I have been a sports reporter/broadcaster since 1976 which means ... I'm old and I love sports. I have done play-by-play for minor league baseball - including the infamous "Bad News Bees" - San Jose State football and football and high school sports in the Bay Area and on the Monterey Peninsula. I had the great privilege to host a weekly sports talk show on KNRY Radio Monterey/Salinas with my producer the late,great Gary Araki. I also hosted and produced "the Sports Fanatics" talk show on KSAC Radio in Sacramento. For the last 10 years, I have been a beat reporter covering the Oakland Athletics for Sports Radio Service. Three years ago, I became the senior reporter for our Sacramento Kings coverage. My goal is to bring you the news, views, fun and excitement of every event I am assigned to report on for Sports Radio Service.
The Sacramento Kings stayed busy on the 4th of July as they reportedly signed 7-foot center Kosta Koufos to be the backup for DeMarcus Cousins. The Kings cannot officially make the announcement until July 9th when the moratorium on signing free agents ends.
The deal was made public by ESPN from information gathered from an anonymous source (it really is worse than the Watergate scandal. No one can go on record but everyone knows what is happening through unknown sources).
Koufos has spent the last two seasons in Memphis backing up Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph. He has played for four different teams over his seven years in the league.
Koufos spent parts of three seasons in Denver playing for George Karl, so he knows the “dribble-drive system” and what it is like to play under Karl.
Koufos’ contract is reportedly a four year, $33 million deal. The fourth year is said to be a player option.
Koufos – who played his college ball at Ohio State – averaged 16.6 minutes per game in 81 games for Memphis last season. He averaged 5.2 points, 5.3 rebounds and 0.8 blocks per game.
The Kings may be looking for a backup forward right now. Sacramento lost Derrick Williams to the Knicks. Reports had the Kings wanting to hold on to Williams.
They currently have center Ryan Hollins and forward Eric Moreland on the team. Hollis may be expendable with the addition of Koufos. Moreland was injured and missed almost the entire season in 2014-15.
The Kings could really use an experienced forward to backup Rudy Gay and Willie Cauley-Stein. Another wing player who can shoot the “3-ball” would also be of help to the team.
The Kings are said to be interested in bringing back forward Omri Casspi who played well under all three coaches last season. He is an unrestricted free agent. Casspi played for just a little over $1 million last season.
Multiple sources are reporting that point guard Rajon Rondo will be a member of the Sacramento Kings for the 2015-16 season. The deal is reportedly a one-year contract worth $9.5-million.
The Kings had made no secret of their pursuit of the talented Rondo. In fact, many insiders believe that the Kings were the only serious suitor for Rondo as the free agent signing window opened in the NBA.
If Kings head coach George Karl did not have his hands full before, he does now with the addition of the temperamental Rondo on his team to go along with the mercurial personality of star center DeMarcus Cousins.
Rondo’s 2014-15 season came to an abrupt end. After being traded by Boston to Dallas, Rondo’s star did not shine big and bright in Texas. To say the trade failed to live up to its billing would be an understatement.
The low light of Rondo’s time in Dallas came late in the season when he had a heated exchange with Mavericks’ head Rick Carlisle on the bench during a game. That was followed by a one-game suspension.
Rondo missed most of the playoffs with a previously unreported back injury. Most observers felt the injury report was just a cover to keep Rondo off the playoff roster.
Rondo’s run in Boston was much more successful and included a NBA Championship (2008) plus four trips the NBA All-Star game. Rondo became expendable when the Celtics went into full-blown rebuilding mode.
Ironically, Rondo becomes the third Kentucky Wildcat on the Kings roster. Rondo played two seasons in Kentucky for Tubby Smith. DeMarcus Cousins and Willie Cauley-Stein played for the Wildcats under John Calipari.
Rondo averaged 8.9-points, 5.5-rebounds and 7.9-assists per game in 2014-15. For his career, Rondo has averaged 10.8-points, 4.7-rebounds and 8.3-assists per game in his nine-seasons as a NBA player.
The Kings made it clear they were seeking a pass first point guard. Well, they have one at least for the next season or until the next emotional blowout, which ever comes first.
