SB Nation User Blog: section214

Kings secure #15 pick!

section214 — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 04:36:30 -0000

Kings secure #15 pick!

I couldn't resist posting this. Hoopshype came out with their first mock draft of the year, and thanks to our record, we're picking 15th (non-lottery!!!).

Welcome to Sacramento, Larry Sanders!

Open Game Thread: Thunder At Kings, 2nd Half

section214 — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 04:12:24 -0000

54-51 Kings at the half. Hawes doing a better job on Krstic this time around and adds 3 blocks. Tyreke with 10 points and 5 assists. JT with 10 and 7. On the other hand, through 6 quarters we have not solved the mystery that is Jeff Green (12 points on 5 shots), and thanks to James Harden (9 points) the ~~Sonics~~ Thunder bench has outscored us 19-10, though Udoka and Greene have made nice contributions.

Go Kings!

Open Game Thread: Hawks At Kings, 2nd Half

section214 — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 22:44:46 -0000

2nd half comments here for all you little threaders out there.

Go Kings!

Jerry Reynolds Needs Our Help!

section214 — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 02:56:32 -0000

Jerry Reynolds (right) is a tool box of knowledge. Peaches (left) is just a tool.

No?

How about Jerry Reynolds (right) is a fountain of knowledge. Peaches (left) is just a drip.

No?

All righty - The tree of Jerry Reynolds yields much knowledge, but Peaches is just a fruit.

I was listening to the Rise Guys this morning, and on comes Jerry Reynolds. I need text alerts or something to advise me whenever Reynolds is going to be on, because he is always informative, insightful, and damn funny.

This morning was no exception. The thing that struck me as I listened to Jerry is that he gives us so much and asks for so little in return. And I feel guilty about that. I mean, on the one hand, I did buy a copy of "Reynolds Remembers." On the other hand, I have loaned it out freely instead of making people go out and buy their own copy. What to do? I mean, what do you get the man that has (done) everything?

And then Jerry gave me the answer. He mentioned that the folks at StR were giving him a hard time over his difficulty in attaining a decent nickname for Omri Casspi. I can relate to Jerry’s problem. My literary punchbowl is 5% punch, 5% punch-like substitute, and 90% unfiltered turd. Jerry Reynolds is in a creative chasm, a place that none of us ever want to find ourselves.

The Rise Guys tried to console him by telling him that even the greatest baseball player can’t hit a homerun every time (or something like that), but you could tell Jerry was darn near inconsolable. Our opinion means everything to Jerry Reynolds – it is what gets him up and out of bed every morning. Jerry Reynolds needs our help. Jerry Reynolds has cried out to Sactown Royalty for help. We cannot fail Jerry, or we fail ourselves. If we cannot get this done, Jerry has no nickname for Casspi, and that means a few more seconds of air time for you-know-who (rhymes with beaches).

Now, we had some nickname posts a couple of months ago, but I want to zero in on Casspi, and provide Jerry with a thread full of options.

My personal favorite has been NoceOne’s "The Playa from Judea." But this might be a little too Semitic for JR (but man, how I would love to hear that on the air), so things like "Omri Casspi is Torah-riffic!" or "Omri Casspi – he isn’t just for break-fast anymore" is probably way, way too Jewish for Mr. Reynolds. "Omripotent" or "Omripresent" gets us closer to a genuine Jerryism, but they may lack the homespun warmth that you find in "Beno-Draino" or "The Brock Ness Monster."

So let’s get it together, people! We boast a high 3-digit IQ here, at least collectively. Let’s deliver for Jerry. You know that he’d do it for you.

Open Game Thread - Kings At Spurs, 2nd Half

section214 — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 23:11:26 -0000

Kings coach Paul Westphal (top) takes finding another big man into his own hands.

2nd half thread starts.........................now!

Game Preview: Kings At Spurs

section214 — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 22:33:10 -0000

Last Halloween, Reggie Theus dressed up as an NBA head coach.

Happy Halloween!

The Kings wrap up their season opening three game road trip at San Antonio this evening, with a 5:30 (PDT) tipoff against the San Antonio Spurs.

Likely Kings starters: Sean May, Jason Thompson, Desmond Mason, Kevin Martin, Tyreke Evans

Likely Spurs starters: Tim Duncan (but don’t call me a center!), Antonio McDyess, Richard Jefferson, Michael Finley (for at least the first 2:35 before Manu Ginobli enters the game), Tony Parker.

