Larry David's piece on the Maloof's financial woes and dealings was a great read and begs the question how an infusion of cash from the sale of their distributorship will impact the Kings' destiny over the next few years--assuming at least some of those proceeds will be used operationally for the Kings franchise going forward.

Recent success aside, do we think the Kings can compete for a title with merely a few more years of Geoff Petrie's wizardry and that is assuming Petrie is offered and accepts a new contract? Current trajectory shows this roster can make the playoffs either this year or next year assuming a healthy team. Getting to the Finals is quite another mountain yet to climb.

Unequivocally it will take more than our current roster to win a championship. Additionally there are a number of other issues that need to be addressed including a new Arena in order to keep the team in Sacramento and bring this franchise back to being an upper echelon team in the league. All of it involves money and its anyone's guess how much money will be needed.

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Given the recent post by High Tops entitled, "Refs & the Integrity of the Game" --a solid swag btw--at this highly topical issue, I felt compelled to delve beyond the "Refs Suck!" and "Sacramento and its players always get screwed" diatribes which do little to further the validity behind those impassioned albeit sophomoric sentiments.

This matter cannot be analyzed and remedied in one setting so let me preface by saying this post has no ambition to comprehensively cover all its myriad complexities or nuances, nor bring this matter to any logical conclusion. However, there is a fair amount of misunderstanding and maligned angst that needs to be addressed so that the real issues that persist can be discussed and perhaps a valid and tangible outcome is feasible. I endeavor without being facetious nor didactic to add credence to the conundrum that plagues this great game we are so vested in, while dispelling dispersions that unfairly classify our men and woman who officiate the game.

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In reading articles and watching games around the country there has been a lot of discussion about how talented this class is and given Tyreke and Brandon have both been awarded Rookie of the Month for their respective conferences I thought it would be interesting to see how the class is comparing so far.

I have compiled some stats on all the guards that play the 1 or share time at the 1 that were drafted this year in all games played through Dec 6th, 2009. Brandon, Tyreke, Jonny, Stephen are all everyday starters so far and their numbers all are fairly solid across the board. Brandon and Tyreke are way ahead on scoring with Brandon, Tyreke and Stephen well ahead of expectations for assists. Tyreke and Stephen are also leading the pack in steals, while only Tyreke is well ahead of everyone in rebounding.

Based on the above it is easy why people are thinking that Tyreke may win rookie of the year honors based on his progress thus far.

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Dear Mr. Thomas,

StR has taken more bites out of you than all the dogs in Michael Vick's Dog Fighting League and I wanted to take a moment to come correct and apologize on behalf of many that unfairly attacked and/or took shots at you.

While I know I am not in your fav 5 and am not professing to know you personally, I do know that you haven't been given a fair shake and I hope to change that.

Continue reading this post »

It has been 5 months since I last contributed to Sactown Royalty and must apologize in advance for my unavoidable absence and weak post to follow as I was too encumbered with a job change, an unsuccessful attempt (so far) to open a sports grill, resolution of a lawsuit that sucked the life out of me, Angel's playoffs, Charger's tailgating responsibilities and some international travel. As a result, my interaction with the StR was limited to reading delayed posts via my Kindle.

So like a nervous little league batter stepping into the batter's box I close my eyes and swing in hopes of not embarrassing myself given the recent terrific work posted by the usual suspects such as LTTG, MLS, Aykis and Pookey to name a few.

Continue reading this post »

Tyreke! Tyreke! Tyreke!

Forced to record the NBA Draft and work I was in the middle of a dinner program surrounded by 50 somethings politely nibbling on their strawberry spinach leaf salads, I slyly pulled out my iPhone to check the draft results: I couldn't believe my eyes. I yelped and pumped my fist, then sheepishly looked around as the other guests expressed their disdain through winkled smirks as if I was at the Arden library circa 1979 looking for the latest issue of Sports Illustrated still on the shelf.

Petrie picked Tyreke with Rubio still on the board, Oh My God! it really happened. Petrie picked my guy! It took another day before I could pull an all nighter and read through the abyss of part timers weighing in, venting, feigning disgust and bewilderment, while others stepped up and respectfully believed TEVO (try it on...if you no likey you may like Te-Rex, still no? I come back later, ok?) was the BPA,  while still others conceded in GP we trust. Now I am all caught up and have a lot to say.