Sources have also confirmed the Kings have signed shooting guard Marco Belinelli to a three-year, $19-million deal. Belinelli was member of the San Antonio Spurs for the two previous seasons.
The Kings needed to add outside shooting in order to run George Karl’s “three or in the key” dribble-drive offense. Sacramento did not feel that their 2014 draft lottery pick Nik Stauskas was going to be able handle the job and traded him to Philadelphia in a three-player transaction.
The Kings reportedly pursued shooting guards Wesley Matthews and Monta Ellis. Matthews is reportedly headed to Dallas while Ellis will play for the Pacers next season.
Belinelli will be playing for his sixth team in eight seasons in “the association”. He was the number one draft pick (18th overall) of the Golden State Warriors in 2007.
Belinelli was a member of the Spurs 2014 NBA Championship team.
Belinelli has been a second unit player for San Antonio averaging just over 22-minutes per game off the bench. He averaged 9.2-points, 2.5-rebounds and 1.5-assists per game last season. Belinelli shot 42.3-percent from the field and 37.4-percent from beyond the 3-point arc. He is a 84.8-percent free throw shooter.
Belinelli will need no time to adjust to Karl’s dribble-drive offense. The Spurs play a wide-open offense that encourages the guards to shoot 3-point shots in transition. The Kings will want Belinelli to attempt 3-pointers early and often in games.
The signings of Rondo and Belinelli leaves the Kings with approximately $10-million left in reserve to sign additional free agents. Rumors continue to abound that Sacramento is interested in re-signing forward Derrick Williams who seemed to fit into Karl’s free-wheeling offense during the final 30-games of the season.
The Sacramento Kings went into the free agent signing period with just $9-million in cap space. In order to add the veteran free agent talent they crave, the Kings needed to created more cap space.
According to multiple reports, the Kings are creating that space by sending Carl Landry, Jason Thompson and Nik Stauskas to the Philadelphia 76ers in a move that will give the Kings an additional $16-million to pursue players in the free agent market.
Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports was the first to report the transaction which cannot become official until July 9th by NBA rules. On that date, teams are allowed to officially trade players.
Sports Radio Service has been projecting that Thompson and Stauskas could be packaged together in a trade situation during the off-season. Rumors have been swirling that the Kings were also trying to move Landry.
The Kings receive the $16-million in cap space, rights to an unknown number of overseas players, a swap of first-round draft picks and a future second-round selection. In addition to the players, the Sixers will receive a protected future first-round draft pick.
The Kings have been rumored to be pursuing Rajon Rondo, Monta Ellis and Wesley Matthews. Sacramento needs another strong point guard and shooting guard to run George Karl’s “dribble-drive offense”. The Indiana Pacers met with Ellis on Wednesday.
Jason Thompson was the longest-tenured Kings player. The 6-foot-11 Thompson played in 542 games over seven seasons in Sacramento. He played under seven head coaches in those seven seasons.
Nik Stauskas was a lottery pick in 2014. The shooting guard out of the University of Michigan was selected to be a 3-point shooter for the Kings. Stauskas was never able to find consistency with his jump shot. He did establish some success driving to the basket later in the season. The jury is still out on whether Stauskas will make it as a NBA shooting guard.
Carl Landry was in his second tour of duty with Sacramento. Frankly, his health issues are what made him available to be traded. Landry recently had surgery on his wrist and was hampered early last season while rehabbing from knee surgery. The Kings – who lack depth – need healthy players who can withstand the rigors of a NBA season.
The Sixers will be receiving two “high character” veterans who will provide stability for their young roster. Stauskas gives them a young player who could become a good NBA shooter given the time to develop.
The trial on the lawsuit brought by three Sacramento residents over what they see as illegal hidden subsidies given to the Sacramento Kings ownership group continued on Tuesday with two high-profile witnesses. Mayor Kevin Johnson and Kings majority owner Vivek Ranadive took the stand.
Johnson’s testimony began with a discussion of deleted emails. It was revealed that the mayor deleted emails concerning the arena even after being advised to keep all communications related to the arena project.
