This is a sponsored post, however the content was written entirely and sincerely by me. -- TZ
As Aykis wrote in his weekly GB&U, the offseason was not kind to the Sacramento Kings. The John Salmons trade hasn't solidified the position; Salmons has been so unproductive that Keith Smart has already resorted to moving Tyreke Evans to the three. Chuck Hayes has suffered injuries and has seen his role tossed around like pizza dough. (What happened to the assertions from the front office that he was exactly what the starting five needed? Did Westphal pack those up in his box when he left?) J.J. Hickson has been rough. Travis Outlaw has been even more rough. Travis Outlaw is making loose grit sandpaper look like silk. Marcus Thornton, re-signed for big bucks, has been wholly inconsistent. Jimmer Fredette has been OK, but not the instant offense the team thought he'd be.
But the one player picked up or retained in the offseason that the Kings' front office can point to as a total success doubles as the one player who seems to change the game every time he steps on the floor ... and usually for the better. That player was the last pick in the 2011 NBA Draft: Isaiah Thomas.
You aren't supposed to get usable players with the No. 60 pick. That's why so many late second-round picks are used on foreign prospects unlikely to ever reach the NBA: teams don't float around with extra roster spots to use on fringe players. When any second-round pick 'makes it' in the NBA, it is notable. The last pick of the second round? It's doubly so.
Thomas has already ascended into the starting lineup, and not because of injury. He's there because he provides something consistently than no one outside of perhaps DeMarcus Cousins does: energy, energy, energy. Thomas pushes the tempo, he works to get the crowd going at home. He's unafraid to take big shots, he knows how to spread the floor and he is a pesky defender. He's not perfect, and unlike so many first-round picks, his ceiling is visible. But that's OK. He knows what to do, and he does it.
He's been a huge breeze of fresh air in an otherwise murky season for Sacramento, and I'm glad he's a King.
11 recs | 151 comments
For a sponsored post
This one was good.
He has been a breath of fresh air on this Kings team. Which is good, because with all the fish stinking up the place, we need it.
HeuristicLineup - February 20, 2012
"...fish stinking up the place..."
“OUCH”, said John Salmons.
LaBradford - February 20, 2012
Hey, don't leave Trout out of this stink fest
HeuristicLineup - February 20, 2012
is "Reke" part of the stinkfest?
LaBradford - February 20, 2012
No
Reke has been somewhat disappointing because he is set at a higher standard. If Salmons was playing like Reke we’d all love him. We want better from Reke. We want a consistent, all-star level player. So far we’ve gotten same old Reke. Without a consistent jumper Reke will not reach the next level. That’s the bottom line.
Allbenji - February 20, 2012 via mobile
Exactly
He’s sitting at 17-5-5 on what we are considering a bad year… That’s a good year for most players in this league.
HeuristicLineup - February 20, 2012
Evans blew this game with a dumbass play.
Still glad he’s on the team, but he stole a win from his teammates yesterday.
andy sims - February 20, 2012
10 pts on 17 shots
big F-ing ouch.
lietothegirls - February 20, 2012
It was a dumb play
As was Cousins’ right before. As was Cousins inability to stay out of foul trouble, which limited him to 26 minutes. You think if he plays 9 more minutes in that game, the Kings are in that situation at the end?
Tyreke played horribly, but the cliche “it’s a team game” applies here. Cousins is just as responsible for that loss from a team perspective as Tyreke.
otis29 - February 20, 2012
Same feeling I had
Tyreke’s play was stupid, but there other stupid plays that happened in this game, and this team couldn’t get stops when it needed to. Just like the Niners loss isn’t just Kyle Williams’ fault, this loss is not all on Tyreke either.
raiderking21 - February 20, 2012 via mobile
Agree,
Cousins had 5 fouls, and 4 of them were unnecessary.
Wonderchild - February 20, 2012
Agree
some blame goes to JS for missing 2 wide open 3s in the last few minutes
ElRonToro - February 20, 2012
It is a team
And our two best players shot 11-34. If they make a few more of those shots, there is probably not a last second play for Tyreke to make a mistake on.
MichaelMack - February 20, 2012
So why didnt smart play JT more..I know he had 3 fouls but 16 minutes come on
Widowwolf - February 20, 2012
I'm really not sure why JT doesn't play more
He likes going with, IT, Thornton, Tyreke, Salmons, Cousins at the end of games
HeuristicLineup - February 20, 2012
Well in the Cavs game, JT isn't quick enough to guard Jamison.
So thats why there was no JT. But Donte played well in the 2nd quarter, why not put him in instead of Salmons there? It couldn’t have been worse.
