0
Sacramento		120.0	52.3%	33.3	35.7	14.0

Tonight, literally, the Kings kicked the crap outta the Warriors. It wasn’t much of a competitive game as the Kings generally led by double digits almost most of the game.

The Play of the game was clearly the Donte Greene lob to Jason Thompson at the end of the 3rd qtr with .4 seconds left.

So many good things to talk about tonight, and you can read the box score stuff on your own. I’m just going to bullet point this, and get the fuck outta dodge. (Or not.)

* Tyreke Evans is unstoppable. I knew this after the pre-season game with Golden State, but tonight Reke illuminated the worldwide stage with his gifts. 23 points, 8 boards and only 2 assists. (Not a true PG.) He also had no turnover’s (again). He did this all in 29 mins which meant that Paul Westphal could give him valuable rest. (He also had a chance to giggle and feel good about himself.) I really don’t know how to put this into words. I was so shell shocked by the over-whelming good play that it may be forgotten how brilliant Tyreke was in forcing such a large lead. Even though the argument will be that Tyreke is really a SG, the reality is that Kevin Martin and Tyreke Evans also were playing through a tough schedule in which Tyreke didn’t have the comfort of playing as the first option. He is only knows how to play as a first option as a scorer, and should be for this Kings team when Martin gets back. What Evans needed was to be aggressive, and Martin being out has clearly jump started Evans aggressiveness in attacking the basket.

Jerry Reynolds pointed out tonight that Tyreke Evans has no real mid range game yet. I know, that’s scary. He’s a plus defender, rebounder, passer (he does not play on a team with high end finishers, except for Martin, that is conducive to assists), and teammate. Yes, he’s a good teammate. He cares about his team as much as he cares about the game.

* Spencer Hawes is easily the most disappointing player on the night. He dropped several passes he should have caught, and missed a few shots inside he should have taken. On the upside he did get to the line 5 times and had 2 blocked shots. His final stats don’t show how little of an effect he had on the game if only because he increased some of these stats in the 4th qtr which was purely garbagetime.

* Whatever happened to Beno Udrih before the Memphis game, please keep it coming. Beno ran the offense flawlessly tonight. I know I said that this opportunity was a chance for fans to really appreciate Beno for what he can do, but this is well beyond any realistic expectation.

* Jason Thompson was terrific tonight, and with good reason. He matches up well with Golden State and has in the past. If you’re scoring at home, Anthony Randolph is coming off the bench, and Jason Thompson is leading the Kings in assists.

* Speaking of Randolph, why he is coming off the bench is beyond a mystery. The Warriors have talent, considerable talent really, but it’s poorly put together, they have no chemistry, the young talent that is worthwhile to a winning team (Stephen Curry, Anthony Randolph, Anthony Morrow, Kelenna Azubuike, Ronny Turiaf) don’t have any major stars. The best player on the Warriors is Stephen Jackson, and he is pouting. The front office stinks (Chris Cohan may be the worst owner in all of sports–and Robert Rowell might be the worst executive), and without Don Nelson pushing the pieces together it’s pretty bad.

Because the Warriors are so pathetic right now (they got blown out by the Clippers on Friday), it’s really difficult for me to be super giddy right now. It makes coaches, players, and what not look good. I feel we’ll see how much better the Kings are without Kevin Martin once the Thunder come into town on Tuesday. (I Know the Kings looked good vs the Jazz, but the Jazz were off for 2 1/2 qtr’s. The Thunder are playing well and have a lot of confidence after the thrashing the Magic tonight. I don’t think they’ll lack confidence after the ass-kicking the Kings suffered had at the beginning of the season to the Thunder either.)

* Omri Casspi is Jew-Baccah, the Bear Jew, Bom-Ri, and Bomri-Board-Ri all rolled up into one. 12 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 steals. In my humble view, after not playing last night due to Paul Westphal’s decision (a good one which I’ll elaborate on in where I talk about PW), Omri came in off the bench and greatly changed the tenor and flow of the game. When Omri plays like he did tonight, it’s impossible to criticize him.

This is Omri Casspi’s second great game in the NBA. Unfortunately he has not played as well as some fans would like to believe in the other 3 games he’s participated in. The next step for Omri is really becoming consistent. (Again, Patience is key here. Omri is only 21.) If you’re noting though, Omri Casspi had a career high in rebounds AND assists. Omri’s previous high in boards was 4, and assists was 1. 12, 10, 5 & 3. Paul Westphal will take that most nights for the rest of Omri’s career. (Or any coach for that matter.)