Before I delve into Tyreke and some other draft/trade observations, let me digress a little to put to bed (yeah right, I wish) GP's decision not to draft Rubio.

I was confident that Rubio, the obvious pick to most, would not be Petrie's selection. I did post several pieces alluding to this but I am no Nostradamus and was as clueless as most as to whom I thought would end up a King. I would never have guessed Tyreke was it. I wished it but  I didn't post why because I am very superstitious when it comes to my Kings (as some of you have read before) and subsequently didn't vote the other day because I was afraid if I voted for Tyreke, Petrie would not pick him--as he had yet to pick anyone that I was enamored with until now. 

While Tyreke was a surprise, upon closure inspection we should have foreseen that Rubio was not it. Huckleberry Hound Reynolds hinted on the type of player we might draft not too many picked up on that. Other STR brethren commented Geoff has a tendency to take a lot of stock in the pre-draft workouts and the Rubio camp not being proactive in Petries' PG Palhoopsa might have backfired. The return trip and last ditch shooting drills by Rubio probably just sealed his fate something Amick's cell phone interview seemed to subtly capture.

In Amick's interview, Rubio admitted that he hadn't picked up a ball in a month. Really? On the eve of the biggest event of your life you weren't hiding out like a gym rat working on your 18 footer to mask your few but noticable flaws? His interview at the airport reminded me of the video ride in the limo after a contestant is knocked off of the Apprentice (insert your reality show plug here). He definitely was tired, but his somber looked like The Kings didn't give him the thumbs up. 

Then he all of a sudden meets with Kahn down in LA? Fegan must have been like, "Mr. Kahn, yeah, sorry I am just now getting back to you. Turns out Rubio is available for a quick chat if you are still interested...REALLY? er really, ok. We will see you at 8, it's gonna be great."

If you watched the workouts, Tyreke looked solid--aside from his release--the shots were falling. He obviously was able to dispel the concern to the staff about him playing or defending the one. Compared to Harden, Flynn and Holliday he looked like a stud. Tyreke stated one of his goals was to keep hitting the gym hard this summer. Tyreke, I'm not using my 24HR fitness membership, it is all yours. Here is the catch, ya gotta show some leadership and get KMart and Cisco to spot you in hopes it inspires them to add some muscle to their slight albeit wiry frames.

Other clues included a closer peek at Petrie's Draft History which I posted last week--thanks to both of you that read it--I am still trying to get off the Trolls Most Wanted list. It  detailed that we can expect him to do two things: Pick a contributor and pick someone we didn't expect.

J-Will, Peja, Hedo, Hawes, Thompson, Douby, the list goes on and on on guys that we first went huh?. Everyone can argue that a different pick might have had an equal or greater result but Quincy and OMSJ aka Tariq (note to GP - No more draft choices with a Q in the name) aside, Petrie has consistently made our team better through the draft.

So knowing Petrie likes to pull the rabbit out of the hat and given all the national attention and the dare I say consensus belief that Rubio was the next best thing to Griffen and who the Kings should select, you had to know Petrie would pick elsewhere. In fact the more the King's scouts, ownership and media gravitated towards him the more Petire seemed to distance himself. I suspect he saw enough of him to formulate an opinion. I bet he was not even keen on him coming to Sac for a workout adding fuel to a fire he wasn't flaming.

I was blasted in my post a month ago that compared him in part to Jason Williams. As an aside, I spoke to Eddie Jordan the day after J-Will came in for his rather hush hush workout and learned he lit the net up from 25 feet all over the floor and showed some sweet alley oops and good court vision. He was a risk reward type of guy and the King's staff was in love with his upside.

Maybe there was enough of a resemblance to scare Petrie away. In reality they are completely different players. Rubio is taller, better IQ, longer and stronger, has more defensive potential, better finisher, more mature, less turnover prone, nicer, better looking, more marketable, yada yada. Got it. Here is how they are similar. 

Here are J-Will's career NBA avgs.              .396 FG%, .325 3FG%, 2.4 RPG, 6.3 APG, 1.3 SPG., 11.4 PPG.