Wonderchild - February 20, 2012
yes, I feel the same way
although the first year Tyreke was the best version. but that was probably partly due to the fact that he was new and now there’s a lot of game tape on him that defenses can study to slow him down. he definitely needs that consistent jumper. if he gets that, he’ll be a superstar.
LaBradford - February 20, 2012
I have to say yes
I believe that for all Tyreke’s physical talents, he’s not that great a player. He’s kind of a one-trick pony offensively. His go to move is to slash to the basket. That’s it. He’s not a consistent 2 pt shooter and his 3 pt shooting is frankly dreadful. His defense is pretty good, but not great. His BB IQ leaves much to be desired as evidenced by his foul of Kyrie Irving with 2 seconds to go and the Kings holding a 1 pt lead. You’ve got to be shitting me! And with the addition of IT as starting pg it’s refreshing to see the ball cross the time line with 20 seconds left on the shot clock and not to see dribble, dribble, dribble down to 5 seconds and then getting into the offense.
This is not to say the Tyreke is a bad person. I think he’s a good person, just not that great a bb player. Some of this may be due to his young age and lack of college play. Some of it may be due to having PW as his first NBA coach. I don’t know. I do think the whole 20-5-5 thing was something of a PR thing concocted by the Malindas. I remember seeing games during his rookie year and watching Tyreke on occasion shoot technicals when the Kings had better free throw shooters on the floor at the time. I can only think that it was done to pad his stats. I know it’s a harsh opinion, but it’s what I believe.
At this point I think there is one player that the Kings build around and his name is Demarcus Cousins.
Let the flaming begin.
SayWhat? - February 20, 2012
What?
HeuristicLineup - February 20, 2012
All valid points
I agree with much of what you wrote here. Tyrekes potential is still huge. When he’s on his game he borders on great. He is definitely not there yet, though. If he develops his mid range game and isn’t forced to play point, he CAN be great.
rstewartwest - February 20, 2012
I don't think anyone here would say he is a "great player"
So I don’t see why you would think “the flaming” would begin.
My thing is I agree Tyreke is not great. He has some holes in his game that desperately need to be fixed. I just don’t get the hate or how a lot of people seemed to have given up on him. I still feel ge has a ton of potential. Whether he gets there or not is to be seen. I would rather take my chances with Reke than whatever we could probably get for him right now.
So I will continue to support him because my NBA happiness depends on it. We can’t go back in time & draft Rubio or Curry. What’s done is done. Let’s hope he gets us there sooner than later.
Allbenji - February 20, 2012 via mobile
Nice
Glad you are getting sponsored posts, and good article.
polotown - February 20, 2012
FOR THE LAST TIME, HE WASN'T THE LAST PICK OF THE DRAFT!!!!!!!
He was just giving everybody else a head start
1damutt - February 20, 2012
THIS IS WHAT I MEAN......................
1damutt - February 21, 2012
Thomas is fast becoming one of my favorite players.
He is probably my favorite player to watch. Until we clear out some of the dead weight on the team, I hope he will be on their “keeper” list because this guy is definitely a point guard. It was a lot of fun to watch him yesterday against Cleveland. It was a shame Kings didn’t win, because it would have been a great way to top off his game.
Slam_Dunk - February 20, 2012
a sponsored post
what does that actually mean in the context of this site?
Skeptic con Urquell - February 20, 2012
It means TZ has this patch on his jersey
Sponsorship =$$
CowbellKings - February 20, 2012
Sponsorship =$$
They pay the site to put the logo on their posts?
Skeptic con Urquell - February 20, 2012
Can he teach the Maloofs how to do this
Widowwolf - February 20, 2012
GameChanger Arena
Slam_Dunk - February 20, 2012
Isaiah Thomas Arena
Shizzo - February 20, 2012
Next to DMC & Reke, IT is my favorite player
I love what he brings. The thing that really separates him from Jimmer is IT isn’t afraid to play his game. Jimmer is trying way too hard to fit in.
I saw an interview yesterday with Jeremy Lin. He said before he got to NY he was trying to hard to fit in. When he got a chance in NY he decided he was just going to play his game. You can’t be timid in this league. You have to do what ultimately got you there
Allbenji - February 20, 2012 via mobile
He said before he got to NY he was trying to hard to fit in
that’s what we saw in him at GSW , a player looking like he was playing the part of a player, mechanical and easy to read. Good for him that he figured that out.
Skeptic con Urquell - February 20, 2012
Isaiah Thomas is da bomb.
He’ll only get better too. Little man complex + being the last pick in the draft = humongous chip on shoulder.