* Donte Greene had a great night for the second night in a row. I’m stating the obvious here. The lob pass to JT at the end of the 3rd qtr was brilliant, and the 2 plays where he used his athleticism to finish in the paint when the shots were contested was brilliant to see. It’s easy to make a flashy play on a lob (like the dunk Donte missed in garbage time 4th qtr), but it’s also easy to forget that Greene has not always finished well like he did in the 3rd qtr. He played a few mins in the 2nd qtr, and missed a few shots (besides putting down a lob from Beno in the 1st half).

What really struck me about the game was that Donte was active on the boards (symbolic of the whole team really), and had a blocked shot after being beat on the play initially. Again, when you play the Warriors, some of the scoring was inflated, but it was the activity and attention to detail that separated Donte tonight from previous performances. He didn’t shoot perfectly or have his outside shot going which was what constituted his high quality performances in the past. Tonight Donte put his immense athleticism, exuberance and energy on display. The Kings absolutely need more of that from him. Oh, and Donte managed a new career high tonight in points AND was 1 off his career high. (He got 6 boards in back to back games in bad blowout’s against Utah and Dallas last season.)

* I wonder if Sean May is out of the rotation for good.

* Whatever was missing with Desmond Mason is apparent with Ime Udoka. Hopefully that “thing” continues on for awhile. It’s nice to have a contributing veteran role player on the roster who doesn’t take minutes away from young players and allows the staff to remain confident that Udoka can contribute at the same time. It’s a difficult balancing act, and for Udoka’s sake it would be nice to see him have a great year for the Kings. It’s hard to not root for him. (I was rooting for Mason as well. He just didn’t work out.)

* Paul Westphal is so terrific as a coach right now I don’t even know where to begin.

It boggles my mind that the Kings have run so many good plays 2 games in a row after losing a guy who is 3rd in the NBA in scoring. Now, it’s easy to complain that Tyreke Evans and Kevin Martin have not worked well together, but it’s not for a lack of effort. Tyreke Evans has always been the best scorer on his team since he’s been 5 years old. Playing with a top 10 NBA scorer is a major adjustment for him. If you asked Paul Westphal if he would have rather had a blowout the way it happened tonight, or closer games with Kevin Martin and Tyreke Evans meshing, he’ll tell you the latter. You don’t win in this league without your best players putting it on the line every night. Tyreke and Kevin put it out there each night they were out there together. It just hadn’t quite clicked for both. When it does, people will shut up about that too. Hopefully re-inserting Kevin into the lineup will be as easy and seamless as the transition without Kevin has seemed.

The thing is, at the end of the day, is that Paul Westphal has found a way to run plays for a young 2nd year F getting few minutes, and found a way to see him make great use of major minutes. Donte will not get all those minutes every night, but PW enjoys the challenge of trying to find minutes for Donte now. That’s something that Donte and PW will have to continue to work together on. It’s not as simple as it has worked the last two nights. It’s really not. Finding minutes for a 9 man rotation (which is effectively what the Kings have without Garcia or Martin) is difficult for any head coach especially if he has 3 players getting 40 mins out of that pie. There are 240 mins in a regulation game, and if you’re playing 3 guys 40 mins a night, that’s half of the minutes right there leaving 120 mins for 6 remaining guys. Because the NBA is not as cut & dry as 40 mins for this guy that guy and that guy, it’s always a challenge to make it work with the daily reality and new challenge of each approaching game.

Yet, that’s exactly what Paul Westphal has done these last two nights. I don’t know if I would expect the Kings to win 35 games this season given that Kevin Martin and Francisco Garcia being out, but the learning curve of Tyreke Evans and Omri Casspi will certainly be helped by getting all these extra minutes that Garcia and Martin would have had instead. It doesn’t hurt that PW doesn’t mind putting his young players out there and see them make mistakes. He’s willing to allow a turnover, but not poor effort or energy on defense. He’s firm on what he expects from all his players.

What has impressed me more than anything, more than the little things of the way he’s handled Spencer Hawes or Donte Greene (no easy task for any head coach), or even Omri Casspi and Tyreke Evans to a lesser extent, is that this team looks to run the plays PW designs. They believe in him; he believes in them. All summer long PW mentioned how much talent he saw in the young players in this group, and he’s PROVING it. He’s not playing the young players to play them right now. He’s playing them because he believes these guys are the best chances to win the ballgame on any given night. He was given a youthful roster, a putrid schedule to break in a young team with, a team that has more issue’s with Arco itself than the roster right now, and a frustrated fanbase.