Here are Rubio's stats in the Olympic Games: .35 FG%, .167 3FG%, 4 RPG, 3.0 APG, 2.1 SPG,  4.8 PPG.

And Rubio's stats for Spanish League '08: .391 FG%, 41.7 3FG%, 2.7 RPG, 5.8 APG, 2.4 SPG, 9.8 PPG.

I think we all know Rubio has more upside than J-Will, but that is partly because we know how J-Will ended up. If you rewind to his auspicious start most of us were loving the ESPN highlights featuring White Chocolate and figured he was going to be great. 

Finally, some have argued point guards that lack a consistent outside shot and cannot defend their position don't become all-stars. Our experiment with flash and sexy did bring excitement but it didn't bring us championships either it did provide us trade value for a PG that almost got us to an NBA Championship, but as many have pointed out a capable PG to facilitate the offense and is not a defensive liability is really the baseline.

Rubio won't be great next year. He will have to adjust to life in the US, the NBA, the NBA game, and not least of which the language. I spoke with Peja outside of Harlow's one night between after his third season and he said he was just finally feeling settled and the transition of having parents very involved in all of his basketball decisions to being really isolated from home and family was a long process.

He will likely be very good but in a few years, Peja and Hedo really shined in years 3 and 4. But I don't think the Maloofs, Petrie or even Westphal with his anemic two year $1.5M a season contract can be patient enough for Spanish Chocolate to let it rain at newly appointed Arco III, Cal Expo Redux or the Raley Center in West Sac if one of those palaces ever get built.

No, unfortunately we need to get to the playoffs in two seasons and versatile players that can help us rebound and defend will likely take precedent. 

I am sure most of you agree that Petrie deserves our respect since his picks beats our picks right? Heck I won't bore you with my draft choices over the last several years because only Rajon Rondo (I still like the dude, he will steal you blind) fared better than Petrie's Doubyious selection in 2006. So he picked Tyreke Evans. Take your picture and let's move on, nothing more to see here folks.

The folk who blasted Petrie should hold their judgement since the Draft is really only the start of the whole off season shuffle. In other words, Petrie and other GMs in the leagure including Minnesota's ' David Kahn have not played their final hand.  "This is only the first period of activity...no matter what occurs (in the draft Thursday), training camp doesn't start Friday. We have all summer to continue to explore some opportunities and to address the roster, and three months is a long time." 

By Petrie not selecting Rubio, he has a chance to have his cake and eat it too. He had to know the odds of Rubio opting to stay in Europe if drafted elsewhere and the likelihood most GMs are going to draft the BPA. If you look at Minnesota's situation they had the same purview hence the multiple PG picks. Kahn is going to wheel and deal and one of his point guards will likely end up elsewhere given they currently have Bobby Brown, Kevin Ollie (hmm where have I heard of these guys before), Wayne Ellington, Jonny Flynn, Ricky Rubio and Sebastian telfair. Other than Love and Jefferson they have more holes in their roster than the swiss cheese at Tony's Deli.

Now that Rubio is following suit by vocalizing a desire to stay in Spain expect the horse trading to begin. We have a glut at the 3 spot. Garcia/Nocioni/Greene/Casspi. I know Garcia can play the two, Nocioni can play some 4, Greene can play some four and Cassp allegedly is a four but I seem him being more like a slasher spread the floor 3 than a back to the basket 4.

Since we are in a rebuild/save money mode, I prefer Greene>Casspi>Nocioni>Garcia. I would like us to package Beno and say Garcia a future 2nd rounder for Rubio a big like Etan Thomas with his expiring contract. Minnesota might also be interested in Sergio/Nocioni for Rubio, Ryan Gomes and Brian Gomes' expiring contracts.

We could also package Sergio and Garcia to Orlando for Hedo who is opting out of his contract. My point isn't to take control over the trade discussions in this thread but merely mention that Rubio landing in Sacramento is still possible via a trade given Minnesota has way too many 1/2s and 4/5s. Surprisingly when you consider Sheldon Williams and Darius Songalia, the T-Wolves look like Sacramento's JV team.

Anyway, so we now have Tyreke in a Kings Uniform and I am excited. I think he provides us an immediate lift, will be be able to step in and compete for a starting spot right away. I don't think Rubio could have done that and I don't think Curry or Flynn could do that immediately (although certainly mid year or by next year Flynn and Curry could).