Likely Halloween Jerrysims: The DeJuan Blair Witch Project, Mummy Ginobli, Brockenstein.

Unlikely Halloween Jerrysim: Omri Casspi is BeetleJews.

Best non-intentional Halloween Costumes: Greg Popovich as SpongeBob Squarepants, Grant Napear as a human being, Kenny Thomas as The Invisible Man.

Best impersonation of a former King: Matt Bonner as Brad Lohaus.

Those are some damn big trick-or-treaters: McDyess and Theo Ratliff are dressing up as Spurs this year, hoping that someone will drop a championship ring in their bag at the end of the season.

Most likely to egg your house: Duncan is the obvious choice here. Expect him to be flirting with a double-double by halftime. But also keep an eye on Roger Mason and/or George Hill off the bench. If the one of these guys winds up matching up against Beno or Sergio, they could wind up with a lot of open three point looks while our guys are elsewhere "helping" on defense.

Fad that we would like to see become fashion: Tony Parker had a rough time with bigger guard and former Memphis Tiger Derrick Rose during a 92-85 loss two nights ago. Next up: Tyreke Evans.

Geoff Petrie matchup of the night: Blair vs. Brockman and Sergio Rodriguez. As noted, Blair would have been available to the Kings had they not swapped picks with the Blazers, picking up Sergio and cash in the exchange.

Last but not least, a little housekeeping. I am putting a timed game thread up for 7 PM (PDT) for 2^nd half use, as I am anticipating an automatic thread from TZ at 5:30 PM. Should this not occur, use this post as the 1^st half thread. I apologize for the confusion, but not everything that TZ has programmed is visible to me. Also, for those of you on daylight savings time, remember to turn those clocks back an hour before your head hits the pillow, and savor the extra sleep.

Go Kings!

Hornets 97, Kings 92 - Kings playoffs magic number reduced to 79

section214 — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 16:09:39 -0000

Photographic proof that Kevin Martin and Jason Thompson could not throw a ball into the ocean last night.

Disclosure #1 – I did not get to see all of last night’s 97-92 loss to the New Orleans Hornets.

Disclosure #2 – I have not had the opportunity to study all of the subtle nuances that usually shape the outcome of a game.

But I did cull this subtle little nugget – Kevin Martin and Jason Thompson took the most shots for the Kings last night (29 and 16, respectively) and missed 29 of their 45 shots, for a shooting percentage of 29%. Had they combined to shoot 36% from the floor (3 more made shots) the Kings may very well have won the game. Oh, and that was 45 shots with 1 trip to the free throw line (a make by JT). 5 of their misses came via blocked shots.

Silver lining to the shooting fiasco turned in by K-Thomps? They did combine to grab 19 boards (JT 12, Martin 7), and dish out 9 assists (JT 6, Martin 3) while committing only 1 turnover (Martin). This is huge. These two guys, mired in a terrible shooting night, did not stop playing, and did not let it affect the other aspects of their game. This is a team that is going to need to track the small victories if not the actual victories all season long, and I would call this one of those victories.

I did see enough of the game to notice that Jon Brockman is indeed a rebounding machine, though at the free throw line he makes Justin Williams (or Michael Smith if you prefer) look like Jose Calderon (or Calvin Murphy if you prefer).

Even after factoring in the free throw attempts disparity (32-20, Hornets), the Kings still generated 17 more shot attempts than New Orleans, the result of being +9 on rebounding (and +11 on the offensive glass), and turning the ball over only 10 times (to the Hornets’ 11). 52 rebounds and 10 turnovers would qualify as small victories #2 and #3.

A word on +/- - Admittedly, this is my least favorite stat, as I think that there are many factors that can skew this number. Last night Kevin Martin was a +1 while Tyreke Evans was a -10. ‘Nuff said.

Oh, about that Evans kid – pretty nice showing against one of the league’s premier players. 22 points on 65% true shooting. 3 assists against 3 turnovers and a couple of steals. Let’s call Tyreke’s performance small victory #4, in spite of CP3’s 31 points (and 15 trips to the free throw line).

Again, I did not really have the opportunity to review the game, so as we go to the thread I ask my StR brethren for enlightenment. The portion of the game that I did see appeared that it was played at a much more deliberate pace than the OKC game, and the team seemed to play better overall. Is this young Sacramento Kings team going to play better (at least early on) when the pace is slower? I mean, would a slower pace result in fewer turnovers and less foul trouble? Small sample size, I know, but if you all could help a brother out and chime in here, I sure would appreciate it.