When players buy into what their coach is telling them at the NBA level good things happen. I’ve said many times that the players for last year’s team did not kill their coach and it contributed to some of the poor play and set designs the Kings continually ran. Even if the Kings are not running their set’s well at times, they are playing with every bit the intensity and effort that PW demands.

Man, as a fan I can’t ask for anything more.

The Kings came out hard, and they played that way for 48 mins. Nevermind that the Warriors had rest and were in Sacramento last night while the Kings were playing the Jazz. The Warriors looked lethargic and what not.

It’s a great statement on how much a back to back in the NBA is as much about mental fortitude as it is physical ability. It’s extremely difficult to perform well if you aren’t up to the task or attempting to play with the most amount of effort at all times.

With all the brilliance of the multiple positions that PW asks of his players, the players themselves deserve credit. I’m pretty sure Donte Greene was as jubilant after the perfect alley oop as he was when he put one down roughly 15 mins later himself. So jubilant that he ended up spinning back on the court. That jubilance, that youthful innocence makes this team a pleasure to watch and write about. It’s very difficult to write about a plodding veteran team that has been blow up 50 games into an awful putrid season. There’s only so many ways you can say that a team sucks donkey shit balls.

That’s what I appreciate about this team. They haven’t quit. Not against OKC (they just played like crap), nor Nawlinz, or San Antone. Against Atlanta they suffered execution, and took advantage of the Jazz’s off night (and a lack-luster crowd). Against Memphis, they purely rode the crowd to victory given Evans ankle sprain, and Beno Udrih was a major factor too.

The key component is that this team won’t quit. It was a bit surprising to see Arco so empty (probably because Warrior fans didn’t care to make the drive–don’t blame them), but that’s okay. Hopefully fans who were waiting for a reason to watch this team will come back out. If you won’t come out after games like tonight, you aren’t interested in the Kings or can’t afford to.

I’ll leave with this. Tonight you saw a young team knock around a fairly young team with some veteran malcontents. A young, inexperienced team that loves to play and likes each other. I don’t know if this will translate to anything beyond playoff berths at the very moment. But, winning a championship is tough in the NBA, much tougher than MLB or the NFL. (It’s not exactly easy in those league’s either.) Because it takes so many things to execute a ring in the NBA, it’s a bit difficult to predict that the Kings could win a title. It’s not as easy, or as smooth, as doing step A, step B or step C.

At the end of the day seeing PW demand what he does, seeing this young group buy in, and have some of their development happen while Kevin Martin and Francisco Garcia aren’t playing is truly satisfying. It transforms a potentially crippling development into positive traction.

I believed it was possible in a few weeks that this kinda game could happen. In my wildest dreams did I ever believe (even in the dilapidated state that the Warriors are in–I can’t say this enough–they are so pathetic I truly feel sorry for Bob Fitzgerald, Jim Barnett and Tim Roye–I have empathy for anyone who has to watch the Warriors transpire this season) that a win where the Kings would lead by 20 at Utah, and then a complete smackdown of the Warriors would occur on back to back nights. (When noting how little resistance the Warriors had doesn’t dampen my spirits. It merely makes me cautious on how to read the Kings moving forward.)

On the other hand after last season, I feel like the Kings are on the verge of making the playoff’s the way they played tonight. If I had to explain it one word it would be euphoric.

Euphoric Kings. (Is it too late to change the city’s name to Euphoric?) Or, the Sacramento Euphorics. Yeahhhhhhhhhhh. Sac Euphorics to take the NBA over!!!! Yeahhhhh……

Tonight, in the battle of supremacy for suckitude for Norcal Pro Hoops basketball teams, comes the Kings and Warriors! Hurray, Beer!

Tonight, in the battle of supremacy for suckitude for Norcal Pro Hoops basketball teams, comes the Kings and Warriors! Hurray, Beer!

Okay, I’m not in a mood to write much up right now.

The Key Matchup in this game will be whoever guards Tyreke Evans, and, perhaps, whom Easy Reke defends.

The Matchup I look forward to: Spencer Hawes vs Andris Biedrins (if Biedrins plays–he hasn’t played the last few games)

I want to watch to see how Spencer does tonight. Last night, while not having gaudy stats, he did have a quietly effective game defending Okur and Boozer.

