Sacramento Kings at Denver Nuggets
Pepsi Center, Denver
6 p.m. Pacific on Comcast SportsNet California
The Kings blew a chance at stealing a win over a Grizzlies team missing Zach Randolph and with a limited Mike Conley; Sacramento got blown out in the third quarter as Tyreke Evans and Marcus Thornton combined for 14 points against Jeremy Pargo and Tony Allen. The Kings defense was bad, too, as John Salmons was crushed by Rudy Gay and Sam Young stretched the frontline out.
Thanks to being healthy, Denver is a more imposing offense with quick lead Ty Lawson, destroyer of the paint Nene and sharpshooters Arron Afflalo and Danilo Gallinari. But perhaps unsurprisingly (given the coach on the sideline), Denver's been a better defense than offense this season. The Nuggets are No. 5 early in defensive rating, allowing 96.5 points per 100 possessions.
How they've been doing it is odd: Denver is currently middle of the pack in shooting defense, but top-five in defensive rebounding, turnover creation and foul rate. They have a wing stopper in Afflalo and a solid defensive big man in Nene, plus role-playing defenders like Chris Andersen and Corey Brewer.
The other note about Denver that's a little crazy: despite that glimmering 4-2 record, the Nuggets have played the No. 4 most difficult schedule, according to Basketball-Reference. (The Kings are at No. 9.)
DeMarcus Cousins got plenty of minutes in his return to action on Tuesday in Memphis, and did what he's done all season: rebound the snot out of the ball, make some turnovers, miss some bunnies. He had eight rebounds Tuesday, and with five games played leads the entire NBA in total offensive rebounds and offensive rebounding rate (no small margin there). He's No. 4 in rebounds per game (behind Dwight Howard, Kevin Love and JaVale McGee) and No. 3 in total rebound rate (Howard and Love). It began to look Tuesday like the truly insane offensive rebounding is connected to the poor finishing at the rim, which is the cause of the poor field goal percentage.
Consider this: all five of Cousins' field goal attempts on Tuesday were putback attempts. Those are self-created shots, effort attempts created by the fact that Boogie is working extremely hard on the glass. Maybe some portion of those need to be tipped back out to the Kings' guards, if possible. Maybe on some Cousins needs to try to collect the ball instead of touching it back off the glass so he can draw a few more fouls. It's clearly not an efficient use of those second chances right now; even before the Memphis game, 82games.com had Cousins at 20 percent on tip attempts this season, vs. 55 percent last year. But it's not as if he's jacking up bad shots. He's hustling in the paint and watching the ball fall off of the rim.
He needs a little luck, in my estimation. We'll see if that happens in Denver.
Game's at 6. We'll have game threads at 6 and 7:30. Let's go Kings!
1 recs | 100 comments
Fun fact
DeMarcus Cousins and John Salmons are tied for first in total Personal Fouls with 22 (Amir Johnson and Kendrick Perkins also have 22)
Aykis16 - January 4, 2012
At least Cuz is rebounding like a beast and taking charges.
fryingpan136 - January 4, 2012
Statistically, DeMarcus has been our best defender.
Aykis16 - January 4, 2012
I believe it. Are you refering to a particular stat, or just generally?
fryingpan136 - January 4, 2012
Defensive Rating
He’s by far the best at 104.
Aykis16 - January 4, 2012
Thanks!
fryingpan136 - January 4, 2012
If crying to the ref for fouls and not getting back was a defensive stat....
He’d be #1 in the league
Get Jimmered - January 4, 2012
Thanks
Glad someone else saw what I saw last night.
Docile Ocelot - January 4, 2012
Happened COUNTLESS times in the Bulls game
Get Jimmered - January 4, 2012
Smoked like a beater?
I don’t get it.
Smoked like a Salmons and took a Rudy Gay beating?
fryingpan136 - January 4, 2012
beater
is an old shitty car. Smoked ie leaky exhaust.
eh, idk either.
iashwash - January 4, 2012
k, I feel a bit less confused.
fryingpan136 - January 4, 2012
That's generally the direction I was heading.
Tom Ziller - January 4, 2012
Watch out what direction you head in
PW might send you home because you are supposedly “demanding a trade”
ThomasGQ - January 4, 2012 via iPhone app
You know
Lol, hearing Peaches grumble and swear up and down on the radio about the play of the team and basically agree when callers rail the Kings is making my day at work.
HarveySpecter - January 4, 2012
That's a first
Peaches agreeing with the callers.
49er16 - January 4, 2012
I may tune in after work to hear
Ground breaking of peaches
SharkKings49 - January 4, 2012
Jesus Christ
I think I’ve died and gone to an alternate universe.
