SB Nation User Blog: R-Man

Just for Kicks and Giggles...

R-Man — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 05:50:48 -0000

...say we continue down the path we're on, and we end up in the lottery. And, because I'm feeling really hypothetical, say we happen to luck out, and once again have the number 1 pick in a draft with no real number 1 player.

We would have a few options, but the concensus seems to be Ricky Rubio or Blake Griffin with the number one pick. A lot can happen in a year, but that's how things are shaping up without seeing any college ball this year. We need both a true low post offensive player and a point guard; however, neither of these players seem to be a lock to be a star player, which is really what you're hoping for with a number 1 pick.

What would you do if you were Petrie?

Draft Rubio, Griffin or try to trade out of the top position (say Rubio for Rudy Fernandez and Jerryd Bayless). And what, realistically, do you think the top pick could fetch in a trade?

Here's an interesting prediction on SI:

R-Man — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 03:54:31 -0000

Here's an interesting prediction on SI:

Which team will finish with the worst record?

Forrester: Kings. Kevin Martin is going to face the type of defensive attention reserved for superstars. Also, the Kings were one of the worst defensive teams by any measure last season, and that was with Artest on the floor. How easy do you think it will be to score on the Kings this season with Artest in Houston?

Thoughts on Ricky Rubio...

R-Man — Sun, 17 Aug 2008 22:20:02 -0000

Did anyone see the game between Spain and the US?

The possible #1 pick, Ricky Rubio, plays for Spain, and I was just wondering what StR's opinion was of his play? If the wheels really fall off the wagon next year (or we just get plain lucky like Chicago, we could be in a position to draft him).

I felt he played as well as anyone on his team, which is a good sign because he's only 17, but I wasn't exactly overwhelmed. On the positive side, he displayed his advanced playmaking abilities with two clever ally-oops and a couple of nice pick and roll passes, and his ballhawking abilities were apparent when he was able to come up with a few steals against the very best the NBA has to offer.

On the negative side, he doesn't look as if he will break his man down on the dribble at the next level, and his outside shot isn't bad but it isn't a strength either(and it will need to be great in order to succeed in the NBA without a lot of athleticism). Bottom line, I wouldn't be against drafting him based on what I saw, but I don't think he is going to be a difference maker (certainly not right away). If he could develop a really accurate jumper, I think down the line he could be special. Again, though, he will only be 18 in October, so I don't want to be too hard on the kid.

New Twist on an Old Idea

R-Man — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 02:46:25 -0000

Awhile back TZ floated a trade idea that I liked:

http://www.sactownroyalty.com/2008/7/29/581941/miller-to-the-bulls-trades

The crux of the deal is the following:

Miller for Drew Gooden, Joakim Noah, and Cedric Simmons

What I'm wondering is how many Kings fans would do the deal if we added Spencer Hawes in as well to get the Bulls to bite. Thus, the deal would become Brad Miller and Shawes for Drew Gooden, Joakim Noah, and Cedric Simmons (and cap filler as needed)

Now for obvious reasons, the Bulls would like the deal better, but I'm wondering if anyone here thinks it is a good idea.

I'm not sure I even like it, but there is a method to my madness. In essence, this deal boils down to Hawes plus expiring contracts for Noah and expiring contracts. And, I'll be honest, I like Noah better.

It's not that I don't like Spencer, but I feel like we have been down that road already (i.e., a highly skilled big, with limited athletic and defensive ability). We tried it with Vlade; we tried it with Brad, and we had some success, but when I look at the teams that ultimately win the brass ring, there is never a soft defensive presence inside. Garnett, Shaq, Duncan, Big Ben, David Robinson, Dream, etc. Basically, unless you have a guy named Jordan, you need someone in the middle to play D and make it really difficult to score down low or in the lane.

Noah may or may not be that guy, but he's athletic, scrappy, and sometime in the near future I think he has a chance to be a really good defensive player at the 4 or 5. I don't think Hawes ever will be much of a defensive presence, and I am concerned about his long term durability. Also, I think we look at our own players through rose-colored glasses. Outside of Sacramento, people look at Shawes and yawn and make comparisons to Chris Mihm.

To me it makes sense to do the deal because it would make us extremely athletic and long. A squad with Noah, Thompson, Greene, KMart, and Cisco would be fun to watch get after a team on defense and get out on the break after a turnover or missed shot. We would also have tons of cap space to pick up one or two free agents and 3 more high draft picks by the time 2010 rolls around (trading Brad and playing the kids would also help in this department).

The only reason I can see for not doing the deal (and it is a big reason) is that Brad is a nice chip for GP to have (especially if he plays well again this year), and he should be able to deal him for something decent next year. Question is would it really be better that the Noah/Hawes upgrade?

So would you guys do the deal or am I giving up too much to make it work?

