Link to The Leaderboard where kman949 has jumped out with the lead.
Below are a series of prediction questions for tonight's game. The first four questions will be asked every game, while the 5th will change each game.
Point value for predictions are listed next to the questions. If you believe that more than one player will lead a category, you can vote for multiple players, and this is worth double points if you are correct, but zero if you are wrong. Alternately, if you only guess one player when multiple players are tied, you get zero points.
All submissions must be input before tip-off. Any submissions after tip-off will not count. You are allowed only one submission and may not change unless specifically stated.
Questions:
1. Who do you think will win the game, and what will the final score be? (1 point for guessing winner. 2 points for guessing winner and correct score of one team. 5 points for guessing winner and exact score)
2. Who will be the game's leading scorer? (1 point for guessing scorer, 2 points for guessing exact points scored)
3. Who will be the game's leading rebounder? (1 point for guessing rebounder, 2 points for guessing exact rebounds)
4. Who will be the game's leading assist man? (1 point for guessing assist man, 2 points for guessing exact assists)
5. Predict Derrick Williams' points, rebounds and three point attempts in his debut. (1 point for one right answer, 3 points for two right answers, 5 points for all right answers)
Tom Ziller of Sactown Royalty answered my Kings questions on topics ranging from Derrick Williams in Sacto, to Isaiah Thomas' amazing play, to DeMarcus Cousins' deep dislike for the Clippers. Enjoy.
The Clippers face a familiar foe tonight so I turned to a familiar friend, Tom Ziller, who's been writing the Sactown Royalty blog ever since Al Gore invented the interwebs it seems. Ziller answered questions about the team to help us get a better handle on them.
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Steve Perrin: Mbah a Moute for Williams. Strange that this trade occurred in this crazy five day hole in the Sacramento schedule, so you've had days and days to think about Williams, without ever seeing him in a Kings uniform. Sometimes a guy like that just needs a change of scenery. Sometimes a tweener with no NBA position who's one of the biggest draft busts in history is a tweener with no NBA position who's one of the biggest draft busts in history What's your gut tell you about Derrick Williams on the Kings?
Tom Ziller: Williams' per-minute numbers as a starter on the Wolves weren't bad. Since the Kings have been so awful at forward this season, I think it presents a great opportunity for Williams to perform up to that level or beyond. In particular, the Kings lack frontcourt athletes. The front office is trying to change the team's style, as well, and he represents a step in that direction (even though we lost the team's best defender in the process). I think Williams may never be considered as someone who lived up to the No. 2 pick, but I think he can become a solid starter in the NBA. Hopefully with the Kings.
SP: Man does DeMarcus Cousins seem to hate the Clippers. Last game he dragged Isaiah Thomas off the court as IT was trying to shake hands with Chris Paul and his Seattle pal Jamal Crawford. I haven't seen that much of Cousins against other teams. Is he like that all the time, or does he have a particular loathing for the LAC? Are you cool with DMC's display of dubious sportsmanship last Saturday?
TZ: Cousins is only really like this against the Clippers, though he doesn't seem to have much love lost for the Warriors either. He really, really does not like Blake Griffin or Chris Paul. He commented on flopping a few times; he even once tweeted on an apparent CP3 flop when the Clips were playing some other team and Boogie was watching. From Cousins' standpoint, CP3 and Blake display dubious sportsmanship all game long, so he's not interested in ignoring that when the final horn sounds. It's pretty uniquely Boogie at this point. I'm fine with it because it's pretty hilarious. Seeing CP3 totally flummoxed about it is worth whatever annoyance it caused Isaiah Thomas. (And, for the record, Cousins and I.T. are pretty close.)
SP: Thomas is the leading bench scorer in the NBA at present, no matter how you slice it (total points, average, per 36, whatever). His buddy Jamal is next (206 represent!). Thomas has been spectacular, while newcomer Greivis Vasquez has been, let's say adequate. Should Thomas be starting, or at least getting a larger share of the minutes? In a related question, how is it possible that this guy averaged fewer points per minute in the Pac-12 than he is averaging in the NBA? He absolutely torments CP3; how is it possible that Lazeric Jones could slow him down in the slightest? I don't get that.
TZ: Isaiah's always been an NBA-style guard who loves to attack in transition and score out of the pick-and-roll. I didn't watch much Pac-12 ball, but based on where I.T. was drafted, I think his performance has stunned everyone. I don't think he should start for the simple reason that it's totally working right now. And while the starting lineup has problems, it's not really Vasquez. It's more iffy performance from 2-3-4. Ben McLemore has struggled quite a bit since being named starter -- he was getting awesome in a bench role. The small forward was 'solved' by Luc Mbah a Moute ... whoops! And power forward has been a mess. Keeping Isaiah where he is thriving makes the most sense to me.
SP:Jason Thompson is an interesting case study, something you rarely see. He's in his sixth season with the Kings but he's just kind of... there. He's usually the starter, but seemingly only as a last resort; he's not bad but not particularly good. Usually players like that get moved -- either the team or the player believes they can do better. The Kings have auditioned Patterson, Thomas Robinson, Hickson, Landry (twice!)... so many guys at the four. Now maybe Williams. Thompson actually played with Brad Miller for FSM's sake. I guess I'm asking, when do the Kings and JT admit it's not a love connection and move on from each other?
TZ: J.T. has been involved in trade rumors since roughly 2010. I'm a little stunned that the Maloofs allowed Geoff Petrie to re-sign him in 2012. That said, Chuck Hayes and Thomas Robinson were the team's only other power forwards at the time, so there wasn't much choice and the Maloofs were desperately trying to prove they weren't cheap. (They made a huge deal out of hitting the salary cap. Sound like a familiar style to you?) But J.T., as you note, has been in the crosshairs for replacement repeatedly. I think the new regime with cut him loose at the first opportunity. I think he's checked out on the franchise after such a dysfunctional first five years. I don't really blame him.
SP: How long does the Vivek honeymoon last? There's battles off the court (arena) and on (winning games) to be fought, and Ranadivé has the current advantage of NOT being a Maloof. Assuming the arena stuff all stays on track, when do you think the fan base says "Hey, where's my playoff team?" (BTW, I'd die happy if the Clippers had your owner.)
TZ: Personally, I can't see the Vivek honeymoon ending without him going totally Maloof/cheap on us or the arena going off the rails on his account. Neither seems likely. I think fans in general expect a competitive team by the time the arena opens in 2016, and I do think the front office is attuned to that expectation. My thinking on the team's progression is: bad this season, close to .500 in 2014-15, low playoff seed or just outside the playoffs in 2015-16, playoffs and perhaps high expectations in 2016-17. This draft, obviously, has a huge role in that timeline.
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Thanks Tom. The Derrick Williams era in Sacramento begins in just a few hours. It's going to be huge; or possibly no big deal. One thing to remember about Williams -- his expectations in Minnesota were "second overall pick"; his expectations now can be "traded for a second round pick". That's a big difference, and maybe he'll respond better with less pressure.
The Clippers started November with the Kings, they played them a week ago, and they'll end the month with them now. Can the Clippers make it three straight over the Kings and head into December with some nice momentum?
