Category: NBA

Kings: Big changes in the front office as Scott Perry joins the Knicks as GM

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by Charlie O. Mallonee

scott-perry
Scott Perry NYK Gen Mgr. Photo NBA.com

Just as everything appeared to be on the way to stability for the Sacramento Kings — BAM! — big changes have been announced in the front office operations for the team. Executive vice-president for basketball operations Scott Perry has been hired by the New York Knicks to be their new general manager. Reports have Perry receiving a five-year contract.

Perry joined the Kings front office on April 21. The Kings could have told Perry no because he was under contract and told the Knicks to go look elsewhere for a new GM. The fact the team did not block Perry from interviewing for the NYK job says a great deal about the organization’s respect for him as a person and as an executive.

There are some that are questioning the Kings decision to let Perry walk away from the team including two NBA executives that were quoted in the New York Post on Friday:

“It’s a little strange, getting fired in Orlando, then going to Sacramento and they’re willing to let him go so soon after a few months,’’ an NBA executive said.

The SacKings front office was the target of criticism

vlade and peja
Divac and Stojakovic

In 2016, the Kings could not get top lottery picks to come to Sacramento for tryouts and interviews. Agents viewed the organization as being in disarray and it was almost like if they avoided Sacramento their clients would not be drafted by the Kings.

There were also rumors that NBA executives were frustrated because they could not get call through or calls back from Kings executives in the front office. The lack of a traditional front office structure appeared to hurting the Kings ability to get things done operationally.

Sacramento had also been criticized for having the smallest scouting staff in the NBA. Experts felt the Kings needed to see more college talent to be successful in the draft.

Perry received much of the credit for the Kings draft and free agent signing success

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Analyst have given the Kings very positive reviews for the job they did in the 2017 draft. Virtually everyone loves the selection of point guard De’Aaron Fox out of Kentucky with the number five overall pick. Most experts approve of the team taking SF Justin Jackson (North Carolina), PF Harry Giles (Duke) and PG Frank Mason III (Kansas) in the draft with their other picks. Some have said Mason might be one of the “value picks of the draft”.

“One of the top evaluators of talent in the NBA,” said one NBA executive who has worked with Perry. “The evidence is Sacramento’s free agency this year.” New York Post July 14, 2017

Sacramento then went to work signing three veteran free agents to play for a team stacked with young players. George Hill gives the Kings a veteran at point guard while Fox and Mason develop their skills at the NBA level. Zach Randolph and Vince Carter who played for Dave Joerger in Memphis were signed to play and mentor.

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Scott’s leadership was credited as being a major factor in why the Kings were able to pull things together so well in the all-important player acquisition period. The addition of analytics expert Luke Bornn along with the added experience of another year of working together for Vlade Divac and his staff also added to the success of draft and free agent signing period.

Perry is going to be trying to revive a franchise that is in shambles

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One the major problems the New York Knicks have to overcome is their owner. James Dolan who has a history of making questionable decisions when it comes to his NBA team. On draft night in June, he was in Manhattan playing with his blues-rock band while Phil Jackson and his staff made the choices on who the future players for the Knicks would be.

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James Dolan NBA owner or rock star?

Of course just days later, Dolan and Jackson parted ways in a very public break up. If Dolan was planning on replacing Jackson, why did he wait until after the draft? The bottom line is that it is just another in a long line of bad decisions made by Dolan when it comes to his NBA franchise.

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Knick, Cavalier, Rocket?

The other major problem that Perry faces in his first days with the Knicks is what to do with Carmelo. Anthony has been making noises about being willing to accept a trade to another team like Houston or Cleveland. His salary and what the Knicks will want in return pose a real problem for the team to actually move Carmelo out and really begin a true rebuilding process.

Perry will work for the Knicks former general manager Steve Mills who will now be the team’s president.

Kings get cash and a future second-round draft pick but what about “Hamilton” tickets?

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The Kings will receive an undisclosed amount of cash and a future second-round draft pick as compensation for releasing Perry to sign with the Knicks. Cash? Overrated. Second-drafts picks can be helpful in closing trades.

But Vivek and Vlade, what everyone wants is tickets to “Hamilton” on Broadway. Think about the promotion your marketing team could have put together with a block of “Hamilton” tickets for the week the Kings play the Knicks and Nets in New York. Broadway and Basketball: it would have been a spectacular promotion.

If you do anymore deals with the Knicks or Nets, they must include tickets to “Hamilton”.

