SB Nation User Blog: Exhibit G

Crazy Thoughts About Coaches

Exhibit G — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 01:40:21 -0000

More photos » by Rich Pedroncelli - AP

"Wait, Exhibit G said that? He's crazy. Don't listen to bananas." (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli, File)

The recent meteoric rise of the Kings to a record of 4-4 got me thinking. In lietothegirls' entertaining post, pookeyguru made a comment about how there is no reason to believe that Paul Westphal has gotten through to the team this quickly. My first thought was that pookey's statement was probably accurate. Luckily for you, the reader, I have never allowed a reasonable idea prevent me from exploring a tangent in the complete opposite direction.

What follows is an unscientific exploration of ideas that cannot be proven true or false, only argued endlessly about. I figure a few of us might be nostalgic for these types of arguments now that the offseason is over.

Pookey's comment is that there is no reason to believe that Westphal has already gotten through to this team. On the surface, this makes sense. Westphal was hired June 10th, just over 5 months ago. He was able to work with some of the younger members of the roster over the summer, and has only been working with the full roster for a month or two. Hell, he's still trying to figure out what the starting line-up looks like, and has already given up on the Desmond Mason expiriment.

Pookey is right, there is no reason to believe that the team has had a chance to fully adapt to Westphal and his system. Not yet. No way.

And yet the team just won three straight games. Without Francisco Garcia. Without Kevin Martin.

Obviously the players have made strides since last season, and the additions of Tyreke Evans and Omri Casspi have helped the team considerably.

Nonetheless, it defies explanation. Until now. I present to you my random coaching theory, which includes giving credit to Eric Musselman, Reggie Theus, and Kenny Natt. Before you throw your computer out a window, hear me out. I promise I'm not giving them credit in the traditional sense of the word.

This roster has been devastated by inconsistency. Rick Adelman was the last reputable coach of this team, and that roster bears little resemblance to the current team. Martin spent two seasons under Adelman, Garcia one, and Kenny Thomas was here too but he doesn't really count.

Aside from that, this roster has been "coached" by Muss, Theus, and Kenny Natting Natt. During the last three seasons, we often lamented that there was talent on this roster, and yet the wins could not be found.

My theory is simple. My theory is that this team finally has a bonafide NBA coach, and we're seeing the difference. This team had more talent than a 17-win team. The team may not have had time to fully adjust to the system, but even something as basic as a knowledgeable coach can make this kind of a difference.

So how do Muss, Theus and Natt get any credit from this? Well, I think the coaching carousel broke down existing habits. If a coach takes over for another experienced coach, he needs to get the players to buy into his system, and to move away from the habits of the previous system. This takes time. But as anyone who watched the Kings over the past three seasons knows, the Kings haven't had a system! They're a blank canvas. They're a block of unsculpted clay. They were ready for a system. So even if the new system isn't completely in place, there's something.

We'll see over the course of the rest of the season if I'm right. I hope I am, but I don't know for sure. This is just an idea.

Even if I'm wrong, I'll still enjoy the fact that right now we're .500, and that the team has played well enough for me to even consider such a theory.

We Salute You

Exhibit G — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 17:20:39 -0000

Sorry I'm a day late weighing in on the Amick/Martin/Jackson/Peaches issue.

To the tune of AC/DC's "For Those About to Rock"

Stand up and be ready
For the flak you are about to receive
They are the dealers
They'll give you every opinion you need
Hail hail to the good ones
'Cause Amick has got the right of way
You ain't no legend, ain't no cause
You're just playin' for today

For those who've been called soft, we salute you
For those who've been called soft, we salute you

Shoot the rock at dawn on the front line
Like a bolt right out of the blue
Arco's alight with the bright lights
Heads will roll and rock tonight

For those who've been called soft, we salute you
For those who've been called soft, we salute you
For those who've been called soft, we salute you
Yes we do
For those who've been called soft, we salute you
Oooh, salute!
Oooh, ooooh yeah

They're just a battery for hire with a opinion fire
Ready and aimed at you
Pick up your balls and load up your cannon
For a twenty-one point salute

For those who've been called soft - fire
We salute you
For those who've been called soft, we salute you
For those who've been called soft - fire
We salute you
Fire
We salute you
We salute you

Come on, whooa
For those who've been called soft, we salute you
Shoot, shoot (x2)
For those who give
For those who take
For those left high
And those on the make
We salute you
Yeah
Ain't gonna get tired, won't take a break, we salute you.
We salute you
Fire (Peaches)

Nocioni Arrested on Suspicion of DUI

Exhibit G — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 16:35:11 -0000

Nocioni Arrested on Suspicion of DUI

Lietothegirls broke the news in the recap thread, Sims found the link. Posting this here so we can discuss it separately from the game recap.