The Clippers have played a lot of tough teams in November, but they've also played the Sacramento Kings twice so far and play them again tonight in the final game of the month. The Clippers are 2-0 against the Kings, but they've made it tough on themselves both times. Twice now they've allowed the Kings to come all the way back from a big deficit, and while they weathered the storm relatively well the first time, they were more than a little lucky to escape with a win six days ago in LA. Have the Clippers lost their intensity against the Kings, or have the Kings simply outplayed the Clippers for long stretches? It's difficult to say. The Clippers have a home game against the Indiana Pacers, owners of the best record in the NBA, on Sunday, followed by a seven game road trip, so they'd be wise to take this one seriously and get a win, because they may have a few losses in their immediate future. This game may hinge on whether Chris Paul is 100 percent after tweaking his hamstring in the third quarter of the Clippers' win over New York on Wednesday. Paul has saved the Clippers in both of the Kings games this season -- he hit a crucial late game three pointers at the end of the shot clock in each one -- so if he can't play, and the Clippers fall behind the Kings again, they won't have anyone to come to the rescue.
The Antagonist:
The Kings have twice come close to beating the Clippers, and twice come up a bit short, and DeMarcus Cousins for one is NOT pleased about. As it happens, Cousins has gotten fourth quarter technical fouls in each of the first two meetings, fouls that were part of the momentum shift back to the Clippers. Then, at the conclusion of the game in LA, Cousins refused to shake hands with any Clippers, and went so far as to pull his teammate, Isaiah Thomas, away when Thomas tried to show some sportsmanship. Other than that, Cousins has been great, scoring and rebounding at an high level -- the Clippers have shown very little ability to stop him. Likewise Thomas, the top bench scorer in the NBA so far this season, has been almost unstoppable in the first two meetings. Part of the reason that the Clippers have built leads and then lost them is that Thomas isn't in the starting lineup -- when he's out, the Clippers have handled the Kings pretty well, but Sacramento has scored almost at will when Thomas and Cousins are in the game. If Cousins and Thomas continue to torment the Clippers, the Kings could certainly come away with a win in this one. Cousins would certainly be happy about that.
The Subplots
Comparison of key metrics. The Clippers defensive efficiency has gone from 28th to 21st to 16th in the last two games. They haven't been able to stop the Kings so far this season, so they'll have to play better if they want their defensive rating to continue improving.
Day after Thanksgiving. The game is happening the day after Thanksgiving. Which means that I'm writing this preview on Thanksgiving. Which means I'm not really that into writing previews. Which means that it's going to be pretty short. But we know plenty about the Kings at this point, right?
Derrick Williams. These teams played each other six days ago, and Luc Richard Mbah a Moute was Sacramento's starting small forward at the time. Since then, the Kings traded LRMAM to Minnesota for Derrick Williams, the second pick in the 2011 draft. Williams never got much of a chance in Minnesota, either because he was stuck behind Kevin Love in the rotation, or because he wasn't a good fit, or maybe because he is a classic NBA tweener, not big enough to be a power forward, not quick enough to be a small forward. Sometimes a guy like that -- and by all indications, he's a hard worker, not a head case like Michael Beasley -- just needs a change of scenery. This could be the opportunity he needs. Remember also that Williams had a monster game against the Clippers a couple of seasons ago, beating them almost single-handedly.
Well rested. In a very unusual NBA scheduling quirk, the Kings have not played since Sunday when they faced the Lakers in Los Angeles. So the Kings have had four full days without a game. They'll be really well rested -- will they also be a bit rusty?
Sixth man. Thomas is the leading bench scorer in the NBA this season any way you slice it -- total points, points per game, points per minute, whatever. Jamal Crawford of the Clippers is second. It's far too early to be thinking much about awards, but despite Thomas' heroics, Crawford would have to be considered the early leader for the Sixth Man Award, simply because Thomas plays for a team with a losing record, which will probably preclude him from serious consideration.
Bad blood. We've known for a while that DeMarcus Cousins does not like Blake Griffin. At this point it has become obvious that Boogie doesn't much like Chris Paul either, and in fact it seems like maybe he doesn't like anybody on the Clippers. Cousins has been on the edge in both of the first two games; watch him closely in this one, because something is going to happen.
McLemore. When the Clippers played the Kings four weeks ago in the third game of the season, I asked Aykis of Sactown Royalty when he thought lottery pick Ben McLemore would crack the starting lineup in Sacramento. Well, it turns out that the correct answer is Game 7 of his rookie season. He hasn't exactly been a world beater in the NBA so far -- he's shooting 38% from the field -- but at the same time, they like him and they expect him to be a big part of their future, so why not get him in the lineup sooner rather than later? I like it.
Stopping Thomas and Cousins. The Clippers have shown little ability to stop either Cousins or Thomas in the first two games. Part of the problem has been defending without fouling. Thomas has been to the line 23 times in the first two games -- far above his season average. The Clippers need to get some stops, and stop fouling.
Connections.Travis Outlaw (who has been surprisingly productive off the Kings bench) was briefly a Clipper in 2010 and he was signed by the Kings after being amnestied by the Nets last season. Matt Barnes played high school basketball and football at Del Campo High in Sacramento. Willie Green and Kings rookie Ray McCallum are the two active NBA players from Detroit Mercy (Go Titans!).
Those lines that I before have writ do lie, Even those that said I could not love you dearer: Yet then my judgment knew no reason why My most full flame should afterwards burn clearer. But reckoning time, whose million'd accidents Creep in 'twixt vows and change decrees of kings, Tan sacred beauty, blunt the sharp'st intents, Divert strong minds to the course of altering things; Alas, why, fearing of time's tyranny, Might I not then say 'Now I love you best,' When I was certain o'er incertainty, Crowning the present, doubting of the rest? . Love is a babe; then might I not say so, . To give full growth to that which still doth grow?
Leave your question for Derrick Williams in this thread. If you get the most recs, your question may get answered tonight!
We're going to try a little something different on occasion at StR on game days.
The Question of the Game thread will allow readers to pose a question for a particular player during a home game. Based on which question gets the highest number of recs (and the reasonableness of the question), I will track the player down and ask them that question during the postgame. The answer will then be posted right here in the thread.
This won't be for every home game, but we'll make sure to offer it frequently.
I figured it would be best to start this off with the newest King: Derrick Williams.
So let's get to it! Leave your question for him in this thread and start pressing those rec buttons!
After coming close twice already this month, the Kings no doubt believe this is their chance to beat the Clippers. If Chris Paul is limited or held out because of his sore hamstring, they are probably right.
The Sacramento Kings pushed the Los Angeles Clippers to overtime before ultimately falling short, losing 104-98. The Kings managed to keep the game close throughout, but fell just short in the end. DeMarcus Cousins led the Kings, and Derrick Williams impressed in his Kings debut.
Los Angeles was without Chris Paul for this game, and JJ Redick left the game in the second quarter with a wrist injury. Jamal Crawford stepped up in their absence, finishing with 31 points, 11 assists, and seven rebounds, all season highs for Crawford.
The Clippers could not contain DeMarcus Cousins in the Kings losing effort. DMC finished with 25 points, nine rebounds, six assists and three blocks. DeAndre Jordan played excellent defense, but Cousins is truly entering a stage of his career where opposing teams can simply hope to control the damage.
Derrick Williams shined in his Kings debut, finishing with 12 points, six rebounds and four assists. The stat line doesn't fully capture just how impressive he was. He moved well with and without the ball, and had multiple incredible displays of athleticism, including several alley-oop dunks. There was one sequence in the fourth quarter where Williams had a huge alley-oop from Greivis Vasquez, but the play was called off due to an off-ball foul. The Kings inbounded, and Cousins immediately threw to Williams for another alley-oop. It's safe to say Williams made a great first impression in Sacramento.
