Sacramento Kings center DeMarcus Cousins was named to the All-NBA Second Team today. The Kings All-Star center becomes just the fourth player in the Sacramento-era to earn All-NBA honors. Cousins joins Chris Weber, Mitch Richmond and Peja Stojakovic as Sacramento players to be named to All-NBA players.
The 2014-15 All-NBA Second Team includes Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook, Portland Trail Blazers forward-center LaMarcus Aldridge, Los Angeles Clippers guard Chris Paul, Chicago Bulls center Pau Gasol and Cousins.
Cousins averaged 24.1 points, 12.7 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 1.53 steals, 1.75 blocks and 34.1 minutes per game last season. He was limited to just 59 games mostly due to an early season bout with viral meningitis. His averages in points, rebounds, assists and blocks were new career-highs.
Among Cousins season accomplishments were finishing tied for third with 47 double-doubles. He was first in fouls drawn with 8.8 per game. Cousins ranked fifth in scoring and third in rebounding for the year.
Cousins received 18 first-place votes from the voting media.
Willie Cauley-Stein of Kentucky. Photo: KYKENAL.com
by Charlie O. Mallonee
The Sacramento Kings will have the sixth selection in the 2015 NBA Draft on June 25th. The Kings did not improve their position in the lottery, but more importantly, they did not lose a position as the New York Knicks did on Tuesday evening.
The Kings must now decide whether to keep the pick or trade it for experienced players.
Vlade Divac – Vice-President of Basketball & Franchise Operations – told the SacramentoBee:
“We have some options,” Divac said. “I think this class of rookies are very strong. We should be able to get someone who can help us next year.”
That could mean trading the pick. The Kings are intent on improving as fast as possible, raising the possibility of a deal for immediate help.
“I think we should be very open,” Divac said. “Our goal is we want to improve next year. We want to be much, much better.”
Scott Howard-Copper of NBA.com sees the Kings drafting center Willie Cauley-Stein, 7-0/245, of Kentucky:
He is an ideal fit next to DeMarcus Cousins as a big who will win games without needing shots. Questions about his passion for the game will not go away, to the point that WCS himself is mentioning the criticism without being asked, but the speciallevel of defense and athleticism could also push him into the top five. “I actually think that Cauley-Stein is a little underrated,” one executive said. “I think people have focused so much on his lack of offensive skill that they’re not looking at just how good a defender he is.” He will head into the draft with preparation unmatched from the college game: three seasons of experience in pressure situations, three seasons against top competition and, best of all, three seasons of Kentucky practices filled with future NBA players.
CBS Sports and Bleacher Report agree with Howard-Cooper. They both see the Kings taking the talented Cauley-Stein who has been compared to Tyson Chandler.
USA Today thinks the Kings will select Emmanuel Mudiay, PG/G who skipped college to go pro in China:
Have seen some “Mudiay to the Lakers” tweets, which is crazy, given the potential to add Rondo, the rookie year of Clarkson, and the fact that even in a wing league, explosive guards are more easily found than true post players. Mudiay would be a terrific fit for the Kings, who could bring him along slowly in year one, backing up Darren Colllison. How about a trio of Mudiay/Gay/Cousins?
NBA Draft Room says Mudiay is faster than Tyreke Evans.
I believe the Kings would love to see the very talented Mudiay fall to number six, but most experts see him being taken by the Knicks at number four if they do not deal the pick away for veterans.
NBA Draft Room believes the Kings will go with Kristaps Porzingis PF 7-1 of Latvia who is playing professionally in Spain. They see Prozingis as:
A long and skilled 7-footer with intriguing upside. A very fluid and mobile big man with high skill level. Shoots the ball with nice form with range out to 3. Has great length and suprising coordination.
Lacks power and strength. Will have to make an adjustment to the American game.
NBA Draft Room compares Porzingis’ game to that of former NBA great, Rick Smits.
Porzingis would be the answer to the Kings wish for a “stretch four forward”. Drafting the Latvian would allow the Kings to keep Rudy Gay at small forward.
Assuming the Kings retain the pick, the question becomes do they draft for need or do they take the best available athlete?
Drafting for need is always a very dicey proposition. If you pick and miss with the selection, a team can be saddled with a Jimmer Fredette type situation where you have a great young man that does not help your team on the floor one bit.
If you draft the best available athlete, a team has a valuable asset that can be traded for proven, veteran players who can fill needs that exist on the roster. The Kings must come away with value from this draft. They cannot shoot and miss.
The 2015 NBA Draft will be held on Thursday, June 25th at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Sports Radio Service will provide coverage live from the Kings’ Sacramento draft headquarters.