The Sacramento Bee reported that Johnson testified that there was no sinister intent in deleting the communications.“I did it without thinking,” Johnson said on the witness stand in Sacramento Superior Court on Tuesday afternoon. “There was no ill intent.”
Johnson implied that the deleted emails contained nothing of substance related to the project. He characterized the content as “chit-chat”.
The judge in the case indicated he would consider the deleted emails when deliberating on the merits of the lawsuit. Since the case is accusing the city of hiding subsidies to the Kings ownership in order to have them buy the team and participate in the building of the arena, deleted communications are seen as a significant issue.
The lawsuit contends that 3700 parking spaces under the arena that will be controlled by the Kings and six digital billboards that Kings will place around the city were not disclosed to the public. The city and the KIngs refute that the parking and billboard deals were kept secret.
“I could not tell you how many parking spots there are. I could not tell you how many signs or what the value of the signs is, if there is any value,” Ranadive said from the witness stand.
The Kings majority owner also said that his group overpaid for the NBA team. He testified that the group may have paid as much as $200-million more than the team was actually worth to keep the franchise in Sacramento.
KCRA Channel 3 News quoted Randive, “If there was a way to save the team and keep it in Sacramento, that would be a good thing to do,” Ranadive said. “I had come to the state of California with nothing. And everything I had I owed to the state. And so if I could play a role in keeping the team, that would be a noble purpose.”
Ranadive went on to say, “It was an emotional decision,” he said. “If I had actually done it based on numbers, then I would not have done it.”
Mayor Johnson also told the court that the Kings ownership group came back to the city to see if they could put in any additional funds for the arena. The mayor indicated he told the owners that the city’s involvement would be capped at $258-million. The Kings are responsible to pay any overruns.
Observers have implied that the plaintiffs in the lawsuit have an uphill battle in proving their case against the city and the Kings.
The trial is expected to continue until the end of the week.
One word describes Willie Cauley-Stein’s debut in Sacramento – impressive.
The giant of a young man handled the Sacramento press with a style and ease that comes only from having been on the big stage before. Cauley-Stein learned how to carry himself in his days at Kentucky.
It is really hard to explain the madness that is Kentucky Wildcats basketball. The Wildcats fans are truly fanatical. They are Sacramento Kings fans times three. The state of Kentucky literally lives and dies with their Wildcats. There is not a college basketball program on the west coast that comes close to the importance of Kentucky basketball to its fans.
That is the stage on which Cauley-Stein has grown up on over the past three seasons. Not only are the Wildcats the lead story on the local news, but Kentucky basketball is reported on throughout the Midwest, Southeast and Northeast. Wildcats basketball is often the lead story on ESPN and other sports networks.
During the Kentucky 38-0 run last season, the team was covered nationally on a day to day basis. Cauley-Stein has dealt with the press before, and it showed on Saturday. He was calm, cool and collected.
Following opening remarks by Vlade Divac and Vivek Ranadive, Cauley-Stein took control of the room. He started off by comparing the Kings fans to the Kentucky fans. “They’re super passionate,” he said.
Cauley-Stein was surprised by the large number of fans that were at the airport to greet him late Friday night. “I was not expecting that at all. They told me while I was walking off (the plane) that there would be some fans out there. I figured a couple of fans and sign some autographs. It was like an eruption … it was really cool,” said the newest King.
When asked if he had spoken with DeMarcus Cousins, Cauley-Stein revealed, “I actually just got done talking with him. He is super excited to have me on the team. We’ve both been talking. We’re thinking big things here. We’re anxious to get it going.”
Cauley-Stein told reporters he felt good about his workout in Sacramento and had a feeling that he could wind up with the Kings. He also added the line of the day, “I look good in purple.”
The newest King also seems excited that the Kings and Kentucky play a very similar style offense. “The cool thing about it is it’s very versatile, so it plays right into my hands. I can play multiple positions so I can fit in wherever I am needed. It’s very beneficial because as a rookie I’m not going to have to learn as much. I can learn the speed of the game and the physical play of the NBA,” he explained.