Kings: Vinsanity comes to Sacramento

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By Charlie O. Mallonee

carter-randolph
Zach Randolph and Vince Carter are teammates again in Sacramento

The Sacramento Kings knew their young roster needed some veteran experience to help guide them through the upcoming NBA season and to give them a chance to be competitive in the west. First, it was the signings of point guard George Hill and power forward Zach Randolph that brought maturity to the team.

Now according to ESPN reports, veteran small forward/shooting guard Vince Carter’s agents are announcing their client has signed a one-year contract with the Kings worth a reported $8-million. The 40-year old Carter will be entering his 20th season in the NBA in 2017-18.

Carter entered “the association” in 1998 when was drafted in the first round (fifth overall) out of the University of North Carolina by the Golden State Warriors. He then was traded plus cash to the Toronto Raptors in a Draft Night trade that saw the Warriors receive the number four overall pick Antwan Jamison in return.

This is another part of getting the band back together for Joerger 

Every coach desires to have the key people from his previous team join him in a new situation, but that is not always feasible. When Dave Joerger found out he would not be returning to the Memphis Grizzlies as head coach, he barely had time to go find a new job and bring assistant coaches with him to Sacramento let alone try to transfer player personnel.

Dave Joerger now has two key veterans from his days in Memphis on his roster in Sacramento with the addition of Carter. Carter joins Zach Randolph who is expected to his special “Z-BO” brand of toughness to the front line of the young Kings team.

Joerger knows how to develop young talent. He earned his way to an NBA head coaching job by spending years coaching young players in the CBA, D-League and then as an assistant in “the association”. Joerger really likes to have inexperienced players learn by observation as well as by instruction. He has some strong talent for them to watch in Carter, Randolph and Hill.

Carter was a key figure for Memphis in ’16-’17

Carter played in 73 games last season – his most appearances since 2013. He averaged 8.0-points per game to go with 3.1-rebounds per game in 24.6-minutes per game. The Grizzlies used him at small forward the majority of the time.

Carter shot 39.4-percent overall in 2016-17. He shot 41.8-percent from 2-point range and 37.8-percent from beyond the 3-point line. His eFG% was 50.8-percent. Carter added an average of 1.2-assists, 0.8-steals and 0.5-blocks per game. He turned the ball over less than once per game (0.7).

Carter is a “long distance” shooter. Of his 490 field goal attempts last season, 303 of them came from a distance of at least 20-feet away from the basket. 175 of those attempts came from 25-29 feet away from the bucket. Carter will help the Kings spread the floor.

They are going to miss “Z-BO” in Memphis

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No other Memphis player will ever wear No. 50

The Memphis Grizzlies have announced they are planning to retire the number 50 jersey worn by Zach Randolph who has just become a member of the Sacramento Kings as a free agent. Randolph was in Memphis for eight seasons.

In a tweet, Grizzlies majority owner Robert Para said that number 50 “will never be worn by another member of the Memphis Grizzlies.” He also thanked Randolph for helping turn a lottery team into a playoff contender and helping to make the team a model of community service.

Randolph will be the first Memphis player to have his number retired in team history.

Kings add to the coaching staff

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Phil Ricci is now an assistant coach for the Kings

Phil Ricci has been hired to be an assistant player development coach for the Sacramento Kings working on head coach Dave Joerger’s staff.

Ricci has a resume that includes almost twenty years of coaching and playing time at the professional and collegiate levels. He played in the NBA Development League (now the G-League) and overseas.

This is a homecoming for Ricci who attended high school in Galt and played basketball at Delta Community College (Stockton) prior to going to Oregon State.

 

 

Kings get their veteran PG in George Hill and add grit up front in Zach Randolph

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by Charlie O. Mallonee

SAC Icon

The Sacramento Kings appeared to be in neutral on the free agent market while waiting to see if the Washington Wizards would match their offer sheet for Otto Porter Jr. In reality, they were working on deals in a stealth mode that caught most observers by total surprise.

Kings get experience at point guardGreorge Hill

Sacramento is very happy with the talent they drafted at point guard in De’Aaron Fox and Frank Mason III. The only problem is that neither player has one minute of playing time in the NBA. That is not an acceptable situation.

The Kings point guards from last season were both free agents. Darren Collison just signed a two-year deal with the Indiana Pacers. There were reports that Sacramento was in discussions with Ty Lawson about returning to the team, but he certainly would be looking for a guaranteed contract with multiple years or options. Lawson played last season on a one-year non-guaranteed contract.

Enter George Hill. Hill had been rumored to be heading to Los Angeles to play with the Lakers and to be a mentor to Lonzo Ball. Reports are circling the Lakers were only willing to offer a one-year deal. Not the kind of security a 31-year old, nine-year NBA veteran in a salary market gone mad is looking for this year.