Ben McLemore was also impressive tonight. He continues to move well off the ball. And his showed some real poise when he hit two big free throws in the closing seconds of the fourth quarter to tie the game. The combination of Vasquez, Williams, McLemore, and Cousins on the floor together was very fun, and very exciting. It showed a lot of off-ball movement, with a lot of willing passers. I'd love to see that group get more run together.
Despite the loss, it was a fun game and the Kings stayed competitive throughout. If the Kings are going to be a losing team, I'll take losses of this type over failed 20 point comebacks any day.
With Chris Paul sitting out and J.J. Redick leaving in the first half, Jamal Crawford came through with 31 points and 11 assists as the Clippers beat the Kings for the third time this season.
The Los Angeles Clippers have played the Sacramento Kings three times already this season, and all three games have been tantalizingly close. But the Clippers have come away with the win each time -- tonight's coming in overtime. Whether it's the mark of a more mature team, or just a few good breaks is open to interpretation. One thing we know for certain -- while Chris Paul was the key in the Clippers' final push in the first two games, he was not a factor in the third, as he sat out the game to rest his sore hamstring, forcing the team to actually do it without their star.
Paul joined Matt Barnes, arguably the team's best small forward, on the sidelines in this game. Then, late in the second quarter, J.J. Redick was forced out of the game as well when he sprained his wrist on a hard fall after a DeMarcus Cousins foul. Which meant that in the second half, the team was without their starting backcourt and their top small forward off the bench.
All Jamal is not a good long term solution, but it's nice to know that it's available in a pinch.
In their absence, Jamal Crawford was huge. He played 37 minutes off the bench -- and though he came off the bench in the second half as per usual, once he entered the game, he did not leave again, through the final 17 minutes of regulation and five minutes of overtime. With Paul and Redick hurt, Crawford was probably the team's best shooting guard AND simultaneously their best point guard (though Darren Collison played admirably starting in place of Paul). Crawford finished the game with 31 points, 11 assists and seven rebounds. He made 12-22 from the field on mostly very difficult shots. With Blake Griffin struggling to get good shots, the Clippers went long stretches of the game with no offense beyond Crawford. It's not a good long term solution, but it's nice to know that it's available in a pinch.
For the third time this season, DeMarcus Cousins had a huge game against the Clippers -- and for the third time, he was kind of a prick. Cousins finished the game with 25 points, nine rebounds and six assists. Amazingly, he shot 11-19 from the field, and about half of his misses were actually blocked by DeAndre Jordan (who finished with a career high nine blocked shots). So basically, Jordan pretty much had to block the shot in order for Cousins to miss. But he also had a classic Cousins-Clippers. Cousins didn't agree with the call on the Redick foul (does he ever?) and as the teams were coming back onto the court, Redick went to tap Cousins in a "no hard feelings" gesture -- to which Boogie said "Get the f*** out of here" and walked away, leaving Redick to roll his eyes. Bear in mind, you can disagree with the official's call in that situation, but you might still be concerned with the guy who landing on his back from several feet in the air. Not only did Cousins not show any concern for Redick on his own -- he wouldn't even acknowledge him when J.J. reached out.
While Cousins continued to torment L.A. both with his game and his attitude, the Clippers did finally slow down Isaiah Thomas, who had been huge against them in the first two meetings. In this one, Thomas was limited to just five points, his season low and only the second time all year that he has failed to score in double figures.
The Clippers got far too conservative in the final moments of regulation, and it almost cost them. They didn't have much to run other than the "Give the ball to Jamal" play, but even for that, they were too concerned with milking clock, rather than actually trying to get a decent shot. Fortunately, the defense was pretty good down the stretch, but a lucky three pointer from Greivis Vasquez cut the Clippers lead from five to two, and a couple of Ben McLemore free throws with 17 seconds left tied the game. Crawford tried to win it, but his jump shot was long at the buzzer, sending the game into overtime.
The Kings scored the first four points of the extra period, and seemed to have all of the momentum. But the Clippers played really solid defense the rest of the way, and the Kings didn't score again, nor did they really get another good shot. The Clippers closed the game with the final 10 points, including four points and two assists for Crawford and four points for Griffin, to secure a very hard-earned victory.
Griffin, despite not playing particularly well, still finished with 21 points and 12 rebounds. He made only two shots in the paint the entire game (both of them dunks off of Crawford feeds, including the go ahead basket in overtime) but did make a solid percentage outside of the point, where he was 5-8. He also had some important hustle plays including chasing down a loose ball while the Clippers held a two point lead in the overtime period. No one seemed happier to have the win at the final buzzer than the previously frustrated Griffin.
Winning on the road is never easy. For the Clippers, winning with Chris Paul will never be easy either. To get a win on the road without Paul is an absolute bonus for the team.
Both Paul and Redick will be key to the team's chances Sunday against Indiana. We'll have to wait and see if they'll be available or if the team will have to turn to Crawford once again.
Can the Suns maintain this momentum into a three game winning streak tonight? Here are the details...
There are two occasions where the Phoenix Suns (9-7) must look at their calendars and smile, that is when they are playing either the Utah Jazz (2-15) (or the Portland Trail Blazers). This season they are a combined 4-1 against those two teams making up for 31.2% of the schedule early on.
In fact, both of those teams have had games come down to the final buzzer with game-winners. Crazy stuff.
This season the Suns (0-3) and Jazz (1-4) have not been particularly effective on the second game on a back-to-back. The Suns have lost all their games by a margin of -8.3 and the Jazz -11.8, but they won an overtime game against the Bulls by six points along the way. The Suns dropped both games of their home-and-home with the Kings this season and are looking to rectify that against the Jazz tonight by winning both.
On a back-to-back like this teams are tired, they settle for easier looks, and can come out lacking energy. That happens to everyone including the Suns. Settling for jumpers can hurt a team, but the Suns use them as a launching pad.
The Jazz are a Top 10 team defending the three-point line chasing opponents off of it, because of that they give up a lot of free-throws and looks inside, but they do a good job defending the three ball.
Against the Trail Blazers, a Top 3 defender of the three-point line, the Suns lite them up for 30 points behind the arc. They caught fire and changed the momentum of the game with the long ball. The Jazz defend the three well, but the Suns are a very opportunistic shooting team and could catch fire from there at any time with Green (11-35), Frye (12-28), Goran Dragic (6-15), and the team (37-110) in the past four games.
Look for a lot of jumpers and tired legs with the quick turnaround and flight back for both teams.
(Recent) History Lesson
87-84, Suns Win
112-101, Suns Win
In the second game of the season both Gordon Hayward and Eric Bledsoe hit go-ahead shots for their teams, but Bledsoe was the one with the ball in his hands last. That game provided an exciting finish for the shorthanded Jazz against the Suns. With this being a home-and-home the Jazz have an opportunity to get some revenge after they were dispatched rather easily last night.
Head-to-Head (past four seasons including Playoffs)
Suns: 97.4 PPG (8 wins)
Jazz: 95.4 PPG (4 wins)
Of the twelve games, seven have been decided by single-digits, and the with the familiarity, these teams normally play close games. The talent has changed over the years, but with Coach Hornacek on board and the game-winner by Bledsoe earlier this year the stakes are always high with these two teams.
