The Kings added legendary scorer Alex English to the coaching staff last week to fill out the bench after Keith Smart ascended to the top spot. Those of us entranced by those old 1980s Nuggets whenever they make an appearance on NBA TV know English the player well. But what does he brings as a coach?
English has spent the last several years on the bench of the Toronto Raptors. We tabbed Adam Francis of Raptors HQ to break down English the coach. You can see that insight below the jump.
Alex English was one of the longest tenured members of the Toronto Raptors organization. He had been with the Raptors since 2004, serving as both Director of Player Development and an assistant coach to the likes of Sam Mitchell and Jay Triano. With Bryan Colangelo's decision not to retain Triano as head coach this past summer, English's tenure unfortunately ended as well, as the club decided to go in a different direction regarding the various bench bosses.
While the change in direction was understandable, it was disappointing to hear that English would no longer be part of the coaching staff. He excelled at working with the team's youngsters, something that bodes well for the Kings' and their current roster, and commanded a ton of respect in the locker room. He had this soft-spoken yet authoritative presence, and was one of the more fascinating people I've ever spoken with regarding the NBA, thanks to his storied past and basketball experience.
But Sacramento isn't simply getting some whimsical storyteller here. Raptors' big men from Chris Bosh to Amir Johnson can place a ton of credit in the development of their game at the feet of English. In particular, he spent a lot of time working with youngsters like Ed Davis, helping them on and off the court. Considering the similar raw big man talent collected by Sacramento, my hope is that the Kings will leverage English's calm insight, and Raptors' fans wish him the best of luck in his new role.
English is one of the true professionals in the game, and it's great to see him getting another shot at something he does so well.
Thanks to Adam for the insight!
0 recs | 32 comments
Kings are averaging -26.5 since the hiring of Alex English
Fire English!!
HeuristicLineup - January 16, 2012
So...
In order to get Smart, we have to understand English first?
section214 - January 16, 2012
Lmfao brilliant comment.
CousinsEvansDUO - January 16, 2012
Smart needs to use English correctly.
Slam_Dunk - January 16, 2012
He just needs to put some English on it.
hozr - January 18, 2012
i think we will beat the twolvez today. it will be a VERY close game, but thornton and reke will drive and get and 1’s to win by 1 or 2 points in the late 4th quarter.
CousinsEvansDUO - January 16, 2012
I would hope so...
…with Timberwolves rated dead last.
Slam_Dunk - January 16, 2012
Que?
wallywagon11 - January 16, 2012
My bad!!!
Perceptual Expectancy: One sees what one expects to see. I expected the Timberwolves to rate dead last, so that is what I saw.
Slam_Dunk - January 16, 2012
Let's hope that you expect to see a Kings win today.
HighTops - January 16, 2012
I do.
Slam_Dunk - January 16, 2012
I think it was sarchasm or conditioned thinking....
I give the Kings a decent chance tonight. I like the match-ups, redemption for previous humiliation, although the Kings should not be favorites versus anyone, except Wizards.
Their 4 wins are misleading as to how generally awful they have been.
Their eFG% (43.89) is second worst in the NBA. Their opponents eFG% (51.18) is second best. So they are 29th out of 30 shooting, and they are 29th out of 30 in stopping shots.
This team has been generally horrible in offense and generally horrible on defense. Their point differential of -11.5 is 29th out of 30, a good barometer of overall performance.
The Kings are lucky to be 4-9.
bench_blob - January 16, 2012
yeah i've noticed the point differential and the giant chasm between the ORtg and DRtg (which obviously points to the point differential)
wallywagon11 - January 16, 2012
Somewhat misleading due to their strength of schedule which I believe ranked 6th hardest
HighTops - January 16, 2012
pretty sure that's accurate
wallywagon11 - January 16, 2012
I read David Aldridge's post this morning
And his one sentence on the Kings summed it up.
“The Kings have one four games… how?”
raiderking21 - January 16, 2012
The 21 point comeback vs. Bucks was fluky, taking nothing away from inspired rally...
But Bucks sort of gifted that one. The win in Toronto was helped when Raptors go-to player (Bargani) hurt his back in the second half, though he struggled up to injury. So those 2 wins were fortuitous.
A 2-11 record would be more aligned with Kings quality of play.
Every loss, with possible exception of Bulls game, has been lopsided at the end. Thats pretty telling too, that the Kings have not even had a fair chance in the 4th quarter of all 9 losses.
The good news is Hayes is hopefully 2 weeks away, and that should be about the time to expect Coach Smart and his new system to show some tangible results.
bench_blob - January 16, 2012
Great, so Hayes is gonna come back and mess it all up!
FIRE THE KINGS!!!
Shizzo - January 16, 2012
He said "one" instead of "won"?
caseycheesecake - January 16, 2012
Shift key, please.
Tom Ziller - January 16, 2012
Any chance Alex might want to suit up?
There’s a good chance he’s the best small forward on our bench.
Mike Garza - January 16, 2012
Off topic (except that this is written in English)
Kings are 24th in attendance at 15066
http://espn.go.com/nba/attendance
ElRonToro - January 16, 2012
I would not have expected that
Sucks that we’re still in the bottom half, but at least we aren’t last
raiderking21 - January 16, 2012
That should be the Sacramento Kings slogan
“At least we aren’t last”
HeuristicLineup - January 16, 2012
Yet!
HighTops - January 16, 2012
Percentage is what's important.
Kings have one of the smaller capacities.
Tom Ziller - January 16, 2012
Isn't our max like 17000?
raiderking21 - January 16, 2012
17,317
caseycheesecake - January 16, 2012
English is gonna show Jimmer how score 50 tonight!
hesabasketballplayer - January 16, 2012
From the insight, English seems like he’s going to be able to have a very positive effect on the team. Can’t be worse than Westphal..
Toby93 - January 16, 2012
let's not temp fate with "can't be worse than" comments
knock on wood or something
wallywagon11 - January 16, 2012
I've always liked Alex
I became an NBA fan when he was in his second year with the Bucks, my home team away from home (‘cause I was living part time in Wisconsin). Wasn’t too surprised when he became a star. He’s always been a class act, and I hope his tenure in Sactown generates positive results.
Elvin Unseld - January 16, 2012
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