DiegoKing - February 20, 2012
No question the guy is playing great
And I really love seeing DMC get layups, dunks, and fouls at the rim at a much higher rate with him on the floor.
Crocoduck - February 20, 2012
Just a quick IT/Jimmer thought
My eyes tell me that IT has played very well and Jimmer has struggled. I trust my eyes.
But the stats tell me if you level the minutes they are close to identical. IT shoots better from 2 Jimmer from 3. Every other category is about the same. We get 1 RB 1 Ast 1 PT more from IT for = minutes It is killing him in shot blocks though (joke).
So it really comes down to this for me, when IT is in he raises the enrgy level of the players around him. I don’t know what stats to check but I would be suprised if the offense wasn’t much mor efficient when IT is in the game .
ElRonToro - February 20, 2012
. I don’t know what stats to check but I would be surprised if the offense wasn’t much mor efficient when IT is in the game .
Looks like his assist to turnover ratio is much better, 2.33 versus 1.53
I guess you could look for their +/- numbers and see if there is any significant difference?
Skeptic con Urquell - February 20, 2012
Here is a link:
basketballvalue.com
I think you will see that the results support what your eyes have been seeing.
Slam_Dunk - February 20, 2012
So it does
It also shows Donte deserves more minutes.
Alas, it also shows that for those players who have more than 10 minutes that Jimmer is our worst on O and our second worst on D
ElRonToro - February 20, 2012
PS
Thanks S_D
If I used hoop term as my name I would probably be Botched_Layup
ElRonToro - February 20, 2012
I also noticed that about Donte.
Confirms what our eyes are seeing – give Donte more play time. Some people don’t put much stock into the plus/minus stats, but those appeared to be fairly accurate. Of course, can’t count the ones for Honeycutt or Whiteside, as they haven’t had enough play time.
Slam_Dunk - February 20, 2012
Gimee a break, man.
Do you really believe this? Jimmer is no great shakes on defense, but he plays on the second unit, which weighs against him in ORTG and DRTG. Even at 37% FGs, he is 6th best at AFG%, ahead of DeMarcus and Tyreke, because he makes his 3s at decent clip and 88% of his FTs.
You can’t just take cursory glance at statistics and make these sweeping conclusions. And especially if you are watching the games, contradicting what your eyes tell you. Jimmer is going to be really good player in this league, and the mounting criticism he receives is ridiculous.
And as an aside, the success of Isaiah is not an indictment on the development, or lack thereof, of Jimmer.
Jimmer is obviously ahead of JT, JJ Hickson, Hayes, Salmons as an offensive weapon, both as threat to score and to create for others. So to look at an arbitrary statistic and conclude is the worst on the team in O is naive, a word I will chose to be kind.
bench_blob - February 20, 2012
Do you always mistake conclusion for stating fact?
Read it again. All I did was quote the stats on Jimmer. Do positive or negative opinion was offered. So….whose naive?
btw I am not much of a believer in +- stats as there are way too many variables as you suggested.
ElRonToro - February 20, 2012
What?
You said according to the stat that Jimmer is our worst offensive player. So you either believe it, or you chose not to refute it. Either way, you are discrediting his skills.
I am sensitive to fans who look at numbers and draw faulty conclusions, or fans who misrepresent the performance level of a player by twisting statistics according to their bias.
By saying Jimmer is our worst player on offense is not something I am going to leave unchallenged, and I think I speak on behalf of all Jimmer fans that this silly assertion is bogus.
So either clarify your post or expect to be challenged.
bench_blob - February 20, 2012
I said the stats said he had the worst offensive +- rating.
meaning when he is on the floor the +- is the lowest on the team. That is not the same. What the stat says, and I only give it minimal credence, is that when Jimmer is on the floor the offense (in total) performs poorly. This could be no fault of Jimmers or a large part can be his fault, it doesn’t really say.
For example, if I was on the floor with Lebron wade Durant and Kobe I would probably, thru no credit to me, have a very good +-. If Jimmer is on the floor with Outlaw Salmons JJ and Hayes I suspect his will not be very good.
I don’t mind a challenge at all, I just like it to be on what I am saying and not what you are inferring. I thought I was clear, but I will work on it. You might be sensitive to the issue.
ElRonToro - February 20, 2012
Fair enough.
bench_blob - February 20, 2012
You answered my response half way through the comment
A big reason Jimmer’s Offensive Rating is going to look terrible on paper is because he largely plays with the 2nd unit, featuring such luminaries as Travis Outlaw, J.J. Hickson and Chuck Hayes! Now featuring… John Salmons! Yippee!
Aykis16 - February 20, 2012
I'd bet it would be fun to play with them...
