April 2017 – Page 4 – Sports Radio Service

Warriors Too Fast And Furious for Portland 128-103 — Winning series 4-0

Published on April 24, 2017April 24, 2017 by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr, left, talks with TNT broadcasters Brent Barry, center, and Marv Albert before Game 4 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series Monday, April 24, 2017, in Portland, Ore. Kerr is not coaching the game due to illness, but is in the arena. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer)

By Barbara Mason

Could tonight be the last time the Golden State Warriors see the Blazers this season? A win in Portland would give the Warriors a lengthy rest before they take on their next opponent, and of course hopes are that sometime during the playoffs Head Coach Steve Kerr would be able to rejoin the team. Although Kevin Durant was back in action, Livingston and Barnes were still unable to play. Of course the last thing that Portland wanted was to be embarrassed in front of their home crowd.

The first quarter was all Warriors as Durant hit a number of threes, not missing a beat as the Warriors had Portland rattled from the get go. As the quarter wore on, it began to rain three’s for Oakland as the Blazers were shell-shocked unable to mount any kind of comeback trailing 30-7 with five minutes left in the quarter. It was a perfect beginning for the Warriors controlling the game and rendering Portland helpless, unable to stop the onslaught. The most points ever scored in an opening playoff quarter for Golden State was 41 but thanks to some brilliant play by Javale McGee that record was broken as the Warriors led after one by the score of 45-22.

The Warriors were half-way home as the second quarter came to an end. Golden State led 72-48 playing ferocious basketball in front of a stunned and silent Portland crowd. Curry led the way with 21 points followed by Thompson with 16.

As the Warriors came bursting out of the locker room, they showed no signs of slowing down one little bit. They extended their lead to thirty points leading 78-48 five minutes into the third quarter. The Warriors from deep were crazy in . the score after three quarters was 106-80.

The fourth quarter was the icing on the cake as the Warriors bench took over. With five minutes left in the game Portland fans began to exit the building in disappointment. The final was 128-103. Steph Curry finished the game with 37 points.

So as if turned out the first quarter set the stage for the Golden State series win. This was by far their best game yet as the team seemed to play better and better as they got deeper into this series. The only thing that could have made this game more enjoyable was to see Coach Kerr on the sidelines.

Family holds funeral for Aaron Hernandez, many questions remain unanswered

Published on April 24, 2017 by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Defendant Aaron Hernandez listens during his double murder trial in Suffolk Superior Court, Wednesday, March 29, 2017, in Boston. Hernandez is on trial for the July 2012 killings of Daniel de Abreu and Safiro Furtado who he encountered in a Boston nightclub. The former New England Patriots NFL football player is already serving a life sentence in the 2013 killing of semi-professional football player Odin Lloyd. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola, Pool)

By: Ana Kieu

Aaron Hernandez was a former New England Patriots tight end who was convicted of killing semi-professional football player Odin Lloyd in 2013. Lloyd played for the Boston Bandits as a linebacker. As a result, he was sentenced to life in prison without parole. He was also indicted for killing both Daniel de Abreu and Safiro Furtado in 2012, however, the judges acquitted him of a double homicide.

Despite having dug himself in a hole, Hernandez remained vehement. How did all of this happen?

Aaron was the son of custodian Dennis Hernandez and school secretary Terri Valentine-Hernandez. He was born in Bristol, Connecticut. He attended Bristol Central High School, where he played for the Rams, starting as a wide receiver before shifting to a tight end. In his senior year of high school, he was named the Gatorade Player of the Year in Connecticut after recording 67 receptions for 1,807 yards, 24 offensive touchdowns, 72 tackles, 12 sacks, three forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, and four blocked kicks on defense. He also set the Connecticut record with 376 receiving yards in a single game and 180.7 receiving yards per game.

Hernandez’s beautiful life no longer existed. His father died from hernia surgery complications when he was 16. His father was only 49 years old. This moment possibly changed his life forever. He became a quiet person who kept to himself. He opted to play football at the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida, instead of his initial plan to follow his brother D.J.’s footsteps at the nearby University of Connecticut in Storrs, Connecticut.