In what could be considered a small moral victory, the Sacramento Kings handed the Los Angeles Lakers one final loss to close out their disastrous 2015 season, beating the downtrodden team by a score of 122-99 on Wednesday’s season finale.
Although the Kings have had their fair share of injury troubles, which have held starters DeMarcus Cousins and Rudy Gay out of action during the season’s final few games, the Lakers were only able to suit up eight players for Wednesday nights finale during a season which furthered the once prosperous franchise’s fall from grace.
The Kings pounced on the makeshift Los Angeles lineup, jumping out to an early lead by the end of the first quarter, and never looking back, as they continued to make short work of the Lakers defense throughout the entire game.
The Kings finished with seven players in double figures, including all five starters.Ben McLemore led the team with 24 points on 9-of-18 shooting, followed by Ray McCallum who dished in 19 points on 7-of-14 from the field. Derrick Williams and Ryan Hollins provided some spark off the bench, finishing the game in double figures as well. Sacramento’s offense was efficient throughout the entire game, as the squad finished the contest with a 54.8 shooting percentage from the field, and an impressive 47.1 percentage from beyond the arc as they converted 8-of-17 three point attempts.
The loss put an even bigger stain on a wasted Lakers season, as the 21-61 season record gave Los Angeles their worst record in franchise history, good for second worst in the Western Conference behind the lowly Minnesota Timberwolves. The Kings, however, finished the season with a modest two game winning streak while surpassing last year’s win total by one.
The Kings are setup for improving on their fourth place finish in the Pacific Division as new head coach George Karl will be at the helm of the team for his first full season next year. The Kings finished with an 11-19 record under Karl, although they were without Cousins and Gay for the end of the season.
SACRAMENTO–It was just too much to expect from the Sacramento Kings to beat the Oklahoma City Thunder on Friday night. The only thing that was surprising in that game was OKC let the Kings hang around a lot longer than I thought they would to be competitive. Ultimately in the end it was just too much OKC and not enough for the Kings and they lost that one 116-103.
Then the game on Sunday against Denver it mirrored exactly the same thing. The Kings hung around about three quarters and then fell back and they lost that game 122-111. It would have been great to have had the audio so I could have played it back for you. In both games head coach George Karl had almost the same post game analysis.
Karl said, “we played really well for 40 minutes it’s the last eight minutes that’s killing us.” A couple of reasons for that is number one the Kings are still getting used to the system and number two their short handed. When a team is playing shorthanded and literally missing it’s two big stars and Darren Collison was also out.
Collison being a good point guard but a very productive point guard with all three including Rudy Gay and DeMarcus Cousins it’s amazing they’ve scored the points that they have because the young guys stepped up and it’s helped them make some decisions about who they want to go after and keep on the team next season.
Regarding who’s running this team right now is it general manager Pete D’Alessandro or Vlade Divak? Nobody really knows right now and right now nobody’s talking. There has been a great deal of projections that because the Kings have had this very difficult second year under D’Allesandro that he could be on his way out.
He’s the one who made the decision about firing former head coach Mike Malone, he was going to make the decision about staying with an interim coach for awhile and his intent was not to hire a full time coach until the end of the season but with Tyrone Corbin it wasn’t working out so the hand was played and the Kings went with George Karl.
Charlie O covered Kings basketball during the 2014-15 season and did commentaries each week listen to his podcast below:
The Sacramento Kings will travel to Mexico City next December to play the Boston Celtics as part of the NBA Global Games 2015. The December 3rd game will be a regular season contest and the Kings will be the home team. The game will be played in the Mexico City Arena.
The Global Games are a part of the NBA marketing initiative to take “the Association” to basketball fans around the world. The Kings played preseason games in China in 2014 as a part of the Global Games.
“We’re honored to participate in the NBA’s Global Games,” said Kings Owner and Chairman Vivek Ranadive. “The ultimate power of sports is the ability to connect people across geographic, economic and cultural lines. As part of our NBA 3.0 philosophy, we look forward to connecting with fans in Mexico City and sharing our experience through social media and digital platforms with fans around the world.”
The teams will also be involved in a number of off court activities that will include community programs and interactive fan events.
“International competition provides an opportunity for our players and staff to grow closer together while experiencing basketball in a foreign setting,” said Kings Head Coach George Karl. “We’re all excited about the trip to Mexico City and look forward to entertaining many great NBA fans in Latin America.”
While it is clear why the NBA wants to market itself around the world, it is not clear how this game benefits the fans in Sacramento. Rather than 41 home games in 2015-16, there will be only 40 home dates. Since Sacramento will be the home team, local fans will not have the opportunity to see the Boston Celtics and local favorite Isaiah Thomas next season.