The last few seasons with injuries we have at best been inconsistent offensively and even when we scored we let the other team score more, sometimes a lot more. If Martin plays 82 games regains some lateral quickness maybe we don't need to worry about the 2 position except of course when we have to defend the 2.

When Kobe Bryant, Dwayne Wade, Tracy McGrady, Andre Igoudala, Joe Johnson, Corey Maggette, Jason Richardson (just to name a few) come to town, our defensive counter of Martin and Garcia is just not working. Tyreke gives us a better match up switching up coverage on defense while still being able to facilitate distribution of the ball on offense. We suffered with Garcia and Martin trying to do that and if we have BJax, he is much better as a spark off the bench.

While Tyreke may not be a pass first point guard, he is comfortable bringing up the ball, can effectively work the pick n roll around the high post, take his defender down to the low post, drive and kick to the open man or take the ball strongly to the hoop.

Probably more importantly we can expect better rebounding on both ends of the floor (IMO he will out rebound Kevin, Francisco and be close to Nocioni) while effectively contesting shots and stealing at an above average clip with those 7' arms of his.

He will be able to present match up problems for the opposing speedy PGs who won't be able to defend him, in the same way Baron Davis, Chris Paul, Jason Kidd among others took advantage of our PGs in the past and depending on the match ups Tyreke can defend the 1,2,3. position--especially any teams that utilize a point forward half court game.

A combination of Tony Parker scoring instincts in a Latrell Sprewell body, expect Tyreke to be awhile to develop a solid assist/turnover ratio like Parker or an outside shooting touch like Sprewell, but possess their gift at scoring.

I expect the following productivity from him next year:

25 min., 12 ppg., 4.5 apg., 4.8 rpg., and 1.6 spg., 1.5/assist to turnover ratio. 

Long story short, I love this pick, I appreciate Petrie's decision making and expect that with Sergio Rodriguez as a true PG option we have the best of both worlds. And just wait; when Petrie is done with another trade or two everyone will be able to put their worries on the shelf until our first loss.

via www.princetonbasketball.com

Here are some stats on Petrie's Draft History . This link tracks all the picks but note that Petrie's handiwork started with the Kings in 1994.

    
Totals 15 Years (1994-2008)             

1st Round Picks: 13       
Avg. Draft Position: 16            

5 Players have had or having very successful NBA Careers outperforming expectations:
Peja Stojakovic, Kevin Martin, Hedo Turkoglu, Jason Williams*, Gerald Wallace          

5 Players had or are having decent careers meeting expectations:
Brian Grant, Corliss Williamson, Jason Thompson**, Spencer Hawes**, Francisco Garcia 

3 Didn't Pan Out:
Tariq Abdul Wahad, Dan Dickau, Quincy Douby           

Drafted By Position Rd 1:
PG   2   15%     
SG   3   23%      
SF   5    38%      
PF   2    15%      
C    1      8%      

Where Drafted:     
Elite College     6   45%      
Mid Major           1    8%      
Small                  4   31%     
International      2   16%           

2nd Round Picks: 14       
Avg. Draft Position: 49            

6 were career role players:
Michael Smith, Lawrence Funderburke, Tyus Edney, Anthony Johnson, Jerome James, Dejan Bodiroga***           

8 Players drafted had No NBA Career:
Jason Sasser, Ryan Robertson, Jabari Smith, Maurice Jeffers, Corsley Edwards, Ricky Minard, Sean Singletary, Patrick Ewing, Jr.           

Draft By Position Rd 2:
PG   4    29%      
SG   2    14%      
SF    2    14%       
PF    4    29%      
C      2    14% 
         
Where Drafted:
Elite College    5   35%
Mid Major          3   21%      
Small                 5   35%    
International     1    7%      

* = J-Will traded for Bibby       
**= Jason Thompson and Spencer Hawes could still Outperform   
***= Dejan Bodiroga was a stud power forward that decided not to come to the NBA; Top 35 Players all time in Europe. Possible a better player than Peja            

Interesting Facts:

- Petrie has picked an NBA Career Player 77% of the time out of the first round.
- Petrie has found a solid NBA back up player 43% of the time in the second round.
- Petrie has only drafted a big 3 times in the first round--2 in the last 2 years.
- Petrie has drafted SFs more than any other position.
- Petrie has drafted a player from either a small college or internationally 46% of the time in the first round.