Hernandez played college football under head coach Urban Meyer. In his freshman year, he started three games with the Florida Gators, finishing the 2007 season with nine receptions for 151 yards and two touchdowns. In his sophomore year, he started 11 out of 13 games, finishing the 2008 season with 34 receptions for 381 yards and five touchdowns. In his junior year, he led the Gators with 68 receptions for 850 yards and five touchdowns. He also won the John Mackey Award as the country’s best tight end in 2009.

Hernandez forwent his senior year to enter the 2010 NFL Draft. He finished his college career with 111 receptions for 1,382 yards and 12 touchdowns as a Gator. He was drafted by the Patriots in the fourth round with the No. 113 pick in the draft. He signed a four-year contract with a $200,000 signing bonus on June 8, 2010. New England also drafted tight end Rob Gronkowski the day before.

In 2010, Hernandez became the youngest active player on an active roster in the NFL. He finished the season with 45 receptions for 563 yards and six touchdowns. In 2011, he wore the No. 85 on his jersey, but ultimately decided to wear his college number of No. 81. He was named a Pro Bowl alternate. In 2012, he signed a five-year, $40 million contract extension with a $12.5 million signing bonus.

Hernandez’s career was great, but his life slowly went downhill. In 2012, he was indicted for the double homicide of de Abreu and Furtado, but was eventually found not guilty. In 2013, he murdered Lloyd, the boyfriend of his fiancee’s sister. He was charged with first degree murder and five gun charges. These incidents weren’t only wrong, they were also really unbelievable. How could a successful man commit such crimes?

Yes, Hernandez experienced grief after his father’s death, but there are still other possibilities surrounding his personal life that never separated from the workplace. He committed suicide by hanging himself with a bed sheet in the Souza-Baranowski Correctional Center in Shirley, Massachusetts on April 19, 2017. He left three suicide notes behind. His fiancee, Shayanna Jenkins-Hernandez, demanded that the Massachussetts district attorney must provide copies of the notes. The family received the notes just moments before his private funeral at the O’Brien Funeral Home in Bristol.

Was Hernandez bisexual? Many sources say that he had an alleged male lover in prison. He apparently seduced a 22-year-old armed robber named Kyle Kennedy. We don’t know if this actually happened because his sex life was discreet. If he was bisexual, it’s understandable why he tried to conceal his sexual orientation. The NFL is arguably the most homophobic sports league. Football is a very macho and masculine sport. Despite defensive end Michael Sam becoming the first openly gay player in the league, the homophobia hasn’t ended.

Whether or not Hernandez was bisexual, this provided a twist in the aftermath of his death. The NFL cannot probe about sexual orientation in the hiring process, but gay-hate crimes are common and I wouldn’t be surprised if he did hide his sexual orientation. He seemed like a shy, reserved person. Whatever happens, happens, but one thing’s for sure — he wasted his talent and threw away a career with a plethora of golden opportunities.

Oakland A’s podcast with Charlie O: A’s get set for three game match at the Big A with Angels; Angels battling to get out of cellar

Published on April 24, 2017 by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

AP photo file: Oakland Athletics starting pitcher Jesse Hahn (32) will start against the Los Angeles Angels on Tuesday night Apr 25th warms up before the first inning of an MLB game between the Oakland Athletics and Kansas City Royals on April 13, 2017 at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, MO. The Royals won 3-1. (Photo by Scott Winters/Icon Sportswire) (Icon Sportswire via AP Images)

On the A’s podcast with Charlie O:

Baseball is a more than a six or seven game win streak after losing four straight the A’s put together that six game win streak which ended on Sunday. Things continue to look up for Oakland as A’s starting A’s Sonny Gray is close to returning he pitched five innings of scoreless ball for the A’s single A affiliate Stockton and Gray is scheduled to go to the A’s Triple A affiliate Nashville and start on Thursday he’s slated to throw 76pitches in that contest.