Most people may say that JT & Anthony Randolph may be more interesting, but recently Randolph hasn’t started. And, he’s averaging less than 18 mins a game at the moment. JT is a starter, and as such I don’t consider Randolph a worthy foe.

******

Omri Casspi vs Donte Greene continues (Via Amick):

Donte Greene’s breakout was surprising in this sense: Omri Casspi was ready to roll. The rookie small forward had turned his left ankle recently and was questionable for tonight’s game. But even after Casspi said he was good to go, Kings coach Paul Westphal obviously opted to give Greene a shot that he made the most of. Casspi didn’t play. I’ll chock this one up to Westphal taking the safe route with one player while utilizing a chance to get a guy out of the doghouse at the same time.

So much for Paul Westphal’s clear preference for any single player on the roster. (My gut has always told me that he prefers to get Omri and Donte going. There is very little use to not work all of your players into the game that you feel will help you get wins.) What’s so amazing about that statement was that lesson of earning your keep was told to Omri. Donte already knows it having been through a season of mostly sitting. Omri Casspi needs to learn some things as a player, and once he does I believe he’ll be a terrific player for the Kings long term. But, he hasn’t learned it yet. That’s okay folks. Like Tyreke Evans, he is young. 21 years old in fact. (Donte too.) There is TIME! Fan favorite or not.

The most interesting part is this quote from Amick’s notes:

“I think Donté can play,” Westphal said. “He asked me the other day what he needs to do. I said, ‘Keep working hard in practice, stay ready.’ “

Heh. Donte essentially parroted what his coach said last night after the victory. (I linked the youtube clip of players talking if you want to hear what Donte said in the Jazz recap post.) Good. Whether Donte becomes a major star, a rotation player, or a player who doesn’t realize his potential, it shouldn’t be for lack of effort. Clearly, Paul Westphal and Donte Greene are on the same page. But, what I find refreshing is that Donte recognized his career is on the line, and Paul Westphal recognizes it, and each have found something of a comfort level.

Paul Westphal doesn’t praise players for nuthin, and last night he went out of his way to praise Donte. That means something. If all goes well for the Kings here, it could mean that the Kings have 2 young, well rounded SG/SF/PF in Omri Casspi and Donte Greene. That makes the Ron Artest trade a superlative slam dunk. (And, since Daryl Morey isn’t stupid, I don’t think that’s a criticism of the decision on the Rockets part to trade for Artest.)

Watch how Tyreke Evans is already working to alter his shot.

As far as Tyreke Evans worth as a player, this note came from Amick’s writeup in the paper:

Yet here was Evans hitting 7 of 15 shots and converting 16 of 19 free throws, setting a Kings rookie record for attempts (previously 18) while falling one short of the made mark.

Another funny moment in Amick’s NBA column:

It’s still early, but Brandon Jennings’ impressive exhibition season and first four regular-season games entering Saturday inspired New York Knicks president Donnie Walsh to admit in an interview with Newsday that he missed on the prospect. Walsh, who took Arizona forward Jordan Hill at No. 8 before Jennings went to Milwaukee at No. 10, may not be alone if Jennings keeps it up. Entering Saturday, he led all rookies in scoring at 18.8 points per game and was second in assists at 4.8.

Heh. That’s what you get for putting too much stock in Treviso Donnie. Heh, heh, heh. (Plus, way to show faith in Jordan Hill.)

Noc feels stupid about his DUI:

“It’s really stupid what I’ve done. (Since I’ve been) in the USA (2004), I’ve gone out like four times in my whole life. What can you do? It’s my fault, a stupid mistake. I feel really bad, because I have kids and this is not good. I feel really sorry for the organization.”

Yeah Noc you fucked up. (It’s kinda funny he says he’s only gone out 4 times since coming to the NBA. He’s a bigger hermit than I am.) Welcome to life. At least last night you played well.

For Warrior perspective, Golden State of Mind and Warriors World are your best bets. (If you want to read some complaining about Mikki Moore and his starting, or just simply experience deja vu, read this. It should also shutup anybody crazy enough to have wanted Nelson in the first place. *cough*Ailene Voisin *cough*)

Now go away.

(P.S. This might be the funniest picture you’ll ever see on GSoM. Also, if you have time, I suggest reading this post on The Simpsons as Warriors, and the original mastermind’s posting of the picture. Tony PSD is without a doubt the best photoshopper on the Web.)

Okay, now go away.