The local fans need to be compensated for the loss of a home game so the NBA can further its Global Marketing plan. How should they be compensated is open to question. What do you think? What would make you – the fans – feel better about the loss of a home game for the “good” of the league? Maybe a viewing party and fiesta at Sleep Train Arena the night of the game would help make up for the loss of the home contest.
Let us know what you think. Post your ideas below.
The Sacramento Kings returned home from their three-game road trip to face the Los Angeles Lakers in the Kings’ home finale at Sleep Train Arena. It was the first of basically a home-and-home series with the Lakers, as both teams will play each other in the season finale on Wednesday in Los Angeles at the Staples Center. Sacramento had dropped 8 out of their last 9 games and were without the likes of Rudy Gay and DeMarcus Cousins and despite a total of 23 lead changes for the first 3 quarters, the Kings pulled away from the Lakers, outscoring them 27-18 in the final quarter en route to a 102-92 victory.
Both teams went back and forth for most of the first half. The Lakers’ biggest lead was 6, at 24-18, while the Kings’ biggest lead was only 3, at 31-28. As a result both teams were tied at 24 after the first quarter and also at the half, 51-51. The Kings came out of the halftime break to start the third quarter on a 8-2 run to take their biggest lead up to that point at 59-53. Back came the Lakers on a 13-4 run of their own to re-take the lead at 66-63. Sacramento eventually got the lead back and closed out the third leading 75-74.
Neither team was able to shake loose of the other until the Kings, with an 89-88 lead with 4:28 left, finally went on an extended 13-2 run to put the game out of reach. Omri Casspi was the star for Sacramento scoring a game-high 26 points, to go with 9 rebounds and 6 assists. Derrick Williams came off the bench to score 20, while Carl Landry started and added 14 points on 5 of 7 from the floor and making all 4 of his free throws in only 19 minutes. Ray McCallum added 12 with Jason Thompson and Andre Miller each chipping in with 10 to lead a balanced scoring attack. For the game Sacramento shot 49% from the floor, despite going 4 of 16 from 3-point range. A big free throw disparity favored the Kings as they converted 28 of 36 from the charity stripe while the Lakers only went to the line 13 times, hitting 8.
Los Angeles was short-handed due to injury as well, dressing only 9 players. As a result, starters Jordan Clarkson and Jabari Brown logged 47 and 46 minutes, respectively. Clarkson led the Lakers with 23 while sporting 6 assists and 5 steals. Brown and Jordan Hill added 18 apiece for the only Laker players in double figures. Sacramento improved to 28-53, while the Lakers dropped to 21-60.
The Denver Nuggets spoiled George Karl’s return to the “Mile High City” by beating his Sacramento Kings 122-111 on Sunday. Karl had hoped for a different outcome as he returned to the city where he coached for eight years.
Karl was without his “Big 3”. DeMarcus Cousins, Rudy Gay and Darren Collison have all been shut down for the remainder of the season due to injury. When you are without that much talent, your chances of winning – especially on the road – are greatly diminished.
The Nuggets Kenneth Faried was a “one man wrecking crew” in the first quarter as he scored 19-points while hitting on eight of nine shots from the field to give Denver a 37-28 lead after one period.
The Kings jumped back into the game thanks to a 22-7 run in the second quarter that helped them cut the Nuggets’s lead to just one-point as the teams went to halftime. Omri Casspi and Ray McCallum led the charge for Sacramento scoring nine points each in the second.
The Nuggets used strong scoring performances by Danilo Gallinari (10), Kenneth Faried (9) and Randy Foye (7) to open up a 10- point, 94-84 lead over the Kings after three quarters of play.
Denver kept up a high tempo scoring drive in the fourth quarter as Wilson Chandler and Randy Foye scored seven points apiece. Reserves JJ Hickson (7), Will Barton (6) and Joffrey Lauvergne (6) were very productive as the Nuggets scored 28 points in the final quarter of play.
With Cousins, Gay and Collison unavailable to play, the remainder of the Kings roster has a golden opportunity to show Greorge Karl that they deserve be with the Kings in 2015-16. There has been much speculation that there will be wholesale changes to the Sacramento line up during the off-season.
One player who is proving his worth in the George Karl “dribble drive offense” is Omri Casspi. Casspi scored 22 points on Sunday to go with seven rebounds and seven assists against the Nuggets. Casspi is making a very strong case that he should be a member of the Kings next season by the way he has adjusted to Karl’s style of play.