I’m guessing I would feel like a competent basketball player playing with them.
raiderking21 - February 20, 2012
I'm pretty certain that
I would need to play with the St Agnes grade school girl’s team to feel like a competent basketball player.
polotown - February 21, 2012
Yeah!
Don’t you know Reke & Salmons are the only players who can be criticized!?
Allbenji - February 20, 2012 via mobile
I rarely criticize Reke
Samnesty, JT, JJ, Hayes, and Outlaw and the former Grim Reaper of Coaching are all fair game.
Everyone else is in my good graces, though Reke better not pull that bullshit again.
bench_blob - February 20, 2012
Geez I hope he can sleep tonight
What exactly are the ramifications of not being in your good grace? That you will air out some irrational bias against him?
otis29 - February 20, 2012
I was responding to you BB but not necessarily referring to just you
If that was the case I would have said JT! :)
Allbenji - February 20, 2012 via mobile
I'm pretty sure of th
raiderking21 - February 20, 2012 via mobile
e posters on STR, HeuristicLineup is the coolest
HeuristicLineup - February 20, 2012
Only because he lives in his freezer
raiderking21 - February 20, 2012 via mobile
I find it representative of the teams shooting percentages
HeuristicLineup - February 20, 2012
That's just cold
raiderking21 - February 20, 2012 via mobile
That's not cold, that's SUPER COLD
Shizzo - February 20, 2012
I don't care if this sounds stupid
But I’m happy I got my first green comment :D!
raiderking21 - February 20, 2012
Congratulations! That's an "ice breaker" in an of itself.
Slam_Dunk - February 20, 2012
Well played
raiderking21 - February 20, 2012
Or to play in part of the sponsorship... "That's a #GameChanger in an of itself."
HeuristicLineup - February 20, 2012
I'm pretty sure if the draft was done again
Isaiah would be a top 15 pick. Top 20 at the lowest.
raiderking21 - February 20, 2012 via mobile
Does this mean we've run out of things to argue about?
ResetSmith - February 20, 2012
No. Is Tyreke a point guard, or NaPG?
Keep Keith Smart next year?
Is Jimmer the 2nd coming of , um. well, who?
If the Maloofs starts sponsoring Ziller’s posts, should we get suspicious?
Should we draft a point guard?
All of this assumes that we still have a team. Show up on February 28!!!
kinglet - February 20, 2012
Answers
1) Reke is a KaPG (kinda a point guard)
2) I see no reason to reduce his IQ so I say keep Keith Smart
3) Jimmer is the 2nd coming…and 3rd for some guys
4) Yes
5) BPA and hope its a SF
6) I Will Be There
ElRonToro - February 20, 2012
Rec'd for "KaPG"
and for acing the exam.
kinglet - February 20, 2012
Another rec! KaPG, priceless.
polotown - February 21, 2012
The surprisingly facet to Thomas' game is his court presence.
When he enters the game it is true he brings energy, but with his hands on the ball you can see him size up the spacing and the defense. He does a good job of forcing play on offense and he is mostly a pass first PG, who is not shy about scoring.
My favorite part of his game, and the reason I believe he gets the amount of playing time he does, is his man to man defense. The NBA has become a PG oriented league more than every these last few seasons. Many teams have “short” PGs (my arbitrary definition: less than 6’1" in the media guide). Off the top of my head: Chris Paul, DJ Augustin, Kemba Walker, Raymond Felton, Kyle Lowry, Darren Collison, Mike Conley, Ty Lawson, Jameer Nelson come to mind first and they are all starters (don’t forget brother Huskie Nate Robinson). Putting 5’9" It’s IT on 5’ 12" Chris Paul and he only gives up 3" and if you include IT’s vertical game, it’s almost even. (Factoid: IT weighs 10 lbs more than Paul per NBA.com)
As a rookie, and given the opportunity, I will venture to say that Thomas has a future as a potential long term starter for this team (or further, in this League). His BBIQ is good enough, his defense against approx. same size guards is good enough, his assist game and quarterbacking is good enough, his outside shooting is almost good enough, and gosh darn it, people like him!
Last comment on Isaiah Thomas: Please Please Please when the discussion is about Thomas let’s not make it a discussion about Jimmer Fredette. They both deserve better.
Thanks Sony for the sponsorship.
betweentheeyes - February 20, 2012
This.
Slam_Dunk - February 20, 2012
The best thing about IT
is he knows how to run the pick and roll.
I love the energy he brings to the team and the fact that he gets our bigs and guys like Donte involved. I also think his defense is underrated.