Quote to a caller who said we have next year to look forward to:
“Kings fans deserve better, they’ve been told we should wait for three years now, and we deserve production. Does that mean a championship? No. 4th Seed, no. Playoffs, possibly. But they’ve waited long enough, and the deserve competitive basketball.”
I couldn’t even believe my ears. I hope this lasts.
HarveySpecter - January 4, 2012
*they deserve
HarveySpecter - January 4, 2012
I'm shocked right now.
ResetSmith - January 4, 2012
Anyone notice Peaches staring at Travis Outlaw for abt 4 uncomfortable seconds before he checked in last night...kind of stalker-ish.
gregory l - January 4, 2012
Didn't he do that stuff to Tyreke when we first got him?
SharkKings49 - January 4, 2012
Does this mean that Napear will be listenable for once?
SharkKings49 - January 4, 2012
Wha...
Expert interviewer, vicelike grasp of the English language… What’s not listenable?
Docile Ocelot - January 4, 2012
Meh
Depends, he got thrown off his groove and started talking about DMC and then football. So hopefully he gets back to whatever Twilight Zone we were in.
HarveySpecter - January 4, 2012
HarveySpecter - January 4, 2012
He normally doesn't even respond to the callers at all
Makes for a very poor talk show.
Caller: “(2 minute point, sometimes even good, interesting point)”
Grant: “thanks for the call.”
lchristmas - January 4, 2012 via mobile
Agreed
Not exactly a good host.
HarveySpecter - January 4, 2012
I think
you have to actually listen to a call to refer to anything in it. He usually has something more important to pay attention to than his show.
Docile Ocelot - January 4, 2012
cryptic
lchristmas - January 4, 2012
No clue what it is usually
Maybe something shiny, maybe Outlaw needs to practice shooting out of his line of sight.
It’s bad enough when he ignores callers, but he does it to guests too. And he gets paid to do it.
Docile Ocelot - January 4, 2012
Btw Ziller, that loss to Memphis was all you
If you hadn’t insulted Mr. Pargo so fiercely, Memphis would certainly have not been so fired up.
iashwash - January 4, 2012
FIRE ZILLER!!!
CowBoyRON for STR Czar!!!!
Shizzo - January 4, 2012
Statement from Paul Westphal
“Tom Ziller has repeatedly demanded to be traded to Blazersedge.”
49er16 - January 4, 2012
I'm still waiting to hear from his Agent.
iashwash - January 4, 2012
FIRE WESTPHAL 2012!!!
Allbenji - January 4, 2012 via mobile
Nene probably is not going to play
yaboyrafa - January 4, 2012
Which means we should take advantage!
which means we’ll lose by 30.
Aykis16 - January 4, 2012
That's the truth!
No Bynum, randolph, Gordon, Amare, and now nene. Wish we could of got one more W in there
Doors Open - January 4, 2012
did go 2-2 in those first four games you were referring to
just sayin
wallywagon11 - January 4, 2012
That's true
I am guilty of being overly optimistic before the season started.
Doors Open - January 4, 2012
Nene (foot) took part in shootaround, but remains uncertain for Wednesday’s game against Sacramento.
Beat writer Aaron J. Lopez reports that Nene is “Still having sharp pain in his heel,” adding that he believes it’s more of a “muscle/tissue strain” than plantar fasciitis. It’s too soon to say whether this will end up being a long-term issue, but foot injuries can obviously be problematic and “sharp” lingering pain is a definite concern. Al Harrington and Chris Andersen stand to benefit if Nene sits out again.
Source: Aaron J. Lopez on Twitter
yaboyrafa - January 4, 2012
If Nene sits...
Will that be enough to make Cousins look like he actually wants to be on the court tonight?
I know it’s a longshot, but…
Docile Ocelot - January 4, 2012
I don't care what he looks when he is on the floor
If he can snag a RB every 2-3 minutes, set solid screens, lead the team in def rating (see above) and not jack up too many shots from distance, he can play 48 minutes in my book.
ElRonToro - January 4, 2012
Understood
Just hard to figure his defensive rating when he’s still under the opposition’s basket while the game is happening on the other end of the court, like he did at least 3 times last night.
Docile Ocelot - January 4, 2012
What you usually want to focus more on is the split between def and off ratings
Doesn’t need to be best on the team but if is one of the worst, either you aren’t very good or the coach ain’t putting you in a position to be very good.
Currently Cousins is at a -11 but only four games and the team is at a -8.3.
wallywagon11 - January 4, 2012
derp derp
sorry 5 games for DMC
wallywagon11 - January 4, 2012
Ill give him some props when he puts the ball in the basket from 2 feet away
This is supposed to be an offensively skilled big man and lottery steal. You just described scot pollard.
lchristmas - January 4, 2012 via mobile
I dunno technically
12 to 18 rebounds per 36 minutes sounds like more than Scott Pollard.