If Gray and pitcher Kendall Graveman can get back to health that would make the A’s pitching staff that much more dangerous. The A’s open a three game series with the Los Angeles Angels starting on Tuesday night with Jesse Hahn (1-1) for Oakland and JC Ramirez (2-2) goes for Los Angeles. Thankfully this is not a four game series there’s always the possibility of a split or the most devastating possibility a four game sweep. The A’s are rolling now no need to mention a sweep or four game series.

Charlie O does the A’s podcast each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Jose Barracuda post season podcast with Ana Kieu: After weekend split Barracuda trying to take care of some unfinished business in Stockton Friday

Published on April 24, 2017 by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

sjbarracuda.com file photo: San Jose Barracuda goaltender Troy Grosenick the AHL goaltender of the month goes against the Stockton Heat this Friday for game three as the first round series is tied at 1-1

On the San Jose Barracuda podcast with Ana:

1. The Barracuda started the Divisional Semifinal against the Heat on a high note with a 4-0 shutout win on Friday night. Walk me through the game.

2. The Barracuda used 28 saves by Troy Grosenick en route to that 4-0 win. Tell me more about the defense.

3. The Barracuda stomped all over the Heat in Game 1 but stumbled in Game 2 as they allowed four goals in the first period. Walk me through those Stockton goals.

4. The Barracuda responded with three unanswered goals and Joakim Ryan scored twice.

5. A back-and-forth game ended up badly for the Barracuda.

6. Moving forward, do you have any thoughts on the upcoming games in Stockton?

Catch Ana on the Barracuda podcasts each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Francisco Giants podcast with Morris Phillips: To get back on track Giants will have display some offense in three game meeting with Dodgers

Published on April 24, 2017 by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

San Francisco Giants pitcher Madison Bumgarner answers questions about his shoulder injury before a baseball game against the Los Angeles Dodgers, Monday, April 24, 2017, in San Francisco . (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)

On the Giants podcast with Morris:

When you think about the Giants current record 6-13 their worst start since 1983, the worst record in the National League, it’s an issue with the losing going on and you really have to wonder when the team will have their break out. They open the homestand with the Los Angeles Dodgers Monday night who are 9-10 third in the West. They don’t have any offense going and their starting outfield with Brandon Belt is hitting .243, Chris Marrero .132, and Hunter Pence still seeing the ball well hitting .300.

One of the things I would like to ask Giants manager Bruce Bochy about is the offense as he said in his post game presser on Sunday “We’re not very good” adding “right now”. There hasn’t been enough offense and the defense hasn’t been as sharp as it used to be but the season is early. Giants pitcher Madison Bumgarner who has been in some well pitched ball games and pitched well enough to win but hasn’t got the run support and has a record of 0-3 and it was announced today that Mad Bum will not have to have surgery as a result of his dirt bike spill. Bumgarner is suffering an injured pitching shoulder and bruised ribs.

Oakland A’s day off report: Preview of the A’s three-game series with the Los Angeles Angels

Published on April 24, 2017April 24, 2017 by rxsluggerLeave a comment

Oakland Athletics’ Sonny Gray throws during a spring training baseball game against the Arizona Diamondbacks, Tuesday, March 7, 2017, in Scottsdale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)

by Jerry Feitelberg

The Oakland A’s start a nine-game road trip Tuesday night against the Los Angeles Angels. The trip will take them to Anaheim, Houston, and Minnesota.

The A’s winners of five of their last six games, and an overall record of 10-9 find themselves in second place in the AL West, and they trail the first-place Houston Astros by three games. The Angels, on the other hand, are 8-12 and are tied with the Seattle Mariners for last place in the division.