NewEraKings - February 20, 2012
And he knows how to defend the Pick and Roll
Per Synergy he’s the 14th best defender in the entire NBA on opposing P&R Ballhandlers (More on this next week, when I do a mid-season follow up to my Advanced Stats piece of last month)
Aykis16 - February 20, 2012
Great Post!
As a Washington Husky fan, Isaiah Thomas was the type of guy that you’d love to build your franchise around. Even though he isn’t the most talented and doesn’t have the ideal basketball size (at 5’ 9’’), you always knew as a fan that he would do whatever it takes to score, and I’m glad to see that he’s translating his game over to the pros.
Good luck to your Kings the rest of the way. I’ll be rooting for Isaiah from afar.
SeahawksPhan - February 20, 2012
Loved the pick of Isaiah at 60, and envisioned he’d become this type of player, but definitely not this quick.
JuMowbray - February 20, 2012
We need to look at shopping around Reke
While other teams might still be under the illusion that he is getting better.
convoy - February 20, 2012
Got to love this logic
Yes, the 22 year old has peaked!!! LOL.
HeuristicLineup - February 20, 2012
Your getting this wrong
He’s on the wrong side of 20. He is all downhill now.
raiderking21 - February 20, 2012 via mobile
True... true...
It’s also a good thing Marcus Thornton can bring in such veteran leadership at 24… Donte Greene should be retiring soon.
HeuristicLineup - February 20, 2012
He’s on the wrong side of 20. He is all downhill now.
those crow’s feet at the corner of his eyes are the key.
Skeptic con Urquell - February 20, 2012
Has anyone checked his ID?
Widowwolf - February 21, 2012
That wasn't the logic as far as I can tell
no one is saying that he’s necessarily peaked. But at the same time, you can’t ignore his regression and stagnation. If you can get a quality starter for him, i think you at least have to consider it.
deadenddude - February 20, 2012
This is nothing compared to what goes on at that other Kings site
they pretty much have a Tyreke Defense Squad on 24 hour red alert.
deadenddude - February 20, 2012
people on this site are obsessed with defending Evans
3 years later and he still can’t shoot. He’s just not fun to watch either, all he does is put his head down and drive to the basket with no court vision, very one dimensional. That being said, we probably wouldn’t be able to get anyone better for him so we’re most likely going to end up keeping him.
Since'89 - February 20, 2012 via iPhone app
all he does is put his head down and drive to the basket with no court vision,
Corey Magette turned that into a pretty good career.
Skeptic con Urquell - February 20, 2012
Ok Troll-face.
He boards, assists, plays above-average D.
caseycheesecake - February 21, 2012
I'm pretty sure that in three years, Reke will make some additional advancements to his game.
We all saw what he did his rookie year, so we know what he is capable of doing and he has improved in some facets of his game. Three years from now, when he is an old man at 23, if hasn’t improved from what he is currently doing, then consider other options. His trade value won’t go down. Right now, we have plenty of other more important problems to consider; Reke is not one of them.
Slam_Dunk - February 20, 2012
Just a point
if its 3 years later we are already playing next season
ElRonToro - February 20, 2012
I dimensional is not true
unless you are stricitly confining it to Reke when he is trying to attempt to score. In that area, yes the 1 dimension is that he is only a threat to drive.
But he is certainly not 1 dimensional as a player as least an average passer and an above average rebounder and defender (for the most part). The only thing he doesn’t do average is mid and long range shooting.
ElRonToro - February 20, 2012
Just like some people on this site are obsessed with ripping him
The fact that he hasn’t improved his jumper is very disheartening to me I will admit but I have to disagree on the “no court vision” part.
Saying Tyreke has no court vision to me is ridiculous. He doesn’t have the court vision Rubio or anything close to it but I could count on 1 hand the other players in the league that has Rubio’s court vision.
The man could average 10 assists a game partly if he chose to & partly if his teammates could hit shots. I feel like he tries to pass & when his teammates aren’t hitting shots he tries to do it all himself. That is a problem he is going to have to change. I don’t think he’s a selfish person by nature I just think he tries to be the hero too much. He isn’t the only one on the team like that. Most of the team is like that.
So in all I believe the whole “court vision” or “basketball IQ” thing is WAY overblown. The guy should & does take a lot of heat for his jumper not improving. That to me is a completely fair criticism. Also his “hero” complex. The while team needs to work on their “hero” complex to be honest. Except maybe JT, Jimmer, & Chuck Wagon.
Allbenji - February 20, 2012 via mobile
Agree
Shooting, I believe, is the one area of your game that can be greatly improved upon after you make the NBA. It is simply muscle memory. It takes a while to correct issues, but by now the fade should be history. If the rumors of his practicing a ton are to be believed that only leads to the conclusion he is practicing wrong. This would be a coaching issue that practice time is wasted not doing things correctly. Or a bad assumption on my part and he is not wired for muscle memory stuff.