Cauley-Stein was asked about how his three years at Kentucky would help at the NBA level. “I’m a little older. The young adults that come into the league are 18 or 19 years old and I’m about to turn 22. In playing for Coach Cal (John Calipari), he runs his program like a pro program. I am kind of used to the pro life playing at the college level. Our fans are similar. The scrutiny that you go through, the spotlight that you’re in all the time. It’s not going to be any different than anything I’m already used to,” he related.
Responding to a question about defense Cauley-Stein said, “I look at myself as a defensive stopper. I take an extreme amount of pride in playing defense. The only way to win a championship is to be cohesive and play as a group defensively.We’re all pros. We’re going to score, but if you can’t stop the other person you are not going to win. So, that’s kind of my thing. I play super high intensity defense. If that is what we need, then that is what I’m going to do. I want to be that anchor. I want to the person who is going to the stopper.”
The big 7-footer was asked how long he had wanted to be a NBA player. After some thought he said, ” Probably since third grade. The teacher asked what do you want to be when you grow up. Everyone else was saying doctor, astronaut, army man. I raised my hand and said I want to play in the NBA. Everyone kind of snickered and laughed. There were 20 kids in my class – 800 people in my town. They said you’re not going to the NBA. I said just watch. I’m going make it.”
Cauley-Stein did make it. He is a Sacramento King now, and those 19 other third graders will be calling him for tickets to games.
Willie Cauley-Stein appears to be excited to be a member the Sacramento Kings. He appears to be at ease with taking on his new role as a NBA player. Will he be successful? Only time will let us answer that question, but I wouldn’t bet against him.
The Sacramento Kings selected Kentucky center Willie Cauley-Stein with the number six pick overall in the 2015 NBA Draft. Cauley-Stein had been on the Kings radar throughout the pre-draft evaluations. The big man was one the players the Kings brought to Sacramento for a workout.
Many of the early mock draft boards had Cauley-Stein going to the KIngs at number six; however, the last mock draft projections had Cauley-Stein falling as low as 11th in the draft. That begs the question – did the Kings draft the defensive-minded center too high and miss a more talented athlete with their first-round pick?
The Kings were said to be looking for a ball distributor to run George Karl’s “dribble-drive offense”. The talented point guard Emmanuel Mudiay was available at number six. Mudiay, a 6-foot-5 big bodied guard in the Tyreke Evans mold, was available and went to the Denver Nuggets with the seventh pick. The long term evaluation of the 2015 draft will look at what would have been the results if the Kings had selected Mudiay rather than Cauley-Stein.
One of the positives of taking Cauley-Stein is that he is the player DeMarcus Cousins wanted the KIngs to select in the draft. Of course, there is the obvious Kentucky connection, but Cousins desire to have Cauley-Stein on the floor with him probably goes well beyond their college connection.
Cousins has literally been beat up on the court by double-teams on offense and defense. Cauley-Stein is a rim protector. He will provide a defensive presence that has been sorely missing for Sacramento, and that should ease the load on Cousins. Cauley-Stein can also run the floor with excellent speed which the Kings can use on fast-break opportunities.
If the Kings drafted Cauley-Stein to placate Cousins, then the selection is a short-term fix that will be a long-term failure. If Sacramento drafted the center because they feel he was the best available player, then the pick has chance to have immediate impact on team play.
Now on to the grades for the selection. Using the four-point system to analyze the draft, the seven reporters whose grades I reviewed scored the Kings selection as solid B with a 3.2 grade point average. That was actually higher than I thought would be the case.
Bleacher Report’s Jonathan Wasserman gave the Kings a B+ for selecting Cauley-Stein. He liked the center’s ability to defend in the paint near the basket and to be a full-court defender. Wasserman did not care of Cauley-Stein’s lack of offense.
Sports Illustrated’s Chris Mannix scored the pick with a B. Mannix sees Cauley-Stein as an elite defender in the Tyson Chandler mold. Mannix said that Cauley-Stein “maybe the safest pick in the draft.” He noted that the number six pick will defend but might not score. Mannix also wondered if the selection was made in order to replace DeMarcus Cousins.