Open Game Thread - Kings At Hornets

section214 — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 03:59:25 -0000

Next Game

Sacramento Kings
@ New Orleans Hornets

Friday, Oct 30, 2009, 5:05 PM PDT
New Orleans Arena

Complete Coverage >

Why is Emeka Okafor smiling? Because he saw how good Nenad Krstic looked against the Kings front line two nights ago.

5 PM (PDT) tip. I've heard that Chris Paul III is pretty good - we'll see.

Go Kings!

Thunder 102, Kings 89 - On Your Mark, Get Set, D'oh!

section214 — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 14:06:03 -0000

Nenad Krstic (left) drives on Spencer Hawes (right) during the Thunder's 102-89 victory. Krstic had 71 points, 43 rebounds, 7 blocked shots, and personally took the entrie crowd out and bought them Chalupas after the game.

Proving once and for all that Sactown Royalty is indeed a democracy, this morning you get to create your own game recap. Just choose one of the handy options provided, and feel as good or as bad as you want about last night's game. Pencils ready? And go...

I can’t lie. Last night’s 102-89 loss to the Thunder made me very (mad/excited/sleepy). I know that the Kings are a work in progress(?), but I had no idea that they would be so (infuriating/fun to watch /alcohol inducing). Let’s face it. There are games that you (expect/hope/never dream) you’ll win, and this was one of them. 81 more of these and I’ll be ready for (post season/the draft/therapy).

Kevin Martin was (incredible/a ball hog/not injured) in the 1^st half, accounting for over 50% of the Kings offense when you include his points and assists. His true shooting percentage of 71% was (insane/overrated/too complicated for me to understand). Martin tailed off in the 2^nd half, however, and by the end of the game he needed (help from his teammates/rest/to be traded).

Up front, the Kings were just (young/thin/horrible). Nenad Krstic and Jeff Green looked like (all stars/lucky bastards/all stars) against the Kings front line. Jason Thompson couldn’t stop (fouling/anyone/everyone by himself), Sean May provided (no rebounds/a grim reminder of our current situation up front/hope for the future), while Spencer Hawes brought (passion/punch lines/height) from off the bench. Jon Brockman also got in a few minutes. What Brockman lacks in (height/minutes/talent), he more than makes up for with (heart/hustle/the company he keeps). One thing was proven: all of this talk about getting another big man is (justified/crazy talk/making my head hurt real bad, Wendy).

Tyreke Evans is (so young/so talented/so confused) right now. He had an off night, missing 11 of 16 shots and turning the ball over 3 times while delivering 2 assists. He missed (a few/several/an unholy number of) shots at the rim, but that can be attributed to (rookie jitters/the Thunder defense/Beno Udrih’s Tyreke Evans voodoo doll). I’m sure that within a couple of weeks, Evans will have us (up and cheering him/calling for Geoff Petrie’s resignation/concocting trades for the rights to Ricky Rubio).

Omri Casspi was a (bright point/surprise/one-man sleep deprivation tank for Israel). His 15 points on 9 shots in 19 minutes proved that he is (ready to start/an NBA player/a chucker). Too bad he’s (stuck behind Desmond Mason/so young/Jewish), because I would like to see him play (more/less/somewhere else).

Speaking of Mason, it’s time to call the Desmond Mason project a huge (success/failure/effing mystery). Sure, the casual fan may think that he (shines/sucks/has compromising photos of Paul Westphal), but the true and knowledgeable fan knows that he (shine/sucks/has photos of Paul Westphal). Let’s cut Mason (some slack/loose/at the back of his Achilles tendon), OK?

I sure liked that the team (played hard/ran up and down the court in the right direction/didn’t get hurt). This makes me feel (good/bad/postal) when I think about the rest of this (short/long/loooooooooong) season.

And does anyone know when Ziller is coming back? No offense, but I find section214’s posts to be (a breath of fresh air/tripe/perfect for the bottom of my bird cage). Compared to him, I’m (Sam Amick/Exhibit G/Ailene Voisin). Tom, if you’re out there and reading this, please (hurry back/stay away/provide me with section’s home address).

Open Game Thread - Kings At Thunder, 2nd Half

section214 — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 01:15:17 -0000

We'll use this thread to take us home - the last thread was a -1.

Let's see if a 2nd guy shows up to play with Kevin Martin in the 2nd half (24 1st half points on 71% true shooting, 2 boards, 2 assists, 0 turnovers).

Go Kings...please!