ElRonToro - February 20, 2012
Tyreke has only had 1 offseason
He was in the olympics after his rookie year and waa hurt, and there was no offseason this year.
He hasn’t had time to “fix his game” yet.
Sacramental - February 20, 2012 via mobile
300-400 shots a day
shouldn’t take more than a month to get form consistent and fade gone. The % will go up over time as the muscle memory improves. The fade should be gone except for maybe the occasional flash back
ElRonToro - February 20, 2012
Reminds me of how Shaq said he always worked on his FTs
and you would watch him and his elbow would be out at some godawful angle.
ElRonToro - February 20, 2012
But he makes them when it counts
HeuristicLineup - February 20, 2012
He did too
I just looked it up and he shot 64% of FTs over the course if the 2002 WCFs. Pretty good for Shaq.
deadenddude - February 20, 2012
64% is still absolutely awful
HeuristicLineup - February 20, 2012
Yeah but in game six and seven he was 26 of 32 or something
so that would back up the making em when it counts claim.
deadenddude - February 20, 2012
Shaq over all had a +1.5% in his free throwing percentage in the clutch
http://www.nba.com/2009/news/features/john_schuhmann/10/29/numbers.game/index.html
HeuristicLineup - February 20, 2012
So if if those 3 extra made free throws out of 200 is "making it when it counts"
Then I guess he’s right..
HeuristicLineup - February 20, 2012
Well it seemed like he always made em when it counted against the Kings
so that probably skews my view. Why couldn’t he have shot his normal 58% in game 6 and game 7!
deadenddude - February 20, 2012
Actually, just game 6
then there would have been no game 7
deadenddude - February 20, 2012
If someone says I can make them when I want
I immediately think Why the f don’t you play hard all the time? Kobe was right!
ElRonToro - February 20, 2012
The jumper is the least of my concerns
It’s his ridiculous inconsistency that frustrates me. You never know night to night whether you’re going to get 30 points or 5 points out of him. It’s very hard to have a good team when one of your top two players is all over the map like that.
deadenddude - February 20, 2012
I think not having a jumper hurts his consistency the most
Without a jumper to keep the defense honest all the other team has to do is have a good game plan & he can’t deal with it. Pack the paint then what?
Allbenji - February 20, 2012 via mobile
Good point
Not having a jumper probably is the biggest reason why he’s so inconsistent. like you said when teams pack the paint, he’s got nothing to fall back on. And unlike Rondo, he isn’t a good enough PG and doesn’t have good enough teammates to get by with not having a jumper.
deadenddude - February 20, 2012
This is exactly when he struggles
When he has trouble getting to the rim, he has a bad game. I’ve noticed that Tyreke really struggles when someone longer than he is, is guarding him. We don’t have consistent enough shooters to make people stay honest on our wings.
This is why I think Cousins/Tyreke really need to start running the pick and roll more often, when Cousins is out of the key while Reke is attacking he has a much easier time getting to the rim since people have to stay on Cousins since his mid-range shot is so consistent.
Hell if our dream came true, and Donte Greene and became a consistent outside shooter, John Salmons goes back to his average and you run a pick and roll with Cousins/Tyreke with Jimmer at the two, the defense couldn’t collapse or they’d be leaving a solid shooter wide-open, so either Tyreke is going to have a field day at the rim or our shooters would be getting wide open shots. However, right now with how we’re shooting all our open shooters would be doing is helping get some more bricks for the buy a brick arena program…
HeuristicLineup - February 20, 2012
I think having IT in the starting lineup with Tyreke will help this.
It will let Tyreke use all facets of his game and not let opposing defenses pack the paint. The slashing, the moving off the ball, coming off screens, taking set jump shots (which he is decent at.) This will all help his game.
Wonderchild - February 20, 2012
If we start IT/Thornton/Tyreke tomorrow
Lebron or Wade might go for 20 in the first quarter.
HeuristicLineup - February 20, 2012
As long as its not Lebron and Wade
Wonderchild - February 20, 2012
They might pull 91 combined like Durant/Westbrook tonight considering who we have to guard them
raiderking21 - February 20, 2012
With Chris Bosh getting the 14-15-11 block triple-double Ibaka had
raiderking21 - February 20, 2012
Of course, as one of the few optimists on here
I’ll predict they only combine for 60, and Chris Bosh goes for 20, but the rest only score 15, for a total of 95.
Meanwhile, Tyreke will score 22 on 40% shooting, while Demarcus goes for 26 and 12. Thornton gets 18, Thomas gets 16, JT gets 12 and 10. Bench only scores 5 points, for a total of 99.