SB Nation’s Kevin O’Connor issued a B grade for the taking of Cauley-Stein. He states that the former Kentucky center is quick, long and can defend the floor. O’Connor thinks the pairing of Cauley-Stein with DeMarcus Cousins is a good one. SB Nation feels Cauley-Stein will need time to develop on offense.
USA Today’s Scott Gleeson did not like the selection at all. He issued the harshest grade of all the analyst giving the Kings a C. Gleeson says that taking Cauley-Stein at number six was too high for the talent level. Gleeson likes the draftee’s defense but says the offense may never come.
Yahoo! Sports staff gave the Kings a grade of B for the pick. Their logic was that if DeMarcus Cousins is on his way out then Cauley-Stein could be his replacement. They call him a “defensive menace.”
CBS Sports’ Matt Moore gave the Kings an A+ for taking the 7-foot center. Moore thinks the pick will keep DeMarcus Cousins happy which is good for everybody concerned. He sees DMC – WCS (get used to it – those initials are going to be used all the time) as the perfect duo for George Karl’s offense.
The Sporting News gave the Kings a B+ for giving DeMarcus Cousins the pick he wanted which is good news for the club. They see Cauley-Stein as strong on “D” and thin on offense.
Finally –
Sports Radio Service’s Charlie O. Mallonee gave the Kings a B-minus. He likes the fact that Cauley-Stein can be of immediate help to the team on defense which will support DeMarcus Cousins. Mallonee (it’s odd to write about yourself in the third person) likes Cauley-Stein’s attitude about needing to improve on offense. He seems willing and eager to show fans that he can be valuable on offense as well. The minus was given because over the past several years guards have had the most impact in the long run for NBA teams. The real test of this selection will be in three seasons when Mudiay has time to mature and learn the NBA game. Then, we can compare Cauley-Stein and Mudiay in order to determine who picked the best available in the 2015 draft.
The Sacramento Kings went big in the 2015 NBA Draft when they selected 7-foot, 240-pound center Willie Cauley-Stein from Kentucky with the sixth overall pick. Many draft experts had Cauley-Stein going to the Kings early on, but most had him falling lower on the draft board in recent days. Most experts projected the Kings would select point guard Emmanuel Mudiay if he was available.
Mudiay was available and the Kings went with Cauley-Stein. Mudiay was selected seventh by the Denver Nuggets.
Cauley-Stein is a big man who thinks defense first. He was the first Kentucky player to pull down more than 500 rebounds, block more than 200 shots and record 100 or more steals in the school’s history. He does not need the ball to be a force on the floor.
Many have called Cauley-Stein a game-changer on defense. One his major strengths is the ability to defend against any player on the floor. Of course you would not expect a 7-footer to be guarding a point guard, but scouts say Cauley-Stein can do that.
Cauley-Stein is called a “rim-runner” by many. He is not afraid to work down low in the paint and protect the rim. Having Cauley-Stein working the rim would allow the Kings to use DeMarcus Cousins more on the high-post to take advantage of his great passing and his outside shooting skills.
Cauley-Stein is not without abilities on offense. He can run the floor and be the recipient of outlet passes on fast breaks. He is capable of going on scoring streaks in short spurts.
After his workout in Sacramento, Cauley-Stein said he felt many were overlooking his prowess on offense. Per Cauley-Stein, he did not do that much on offense at Kentucky because the Wildcats did not need him on offense. He also indicated that he is looking forward to developing his offensive game.
For those you who worry about the “hack-a-big-man syndrome” late in NBA games, Cauley-Stein shot 62-percent from the free throw line last season in Kentucky.
Another plus for Cauley-Stein is that he is not a “one-and-done” player. He played three seasons at Kentucky. Cauley-Stein is battle tested at the highest level of collegiate basketball. The big NBA stage should scare him.
One more plus for Cauley-Stein, he is 21-years old. Those two extra years of maturity could helpful when comes time to learn and work in the NBA. He is not just another wide-eyed kid who can handle a basketball. Cauley-Stein has been a leader of young men at Kentucky.