Head-to-Head (This Season)
Gordon Hayward: 14.5 PPG 8.5 RPG 7.0 APG 37.0 FG% (2 games)
These two will spend very little time guarding one another outside of switches on pick-and-rolls, but they have done damage against each other in different ways. Hayward has been able to do a little bit of everything, but is struggling to score in an efficient manner against the Suns athletic wings. Bledsoe is causing havoc, creating turnovers, and overturning Hayward game-winners. Should be fun.
(Again, both players do not have contracts heading into restricted free-agency this summer)
Whether Williams is starting (like last night) or coming off the bench he will have to match the versatility of the Morris Twins at the three and the four throughout the night. In a sense Williams is the Jazz version of the Morris Twins with his ability to stretch the floor as a four and athleticism as a three on the perimeter.
Markieff will put pressure on him inside with his new-found aggressiveness and Marcus can do the same with the way he has been stretching the floor as of late. If the Morrii can maintain their efficiency tonight they should win this individual battle.
Interesting Stat: 24.0
That is the average age of the Jazz starters, which is sort of like looking through the window at what Suns fans were looking for this year from their team. Instead of forcing Archie Goodwin and Alex Len into the starting line-up the team has their best middle aged veterans out there (27.0 average age) leading to a surprising start.
Meaningless Stat: 2-15
The Jazz are 2-15, but six of their losses were by 10 points or less and they are getting their team together on the court for the first time all season. It is a little misleading, but they are still neck-and-neck with Milwaukee for the Most Likely To Loss To A D-League team this year.
The Clippers survived to beat the Kings in OT without their starting backcourt playing down the stretch. The status for both Chris Paul and J.J. Redick against the Pacers remains unknown.
Chris Paul missed his first game of the season for the Clippers when a hamstring injury kept him out of L.A.'s OT win on Friday night. The Clips' other backcourt starter, J.J. Redick was unable to finish the game after spraining his wrist in the first half.
With a big matchup against the Pacers on Sunday afternoon, the status for both players remains questionable, according the a report from Clippers.com.
"I want to play," Paul said. "If I can play, I will. If not, I'll rest it."
Clippers head coach Doc Rivers maintained that the team will remain cautious with Paul and shooting guard J.J. Redick, who sprained his right wrist in the second quarter.
"It's a sprained wrist and the X-rays are negative, so that's good news," Rivers said. "But it did swell up quite a bit and it's his right hand. If it's his left hand, he'd be fine because he doesn't have one, but it's his right hand. And we need him. We need that cannon.
"We'll see. We want to be real safe with him and the same for Chris."
Redick scored 13 points in the first half, helping the Clippers to a 50-45 lead at halftime. But he left the game and did not return with 4:47 left in the second quarter.
"I played the next five or six possessions and then when I took that shot and immediately felt a good amount of pain and asked Doc to take me out," Redick said. "I don't know if it was the shot or just the adrenaline of that fall coming down wearing off, but by the time I got back in the locker room I knew I wasn't going back in the game."
It certainly doesn't sound too promising for either player to be ready to face the Pacers, although Redick's situation seems worse. Obviously, CP3 is far more vital to the Clippers' attack and regardless of whether one or both players miss the game, with Jamal Crawford coming off the bench, the Clips won't have to worry about getting shots up. Crawford stepped up with 31 points off the pine on Friday night, while former Pacer Darren Collison stepped in to start at point guard.
The Pacers caught a break by facing the Wizards without Bradley Beal on Nene Hilario on Friday night and now may catch another injury break as they embark on what could be a signature road trip. At this point in the season, we can only hope Chris Paul is ready to go.
There's a lot to like about the future potential of the Sacramento Kings, even if it isn't translating to wins right now.
Late in the fourth quarter, the Sacramento Kings found themselves down five to the Clippers. Derrick Williams found himself free of his man and raced towards the hoop as Greivis Vasquez lobbed him the ball. Williams threw it down with one hand, and the crowd exploded, thinking the whistle on the floor had been for an and-one. It was not. The officials decided that Jared Dudley had fouled away from the ball and that Williams' dunk would not count. Sacramento's points were negated, and they would have to inbound the ball.
So they ran the exact same play again, this time with Cousins throwing the lob. Williams threw it down hard, and if Guinness had been at the game, they might have recorded us Sacramentans breaking the world record for crowd noise yet again.
Derrick Williams' debut went about as good as it possibly could have gone. Coach Michael Malone decided to throw him right into the mix by starting him at Small Forward with just a practice or two under his belt. He had yet to play much this season, even in Minnesota, so I was a little surprised by Malone's decision. I was eager to see how Williams would do at Small Forward.
I won't say he exactly succeeded, but he was much better at the position than I expected, especially defensively. Jared Dudley played 37 minutes and only scored 5 points. Reggie Bullock, L.A.'s other SF, was 0-4 from the field in his stint off the bench. Williams wasn't shutting either of those guys down per se, but he wasn't acting as a sieve either, which was nice to see. I thought he was doing a good job of being in a defensive stance, and while he did look a little slow laterally some times, he was quick enough that rotations were able to come help most of the time.
Offensively, Williams was a highlight reel. He had 12 points on 6-13 shooting, and I think five of his field goals came on dunks, with the other being a close to the basket and-one. He didn't showcase any range, missing both of his three point attempts badly. Perhaps most impressive was Williams ability to move off the ball. This is a guy who has probably not learned a third of Sacramento's play sets, but he found ways to get open right at the basket and the Kings rewarded him for his effort. Williams also showcased some passing ability with four assists, three of which went to Ben McLemore for either layups or dunks of his own. Williams had previously had just one assist on the season, but Malone seemed comfortable allowing him to take the rebound (of which he had 6) and run when he had the opportunity. While it's way too early to call the trade a success or anything, I'm pleased with the initial results and look forward to seeing how he goes up against upcoming SFs like Harrison Barnes and Kevin Durant.
Another young guy that put on a show for Sacramento was Ben McLemore. McLemore continues to show a lot of promise, with plenty of inexperience showing through at the same time. In transition, when McLemore doesn't really have to think about anything other than "get to the basket", he's phenomenal. He's got good fundamentals in the half-court sets, particularly in moving without the ball, but he's also got rookie jitters where he often doesn't want to shoot the ball when he catches it, and by the time he does decide to shoot the ball, it's a much tougher shot. There was a key late sequence when McLemore found himself completely wide open early in the shot clock with Sacramento down just four points, but seemingly not wanting to make a mistake, he hesitated and the Clippers were able to catch up. McLemore's eventual three point attempt came from much farther out, contested, and didn't really have a chance. Once Ben starts to figure out when he should shoot, and when he shouldn't, I think his promise will start to turn into big time production.
The Kings didn't have any answer for Jamal Crawford last night, one of the downsides of losing a guy like Luc Mbah a Moute. Sacramento wasn't exactly playing terrible defense on Crawford, and he hit some incredible shots, but there were not enough adjustments made when he was going off. After the game, Coach Malone put the blame on that on himself, which was nice to see since it was true. There's absolutely no reason Greivis Vasquez should be guarding Crawford one-on-one late in the games. Crawford finished with 31 points, 11 assists and 7 rebounds in an incredibly impressive performance with Chris Paul out.
DeMarcus Cousins had another huge game against the Clippers, scoring 25 points on 11-19 shooting, to go with 9 rebounds, 6 assists and 3 blocks. It was Cousins' third straight game with 6 or more assists, a welcome sight since teams are coming to double him more and more. I also liked seeing Cousins use his strength to back down a shot blocker like DeAndre Jordan (who had a career-high 9 blocks) all the way down to the basket for the easy shot.