Kings win!!!!! (Total Optimism!!!!!)
raiderking21 - February 20, 2012
"The rest" is the Kings biggest nightmare.
They’ll score 30+.
caseycheesecake - February 21, 2012
Free Donte!!!
In my brain, I don’t see how you don’t start Donte on Lebron. He’s probably the only person the Kings have that can even attempt to “guard” him
Donte on Lebron
Tyreke on Wade
IT on chalmers
HeuristicLineup - February 20, 2012
He's the only one who has a chance
I don’t see Smart changing his lineup though. I hope he puts Donte’ out there sooner rather than later.
I think that those 3 would do good, but I don’t know who would guard Bosh either.
raiderking21 - February 20, 2012
The problem is IT/Thornton/Reke are too short
Thornton matches up height wise with wade, but he’s way too awful of a defender to guard wade. Tyreke I think is our best bet on Wade. Greene is at least taller than Lebron and is a decent defender, Salmons and Tyreke are too short for Lebron.
HeuristicLineup - February 20, 2012
I agree with you
My point was that I don’t see Smart changing his lineup so soon. But I agree, that’s the lineup I hope he goes with.
raiderking21 - February 20, 2012
It's always been my opinion that you make lineup adjustments based on matchups
but we’ll see what plays out tomorrow..
HeuristicLineup - February 20, 2012
Lets make them change
Wade is no longer fast enough to guard IT and its going to just look damn silly if LeBron guards him
ElRonToro - February 20, 2012
IT gets his career high 47 points tomorrow!
HeuristicLineup - February 20, 2012
Then Chuck can guard Bosh,
but then we will be crying that nobody is protecting the rim against these guys.
caseycheesecake - February 21, 2012
This is nothing compared to what goes on at that other Kings site
they pretty much have a Tyreke Defense Squad on 24 hour red alert.
deadenddude - February 20, 2012
The HUGE question with Reke is can he play off the ball????? That will determine his fate.
Reke has always been the player with the ball in his hands…..his entire life. That’s been good for Reke as an individual player, but not for an NBA team. The Kings do not function as well with Reke as the primary ball handler. He has to learn how to play off the ball. A different set of skills, and a very different mindset. It’s all new to Reke. He’s always been THE guy, with the ball. Can his ego really subside enough to allow him to find and play his role on this team? If Reke cannot play off the ball, there is no superstar that helps the Kings be good/great. If he can somehow find his role, and play well off the ball, it’s awesome time. Will he? Won’t he?
amonk81 - February 20, 2012
I just said Kings fans were overrating this guy
then he goes and puts up 23 11 and 8. If he keeps having games like that not only will I be eating crow but the Kings won’t have to worry about who’s going to be the PG any longer.
deadenddude - February 20, 2012
Crazy huh?
The kid is good. He’s like what Kemba Walker should be doing from what I heard of him in the draft.
caseycheesecake - February 21, 2012
I'm still holding out for Jerry to use my tag line.
“MY-TEE, EYE-TEE” (mighty I.T.)
Hustlin’ Huskie gets all the run… (humph)
Balky Needs - February 20, 2012
i like mighty IT
Shizzo - February 21, 2012
Bless your kind heart.
Balky Needs - February 21, 2012
J.J. Hickson: Cavalier @ Heart
During an interview with local cleveland newspaper: Hickson quote," I wish i was back in cleveland and not in Sac."
Lucky.S.Nat - February 20, 2012
Give us our pick back & keep Omri for your troubles
And they can have lobster boy JR back
Allbenji - February 20, 2012 via mobile
So do we JJ, so do we
ElRonToro - February 20, 2012
Have a nice flight home, JJ
Slam_Dunk - February 21, 2012
This just in...
Balky Needs - February 21, 2012
Was there a mulligan rule put in the new CBA?
Where we get Casspi and our pick back, they can have JJ. We delete the transaction from NBA history, burn the jersies and transfer the stats over to the other team. The NBA can then during all-star weekend shoot us all with this thing…
and we all go back like the trade never happened
HeuristicLineup - February 20, 2012
Oh yes... and please leave out the ending of Game 4 in the WCF's...
HeuristicLineup - February 20, 2012
FO/Draft related stuff...anybody watching Nova v Uconn right now?
ESPN shot the camera over at the scouting area….and I think I saw Cooper there.
Kings don’t have the lottery luck to get Drummond, so who’s he looking at?
Jermeny Lamb is a SG who can play w/o ball. I’d still take Brad Beal over Lamb.