Either way, we shouldn’t get too excited with that Def Rttg.
wallywagon11 - January 4, 2012
Dammit I have to cancel the dmc drtg party
Buzzkill
lchristmas - January 4, 2012 via mobile
by the way
Tyler Honeycutt is rocking a fearsome 250 ORtg/109 DRtg and a 29.2 PER.
BALLER!!!
wallywagon11 - January 4, 2012
If you could use the proper spelling sir
I believe the word you are looking for is “BALLA”.
otis29 - January 4, 2012
STRAIGHT BALLA YO!
Lotusprime - January 4, 2012 via mobile
If only he could actually play 36 minutes.
ResetSmith - January 4, 2012
Well PW rested the starters once the game was out of hand in the 4th...
So freshness shouldnt be an issue. I see IT getting more time, and guarding Lawson.
Afflalo will probably be guarding Reke, so I put this game on Thornton and Cousins to show up big.
Jimmer’s set shot looked good in garbage time last night.
Hickson and JT played with a lot of energy.
Wonderchild - January 4, 2012
Indeed it did. Indeed it did.
ivan209 - January 4, 2012
I feel that this is padding his rebounding stats.
When he attempts 3 put backs and misses all of them in a matter of seconds, the team/Cousins don’t get any points, but DMC just got 3 rebounds. That drives me crazy
SharkKings49 - January 4, 2012
We will start subtracting RBs from everybody that happens to
and add an assist every time the shooter misses a gimme.
ElRonToro - January 4, 2012
About the same time
we add a TO when someone jacks up a prayer with more than 15 ticks left on the shot clock.
Docile Ocelot - January 4, 2012
Yeah, me too.
If you coupled that rebounding number with a higher shooting %, now you’ve got something. (Not like I’m saying anything profound here)
ivan209 - January 4, 2012
defense
go D!!!
often defense is played in a reactionary mode, meaning they react rather than resist. teams run their offensive sets at will, like clockwork. one on one some kings do pressure opponents into errors(evans, thomas, hayes), but as a group they do not anticipate (other teams reverse the all with ease as they run through options a, b, c; rotations on penetration involve 2-3 men, not 4-5; rotating back on missed shots). let’s hope there’s more energy and effort defensively, but also growth; just like offense, team defense relies on knowing what teammates will do, where they will be.
and that’s part two: let’s hope we expert fans allow the coaches and players at least until the all star break for a breakthrough in cohesion, execution. these guys have been playing together less than two months!!! that’s not an excuse….it’s a Critical Reality.
zzsjolt - January 4, 2012
Can we just get a good game?
Tired of getting blown out for a quarter, falling behind by 20 points than the effort dropping to pedestrian speed.
bignerd - January 4, 2012
amen
zzsjolt - January 4, 2012
This.
I don’t expect to beat Denver, but a good game (AKA fighting till the end) would do wonders for my confidence in this team.
LightningStrike5 - January 4, 2012
Brewer hardly plays meaninful minutes...
… and Andersen has been underwhelming except for one of the Laker games. Al Harrington, Ty Lawson, Andre Miller and Danilo Gallinari have been the the most effective for Denver this year.
margabelle - January 4, 2012
You can really tell Cousins was working really hard yesterday
And that’s what we wanted to see. The only thing Cousins can do right now is work hard, keep his head down and unleash his rage on the other team.
Now, for the other guys…
LightningStrike5 - January 4, 2012
If only we could add finishing to that list.
ResetSmith - January 4, 2012
The list isn’t finished.
VenomySnicket - January 4, 2012
He worked hard at times
He was still dogging it up and down the court quite often.
otis29 - January 4, 2012
I hope to gawd I am wrong
But I think we are going to get blown out tonight.
On the positive side, I can hope its one more nail in PW’s coaching coffin.
Dirkula - January 4, 2012
How many more nails does that coffin need?
ResetSmith - January 4, 2012
Not sure, but he we can borrow
the many hundred I have in my heart from all these losses!
Dirkula - January 4, 2012
rec'd for sadness.
ResetSmith - January 4, 2012
I have to ask
How much of this rancor can be reversed with consecutive games showing competitive effort?
Point of clarification: effort is a mix of persistance and intelligence, not repeatedly running headfirst into a brick wall and expecting to break through each time.
Docile Ocelot - January 4, 2012
The Kings leaders may be withholding 100% effort to show they agree with what everyone has been saying about Westphal
If we don’t see the leaders of this team giving their best effort – this quite possibly is a public display that they are not in support of their coach. Lackluster effort is a form of passive-aggressive behavior. Why should they even try if the coach can’t make timely substiutions. It’s gotta be gut-wreching.
convoy - January 4, 2012
Hope not
Are they gonna pick his replacement too?