 
I am sure this will not tell anyone whom he will select in the draft later today, but we should all expect he will most likely not select who we expect him to pick. With that said, whomever he does select has a greater likelihood of being a solid NBA player aka no bust versus the player we might have selected.

Man oh man is this going to be fun tomorrow night!

Ok, so I cannot sleep. I am surfing the STR posts for a fix, I have watched Rubio's video like 4 times, ok maybe more than that, but if I tell you I might get reported for video stalking. I have gone on several rants over the last two months: First trying to defend the notion that Blake was better than Rubio. Check. Then I went through my own period of Man Crush, followed by denial which was covered up via Jennings bandwagoning. I broke my ankle jumping off that bandwagon after his interview and not because of his comments on the hype surrounding Rubio--but that is another story.

Impressed although frustrated that Rubio's camp was marvelously protecting its prized jewel, I felt like Gollum being denied even the chance to see 'The Precious' with Dan Fegan in his role as Sam worthy of an ESPY.

via www.callofbeauty.com

I began to sour on the notion that our team's future was going to be shaped in part by incomplete player data on several fronts with each PG promising and risky in their own right.

1) A Spanish kid who turned pro at 14 and 4 years later we squint watching pixilated video highlights on Youtube, where he looks like he might merely be in California to audition for the re-make of Taxi with his boyish charms and girl ga-gaing smile factory.

via redriverautographs.files.wordpress.com

2) Jennings body of work shows similar upside but honestly even fewer highlights with that same video camera that even a JV coach at Encina High School wouldn't use to tape practice.

3) Jrue Holiday, who went along with his older brother Justin (did you know he had a brother?) to the N. Hollywood private school Campbell Hall (grades K-12, enrollment 1000) and led his team to the Division IV State Championship. 

He looked like he was going to be it with an average of 25.9 ppg, 11.2 rpg, 6.9 apg, and 4.8 spg. his senior year and followed up with an impressive showing at the McDonald All Star game with 14 points, 5 rebounds, 5 steals and 3 assists. VH1 "Where are they now?" Producers would have a field day with this game as it features the likes of  Evans for the East and Jennings, Mullens, Holiday and Derozen for the West. Here is a quick video recap...

In should be noted that Tyreke was the MVP of this game with 21 pts, 10 rbs, and 4 asts, besting Jennings and Holiday in a game that could be an indicator of what to expect by these guys in years to come:

Boxscore for 2008 McDonald All Star Game

Holiday' grade at UCLA is really an Incomplete--despite respectable numbers--as Howland had him playing the two to share the floor with Collison.

4) Tyreke, the only freshman finalist for the US Basketball Writers of America National Players Award, started at PG 11 games into the season and they never lost until the tournament to Missouri. He had better numbers than Jrue overall but also toggled between roles and only has 1 year of college to show his stuff.

5) Jonny Flynn has at least two seasons for us to look at to support his impressive Kings workout the other day and I don't want to restate sroufe's nice write up on Jonny Flynn but concur that I cannot concede he is a better choice than Rubio.

So getting back to Rubio, his interview really drew me back in. I am fighting the man crush cuz I don't want to jinks or be disappointed once again this draft year--my heart cannot take it. I was impressed with how approachable, affable, genuine and confident without coming across cocky.

Most of all I was intrigued by his desire to be on a team that has young guys that he can befriend. NOTE TO PETRIE--Since the Maloof's Gulf Stream is now mothballed can we get a video conference and some Tweets going ASAP to connect Rubio with our Generation Y Club?

Who all is in Sac-town right now? If a part of his criteria is liking our peeps then let's get those Facebook and My Space invites emailed pronto so Rubio can 'confirm' his friendship status. In fact let's tell Stern that Rubio is going to go to the team who has the most Friend Requests between now and Draft day.

Anyway, Ricky sorry I doubted you, and on behalf of the STR contingency, welcome to our cow town. We hope you stay.