One of things that Kings vice-president of basketball and franchise operations, Vlade Divac, said before the draft was the Kings were not all that interested in players who did not work out for them. Mudiay declined to come to Sacramento. Cauley-Stein made the journey to the Capital City and obviously impressed the Kings brain trust.
The simple answer is yes. The reasons why they should trade the talented All-Star center are much more complicated, but there is no doubt that the Kings should move Cousins now.
The first reason why the Kings should trade Cousins is that he does not want to be in Sacramento anymore. James Herbert from CBS Sports reports that Cousins requested a trade a month ago. That means he took some time after the season ended to evaluate the year and his 30 games under head coach George Karl. It appears Cousin’s conclusion is that things are not going to work out in Sacramento.
Who can blame him? In his five years in Sacramento, Cousins has played for two ownership groups, three general managers and five coaches. Until the current ownership group took over, there was great doubt about the Kings remaining in Sacramento. The circumstances of Cousins tenure have been the very definition of instability.
Adjusting to the NBA life is taxing on any young player. Playing in a completely dysfunctional atmosphere might be a burden that is too much to bear for the 25-year Cousins.
According to Marc Stein of ESPN, the Los Angeles Lakers want Cousins and are trying to negotiate a deal that would include the Orlando Magic along with the Kings. Vlade Divac, vice-president of basketball and franchise operations, immediately denied that the Kings were giving any consideration to trading their All-Star center.
Now, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports is reporting that George Karl wants to trade Cousins. Per the reports, Karl does not feel that he and Cousins meshed during the 30 game honeymoon period at the end of the season. Karl said some nice things about Cousins during the season. The head coach has not had anything to say about his center lately.
If the situation was not confusing enough, Chris Broussard of ESPN is reporting that Kings majority owner Vivek Ranadive is blocking any move that would send Cousins to another team.
Let’s deal with the Ranadive story first. It was Ranadive who reportedly disliked Michael Malone’s style of play and pushed for him to be fired. Cousins had built a strong relationship with Malone and was responding to him as a leader. Cousins’ attitude changed almost immediately following the firing of Malone, and the change was not for the better.
Ranadive has made other unusual personnel decisions since becoming the owner. He hired Malone as coach before he hired a general manager. Ranadive then hired Pete D’Alessandro as general manager. According to multiple reports, Malone and D’Alessandro were at odds over basketball philosophy and “style of play” from the very beginning of their working relationship.
Ranadive may be a genius when it comes to running high tech companies, but his decision making process as a NBA owner has been dubious. It has become very clear that Ranadive needs to let his experts – Divac and Karl – do their jobs and allow them to make the tough decisions that will build a solid foundation for the Kings in years to come.
Karl – at the request of Ranadive – is trying to install a fast moving, positionless style of play. Cousins appears to more comfortable in a hard hitting defensive game with a set offense style of play. Frankly, Cousins would be more accepting of a change of playing style if he was happy in his situation.
Let’s be clear. Cousins is not happy being in a unstable situation that has been in a rebuilding mode for all of his five seasons with the team. The chances of getting him to be happy with the current changes are “slim-to-none”.
Cousins is an All-Star now. He is a premier player in “the association”. Cousins knows he can begin to dictate the way he wants his career to go from this point forward. Apparently, Cousins wants his career to continue in some other locale.
Why should the KIngs make a move now? Because Cousins value is as high as it has ever been. He is an All-Star and a member the USA National team. By all appearances, he is healthy. Cousins stock may never be higher.
The Kings do not want to have to move him after a season of turmoil under a coach Cousins does not want play for and after his attitude becomes a major problem. If the Kings wait until the situation really deteriorates, they will only get fifty-cents on the dollar for an incredibly talented basketball asset. Sacramento cannot allow themselves to squander their future by trying to make an unhappy player, happy again.
What should the Kings ask for in return for Cousins? I will leave the details up to Vlade Divac, George Karl and the basketball operations staff of the Kings. By the way, Vivek Ranadive should get out of the way and do the same.
Quoting CSN Kings Insider Bill Herenda, “The NBA is a fickle business and chemistry is extremely fragile.” The current situation with the Sacramento Kings certainly proves that statement to be true.