The A’s are hoping to have their ace, Sonny Gray, back shortly. Gray had a successful rehab assignment Saturday night in Stockton. Gray went five innings and threw just 47 pitches. Gray finished his work in the bullpen throwing another 18 pitches. Gray is slated to pitch for Nashville Thursday night, and he is expected to throw 75 pitches in another rehab stint before returning to the A’s rotation. Kendall Graveman, who has been on the 10-day DL, will throw a bullpen session today in Anaheim and will be re-evaluated by the medical staff. Graveman is expected to return to the rotation very soon. The A’s also announced that they will be checking Rajai Davis’ hamstring injury and, hopefully, he will be able to play Tuesday night. The A’s also announced that they acquired outfielder Ryan LaMarre from the Angels in exchange for a player to be named late. LaMarre was assigned to Triple-A Nashville.

The A’s pitching staff has been pitching well lately. The A’s have received strong performances from Sean Manaea, Jharel Cotton, Jesse Hahn, and Andrew Triggs. The Mariners bombed Triggs on Sunday, but that was his worst outing in four starts this year.

The Angels pitching staff has not been very too terrific to start the season. Their ace, Garrett Richards, who elected not to have Tommy John surgery last year and had plasma-rich protein injections, had recurring arm problems after pitching against the A’s in the opening series earlier in April. Richards is on the DL and may miss the season. Ricky Nolasco, Jesse Chavez, a former Athletic, Matt Shoemaker, and Tyler Skaggs are the Angel starters. Their offense is struggling, too. The Angels have the worst run differential in the American League. They are 12th in batting average and On-Base-Percentage (OBP). They do have three guys that did well last week. Mike Trout, AL MVP last year, had a great week hitting .429 with three doubles, 2 dingers, and 2 stolen bases. Shortstop Andrelton Simmons hit.321 with 2 homers and 5 RBIs. The Angels old man, future Hall of Fame candidate, Albert Pujols, hit .308 with a homer and 7 ribbies. However, Danny Espinosa, C.J.Cron, Cole Calhoun, and Yunel Escobar could barely buy a hit. Escobar was the only one of the four with a batting average over .200

The A’s offense came to life during the five-game win streak. Adam Rosales, filling in for injured Marcus Semien at short, had two big homers for Oakland. Ryon Healy has started to hit, and Trevor Plouffe homered a couple of times during the surge. Khris Davis leads the club with seven homers in just 19 games. Jed Lowrie and Yonder Alonso have been contributing both on offense and defense.

The pitching matchups for the series will be Jesse Hahn (1-1, 3.00 ERA0 going against JC Martinez (2-2, 6.46 ERA). Hahn pitched well his last two outings. He is a sinkerball pitcher who gets a lot of ground outs. His fastballs are clocked at 94.64 Miles per hour. When Hahn’s command is working, he can be one tough customer. The Angels are countering with Martinez. Martinez was used in relief earlier in the season. However, with the Injury to Richards, Angels’ manager Mike Scioscia has moved him into the starting rotation. On Wednesday, lefty Sean Manaea will pitch for Oakland and the Angels will send Matt Shoemaker to the hill. Manaea is 1-1 but has had solid back-to-back starts after a slow start in his first two games. Shoemaker is 0-1 with an ERA of 4.98. In his last start against Houston, Shoemaker gave up just three hits. However, all three hits were for extra-bases, and two of them left the yard. On Thursday, Jharel Cotton will pitch for the A’s. Cotton is 2-1 is his last three starts, and opposing hitters are batting just .203 against him. Ricky Nolasco ( 1-2, 4.76 ERA) will hurl for the Angels.

The A’s manager Bob Melvin has stressed to the team the importance of winning series. He would love the team to win at least two out of three before heading to Houston to face the Astros. The Astros beat the A’s twice when they were in Oakland, and the Astros have owned the A’s for a while. That may change as Gray and Graveman might be back, and the A’s fortunes may change.

A’s come back to earth, five-game win streak ends in rout administered by the Mariners

Published on April 23, 2017April 24, 2017 by moepeaLeave a comment

By Morris Phillips

Lately, the Coliseum has been the place for offense. And it was again on Sunday, it just this time the offense didn’t involve the swinging A’s.