Preview: Kings at Hornets

Exhibit G — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 04:42:12 -0000

Before we get to the preview for your Sacramento Kings versus the New Orleans Hornets, I think I must first make an important public service announcement regarding the season opener:

We've been through one game. It did not go how we had hoped it might. But it was one game. This game is the second game. After this, we have 80 more. You'd think we be able to handle a loss a little better after we all endured last season, but apparently we still need to talk a few folks away from the edge.

Let me say that this will still be a long season for us as fans of this franchise. We'll enjoy the highs, we'll look for silver linings in our losses. Just remember that we cannot live and die with each win or loss. All signs point to the idea that we will experience more losses than wins this season. Look for small victories where we can.

Along those lines, was anybody not a little bit inspired with the way Casspi played last night? Look for those little things. Those are the aspects of the game that we can enjoy, even in tough losses.

All that being said, yesterday's recap thread was incredible. Great discussion all around. Kudos to everyone. That's the sort of thing that makes me proud to be a member of this site.

Now, on to the preview of tonight's game.

Opening Thought

This should be a compelling match-up. Both teams are on pace to end the season 0-82. But after this game, one team will be on pace to go 41-41. I'm no mathematician, but that seems like a sweet deal.

Thoughts I Stole From Section214

Section was once again kind enough to leave his notepad out on his desk. Ya'll know how much I enjoy stealing things, so here it goes...

Tonight's coaching match-up will be a showdown between what is and what might have been. Byron Scott's name was bantered about during this summer's coaching search. Considering he was still under contract to New Orleans at the time, you've got to imagine that his seat might be feeling a bit warm if they end up 0-82. Scott should hope they end up on pace for 41-41.

Former King Peja Stojakovic is now coming off the bench for the Hornets. As Section noted, this is a bench that scored only 20 points and collected only 9 rebounds in 95 minutes against the Spurs. For all the criticism that has been heaped upon Geoff Petrie in regards to overpaying players, I think we should recognize that Petrie successfully unloaded Peja, got assets in return, and didn't overpay.

Speaking of which, interesting to note that Peja is joined on the Hornets by former Kings Darius Songalia, Ike Diogu and Bobby Brown. Ah, memories.

Section214's match-up to watch: Spencer Hawes vs. Julian Wright. Although we probably won't see them face off head to head, recall that Wright was on the board when the Kings drafted Hawes. Take a gander, see what we might have ended up with instead, and make of it what you will.

Tyreke Evans' debut was less than stellar. Whatever the cause, a match-up against Chris Paul is a less than ideal second test. CP3 will make Evans look bad at various points throughout the game. Try to recall the context when lambasting our rookie. If Bobby Brown makes Evans look horrible, you may throw the context in my face as you lambast the rookie.

In the preview for the season opener I mentioned that the frontcourt for the Thunder would be kinder to the Kings than most match-ups this season. I don't think the statement was wrong, I think it just shows us the state of our current frontcourt. It is...less than good. Facing Emeke Okafor and David West will probably demonstrate this to us again.

The Kings lack of frontcourt depth is rivaled by the Hornets, who bring Songalia and Hilton Armstrong off the bench. Our best hope is that Okafor and West, the untalented defenders that they are, resort to a hack-a-Sean-May defense early and often.

Diogu could also potentially come off the bench, but since this is the second game of the season and not the last 2 games of the season, we should be ok.

For Your Added Entertainment

Mr. Section214 also devised a fun game for your viewing pleasure. He suggests picking when you believe the following events happen. I also believe that this could be a hell of a drinking game if you don't particularly feel like being conscious for the second half.

Pick the time in the game that the following will happen –

Sean May gets his first rebound of the season.

Tyreke Evans shoots a layup.

Tyreke Evans makes a layup.

Jason Thompson gets called for his first foul.

Jason Thompson actually commits his first foul.

Spencer Hawes enters the game.

Spencer Hawes pisses off someone within the game thread.

Kevin Martin draws his first foul.

Andres Nocioni draws his first blood.

We make our first basket.

We call our first timeout.

Emeka Okafor and David West are officially inducted into the NBA Hall of Fame.

Omri Casspi and James Posey square off.

Mario Elie and Byron Scott square off.

The Details, in Which I'm Told The Devil Is In

Game is at 5:05 PM PDT. Televised coverage on Comcast Sports Net. Go Kings!