In Catalan: Ho sento jo dubtava que vostè i en nom de la STR de contingència, la benvinguda a la nostra ciutat vaca. Esperem que l'estada.

In Spanish: Lo siento yo dudaba de que usted y en nombre de la STR de contingencia, la bienvenida a nuestra ciudad vaca. Esperamos que la estancia.

In Hip Hop: Yo Euro Hoops Gansta R to the U to the B, sorry fo frontin'. Props from my homies and welcome to the heifer hizzouse. Feel fre to kick it my Catalan brutha, aheyet? 

Ricky Rubio with his snippets of video highlights, game appearances and press releases has successfully managed to garner international interest, a probably NBA Lottery contract, and a line of endorsements that would make even Spencer Pratt and Heidi Montag whine, "Why is he getting all the publicity?"

So where is he and why isn't he here?

Although the Spanish sensation is young, I doubt for a second that his career and future 'corporation' are nothing less than a calculated if not schemed maneuvering to maximize his fortune and fame without the expense or risk of having to prove himself on the court--at least not in a traditional sense. In other words his camp is a marketing genius leaving us awe struck and thirsty for more while we ponder if it is justifiable hoopla or a hoodwink in the making. His body of work is as streaky as his game, one minute he is filling the stat sheet with productive razzle dazzle and another he is biding his time on the pine.

From his camp's perspective what is the upside in coming out of hiding right now other than for PR interivews? There is no need to prove the detractors correct by showing up and looking average against the other PGs that will comprise the middle to later portion of the first round. Most of the workouts are individual drills and 3 on 3s where his outside shot that comes free with a quirky release (picture Kevin Martin watching with glee in his eyes as he thinks to himself, mine looks better than that)  and lack of physicality will be accentuated over his creative passes, steals, alley oops and ability to execute the pick-n-roll.

Five on five camps that feature full court looks for scouts also make sense to pass up as most of those venues help showcase athletic abilities and one on one skills as their isn't sufficient time to develop offensive schemes and cohesion between players. Rubio's prowess is going to be better served where he knows his teams' abilities and has a feel for where and when to pass the rock. The motley crue he would play with in these pick up games are ill prepared for his passing antics. Specifically his assists would likely be less and turnovers higher--no need for that to be highlighted.

Given his camps preference for the big markets any additional proof that he is the next Bond will only further incite Memphis and OK to remain geeked on him as their next star. Selfishly, he will make more cake if he drops in the draft and gets to play in a bigger market despite a down scaled starting salary. BTW - Don't buy into the philosophy that he won't be able to pay the piper back in Spain as his first real endorsement will more than cover that tab if he ultimately loses his pending arbitration.

Finally, given the polls of public opinion, there is no real upside that the Clippers are going to take a chance on Rubio over Blake, who has spent more time in Hollywood this last month than Britney Spears. So why showcase anything there so that the other teams can steal looks or hear rumors that either erode his enigma or complicate his destiny to another more attractive market.

Let's be frank: He belongs in New York or LA where his marquee potential can rival his basketball gifts. Anywhere else will only be a 3 year hiatus before his free agent stock would illicit a bloated overpaid contract in a big market anyway. Sacramento could get a lot better with Rubio, but I doubt he would stay in Sacramento unless we are threatening to win an NBA championship and we have already voted that we are at least 2 seasons away from making the playoffs.

Furthermore, I honestly don't recall a time when there was this much attention given pre-draft for a bunch of semi-talented high risk/high reward players, especially at the guard position. With Rubio leading the pack, it is safe to say that very few of us are fully committed to any PG in this draft and yet we all feel at least 3 PG and 3 Combo guards would make our team better in a hurry.

What gives most of anxiety is using the 4th pick on someone that doesn't become an All Star for the Kings. To make matters worse none of us are convinced anyone will absolutely become a top 10 player in the NBA from this draft. If I am wrong on that please speak up or or ever hold your peace.

SO, after reading about several other team's needs and blogs and there definitely seems to be some interest in the trade machine around Rubio. If we play our hand right we can leverage Rubio's lust for the limelight while satiating our desire for a player that wants to and can start for our Kings while improving the team elsewhere.

In my next post, I will detail why I think this makes sense and possibly what our options are.