Marcus Thornton got the call to action over Jimmer Fredette tonight, and unfortunately looked as bad as ever. Thornton played just over 17 minutes, shot the ball just 4 times, and picked up 5 fouls in the meantime. The Kings also didn't get much production from Isaiah Thomas, who scored just 5 points and had just 1 assist to 4 turnovers. When John Salmons leads the bench in scoring (14 points for Salmons in what was probably his best game of the season), that's probably not a good sign.
The Kings managed to do a lot of things right last night. They won most major categories, including field goals made, field goal percentage, rebounds, assists and points in the paint. But the biggest discrepancy was in free throw attempts, where Los Angeles shot 37 compared to just 10 for the Kings. Sacramento hurt themselves by getting to the penalty early in most quarters, and also by committing a ton of shooting fouls before they were in the penalty. Isaiah Thomas and DeMarcus Cousins, Sacramento's two premiere free throw drawers, went to the line just three times. That's not going to win many games.
The Kings' tough schedule continues as they welcome the Golden State Warriors on Sunday.
Random Observations:
Jason Thompson's had a reputation for brick-like hands for a while, but last night was Mikki Moore like and cost the Kings several potentially easy baskets.
Patrick Patterson continues to look fabulous in the pick and roll and not so good from everywhere else. Please remember how to shoot again P-Patt.
I never thought I'd live to see the day where Shaq is in a Kings shirt with Slamson on the jumbotron directing Beat LA chants. This whole thing will never NOT be weird for me.
Sign of the game: "Griffin you slam like a Maloof". I don't even know what this means, but it sounds bad.
Assistant Coach Chris Jent hit a pretty sweet stepback three over Travis Outlaw in warmups, maybe we should start him at Small Forward.
I have no idea in the world how Greivis hit that three near the end of the fourth quarter. He was trying to draw the foul, was desperate and threw it up, and it went in.
The Kings spent a lot of time waiting to get into their offense, and Doc Rivers was doing a good job of pressuring Vasquez as he came up the court, which only exacerbated the problem. Kayte Christensen said in the post-game show on KHTK that Malone was really frustrated at how long it took for the Kings to set up their offense.
In the team's first matchup this season, Sacramento didn't compete. Hopefully that changes.
The Kings and Warriors hook up for the second time this season on Sunday, this time in Sacramento. The game is scheduled for 3 p.m. Pacific on News10 and 1140 AM. Sean Cunningham of News10 will again host our game thread.
MATCHUP OF THE GAME
Derrick Williams vs. Andre Iguodala or Harrison Barnes
(It's not clear whether Iguodala will return. If not, it's Barnes.)
Williams had a nice debut on Friday, shooting 6-13 for 12 points with six rebounds and four assists. He also seemed to play solid defense on Jared Dudley, who is a long-range threat. The best part was the fast break game. Williams said Michael Malone gave him the green light to initiate the break on defensive rebounds. He did so a few times, resulting in marvelous Ben McLemore transition dunks. That's a brilliant fast break combo: both are athletic, Mac is straight-up fast and both seem to be unselfish.
Defensively, Williams has a much tougher task on Sunday. Iguodala isn't going to roam the perimeter looking for open shots. He's going to have the ball in his hands often, and be an integral part of the Warriors attack. That could keep Williams on his heels. If the opponent is instead Barnes, he's a deadly scorer who can spot up or go off the bounce if you overcommit. He hung 26 on Kevin Durant on Friday.
VITAL STAT!
The Warriors commit turnovers at the second most frequent rate in the NBA. That, a distinct lack of offensive rebounding and a lack of foul-drawing hurt their offense. They are ranked No. 12 in offense, but No. 4 in shooting. Clean up your game, Warriors!
3 THINGS TO LOOK FOR SPECIFICALLY SPEAKING
1. DeMarcus Cousins battling Andrew Bogut. Cousins was locked up pretty tight in the first matchup, though he only played 18 minutes (8 points, 7 rebounds). He's been the lion of the Kings' starting lineup, so chances are he'll get his chances. We'll see how it goes. DeAndre Jordan had nine blocks, a few of them on Boogie, on Friday.
2. Isaiah Thomas. Two straight bad games for I.T. Both losses. Needless to say, on a team with a shallow talent pool, getting more out of I.T. is very necessary. The Warriors bench is a bit thin with Toney Douglas' injury and Stephen Curry is a mediocre man defender, so this could be a good opportunity to get back on track.
3. Patterson vs. Thompson. It seems like whichever power forward comes off of the bench automatically plays better. Patrick Patterson has been outplaying Jason Thompson the past couple of weeks; is it just having some room to breathe? Who knows.
INTRODUCING START FOUR
So there's this pretty simple, intuitive new NBA fantasy-ish game called Start Four. The founder, Bill Onderdonk, set up a Sactown Royalty group for us. The game's all about figuring out which four players will have strong performances in the daily game. Here's the catch: you have a budget and can only pick players who add up to that budget. So picking Cousins-Curry-Klay-Isaiah doesn't work. I'll be playing this month. What we'll do is hold a drawing for a prize among everyone who finishes ahead of me for the month of December. Prize to be determined with Start Four -- a Kings team store gift card, possibly. If no one finishes ahead of me, Sactown Royalty becomes a Reno Bighorns blog. Deal? Deal. Please beat me.
For Sunday's game I picked Curry, Barnes, J.T. and Derrick Williams. Came thisclose to taking Salmons over J.T.
Below are a series of prediction questions for tonight's game. The first four questions will be asked every game, while the 5th will change each game.
Point value for predictions are listed next to the questions. If you believe that more than one player will lead a category, you can vote for multiple players, and this is worth double points if you are correct, but zero if you are wrong. Alternately, if you only guess one player when multiple players are tied, you get zero points.
All submissions must be input before tip-off. Any submissions after tip-off will not count. You are allowed only one submission and may not change unless specifically stated.
Questions:
1. Who do you think will win the game, and what will the final score be? (1 point for guessing winner. 2 points for guessing winner and correct score of one team. 5 points for guessing winner and exact score)
2. Who will be the game's leading scorer? (1 point for guessing scorer, 2 points for guessing exact points scored)
3. Who will be the game's leading rebounder? (1 point for guessing rebounder, 2 points for guessing exact rebounds)
4. Who will be the game's leading assist man? (1 point for guessing assist man, 2 points for guessing exact assists)
5. Predict Harrison Barnes' points, rebounds and three pointers made. (1 point for one right answer, 3 points for two right answers, 5 points for all right answers)
Redick is tied with Jamaal Crawford as the Clippers' third-leading scorer, averaging a career-high 15.8 points per game. He has started in all 17 of the Clippers games this season. Los Angeles owns a 12-5 record, the fourth-best winning percentage in the Western Conference.
Losing Redick for at least a month is a huge blow to the Clippers, who are currently on a four-game winning streak and have lost a single game at home. Their defensive efficiency is 15th in the league, but their offense is averaging 110.3 points per 100 possessions according to Basketball-Reference, good for fourth-overall in the NBA.
Have a question for Kings rookie Ben McLemore? Leave it in this thread and it may get answered today after the Kings take on the Golden State Warriors.