He could be checking out Nova’s Yarou and Uconn’s Oriaki (I hope the Kings don’t feel “forced” to resign JJ just because of the protected pick).
getPGwithbounce - February 20, 2012
Kings have lottery pick assuming they don't make playoffs
ElRonToro - February 20, 2012
Sorry you said luck not pick
I read like I type
ElRonToro - February 20, 2012
Who did we get that 60th pick from?
I think most of us knew IT had something special in his first few games as a King. But hopefully the Maloofs don’t turn this into another public IT campaign like they did with Tyreke.
ridingthebench - February 20, 2012
From the Bucks in the Jon Brockman for Darnell Jackson trade
raiderking21 - February 20, 2012
Too many guards?
So far Evans does not appear to be playing as well at small forward as he would splitting time between shooting guard and point guard. Evans is a tall point guard, an average sized shooting guard, and a small small forward.
If Thomas, Fredette, Thornton and Evans receive the minutes they appear to deserve, say 32, 10, 36 and 36 respectively, we have 114 minutes of playing time for the 96 minutes the two guard spots require, and Evans must play 18 minutes or so at small forward.
Although I really like Thornton and really like Evans, it appears the best trade the Kings could make would be Thornton or Evans for an equally talented small forward.
Does anyone here think Evans can produce as much with 18 minutes or so at small forward and 22 minutes or so at shooting guard/point guard as he could with 36 minutes at shooting guard/point guard?
The Kings need about 30 more good minutes of play at center/power forward and 36-48 more minutes of good play at small forward.
Carlji - February 21, 2012
Isaiah Thomas really put a new perspective
Start the man! He has only done a great job and Reke can play off him at SG.. my thought was someone has to come off the bench and im sure he wont be for it or they will have problems in the beginning but.. What If Thornton comes off the bench? Like a Terry, Harden, J.R Smith, Manu? He can score.. he may need the green light but Isaiah running the point say the first few mins goes through Cousins and Reke then slide Reke over or go back back to this three guard rotation but Thornton coming in fresh off the bench? How do you think it could play out?
TeranceD - February 21, 2012 via mobile
for the upcoming draft
If out hole lies at SF and we cant seemingly help Donte fill it then maybe we chase Kidd-Gilchrist or even Terrence Jones from Kentucky unless Harrison Barnes comes out pick and choose.. and If we are looking at another rotation big because i cant stand JJ Hickson lol he plays like Thompson a couple years ago except he doesnt fall down all the time lol but! I really like the center from NC Tyler Zeller.. behind DMC and even next to him.. i could break him down but altogether he is a hard working defensive and rebounding mindset but ability to score around the basket big
TeranceD - February 21, 2012 via mobile
Four minutes of IT highlights
on youtube
Skeptical Dawg - February 21, 2012
Disclaimer first
This comment has been approved by the Small Sample Size Institute (SSSI), which is ironic since it is about IT:
My one bone of contention as it pertains to Tyreke’s detractors has been that Evans, in spite of protestations that would say otherwise, has been the team’s best PG in the halfcourt set. But as Thomas has been given an opportunity to play with the starters, he has proven to be as capable, and perhaps more capable, than Evans in the halfcourt set (IT blows Evans away in transition). He is providing the perfect complement to Evans’ skill set.
section214 - February 21, 2012
Welcome back.
Evans did pretty well his rookie season (20-5-5), with someone by the name of Beno dishing to him 4.7 assists per game. Perhaps IT can get Reke at or above 20 points per game once again. Unlikely MT will do it at only 2 assists per game.
Slam_Dunk - February 21, 2012
Agreed
Thomas is the sort of multi-purpose player that Evans needs to be paired with.
By the time the all star weekend comes around, we could be railing about Thomas’ omission from the futures game.
section214 - February 21, 2012
Could be railing? I already am:)
Slam_Dunk - February 21, 2012
Slam Dunk brings up a good point
I think we miss Beno’s ability to run the offense, and keep the ball moving, much more than we thought. MT is a completely different kind of player, and Reke seemed to have a bond with Beno. Perhaps IT can provide the same influence that Beno did, and I sure hope he learns to shoot as efficiently as Beno.
MichaelMack - February 21, 2012
Could pushing Marcus Thonton to the bench help both players?
I am constantly considering the facter that Marcus and Reke want/need the ball to be factors and i think Isaiah blossoming is a blessing to kinda ignite the offense because both play tremendous when at their peaks ala last year for MT and Reke’s rookie year.. If Donte or someone solidified the SF position could MT coming off the bench become the Terry effect or say Ginobli effect? An effective scorer coming in and not only lighting it up but the bench production then looks amazing
TeranceD - February 21, 2012 via mobile
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