Preview: Kings Season Opener at Oklahoma City

Exhibit G — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 12:34:41 -0000

More photos » by Sue Ogrocki - AP

20 days ago: Sacramento Kings center Spencer Hawes, right, blocks a shot by Oklahoma City Thunder guard James Harden, left, in the fourth quarter of an NBA preseason basketball game in Oklahoma City, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2009. Sacramento won the game 104-89. (AP Photo)

Browse more photos »

Fun Fact of the Day: The Kings are currently undefeated.

We don't know how long that fact will remain true, but this is where we begin this season's journey. Every game matters, but the first game of the season just always feels so...big.

This is where potential meets reality. This is where we see Tyreke Evans on the main stage. This is where we see what JT has truly become. This is where we see Westphal's campaign towards redemption.

If you were looking for the perfect opening game to start the season for the Kings, this would be it. It's by no means a guaranteed victory. After a 17-win season, no match-up really is. But it's a match-up that will be exciting. The Kings have a legit shot at a win.

Above all, I think we can all get excited that we can actually get excited about this game. The team has a competitiveness and fire it has lacked in recent years. We can watch some good basketball again.

The Kings

Kevin Martin will play. Tyreke Evans will play. Donté Greene probably won't, or if he does he will have limited minutes. Expect to see an 8- or 9-man rotation. You will be frustrated at times, you'll be excited at times. Sometimes you might be both at the same time. Enjoy the ride.

Right now we have more questions than answers. Tonight that balance will begin to shift.

The Thunder

You might have heard of this cat named Durant. If the Kings shut him out, go ahead and chalk that up as a bit of a defensive victory.

The Thunder, like the Kings, are a young, up-and-coming team. Coming off a 23-win season, the Thunder are faced with some lofty expectations. Some have even predicted a trip to the playoffs.

Ideas I Stole From Section214's Desk

The coaching match-up should be intriguing. Brooks moved Durant from the 2 to the 3 and turned around the franchise. As simple a move as it was brilliant. Watching Brooks and Westphal work the match-ups should be an interesting early test for Westphal.

Evans vs. Westbrook should be an interesting match-up. Westbrook struggled to contain Evans in the preseason, hopefully we'll see more of the same.

The Thunder front court of Krstic, Thomas, Collison (with a little Green at the 4) should be a friendlier match-up for the Kings front court than some other opponents we'll see this season.

Seriously, Not Joking

I stole all of that from Section, I just reworded it.

When:

5pm Pacific

Where:

The Ford Center, Oklahoma City, OK

Why Should You Watch:

Are you kidding me? It's the first game of the season, and it will actually be televised!

Game will be televised on Comcast Sports Net. Game threads will be up. Go Kings.

I don't think I would expect the board of governors to be eternally patient on this subject, given...

Exhibit G — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 21:25:01 -0000

I don't think I would expect the board of governors to be eternally patient on this subject, given the fact that the NCAA apparently recently declared that it would not see Arco Arena as a place that they would have a regional tournament. I think the handwriting is on the wall for the building. What's not so clear it's what's on the agenda for its replacement. I'm cheered by the Maloofs' optimism and attitude, but at some point reality will take hold and I'm hopeful that that reality is a plan for a new building.

David Stern
as Quoted by Sam Amick in the Kings Q&A Blog

Preview: Kings vs. Jazz, The Final Preseason Game

Exhibit G — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 12:58:37 -0000

More photos » by Rich Pedroncelli - AP

Browse more photos »

This is it folks. The final preseason game.

The Kings (aka The Good Guys) hosting the Utah Jazz (aka The Bad Guys). An enthralling match-up of two teams asking themselves the same question that we all have on our minds: Is the regular season here yet?

Tyreke Evans saw limited minutes last night, and it will be interesting to see what approach Coach Westphal takes tonight. Does he let Tyreke get some burn to really tune up before the season opener, or does he get rest? Don't be surprised by either one. As last night showed us, Westphal is willing to throw a lot of different looks out on the floor.

If Tyreke does play significant minutes, the other question is whether or not Deron Williams plays significant minutes. If so, it will be another good test of how ready Evans is. Realistically, we shouldn’t expect Evans to prevail in this match-up, but after his performance against Steve Nash the other night, we can hope that he holds his own against an Olympic Gold Medalist. Honestly, I just wrote that sentence, and I can’t imagine how it is real. We can have honest hope that our rookie guard will hol

d his own against Deron Williams? Yeah, that’s where this is at.

As for the rest of Utah, it’s the same crew, new season. Kirilenko’s failed potential, Carlos Boozer’s packed suitcases, Kyle Korver’s Zoolander impression. The gang’s all here!