The Question of the Game thread allows Str readers to pose a question for a particular player during a home game. Based on which question gets the highest number of recs (and the reasonableness of the question), I will track the player down and ask them that question during the postgame. The answer will then be posted right here in the thread.
Please make sure to keep it to one question unless you have two questions that tie in together.
So let's do this! Leave your question for the high-flying rookie in this thread and start pressing those rec buttons!
Curry scored 36 to lead the Warriors past Sacramento.
The Warriors defeated the Kings 115-113 in Sacramento on Sunday. Stephen Curry was the star of the show with 36 points and 10 assists. Klay Thompson added 28 for the Warriors. DeMarcus Cousins was the Kings' leading scorer with 24 points on 10-13 shooting. But he was also saddled with foul trouble most of the night, playing just 21 minutes. (The Kings were +19 in those minutes and -21 in the other 27.)
Turnovers were the Kings' biggest problem. They shot 53 percent from the floor, hitting 9-19 threes and 24-28 free throws. But 24 turnovers and porous defense lost the game for them.
Derrick Williams, Greivis Vasquez and Ben McLemore were all relative non-factors as starters. They combined for 14 points on 4-16 shooting, But the bench picked up the slack. Patrick Patterson was 8-8 from the field to finish with 18 points and seven rebounds in 26 minutes. Marcus Thornton had a huge night with 21 points on 6-11 shooting, including 5-8 from three. Isaiah Thomas finished with 19 points and eight assists, but seven turnovers and 5-16 shooting. His game-tying attempt at the end of the game was overly aggressive and easily blocked by Andrew Bogut.
The Golden State Warriors engage in a high-scoring affair with the Sacramento Kings, harkening back to the Don Nelson days. The difference? The coach, here, now, and in the future, wants to stick to the best, and most capable on the team. Stephen Curry is that man. And will be for a long time.
The Warriors really, really, reaaaaaaaaaally, a million times over, miss the defensive presence of Andre Iguodala. That combined with Toney Douglas' ball-hounding off the bench has led to throwback shootout games like the one on Sunday afternoon.
But despite the aching similarities of a game like this, dominated with free runs to the basket and uncontested three-point shots throughout, rose the burgeoning ascension to superstardom that burned brighter and hotter with each Stephen Curry aerial stroke that dropped through the net with an inaudible --only in sound-- *swoosh*. Curry's been this good, and for a couple seasons now. But it's the first time to my memory that a coach has actually left the ball in his hands and just essentially say, "Go what you do. You're the man here". And it worked.
But perhaps more important than the narrative of Curry's need to "take over" and ask for the ball at the penultimate portions of basketball games is the natural and seeming aloofness he went about it. Not explicitly demanding the ball or shaking the game from its herky-jerky flow, Curry took over one by one, choking the life from the Sacramento Kings with each heart-breaking basket. He doesn't impact and visually pop out like a Russell Westbrook, who plays like a guy that sometimes doesn't seem to know the best scorer in the world is playing alongside him. This is Curry, and how he plays, every second of every play.
I rewatched the last seven minutes, from the time Curry checked in the fourth quarter, and he scored 11 points (on 4-7 shooting with a three and two free throws) with an assist, and managed that without varying from his normal play. The last few minutes perhaps symbolized a changing of the guard--remember Iguodala did get the last shot against the Oklahoma City Thunder and Curry was relegated to decoy duty--as the go-to guy moniker, but his game was more so an extension of what was always possible.
My favorite Warriors play isn't so much a play as what's become natural instinct for the starting five on the floor. On any transition opportunity where Curry brings the ball up, the first two players down the bench usually sprint to the top of the three to set a stagger screen for Curry and the sharpshooter, without breaking stride, runs his backpedaling defenders into the screens and it becomes much too late for the defense to react. It's a thing of beauty, and a subtle wrinkle that most others teams can't run simply because there's only one Curry in the league.
Look at Harrison Barnes get there, albeit a bit late, to set the first of two screens. When the first screener can pop and the second roll, or vice versa, it makes the defense react. And when the defense takes even a split second to think, it's over.
Leftover Observations:
1. Draymond Green now owns two game-winning shots in his NBA career. One now against the Sacramento Kings on a loose-ball tip-in to match his layup against the Miami Heat in the beginning of last season. The hustle and energy plays are there, so this wasn't exactly a surprise. However, it appears he's carried over his postseason hot shooting into the new season, shooting at a 38.9 percent clip. Granted, Green only averages 1.3 shots per game but becoming a threat from behind the arc makes him that much more valuable as a two-way player.
2. The Kings seem like they are about one really good player away from becoming a playoff contender. Obviously, if that player is LeBron James, they're set, but that goes for every crappy team, even the Utah Jazz. They have solid, but impressive, ancillary pieces built around a still raw Cousins. Thomas is a nice player but probably best suited in the role he's in now, specifically as a scorer. Ben McLemore has the potential and upside to get there and a strong draft class coming up doesn't hurt, either.
There are moving pieces all around for the Kings new ownership but there's enough talent here that I can see a solid team in a year or three.
3. Andrew Bogut failed to bottle up Demarcus Cousins all night, allowing several unimpeded drives to the basket and two back-to-the-basket isos at the end of the game. When Cousins is right, there's not a center in the league that can consistently guard him. He's too strong and too quick from everywhere on the floor. But what he did do was annoy him. Incessantly. Cousins played great but only played 20 minutes due to foul trouble.
When the last horn sounded, it was Bogut with the last word. He waited and waited, as Isaiah Thomas dribbled down the court with time running out, and timed the moment Thomas was in the air to jump and pin the game-winning attempt. Many big men overplay their hands and jump out too far, resulting in a blow-by, but Bogut decided to make Thomas either earn the long floater over his outstretched arms or challenge him at the rim. Thomas chose the latter, and chose wrong.
Statistical support for this piece provided by NBA.com, unless stated otherwise.
I'm a fan of this trade, and not just because of Williams' highlight reel game against the Clippers. I think the Kings gave up a player in Mbah a Moute who doesn't have much value for Sacramento long term for a guy in Williams that could be. It's a trade that I don't think the last administration would have made, and if it works out, great, we have a solid player for a long time going forward. If it doesn't, we didn't lose much. For a team as bad as Sacramento, it's a risk worth taking.
Boy was it good to see these two get going finally last night. Thornton got back into the rotation against the Clippers but was a complete non-factor with more fouls (5) than points (4). He was key in bringing us back into the game against Golden State though with 21 points (and 5 threes) but perhaps most impressively, he played some solid defense on Klay Thompson and Harrison Barnes. This was the Marcus Thornton I'd like to see more consistently.
P-Patt meanwhile didn't miss at all against the Warriors, going 8-8 from the field for 18 points, including two big threes. It was so nice seeing those threes fall because it's what we were expecting him to be able to do all season. I also loved how hard he crashed the glass, and he got them in key moments. He added 9 boards against the Clippers as well.
4. Competing against good teams
I know fans would have liked to see Sacramento take both of these games this week. I'm right there with you. But it was still nice to see the Kings hang in there and have a legitimate chance against the two best teams in the Pacific division. They need to be able to come out like that against every team though, and not just the big names.
5. Rebounding
The Kings were better on the boards than both their opponents this week. Derrick Williams really upgraded the rebounding at the SF spot, and Jason Thompson and Patrick Patterson are both rebounding like big men for once.