It has been reported the Jazz tried to sign Hill to an extension during the season valued at $88-million but he and his representatives thought he would do better on the open market in the offseason. The free agent market did not fall Hill’s direction.

According to the Vertical who broke the story, the deal is for three years and worth $57-million. David Aldridge of NBA.com is reporting the third year is only partially guaranteed.

Hill will almost certainly be the starter in Sacramento. Head coach Dave Joerger makes no bones about not being thrilled about throwing rookies into starting roles. Last season, first-year players sat at the end of the bench and then were summoned into the game for limited minutes. Depending on their performance, more or less playing time was awarded to the young players.

Hill will be expected to mentor the young point guards. He can also play along side them as an off-guard. Joerger also liked using an offense that incorporated two point guards on the floor in a “small ball” lineup.

Hill averaged 16.9 points per game in 49 games last season. His overall shooting percentage was 47.7. He shot 40.3-percent from 3-point range. Hill averaged 4.2 assists, 3.4 rebounds, 1 steal and 1.7 turnovers per game.

The injury that caused Hill to miss so many games last season was a sprained big toe. He said it was a freak injury and it proved to be a nagging injury that did not heal well under the pressure of playing. The toe did not require any surgery in the offseason.

He’s big — he’s bad — he’s Z-Bo and now he is a King

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The other player the Kings reportedly signed on Tuesday brings a dimension of toughness to the team that they lost when DeMarcus Cousins was traded away. The difference is that Zach Randolph knows how to keep things under control while banging under the basket.

“Z-Bo” as he is known has reportedly signed a two-year, $24-million contract with Sacramento. The signing was first reported by the “the Woj” of ESPN. Randolph’s signing also reunites him with his old coach Dave Joerger who was the head man in Memphis for three seasons.

Last season in Memphis, Randolph worked as a sixth man for the Grizzlies. He averaged 14.1 points and 8.2 rebounds in 29.5 minutes playing time per game. Will Randolph be a sixth man in Sac? Dave Joerger likes to vary starting lineups based on matchups and on who is hot at the moment. The one thing you can count on is the Randolph was not signed to come sit on the Kings bench.

Randolph — who will turn 36 later this month — has been in “the association” since 2001. He has made stops in Portland, New York, Los Angeles (Clippers) and Memphis. Randolph played his college basketball at Michigan State for Tom Izzo and helped lead the Spartans to the NCAA Final Four in 2001.

Headline Sports Podcast with Tony Renteria: Will Lonzo be the dealbreaker the Lakers are looking for; Can Paul & Harden turn things around in Houston

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Los Angeles Lakers’ Lonzo Ball, center, poses for photos with Magic Johnson, left, and general manager Rob Pelinka during a news conference, Friday, June 23, 2017, in El Segundo, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

On the Headlines Podcast with TonyR:

1  Lonzo Ball who signed with the Lakers will he be the hype that his father Lavar says he will be?

2 After all the talk about how Lonzo will be one the greatest players in the NBA according to Ball’s father LaVaar. Tony talks about how much pressure that puts on Lonzo.

3 Can the Houston Rockets Chris Paul and James Harden combine to make the Rockets a force against a team like Golden State?

4 Are the Giants turning it round after losing six straight going into the Rockies series then sweeping the Rockies can the Giants keep it going heading into Pittsburgh and Detroit

5 The A’s plan on building on the Laney College site at Lake Merritt a 30,000 seat stadium. However the neighbors and Laney College have expressed concerns about traffic, noise, and huge disruption to the neighborhood.

Tony does the Headline Sports each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

That’s Amaury’s Podcast, News and Commentary: Clippers sending Chris Paul to Rockets; A’s could sell after identifying new stadium site in Oakland

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AP File Photo: Los Angeles Clippers guard Chris Paul arrives for Game 6 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series against the Utah Jazz Friday, April 28, 2017, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)

By Amaury Pi Gonzalez

LOS ANGELES–There’s a lot of changes going at the Los Angeles Clippers with Blake Griffin leaving the team and now Chris Paul moving onto the Houston Rockets as announced by the Clippers on Wednesday morning. Who would have thought the Clippers would be an interesting franchise and they were with Griffin and Paul.

For so many years the Lakers dominated in the Southland with Magic, Kareem, Shaq, Kobe and all those guys. Paul was a great part of the Clippers and their history. We remember Chris as a rookie and that time I was doing the Clippers in Spanish on their TV Network. Things are changing at the Clippers, the guard is changing and there’s going to more changes on the horizon for the Clippers.