The Crystal Ball

R-Man — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 17:06:43 -0000

It typically takes most rookies 2-3 years to become good players. However, I believe you can tell a lot from their success in the Vegas Summer League as a rookie (I don't necessarily give as much credence to a player in their 2nd or 3rd year doing well because they they should do well against the incoming rookies if they are ever going to amount to anything). For example, take a look at the summer league statistics in 2005:

http://vegassummerleague.nba.com/statistics.cfm?season=2

You'll notice a lot of the players on that list are now the most desireable in the league. This is not always the case as some players' play simply doesn't translate or they are stuck in a tough situation for playing time or they simply get injured, but 2005 is particularly compelling as nearly everyone at the top of the list is now a valuable contributor if not an outright star. Now, take a look at this years' statistics:

http://www.nba.com/summerleague2008/statistics/index.jsp

I would be willing to bet that Bayless, Randolph and Greene (as rookies who did well in the summer leagues) go on to have success at the next level (Tucker and Douby aren't as impressive because this isn't their first go-around).

I don't want to read to much into this, but it is something (as we rebuild) to keep track of.

Am I the only one totally annoyed with the Trade Analysis?

R-Man — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 15:50:52 -0000

Marty Mac's column this morning http://www.sacbee.com/100/story/1128995.html is a perfect example of the crap I have been reading from the "experts" all week long about the trade. The gist of these columns is the following: the Kings got fleeced; Petrie panicked; Houston got over; I can't believe the Kings couldn't get at least a quality starter back?

I just want to say, I am estatic over the trade. Ever since watching the summer league games, I have been thinking about how we could trade Artest for one of two players: Anthony Randolph or Donte Greene. Then it happened. We got Donte Greene, plus a 2009 1st round pick and an expiring contract (Bobby Jackson). This is exactly what we have been asking Petrie to do: embrace rebuilding.

And yet, the pissing and moaning from the fanbase has been long and loud, and the prevailing view from the sportswriters' both near and far has been that Sacramento made a bad, lopsided trade, citing that we didn't get a quality starter back (Odom or Marion) or manage to dump K9's salary. Some, completely missing the point of the trade (i.e., we're rebuilding), even go on to compare Bobby Jackson's play with Ron-Ron's, not realizing that Bobby is an expiring contract, not the primary component of the trade. His veteran presence is nice, but his importance, in this case, is that his contract preserves cap flexability.

So let's look at some of these assumptions. 1) Would we be better off if we had traded for Lamar Odom or Shawn Marion? No. Why trade for a good but not great player that has an expiring contract. They may decide not to stay, and you will be left with nothing. Worse, you may need to pay millions to keep a player that will be on the downside of his career before your squad becomes a playoff contender. 2) Would we be better off if we just packaged Artest with K9 for expiring contracts? No. What's the point. As Pookey has covered, even if we get rid of K9, we won't have enough significant cap space to do anything until 2010. Does this really help us get better? Why not take a top prospect and a 1st round pick to build for the future instead.

Lastly, don't sleep on Donte Greene. I realize that the summer leagues are not the same as the NBA, but players that do well in the summer league often go on to have success in the NBA, especially if they have success as a rookie (rather than someone who is in their second or third year playing rookies). Donte was the second leading scorer in Vegas this year at 22.6 points per game. For comparison sake, let's look at Kevin Martin. In 2005, he was the third leading scorer at 19.4 points per game. However, Kevin also had the benefit of a full college career whereas Donte had one year at Syracuse, which makes his accomplishment even more impressive. Now, I am not saying Donte's better than Kevin or that his career is certain to mirror Kmart's, but he's off to a good start, and I think he's worth the risk.

Summer League Observations...

R-Man — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 20:28:29 -0000

Here's a quick rundown based on the games I watched:

Quincy Douby deserves more run. At this point, the only thing holding him back is he is a 2 and Kevin Martin get most of the minutes at that position. I think Douby should be play with Garcia more this year, using Cisco as the ball handler and Quincy playing off the ball (defensively, he is pretty good guarding the point). Sidebar: Jerryd Bayless is a nice player, but he and Quincy are very similar (i.e, they are undersized shooting guards that do a lot more scoring than assisting. That being said, Quincy uses his jumper to set up his drive whereas Bayless does the opposite. Had we the opportunity to draft Bayless, we would have even more problems with playing time at the 2).

Spencer Hawes--I was very disappointed. I felt Spencer played better last year in Vegas. To his credit, he looks much more athletic, which is the result of diet, weight training and the recovery from his knee problem; however, he still gets pushed around way too much. He needs to learn how to get deeper position down low in order to suceed (he absolutely drives me crazy when he sets up with his back to the basket 15 feet from the basket). He needs to develop two quick post moves (going either direction) rather than trying to put together a combination of 3-4 moves in succession. (Defenders at this level double too quick to get away with that very often.) What is so frustrating here is he has I nice little hook and he can hit a turn around jumper, so it is simply a matter of getting close enough to use them effectively (which is too say neither is very effective from 15 feet).