The Bad:
1. Ben is struggling
Ben still has great flashes, but he still looks out of place in the starting lineup. He gets lost on defense easily, and left Klay Thompson wide open waaaaay too many times. Offensively he seems to rush his shot, and often doesn't go for the easy attempt. Ben still needs to slow his game down some, and I still think he'll be a very good player in this league. But right now he isn't, and I'm not sure it's worth keeping him in the starting lineup much longer if Marcus Thornton can begin to play consistently well again.
2. Sacramento's Point Guards
A position of strength, at least offensively, for most of this season, the Kings Point Guards fared poorly this week.
Greivis Vasquez is a defensive sieve so great that opposing teams regularly set up plays to clear the lane for whoever Vasquez is guarding. Combined with the fact that Sacramento has no shotblocker, this leads to a lot of easy layups. Usually Greivis makes up for it by playing well offensively, but that wasn't the case in these two games either. He had 7 assists again the Clippers, but shot just 4-12 from the field, and followed that up with a 2-8 performance against the Warriors.
Isaiah Thomas had probably his worst game of the season against the Clippers, scoring just 5 points in 17 minutes, but more importantly only 1 assist to 4 turnovers. Isaiah's numbers looked much better against the Warriors with 19 points, but I bet if you asked him he'd tell you he played a bad game. He was just 5-16 from the field and made repeated bad passes for 7 turnovers, 5 of which came in the first half. His last second drive to the basket was also a poor decision with the paint so crowded and both Cousins and Thornton feeling it. Instead he got his shot stuffed by Andrew Bogut and Sacramento lost the game.
I feel like Salmons is Malone's veteran crutch, but he's not good enough that he can be trusted night in and night out. With Mbah a Moute gone, he's now our supposed defensive stopper, and Stephen Curry had no issues getting past him. He did play well against the Clippers with 14 points, but that's not going to happen every night. I would much rather play Travis Outlaw at SF than Salmons, especially since Travis has been shooting the ball much better. He's also got greater length and better rebounding skills.
JT's hands have been absolutely awful lately. He's missed several easy passes that should have led to point blank baskets but instead were bobbled and turned into turnovers.
5. Arena Power issues
The Kings game got delayed almost 20 minutes because the power went out during introductions. That's not a good look, and just another reason as to why we need a new arena. It was pretty interesting to watch the first part of the game with no music or other audio feedback, although I did miss Scott Moak's PA voice.
The Ugly:
1. The ref that called a Flagrant-2 on DeMarcus for Bogut's flop
I'm just going to let Ziller take it away:
If you call a Flagrant 2 that gets downgraded to a personal foul, you did a bad job of reffing.
I feel like the Kings are one of the most inept teams at both setting and using screens in the NBA. Especially in these last two games, Sacramento was called for way too many moving screen violations. Patrick Patterson and Jason Thompson are the biggest culprits, but Sacramento's guards aren't doing them any favors by going before the screen is set. This shouldn't be as big of a problem as it has been.
3. Turnovers
The Kings had been taking care of the ball exceedingly well so far this season but had 39 miscues in the last two games. In games as close as these two, that's enough to change the outcome of both games. The Kings need to be less sloppy.
Cousins played like a star down the stretch of both of these games and it was great to see. Against the Clippers, he was Sacramento's primary weapon, and when Los Angeles sent a double team at him, he was quick to pass out of it and find the open man. Against Golden State he was limited to just 21 minutes because of foul trouble, but still managed to score 24 points on Andrew Bogut, a premiere defender who has shut him down in the past. He scored two key buckets late in the game as well. Cousins, along with Isaiah Thomas, has been the only player on the Kings this season that can seemingly be counted on to produce night in and night out. Eventually, this will start translating to wins.
Image / GIF of the Week:
The real image of the week was anthonysam's caption for last week's caption contest, but this is a good runner-up:
Scirocco did some serious research on D-Will after the trade went down and shared his thoughts with the rest of us.
Just got done watching a ton of Derrick Williams on Synergy (Sorry work, you’ll have to wait for another day)
From what I see, he’s at his best when he’s cutting off the ball around the rim. He’s really athletic and is adept at finishing with either hand. He also shows nice touch off the glass when he’s in motion. He’s also a good offensive rebounder who knows how to finish around the paint. He’s scoring 1.06 PPP on cuts on 54% shooting. That’s handy when you have Demarcus demanding double teams on the block.
His jumper is a mixed bag. I noticed when he’s moving without the ball, he can really shoot when he’s pulling up in rhythm, whether its after a couple of escape dribbles or if he just catches the ball in motion. When he spots up at a standstill is when his mechanics go to hell. Mediocre results but there’s something to work with there.
He’s terrible in isolation. He takes bad shots and lacks the ballhandling creativity to get to the rim consistently. He just lacks perimeter skills. For this reason, I would say he’s definitely a power forward. He just looks lost on the perimeter. But when he’s playing PF (and not posting up or facing his man), he moves without the ball, plays instinctively, and lets his natural ability take over.
Defensively he really lacks a position. He’s got the classic problem of being too slow to guard 3s while being too small to guard 4s. If we try to start him we’re really going to go to hell defensively. SFs are going to blow by him, PFs are going to overpower him, he can get lost in rotations, he doesn’t defend the rim very well because he’s too small and not very long. Honestly, he would have been an interesting fit NEXTto Mbah a Moute, but that’s a moot (Moute?) point.
Offensively, he could be a good fit next to Vasquez and Demarcus because he can just move around against double teams and make plays in space and in motion. Vasquez can find him in pick and rolls, and Demarcus is really starting to show good vision out of the post. It’ll be intriguing to watch a Vasquez/McLemore/Outlaw/Williams/Cousins lineup. Lots of athleticism and off-ball movement around a playmaker and a post-up center.
Things he needs to improve: He needs to become a better spot-up shooter (hopefully this is where Chris Jent comes in) and he needs to improve his defensive awareness. Hopefully we’ll keep his isolation opportunities to a minimum so he doesn’t have to make complicated decisions. I don’t see him as a small forward. The size problems as a PF defensively aren’t really fixable, but he could be at least a good offensive PF. As a SF he’ll likely be a liability on both offense and defense.
Honestly, if you go watch how Patrick Patterson played against the Clippers, I think that’s the best case scenario for Derrick Williams. Cut off the ball when Demarcus is double teamed. Play pick and roll with Vasquez. Crash the offensive glass. Play with energy.
Jason Thompson attempts to shake Blake Griffin's hand post game.
This Week's Picture:
A reminder of the rules for the Caption Contest. Leave your caption in the comments below, and the most rec'd (to recommend a comment, hit action, then rec) caption wins.
Nostradumbass Prediction for Next Week:
12/3 vs. Oklahoma City L (The Kings have been absolutely shredded by quick, athletic Point Guards this year, and OKC features perhaps the quickest and most athletic one in Russell Westbrook. Backup Reggie Jackson has been pretty good too. Not to mention the Thunder have that Kevin Durant guy as well, who I've heard is pretty good at this basketball thing. I'll be happy if we just stay competitive)
12/6 vs. LA Lakers W (This is the rumored return date for Kobe Bryant. Let's give him a proper Sactown welcome)
12/7 @ Utah W (This is the only team in the West worse than Sacramento. The Kings have faced so many tough teams to start this season, they need to beat a team like the Jazz.)