In an only-slightly-related note, I had a dream last night where Beno Udrih went on a murderous shooting rampage. I'm hoping this is a premonition that he's going to find within himself a killer instinct, and shoot lights-out this season. Yes, I regularly have dream that include Kings players. No, I don't think it's healthy either.

Tip-off is at 7:00, a game thread will be up. Go Kings.

Kings waive Melvin Ely and Lanny Smith

Exhibit G — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 20:07:39 -0000

Kings waive Melvin Ely and Lanny Smith

Considered long shots to make the roster, this doesn't come as a big surprise. Roster currently stands at 14.

What We See and What We're Shown

Exhibit G — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 22:58:30 -0000

I've mentioned here previously that I live in Colorado Springs, Colorado. For me, this means I'm somewhat removed from much of the day-to-day access to the Kings other than what I can garner online. Luckily, we live in an age where technology allows access that would have been unthinkable just a few years ago. I'm planning on getting League Pass this year, meaning I'll be able to watch a good number of games for the first time since I moved away from Sacramento 10 years ago.

Because of this, I feel like I've thrust myself into the role of championing the balance between looking at stats and watching games. I look at the boxscore, but I realize it doesn't tell me the whole story. That's what drew me to SactownRoyalty in the first place. It was great to interact with fans who watched a lot of games and shared those insights. At the same time, it's great to have a segment of the group here who don't watch many games, but follow the team and watch trends and provide another kind of analysis.

The debate around basketball metrics often centers around whether they are good or bad, right or wrong, valid or false. The problem is that it can't be black and white. A stat, even a tweaked and manipulated one, tells us something. We then can compare it to the games we see, and draw a conclusion. But just as stats have shown us that you don't get the full picture just by watching a game, you also cannot get the full picture simply from stats.

The rest of the article will look at that balance in reference to recent events, and I'll even tie it into the Kings again. If you are tired of this discussion, this article ain't going to be your thang. Consider yourself warned.

In case you haven't followed it, there has been a recent eruption in this debate. It started with some good discussions over at TrueHoop. Henry Abbott had a lengthy interview with Wayne Winston, who up until recently was the stat guru for Mark Cuban and the Mavericks. If you enjoy reading about the statistician's role in the modern NBA landscape, there are some interesting bits scattered throughout.

The issue came up when Winston questioned Kevin Durant. For all of Durant's amazing abilities, there is a controversy. He even goes so far as to say:

"I would not sign the guy. It's simply not inevitable that he'll make mid-career strides. Some guys do. But many don't, and he'd have to improve a lot to help a team."

Abbot explains in a later article on the same topic:

The Thunder have, over the last two years, consistently performed worse than normal when Durant is on the floor. Any way you slice the +/- numbers, he's one of the Thunder's worst players.

You read that correctly. Kevin Durant, uniformly regarded as an out-of-this-world NBA player, has been killing his team.

To be fair to Abbot, the piece where the above quote comes from does include much more explanation and analysis. If this debate is something that truly interests you, set aside some time, because these links are lengthy, but they should really be required reading.

After all of this, Kevin Pelton of Basketball Prospectus chimes in with his analysis. It is, quite simply, incredibly well done.

This has, as you might expect, caused quite a stir. How valid are the numbers, what does it matter, who they hell are these stat geeks to say Durant sucks, etc. Durant even weighed in on his Twitter with three separate tweets:

Everybody that is doubtin me as a player and my team as a whole..all i can say is that we all are tryin and workin our hardest!

What more do u want? let me be the player i am...i come to practice everyday..and push myself to my limit, God has put me n a gr8 position!!

I love all the REAL basketball fans who appreciate hardwork, passion and love for the game..and not jus "plus and minuses"...wateva dat is!

While I'm pretty sure I comprehend Adjusted +/- more than Durant does, I cannot hold a candle to the rest of these scholars of basketball statistics. I'm not going to try, that's not my goal or the point of me writing all of this.

I see two major issues here:

Folks are taking a complex issue and attempting to answer "yes" or "no" when the real answer might be "a bit of both".
The Kings have nobody in the room to raise these issues.

I'll address the first issue first, because I'm a slave to sequentially numbered lists.

I can watch Kevin Durant play basketball, and I can know that he is one hell of a player. I can look at his adjusted +/- numbers and see that there a specific statistical measure that shows that the team is better when he's off the floor. Abbott and Pelton's articles demonstrate the many nuances involved in potential explanations for these two seemingly opposing ideas. But ultimately, it is ridiculous for anyone to be so entrenched to one side of the argument that they do not weigh the merits and weaknesses of the opposing information.