Amaury also discusses the Oakland A’s who could sell the team after they locate to their new stadium site. As MLB stops paying revenue sharing benefits to teams who just take the money and don’t even go to post season or even close the A’s owner John Fisher is not likely to spend money on the A’s from out of pocket. Listen for more on That’s Amaury’s podcast below.

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the Spanish TV talent for the Angels, the Spanish radio talent for the A’s and does News and Commentary each week at http://www.sportsradioservive.com

Green takes home DPOY, Myers named NBA’s top executive

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Kia NBA Defensive Player of the Year & Assist of the Year Award winner, Draymond Green, poses in the press room at the 2017 NBA Awards at Basketball City at Pier 36 on Monday, June 26, 2017, in New York. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)

By Joe Hawkes-Beamon
Sports Radio Service Writer

The Golden State Warriors continue its string of good fortune, picking up a pair of season-ending awards with forward Draymond Green taking home the 2016-17 NBA Defensive Player of the Year award and general manger Bob Myers named Executive of the Year for the second time in three seasons at the NBA awards show Monday night in New York.

Two days after the Warriors wrapped up its second NBA championship in three seasons, Green mentioned that he didn’t cared if he won the Defensive Player of the Year award.

Green won the award anyway, edging out two-time winner Kawhi Leonard (Spurs) and Rudy Gobert (Jazz). Green finished second in balloting to Leonard in back-to-back seasons.

The unquestioned heartbeat of the Warriors, Green received 73 of the 100 first-place votes, totaling 434 points. Gobert received 269 points, including 16 first-place votes. Leonard received 182 votes, 11 for first place.

The three finalists accounted for all 100 first-place votes.

Green led the NBA in steals (2.03 per game) and blocks (1.39 per game), with Golden State leading the league in both categories per game as a team.

With a hard-hat and lunch pail mentality, the 6-foot-7 forward finished third in the league in defensive rating and second in defensive win shares. Even though he’s the Warriors’ starting power forward, Green plays the majority of games at center while also playing point forward on offense.

Green averaged 10.2 points and 7.9 rebounds per game, while leading Golden State with 7.0 assists per game.

During his acceptance speech, a smiling Green acknowledge teammates Klay Thompson and Kevin Durant for their commitment to the defensive end of the floor this season.

“This isn’t an individual award,” Green said. “There are five guys out there on the floor at a time. I can’t do this all by myself, so I appreciate them. With KD and Klay not making the All-Defensive team, I appreciated everything they do.”

Earlier on Monday, Green was named to the NBA’s All-Defensive team. Green received 198 of a possible 200 points and voted to the first-team on 99 of a 100 ballots, but was shockingly left off one ballot.

At the Warriors’ championship parade, Green shouted into a microphone: “Can somebody give Bob some fu**ing credit?!”

Well, I guess the NBA heard Green loud and clear when Myers was named the NBA’s Executive of the Year for 2016-17, announced Monday night.

Last June, Myers and the Warriors bought the 38th pick and selected Pat McCaw. McCaw turned out to be a key reserve for Golden State this season.

Then in July, Myers upgraded at small forward allowing Harrison Barnes to leave the Warriors and take a four-year, $94 million maximum deal with the Dallas Mavericks, and signed superstar forward Kevin Durant away from the Oklahoma City Thunder to a two-year, $54.3 million contract.

How that turn out for Golden State? Pretty successful.

Myers also added big-men in Zaza Pachulia, David West and JaVale McGee. All three guys provided the much needed toughness and height the team lost with the departures of Andrew Bogut and Mareese Speights.

Myers also won the award after the 2014-15 season.

 

 

 

 

 

Warriors buy the number 38 draft pick and select Jordan Bell from Oregon

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by Charlie O. Mallonee

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The NBA Champion Golden State Warriors entered the 2017 NBA Draft in the same condition they did in 2016. The Warriors had no selection available to them in either round.

So, the Dubs were merely spectators on Thursday night. But wait, there’s more.

Just as they had in 2016 the Warriors reached into their bank, grabbed some cash and declared they wanted to be players in this year’s draft.

GSW found a trading partner in the Bulls

The Chicago Bulls had experienced a disaster on Thursday night that included trading Jimmy Butler to the Timberwolves for what most experts believe was way under value. If the rumors are to be believed, Chicago had a much better offer from Boston before the start of the draft.

For some reason, the Bulls did not think they needed the number 38 pick (8th selection in the 2nd round), so they accepted $3.5-million from the Warriors in exchange for the pick. The $3.5-million figure is the maximum amount of money a team can accept for a second-round selection.