The Mariners took their frustrations out on A’s pitching in an 11-1 rout with five extra-base hits, including two homers highlighted by Taylor Motter’s first career grand slam.

Motter’s slam capped the Mariners’ five-run third inning and represented the first taste of adversity for A’s starter Andrew Triggs, who had not allowed an earned run in any of his first three starts.

Triggs fell into trouble in the third by allowing singles to Mitch Haniger and Mike Zunino. He then walked Robinson Cano and Nelson Cruz to force in a run. Motter followed with his slam on a 1-0 slider that grabbed too much of the plate and ended up beyond the left centerfield wall.

Triggs lasted just 4 2/3 innings and took his first loss of 2017, allowing six earned runs on five hits and the two, untimely third inning walks.

The loss snapped the A’s five-game win streak that catapulted them within hailing distance of the AL West-leading Astros. The Mariners had dropped four of five, and their starter, Yovani Gallardo had never beaten the A’s in seven previous starts.

But on Sunday, the Mariners cruised and Gallardo was the catalyst.

“It was just a matter of putting everything together,” Gallardo said.

The A’s entered Sunday’s contest with an American League-leading 59 extra base hits, and 24 home runs, a nice start to the season for an offense that seemed likely to sputter on the heels of last season’s struggles. But the A’s have shown pop thus far in 2017, just not on Sunday.

The A’s resume play on Tuesday in Anaheim against the Angels. Jesse Hahn takes the ball for Oakland in a matchup with the Angels’ JC Ramirez.

Freeland and Rockies completes sweep of Giants in another shutout laugher 8-0; Loses adds up to four straight for S.F.

Published on April 23, 2017April 23, 2017 by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Jeff Samardzija, left, confers with pitching coach Dave Righetti, right, as catcher Nick Hundley looks on after Samardzija walked Colorado Rockies’ Carlos Gonzalez in the sixth inning of a baseball game, Sunday, April 23, 2017, in Denver. Colorado won 8-0. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

By Jeremy Kahn

Kyle Freeland is a native of Denver, and is now pitching for his hometown Colorado Rockies and what a performance he put on in front of the hometown Sunday afternoon.

Freeland pitched seven strong innings, allowing six hits, while Gerardo Parra hit a two-run home run and the Rockies defeated the San Francisco Giants 8-0 at Coors Field.

The Rockies completed their first three-game series sweep of the Giants at Coors Field for the first time since 2002, and are off to their second best in team history at 13-6.

As for the Giants, this was their fourth consecutive loss and with a record of 6-13, they are off to their worst start since 1983.

Jeff Samardzija went 5.1 innings, allowing seven runs and is now 0-4 on the season. The seven runs allowed by Samardzija are the most he allowed in a game since September 15, 2015, when he allowed 10 runs to the Oakland A’s while pitching for the Chicago White Sox.

Brandon Belt started in left field, while former Rockies catcher Nick Hundley was behind and Buster Posey started at first base.

The Giants were without the services of centerfielder Denard Span, as he is listed as day-to-day with a sprained right shoulder after he crashed into the outfield wall on Saturday night.

Hundley doubled against his former team in the top of the seventh for the Giants only extra-base hit of the afternoon.

NOTES: Matt Cain opens up the home stand for the Giants on Monday night, as he looks to defeat the Los Angeles Dodgers for the first time since May 5, 2013, while the Dodgers will counter with Hyun-Jin Ryu.

Barracuda drops 6-4 decision to Heat, series tied 1-1

Published on April 23, 2017 by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: San Jose Barracuda Twitter (@sjbarracuda)

By: Ana Kieu

SAN JOSE — The San Jose Barracuda dropped a 6-4 decision to the Stockton Heat in Game 2 of the best-of-five opening series at SAP Center on Sunday afternoon.