Nostradumbass Record for the Year: 6-9
Random Observations from around the league:
The contrast between the Western and Eastern conferences is on a whole other level this year, as pointed out by several commenters in last night's post-game thread. The East has just three teams at .500 or above, and a division where the division leader is 6-10. Meanwhile the Western Conference has all but three teams at .500 or above, with the third worst team in Minnesota at 9-10. That's insane.
Anthony Davis got off to a great start but now will be missing some significant time after breaking his hand against the Knicks. Fortunately it was his non-shooting hand. Injuries have hit hard in the NBA to start this year.
Klay Thompson and Stephen Curry's shooting strokes are just absolutely filthy. If they get even a little bit of room, it's almost automatic. Thompson is hitting an absurd 47.3% of his three pointers, while Curry is at 44.3%. A lot of people gave Mark Jackson crap last year for calling them the best shooting backcourt of all time, but I don't see how they aren't.
Our beloved Sign Lady is one of 10 finalists in ESPN's second annual "Fan Hall of Fame" contest.
We all know Sacramento has the greatest fans on earth, but even among us, there is one fan who stands out.
Barbara Rust, aka Sign Lady, is the best of the best. Her dedication and faith to this team has never wavered, and neither has her optimism. Barbara is not only an amazing fan, but an amazing person. I am very fortunate to be able to call her a friend.
ESPN is now holding its second annual "Fan Hall of Fame" contest, and Barbara has been nominated as one of ten finalists. This is where we come in. We are going to send Sign Lady to the Fan Hall of Fame.
Fans can vote three times per day by visiting http://fanhalloffame.com/vote/ and voting will last for 10 days. At the end of the voting period, the top three vote getters among the finalists will be named to the Hall of Fame.
To vote: go to the link above and click Barbara's picture. Then you will see a button that says "Cast Vote". Click that three times until your votes for the day are used up, then come back every day and repeat.
So tell your friends, tell your family, and vote often. Vote at home, vote at work, vote at school. Vote on your phone, computer and tablet.
#VoteForSignLady
UPDATE:
Look's like ESPN put together a little commercial for Sign Lady to promote her candidacy as a finalist in the Fan Hall of Fame. Pretty cool stuff -
I.T. is being incredibly aggressive this season for the Kings. That has pros and cons.
Isaiah Thomas has been really aggressive this season for the Kings. For the most part, it's worked out beautifully. His per-minute scoring numbers have exploded: he's currently averaging 22 points per 36 minutes, which is wildly high. His free throw rate has exploded as he gets to the rim more frequently: he's now earning one free throw for every two field goal attempts. That boosted free throw rate has bolstered his scoring efficiency, which is currently at a career high level. In addition to that, he's using the threat of his scoring to set up teammates: his assist rate (29.6 percent) and assists per minute (5.9/36) are at career-high levels.
But that aggression isn't on a toggle: it's been 'on' pretty consistently. And sometimes, that costs the Kings. Like in the final play in Sunday's loss to the Warriors. Down two with eight seconds left, no timeouts and the length of the court to go, Isaiah attacked and didn't seem to give much thought to alternate solutions.
Here he is after committing to driving the lane.
It's a nice thought: attack before the defense is set, get a shot up quickly enough for a potential offensive rebound, beat them with speed when you're the fastest guy on the floor. In execution, the Warriors swallowed it whole and seemed to know exactly what Isaiah would be doing: Andrew Bogut completely abandoned DeMarcus Cousins at the left elbow to get the block, and Stephen Curry came way off of John Salmons, who floated to the left corner.
With the benefit of a bird's eye view and replay, a pass out to Salmons or a stop-and-shovel to Cousins would be better attempts on this play. And Isaiah was 5-15 going into that play -- but he also had 10 FTAs and knew he could blow by Klay Thompson, which he did.
I don't have too much of a problem with the play. You can't turn off the spigot of aggression without losing the good it has created, and on the whole, Isaiah's aggression has been a net positive for the Kings this season.
Now, if we can find a way to let Isaiah (or anyone attainable) consistently guard Curry well ...
Even though the Kings are 4-11, Michael Malone is making the best of what he's got.
When Michael Malone was hired as the head coach of the Sacramento Kings he, along with new owner Vivek Ranadive, said this season would not be judged by wins or losses, but by how much the culture changes.
"Changing the culture" is a tired cliché in sports, but it is something that has needed to happen in Sacramento for a long time. And after 15 games, a couple of lineup changes and a trade, we are beginning to see bits of progress.
Despite having one of the toughest schedules in the NBA (they are tied with the Clippers for the toughest), the Kings have lost by 10 or less in eight of their 11 losses this season. Three of their losses have been decided by five points or less.
They play hard, they play with passion and fans are typically leaving the old barn disappointed, but entertained.
In fact, there have only been a few occasions this season where the Kings from start to finish have looked like the lost puppy Kings of old (the losses to Portland Trail Blazers are an example). But the bulk of the losses and the handful of wins have had Malone's stamp of defense and competitiveness all over them.
"Our guys have most nights kind of no quit, and I challenge them a lot and I don't ever want to be a team that rolls over," Malone said after the 115-113 loss to the Golden State Warriors Sunday.
Isaiah Thomas says he has noticed improvements this season.
"It's definitely progress, we're definitely there. A lot of times last year we were getting blown out," Thomas told Sactown Royalty. "We're in games we just gotta figure out how to win, I mean that's what it comes down to; execution, getting stops and scoring. I mean we're learning. It's a process and we're going to get there because we're fighting and we're working hard."
DeMarcus Cousins seems to be working hard on his leadership role that he's been asked to take on as the high-priced franchise player on a roster full of B players. It's shown this season like it did on Sunday when the big fella found himself in foul trouble but hit a couple of back-to-back jump hooks over Andrew Bogut that kept the Kings in the game.
Malone has taken notice.
"DeMarcus I was impressed with down the stretch," Malone told reporters. "We went to DeMarcus and he delivered and I think that's part of his maturity as well as becoming a go-to guy."
It shouldn't be ignored that Cousins has picked up his fair share of technical fouls (five on the season) and doesn't like shaking hands with the Clippers, but he has remained in games when the team has needed him. He also has some stellar averages so far: 21.7 points, 10.1 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.2 blocks and 1.6 steals.
But despite the numbers and Malone's positive comments, Cousins is not satisfied with the general improvements of the team - he wants wins.
"We could talk about progress every day, but with that progress we're still making some of the same mistakes, so when we stop making those mistakes, then we'll get over that hump," Cousins told Sactown Royalty.
"One day we have to get over this hump man, you know, it's all good and dandy that we staying in games and fighting hard, but we're always on the losing end of it," Thornton told Sactown Royalty.
You like to see the passion to win in a locker room that has become accustomed to losing in recent years - in a way it shows progress in and of itself. And Cousins is right, the mistakes that have plagued this team for years - lack of passing, failure to execute called plays, careless inopportune turnovers - still do rear their head when it matters most. But learning to fix these things are growing pains a rebuilding team in an incredibly deep Western Conference is going to have to go through, and everything points to it actually turning around this time.
The losses are a tough pill for Kings fans to swallow, but it was hardly unexpected. Malone and Pete D'Alessandro seem to be making the most out of what they have - an All-Star caliber center; a slow, facilitating point guard; an athletic, but raw rookie; and a talented, but streaky point guard for a sixth man.
Overall, Malone has come in and got this group of guys to play with passion, has improved the defense (the Kings are currently allowing opponents to score 100 points per game, down from 105 last season) and is beginning to cultivate a more entertaining brand of basketball.