You are NBA head coach and it is Father’s Day. How do you spend your morning? You are not out having brunch and mimosas. You are probably in a gym watching draft prospects go through drills and evaluating their skills.
That is exactly how George Karl spent his Father’s Day. He attended a workout with four players at the Kings practice facility. Two of the players will probably be drafted in the mid to late first round in Thursday’s NBA Draft. The other two players may go in the second round or be potential free agent pick ups.
Karl felt it was a good workout, and that all four players worked really hard.
When asked about his input into the draft process Karl said, “Most of my input is philosophical. Do we need a passer, a shooter or a shot blocker? Do we need a big guy?”
Karl noted that he is seeing most of these players for the first time. Where he sees NBA players multiple times in person and on video, Karl does not have the time to keep up on potential draftees.
“I feel much more comfortable being a consultant on NBA players than I am with the draft,” said Karl.
Karl indicated that he is looking for skills, coachability. speed, size and style of play when he is evaluating players in the workouts..
“When the roster is set, I have to adapt to the style of play a little bit. In pro ball, a coach has to be adaptable. In college, you can recruit the type of player you want. In pro ball, you have to have good players. You have got to have talented kids. If you (the coach) can’t get your type of player, (you have) to change the style of play until you get your type of player.”
Karl responded to a question about dealing with younger draftees with some strong words. “If I am a basketball sociologist, I’m saying the one and done stuff has not been good for the game – I can buy that. I can also buy that AAU has not been good for college or pro basketball. No one wants to hear that. They want to believe that we can take six months to a year and turn them into pro basketball players.” Karl added, “In our case it’s not one player, (we need) three or four players to get our roster into the right place.”
Karl was clear that the team has plans in place for whatever happens on Thursday night. He indicated that the Kings know who they will take if they keep the sixth overall pick. Karl pointed out the team could also trade the sixth pick for multiple picks or use the pick to trade for experience players.
Karl implied that he would get pretty aggressive on Thursday night if there is a player available who can give him 30-minutes of playing time per night. “I don’t think any guy at six is going to play 30-minutes. Most of these guys we’re considering are 19-year old kids who are going to have to grow up a little bit,” said Karl.
Karl also waxed philosophically about the development of younger players. He told reporters that it is easier for a player to grow up on a winning team than it is on a losing team.
In the NBA, the best prospects go to the worst teams. That puts a tremendous amount of pressure on young players to produce quickly.
Karl also pointed out that he will be looking for coachability once gets the young players into the gym. He will be looking for players that want to win and are all about the team. Karl also indicated he has no problem being the policeman for any player who is not about winning and being a team player.
Karl was very clear on what it takes to win. “The best way to do that is to play better as a team.”
The Sacramento Kings held their next-to-last pre-draft workout on Sunday at their practice facility next to Sleep Train Arena. The Kings final pre-draft workout will be held on Monday morning.
The Kings evaluated four players on Sunday – Long Beach point guard Mike Caffey, Wisconsin small forward Sam Deckker, Wisconsin power forward Duje Dukan and Arizona small forward Rondae Hollis-Jefferson.
Draft express.com has Deckker being the 16th overall pick in the NBA Draft on Thursday night. Draft Express has Hollins-Jefferson projected as the 22nd selection in the draft.
The Kings are looking at Dekker and Hollins-Jefferson in case they make deal for their sixth pick and receive multiple picks later in the first round.
For Hollins-Jefferson, this was his 11th workout for an NBA team. Dekker stated this workout was his ninth audition of the pre-draft season.
The Kings are looking for diamonds in the rough in Dukan and Caffey. Do not forget, the Kings own the Reno franchise in the NBA D-League. If the Kings see a player who is not NBA ready but has some potential, they will invest in some player development for that individual.
The Kings will evaluate four more players on Monday – Colorado point guard Askia Booker, Wisconsin center Frank Kaminsky, Arizona point guard T.J. McConnell and St. Mary’s power forward/center Brad Waldow.
Sports Radio Service will be at the Kings’ practice facility on Thursday night for the 2015 NBA Draft.
Sports Radio Service 