The Heat poured in the goals in enemy territory in the opening period. They struck first when Mark Jankowski scored his first goal of the playoffs just 1:30 into the contest. Jankowski was all alone and he fired a shot that went past heavy traffic and into the Barracuda net to beat Troy Grosenick.

The Heat took a 2-0 lead with 7:38 left in the period when Austin Carroll picked up a pass from Mikkel Aagaard and put it in the net for his first goal of the playoffs.

Things got a little chippy as Zack Stortini and Rasmus Andersson dropped the gloves for a fight with 4:56 left in the period. As a result, Stortini received a roughing penalty and Andersson was called for unsportsmanlike conduct.

Mike Angelides had a screen in the front. This allowed Linden Vey to score a power-play goal, his first of the playoffs, to extend the Heat’s lead to 3-0 with 3:37 left in the period.

Garnet Hathaway put the Heat ahead 4-0 with his first goal of the playoffs. He scored on a breakaway with a backhand shot.

The Barracuda outshot the Heat 15-9, but found themselves in a deep hole as they trailed 4-0 after 20 minutes.

The second period began with the officials handing a hooking penalty to Brett Hulak just 64 seconds in. The Barracuda finally got on the board at 13:48 of the second period. Julius Bergman sent a pass to Joakim Ryan, who fired a long-range shot into the net for a power-play goal, his first of the playoffs.

John McCarthy cut the Heat’s lead in half just 79 seconds later. McCarthy received a pass from Barclay Goodrow, jamming the shot into the net for his first goal of the playoffs.

“I thought we kind of moved around pretty good,” McCarthy said when asked about the Barracuda’s power play. “We got some pucks to the net…Just gotta get some second chances to succeed.”

Ryan scored his second goal of the game and playoffs to pull the Barracuda within one with 8:59 left in the period.

After the game, Ryan told the media that he liked the Barracuda’s offense, but not their defense.

The Heat were back on top, 5-3, with 2:17 left in the period. A sneaky Hunter Shinkaruk blasted a shot that beat Grosenick blocker side for his first goal of the playoffs.

Timo Meier went to the box for high-sticking with just eight seconds left in the period. The Barracuda’s game improved as they outshot the Heat 24-14 and trailed 5-3 after 40 minutes.

Meier served the remaining 112 seconds of his penalty to start the third period.

The Heat only had two shots on goal midway through the period. The Barracuda’s power-play goals helped them stay close to their opponent in Sunday’s game.

Danny O’Regan was called for slashing late in the period. Once again, the Barracuda pulled within one, thanks to Buddy Robinson’s short-handed goal with 3:41 left in regulation.

Vey added an empty-net goal, his second of the game and playoffs, to seal the scoring and tie the best-of-five series 1-1.

Despite a valiant comeback, the Barracuda fell short and dropped a 6-4 decision to the Heat in Game 2. Grosenick made 14 saves in a losing effort for San Jose.

Gillies allowed three goals on 17 shots before being pulled in favor of David Rittich. Rittich made 11 saves in relief of Gillies.

“We haven’t given up a lot of chances,” Barracuda head coach Roy Sommer said when asked about what his team could improve in terms of defense. “We had too many offensive chances, five-on-five and a couple of allowed goals tonight where our defense got caught staying up and I just think we gotta do a better job denying the back of the net and not giving up those quick plays.”

Notes
The Barracuda finished the regular season with a 43-16-4-5 record. As a result, they became Western Conference Regular Season Champions and Pacific Division Regular Season Champions. They also went on a 14-game winning streak from January 21 to March 1.

Grosenick made 28-saves to earn his first pro playoff shutout on Friday. He went 30-10-5 in the regular season. He won the Aldege “Baz” Bastien Memorial Award as the AHL’s outstanding goaltender for 2016-17. In 49 appearances with the Barracuda this season, Grosenick ranked second in the league with 30 wins, 2.04 third in goals-against average and a .926 save percentage. He is the fifth goaltender in AHL history to reach 10 shutouts in a single season. He also put together a scoreless stretch of more than 248 minutes from November 19 to December 18.