For Winston to honestly state that he would not want a player like Durant on his team is insane and asinine. But it is also a fool who completely ignores the stats. What should happen is that a team takes the data, which the Thunder better be doing by now if they weren't, and figures out how to improve the team and Durant. You figure out how to improve aspects of Durant's game that make him a better all-around contributor to the team. But you also acknowledge the strides he's made in his short time in the league. You figure out how to improve the players around Durant to be better compliments to him, so the team is a cohesive unit when Durant is on the floor. But you also figure out what the other players are doing well so that you're team experiences less of a dropoff when he comes out of the game.

It is not black and white. It is not yes or no. It is additional information to be taken into consideration and factored into game-plans, coaching plans, and the team direction. To suggest that one camp or the other is right, and that the other is wrong, is short-sighted. My apologies to Abbott, who I respect greatly, but he makes that assertion in his analysis that I linked to earlier.

All of this brings me to my next point. If there are two very different aspects to discussion of a player's worth, where is the other half of the conversation within the Kings front office? Now, I cannot take full credit for this line of thought, TZ first placed the bug in my head during the Geoff Petrie installment of the wonderful 30Q series, simply stating:

The team has no advanced stats guy -- not even one, as most high-level NBA teams now do. (A few teams have whole advanced stats staffs.)

There is a point of view out there that can suggest that a player as good as Kevin Durant has some issues that may need to be addressed. It's not a matter of whether that point of view is right or wrong. It's a matter of whether or not that view has merit. There are enough advanced statistics out there right now that help us fans gain a better understanding of what is happening in games. I'm sure the stats gurus for various teams have invented measures that the general public hasn't even heard of yet.

The stats alone should not take over decision-making. But they must, absolutely must, be taken into consideration. Hard to do when the Kings don't have a voice in the room sharing those insights. The Durant debate doesn't directly impact the Kings, but it does throw into sharp contrast what the Kings are missing out on. They're missing these debates about players. They're missing the other half of the player breakdown.

They're missing that voice.

The Difference a Year Makes

Exhibit G — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 01:04:16 -0000

There's no question that this has been a slow summer. We've passed our time figuring out if Tyreke Evans will be All-Star, or if he'll just be ROY. We've spent some time realizing that Westphal might be a pretty good fit for this team. Some of us have even been so desperate to pass that time that we've actually done our normal 9-5 jobs rather than waste countless hours arguing on StR. This is, quite frankly, unacceptable. The madness must be stopped.

Luckily, the Kings are back in action. Although the lack of preseason broadcasting means we'll wait a little bit longer, we can still rejoice in the fact that we'll soon have real games to discuss. Personally, I hate when conversations get grounded in reality, but it will be nice to have some actual game-based evidence to support our arguments.

On the verge of the preseason, I don't have any Earth-shattering insights. What I do have is perspective. In order to fully appreciate where this team is going, I think we should take a few minutes to review where this team has been.

A year ago, our head coach was Reggie Theus. It seems very strange to write that. It feels like the Kenny Natt era lasted about 4 seasons. 4 painful seasons. But it wasn't that long.

Now we have Westphal. We don't know for sure that he'll be a success, but he's won many of us skeptics over. At the very least, the man understands what it is to be a head coach in the NBA.

Ron Artest is gone. So are Brad Miller and John Salmons. I don't think I need to expand on this any further. Let's just agree that the team is better off for finally embracing the rebuild.

At this time last year, we were defending the Udrih contract. Now, we just hope that Beno can find some form of redemption without blocking the growth of Tyreke Evans.

Oh yes, Tyreke Evans. A year ago I honestly had never heard of the kid. Now I've talked myself into Evans being a big big big big big part of the future here. I know I'm not alone.

A year ago we were still trying to figure out how to properly spell Donté's name. Now we're arguing about what his role will be with this team, and whether or not he has a future in the league.

A year ago we had our sights set too high. We convinced ourselves that the team would be better than most of the pundits thought. We were wrong. This year we've accepted lower standards for success. We know that this team is building, and we care more about development.

A year ago we were trying to figure out if Geoff Petrie had completely lost it. I mean, c'mon, Jason Thompson? Now we're looking at our frontcourt and saying, c'mon, Jason Thompson!

I commented last year that, despite the horrible season, I felt more connected to last year's team than any squad in recent memory. I feel like I can honestly echo that sentiment to the current squad. It has evolved from last year's team. We've been through one of the hardest seasons for the franchise, and we've done it together. We're sticking with these guys, watching the grow and become a team that can maybe win a few more games. And it will be all that much sweeter when they win, because we've gone through it all together.

The season is about to start. We're all undefeated. And we have some optimism.

Let's have some fun.