The Warriors found their man in Oregon

Oregon v Wisconsin

The Warriors selected 6-foot-9, Junior power forward/center Jordan Bell out the University of Oregon. Bell was definitely a value pick as a number of draft experts had predicted he would be selected late in the first round.

Bell is a defensive player first. He has a nose for the ball and is a strong rebounder. He is also a known as having good instincts as a shot blocker. Bell has the ability to protect the paint and is willing cover any assignment given to him on defense.

Bell is seen a strong player but if he going defend on the front line in “the association” he will need to add some weight.

As with many shot blockers, Bell has tendency to go for the block and end up out of position for the rebound. He will need work on that at the next level.

On offense

GSW Bell Dunk

Bell runs the floor well and finishes strong at the rim. He is a real threat to score near the basket. Bell also has the ability to score on offensive rebounds. He also moves well without the ball and sets a good screen.

Bell has worked hard and improved as a free throw shooter. He went from a 50-percent FT shooter to shooting 70.5-percent from the line in his junior season.

Bell averaged 10.9 points, 8.6 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 1.3 steals and 2.2 blocks in 28.7 minutes per game in the 2016-17 season.

Bell will need to work on becoming a scoring threat outside the paint.

Is Bell the next McCaw

The Warriors are hoping that Bell will be this year’s version of Patrick McCaw whom they obtained the same way last season. With the expanded rosters, Bell will be able to spend time at Santa Cruz and in Oakland as he develops his talents.

Sacramento meets their new Kings

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by Charlie O. Mallonee

The four new Kings react to being drafted by Sacramento

Kings head coach Dave Joerger talks about his new players

De’Aaron Fox explains why he is happy to be in Sacramento

De’Aaron Fox is also going to be a star off the court

Frank Mason III brings experience to the Kings

Justin Jackson has won a National Championship with North Carolina

Apologies to Justin for the bad lighting but I wanted fans to hear his comments

Harry Giles tells the media  and fans he is healthy and ready to play

SacKings Podcast: Ben Stram of FANRAG Sports grades the Kings 2017 NBA Draft

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by Charlie O Mallonee

nbadraftlogo

The 2017 NBA Draft is history and now it is time to evaluate how well each team did in the draft. The Kings turned three picks into four selections by trading the 10th pick to Portland in exchange for the number 15 and 20 selections. Was that a good move by the Kings?

NBA Draft expert Ben Stram of FANRAG Sports  breaks down the Kings selections and gives the team an overall grade for their choices.

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Did he like the selection of De’Aaron Fox at number five?

Brooklyn Hoops Winter Festival
Point guard De’Aaron Fox is now a Sacramento King

What did Ben think of trading away Zach Collins for the 15th and 20th picks?

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Is Harry Giles worth the risk of dealing with his injury riddled past?

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Will Justin Jackson be an impact player?

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Justin Jackson the Kings #15 overall draft pick

How will Frank Mason III fit into the Kings youth movement?

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Kings second round selection Frank Mason

We also asked Ben who lives in the Chicago area about the impact of the Jimmy Butler trade to the T-Wolves?

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Ben also gives a grade to the 2017 NBA Draft as a whole.

If you are a Kings fan, this will be 18-minutes and 30-seconds well spent. Enjoy.

Headline Sports Podcast with Tony Renteria: Fox could be the change the Kings have been looking for; A’s and Giants hoping to get back win column in new series

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Kentucky’s De’ Aaron Fox, left, reacts after being selected by the Sacramento Kings as the fifth pick overall during the NBA basketball draft, Thursday, June 22, 2017, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

On the Headline Sports Podcast with Tony:

1 The Sacramento Kings selected De’Aaron Fox as a fifth draft pick from Kentucky as point guard

2 Fox is looking to be a franchise changer for Sacramento and is one of the key players out of the draft that the Kings say can make the difference in the Kings direction and where they want to go

3 Fox was about to enter what was soon to be former King Rudy Gay as he put it “basketball hell.” The Kings who won only 32 games last season and had issues with DeMarcus Cousins who was later traded to New Orleans and to start the season with a new head coach after George Karl was fired in the off season

4 Turning to baseball the Giants after losing three out four in Atlanta face the Mets for three games and the Rockies at AT&T Park starting Friday night. Tony tells us if there’s any consolation in coming back to San Francisco after having such a rugged road trip

5 After sweeping the Yankees in four the A’s got swept by the Astros in four and opened up a three game series in Chicago Tony tells us who are the real A’s in the aftermath of this last homestand

Tony Renteria does the Headline Sports Podcasts at http://www.sportsradioservice each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com