Ryan Carpenter scored a pair of goals in the Barracuda’s 4-0 shutout victory over the Heat on Friday. He has seven points, four penalty minutes and a plus-seven rating in nine Calder Cup playoff games in his three-year career. He recorded four points, four penalty minutes and a plus-five rating in 11 games with the Sharks this season.

Tim Heed opened up the scoring for the Barracuda in what turned out to be the game-winning goal in a 4-0 win over the Heat on Friday. He wasn’t selected to the AHL All-Star Game in Lehigh Valley in January, but he was was voted to the second AHL All-Star Team at the end of the regular season. He finished in fourth place in the AHL with 56 points, 42 assists, 14 goals, eight power-play goals, four game-winning goals and ranks 15th overall in the league in points.

Up Next
The Barracuda will head to Stockton Arena to face the Heat on Friday night. You can catch all the Game 3 action on AHL Live and AM 1220 KDOW.

Sacramento Kings make major additions to the front office staff

Published on April 23, 2017 by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment

by Charlie O. Mallonee

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The Sacramento Kings basketball operations division has been under fire during the entire transition to the new ownership group headed by Vivek Ranadive. When the initial front office staff was dismissed and turned over to a staff headed by former Kings star Vlade Divac, the concern was the executive group lacked experience.

As the Divac era progressed, the lack of experience criticism continued to grow with transactions like the one with Philadelphia that could cost the Kings valuable position in the upcoming draft lottery. There have also been rumors that the minority owners group have been pressuring Ranadive to increase the size of the basketball operations staff and reshape it into a more traditional NBA style structure.

The two new additions to the basketball operations staff show that someone in the ownership group is listening.

Kings add Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations

The Kings have hired Scott Perry as executive vice president of basketball operations. Perry has been in “the association” in various positions since 2000.

Perry has spent the previous five seasons as the executive vice president of basketball operations for the Orlando Magic. He served in the same capacity for the Detroit Pistons when they won the NBA Championship in 2004. Perry was assistant general manager in Seattle when the Supersonics drafted Kevin Durant.

Perry also has considerable experience at the collegiate level. He was the head basketball coach at Eastern Kentucky from 1997-2000. Perry spent time as an assistant coach at the University of Michigan, UC Berkeley and Detroit Mercy.

“I am thrilled that Scott will be joining our front office team,” said Divac. “His extensive experience in the league and management talents will help build our progress as we work to develop a winning franchise.”

Perry will report directly to Divac and will assist in all areas of the day-to-day basketball operations.

It’s a numbers game

Luke Bornn Sacramento Kings new VP of Strategy and Analytics

The days of “going with your gut” to select talent from the draft for you NBA team are over. Yes, it worked for Hall of Fame coaches like Auerbach, Sharman and even Don Nelson. Those great coaches had to go by the “gut” and the most basic of stats because that was all that they had available to them.

Today it is a brand new world. Analytics have changed the way players are analyzed and the number of areas that are looked at have increased in exponential proportions. Is there still a place for the intangible, intuitive decisions? Yes, they can play a part in making the final decisions but the most important selections will be made based on hard, cold statistics.

To compete in this “brave new world”, the Kings have hired Luke Bornn – PhD and Harvard professor to Spearhead Team’s analytical efforts – as vice president of strategy and analytics.

Bornn will report directly to Vlade Divac – vice president and general manger of basketball operations. His job will be to provide the data to the operations staff to help make informed decisions about roster makeup, player evaluations and overall team strategies. The data will be gathered in multiple ways including wearable technology.

Bornn will not be the only hire for the analytics staff. The Kings will be adding additional personnel to the department over the next few weeks. Sacramento has two big immediate decisions to make about who to draft with their two lottery draft picks in the June NBA Draft.

Bornn most recently worked as head of analytics for A.S. Roma of the Italian Serie A Football League. Prior to that, he was a visiting scholar and professor at Harvard University in the Department of Statistics.