Jason Thompson--I like what I see so far. He is athletic for a big, and he shows nice touch on his jumper and from the foul line. Also, he has good hands (this made me shed a tear after watching Mikki fumble passes all year). He needs to learn what he can and cannot do at this level (I felt like some of his drives bordered on being out of control), but I was very impressed with how little overall he forced things, and how effecient he was. Also, I liked that he rebounded in traffic. I think down the line he will be good, but I'm not sure he'll be great. Sidebar: I was also very impressed with Anthony Randolph, but it is pretty apparent that he is really a 3 at this point. Amazing first step and great agressiveness (he looks much more impressive than Brandon Wright). I would love to some how trade Ron-Ron for him, but I just can't see any deal that would work for the Warriors.

Sean Singletary--I liked the defense and the foot speed. I wasn't impressed with much else. He was able to penetrate against certain teams, but not against others. Needs to really improve the jumpshot. Quick little guys don't last very long without a decent jumper at this level. Looks to be a serviceable backup.

Artest's Value?

R-Man — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 04:57:00 -0000

Realistically, what will Ron-Ron fetch?

We couldn't get Denver to part with Kleiza at the trade deadline, so what will he be worth now? Will he really be more valuable to other teams now that they know Ron-Ron will only be on the books for one year?

I keep hearing the teams of interest are Dallas, Miami, LA Lakers, Houston, Denver and long shots like NY Knicks or San Antonio. That being said, what do these teams have to offer?

Dallas has Howard, but I doubt they will part with him (this is my best case scenario). Miami has nothing really to offer at this point but Haslem (which isn't much). Lakers have Odom and spare parts (no thanks). Houston has Aaron Brooks (who we know GP likes), Luis Scola, Carl Landry, Donte Greene, but they didn't want to part with any of these pieces last year. Denver still has Kleiza but little else is appealing on their roster.

San Antonio has very little outside of late draft picks to offer and Knicks reportedly have David Lee on the block, but I seriously doubt Donnie Walsh wants to have another go-around with Ron-Ron.

So where does that leave us? I get the feeling we may end up with a borderline starter, or mid to late draft picks and maybe a little cap relief, but not a player that will have significant impact. I hope I'm wrong, but I think we may be in for some disappointment when the deal does finally go down (See Bibby, Mike).

Master Plan for the Kings

R-Man — Sat, 07 Jun 2008 00:08:23 -0000

Ok, so what would be your (somewhat) realistic best-case-scenario for the Kings to turn them into a championship caliber squad.

Here's mine:

First, sign Beno to a 3 year deal at the midlevel with the last year being a team option (which gives us an out when we go after free agents in 2010)

Second, draft Russell Westbrook at #12 and have him play behind Beno and learn the position.

After the June 30th (or whenever the date is), trade Ron-Ron after he opts-into the last year of his contract for Josh Howard (may need some cap filler to make the deal work - i.e., Douby and Williams).

Trade John Salmons and next year's #1 to Milwakee for the rights to this year's #7 pick (OK-so I am taking liberties here as far as this being realistic, but they are rumored to be looking to move the pick and the 3 is their weakest position). Take Anthony Randolph with the pick and immediately start feeding him. Have Anthony learn behind Mikki for a year or two.

Let Brad Miller, Kenny Thomas and Shareef's deals expire and don't pick up Mikki's last year. Pick up Beno's last year if he has earned it,. Let him him go if he hasn't.

Use the 30 million (just spit-balling figures here) to sign Chris Bosh to a mega deal in 2010 (as long as his knees hold up the next two years).

That leaves us with the following lineup in 2010:

1-Westbrook/Beno

2-Martin/Garcia

3. Howard/Garcia

4. Bosh/Randoph

5. Hawes/Bosh

In 2011, we win the NBA championship and move into our new, state-of-the-art arena at Cal Expo. There, I've laid it all out for Geoff, so his job should be easy.

Anthony Randolph?

R-Man — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 05:08:25 -0000

Here's an interesting item that appeared in a Phoenix paper :

"The 6-foot-10 Randolph is projected by many to a top-10 pick but might slide a bit after weighing in at just 197 pounds at the Orlando pre-draft camp. He chose not to speak with the media Wednesday."

Apparently, Randolph worked out in Phoenix with Donte Greene because his stock might be slipping. If both Randolph and Westrook were on the board (unlikely but possible), who would you take?

Personally, I think if he added some weight and muscle, Randolph could be a nice fit next to Hawes (the latter also needs to add some lbs as well).

Poll

Both are on the board. Who do you pick?

Anthony Randolph

116 votes

Russell Westbrook

113 votes

229 votes | Poll has closed