I thought they were paid to play, not make front office decisions…
Docile Ocelot - January 4, 2012
I agree this could be passive-aggressive behavior on the part of a number of the players.
Slam_Dunk - January 4, 2012
Also, can't say that I blame them.
Players have virtually no say, no power, over what they may view as incompetence on the part of a coach. They want to play, be competitive, and be be contenders.
If the coach is unable to motivate his players, help them to develop into better players, then it isn’t too surprising they would turn against him.
Slam_Dunk - January 4, 2012
Not too surprising...
Shouldn’t it be? Players have virtually no say because they don’t hire/fire coaches, know what it takes to BE a coach, or know how to manuever the league’s rule regarding personnel.
There is a reason the team has a front office. And frankly, there isn’t a player on this team that has earned the right to even add their input into what kind of coach they should have.
Would you trust advice on a dodgy transmission from your auto insurance guy?
Docile Ocelot - January 4, 2012
Docile Ocelot - January 4, 2012
When a coach uses his power to embarrass and humiliate players to gain submission,
he is treading on a slippery slope. Players wanted to be treated with respect.
A coach can be strict, but he also needs to be fair. Players will work their butts off for someone they respect and trust.
Slam_Dunk - January 4, 2012
I get that fully
and I know I am in the minority here, but I believe the staff spent last year trying to get through to Cousins (as I assume you refer to him specifically) and came up with unsatisfactory results. Which is no different than the situation the year before at Kentucky.
It can be argued that bringing the public spotlight to behavioral issues can have the desired effect of changing those issues. Do you think pro athletes act out as much on off nights as they did before all the increased media coverage?
The standard answer last year when asked about Cousins’ ability was always, “DeMarcus can be as great as he wants to be, he just has to want to be great.” Translation, work on his issues. He doesn’t seem to have done so on his own.
Again, in the minority here, but I believe Westphal ran out of options in dealing with him. Probably cost him his job, but then he won’t be the last coach left in Cousins’ wake.
I was taught you don’t talk back to your coach – and everyone who has played a sport has had cause to at some point. Times have certainly changed.
Docile Ocelot - January 4, 2012
good point
you can struggle and fight with all the enthusiasm you can muster, but it doesn’t mean your going to move that mountain. Rain will wear it away with persistence, but that takes time.
If the Kings are going to claw their way out of this mess, they’re going to have to change what they are doing. And, PW needs to put his best players on the court and not yank them out because they make a mistake. Is there anyone in Kings fandum that believed that with 7 players with less than 2 years experience, there weren’t going to be mistakes.
HighTops - January 4, 2012
Indulge me
Could that be a method of teaching correct play in lieu of practice time, which is almost nonexistent this season?
Docile Ocelot - January 4, 2012
I fully expect people being paid to do a job to do that job expertly.
Which is why I’m at work on StR.
iashwash - January 4, 2012
I want to be a positive thinker with the Kings
I just can’t see any right now…too much negatives, I hope PW doesn’t think i wanna be traded to one of SBNation’s other teams.
KINGKENJI - January 4, 2012
Hard to develop Good, Young talents with such coach.. Nuff said..
mjalmighty - January 4, 2012
Watching
the Min/Mem game right now and I must say that Min runs beautiful pick/rolls. Kings could learn a thing, or 25284..
'92topresent - January 4, 2012
I think we will win..a lot of bad games have gone by..the team understands each other now, knows what everyone is doing and what the team needs to do. I think today we go off and have a 30 point blowout maybe 131-97 kings-nuggets.
CousinsEvansDUO - January 4, 2012
I'll have what he's having.
ResetSmith - January 4, 2012
You want a lobotomy?
kromeace - January 4, 2012
Maybe.
We sure could use that indian guy, he can really finish on the inside
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_qCcSQPh2Bc
ResetSmith - January 4, 2012
Too funny, exactly the movie that came to mind...
kromeace - January 4, 2012
lol !
DiegoKing - January 4, 2012
We did against New Orleans after the Knicks
pauleyusmc - January 4, 2012
Our season thus far
http://gifsoup.com/imager.php?id=3286724&t=o[/IMG][/URL] [URL=http://gifsoup.com/]GIFSoup[/URL]
'92topresent - January 4, 2012
Clean up on aisle three!
fryingpan136 - January 4, 2012
Perhaps the Kings finally get that 1st pick in the draft
Ninja King - January 4, 2012
Now convinced STR are using a time machine
Look at the title! Either that or Ziller feeding Reke some Hyatt burgers…
Sacramental - January 4, 2012 via mobile
Came back to this thread to mention that myself
TheFifthMookie - January 4, 2012
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