Ben McLemore has also come alive under Karl. McLemore scored 20-points versus Denver and added seven assists on his day. McLemore needs to add some additional consistency to his game, but he is flourishing in Karl’s more open system.
Ray McCallum continues to grow as a point guard. Much like what happened last season when he had to start for the injured Isaiah Thomas, McCallum has stepped up to the task as he has been asked to take over the starter’s role for Darren Collison. McCallum scored 14 points and added three assists Sunday against Denver.
The odd-man out right now seems to be Nik Stauskas. The rookie shooting guard has seen increased playing time under Karl, but he has struggled to find consistency especially from 3-point range. Kings Assistant Coach Vance Walberg summarizes the Sacramento offensive scheme as “score in the key or shoot the 3”. Stauskas has shown he can score in the key. He has not shown that he can score with the 3-point shot with regularity.
The Kings have signed David Stockton to a second 10-day contract. Stockton has spent most the year in Reno with Kings D-League affiliate. Stockton is probably auditioning for a spot on the Kings Summer League roster. He scored two points and had one assist in seven minutes of playing time on Sunday.
The Kings flew back to Sacramento after the game on Sunday. They will play their final home game of the season on Monday night when they host the Los Angeles Lakers.
The Kings will finish their season on Wednesday night versus the Lakers in Los Angeles.
The Sacramento Kings played the Oklahoma City Thunder on Friday night without DeMarcus Cousins and Rudy Gay in the line up. Without their “big two” on the floor, it is no surprise that the Kings lost the game 116-103.
What might surprise you is the fact the Kings were still very much into the game after three quarters of play. Sacramento could have decided to sleep walk through the game, take the loss to a potential playoff team and moved on to Denver. Instead, the Kings came to play some ball.
Sacramento’s attack was led by “the Macs” – Ben McLemore and Ray McCallum. Ben McLemore scored 20 points hitting on eight of 17 field goal attempts including four 3-pointers. The one downside to McLemore’s game was the five turnovers he recorded.
Ray McCallum had a 17 point game even with having the unenviable job of guarding Russell Westbrook all night. McCallum had four assists, six rebounds, one steal and just one turnover.
After the game, Kings Head Coach George Karl said McCallum did not win the matchup with Westbrook, but he indicated that McCallum did a good job versus one of the real stars of the NBA.
Derrick Williams came off the bench and scored 17 points despite being zero for seven from the field at one point in the game. Omri Casspi added 15 points. Nik Stauskas scored 9 points after missing the Utah game with back soreness.
The Kings shot 45.7-percent (37 for 81) from the floor. They hit nine of their 24 3-point attempts (37.5-percent). Sacramento improved their performance at the free throw line going 20 for 28 (71.4-percent) from the stripe.
One major problem for the Kings was turnovers. They turned the ball over 16 times which resulted in 20 points for OKC. The Kings dished out 19 assists. That type of assist to turnover ratio will not get the job done in the NBA.
In the postgame review, Karl indicated that his team played great for 40-minutes and then fatigue set in which allowed the Thunder to run away with the game in the fourth quarter.
The Thunder,who were without Serge Ibaka, were led in scoring by Russell Westbrook. Westbrook scored 27 points to go with 10 assists and five rebounds. Dion Waiters put up 22 points. Anthony Morrow came off the bench to score 19 points hitting on five of 10 3-point attempts. Enes Kanter poured in 25 points.
OKC Head Coach Scott Brooks cannot be thrilled that it took 40 minutes for his team to put away the lowly Kings. The Thunder are fighting for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference and should have shown more intensity earlier in the game.
New Orleans won their game so the Thunder and Pelicans are still tied for the final playoff berth. The Pelicans own the tie-breaker between the teams, so the Thunder must finish with one more victory than New Orleans to make the playoffs.
With the loss, the Kings record drops to 27-52. Oklahoma City’s record improves to 43-36.
After the game, the Kings headed off for Denver where they will play the Nuggets on Sunday.
In a fight for the eight and final spot in the Western Conference, the Russell Wilson led Oklahoma City took down the depleted Sacramento Kings with a 116-103 final to keep their playoff dreams alive.
With both Kevin Durant and Serge Ibaka still ailing, it was up to Westbrook to lead the Thunder’s charge. The dynamic young point guard didn’t disappoint, dropping 27 points while dishing 10 assists against a Sacramento team still missing both DeMarcus Cousins and Rudy Gay.
But Westbrook wasn’t alone in his charge, as a slew of supporting characters on the Oklahoma City roster helped him out with a balanced scoring attack. Alongside Westbrook, fellow starters Enes Kanter and Dion Waiters finished with over 20 points on the night, while Anthony Morrow provided 19 off the bench.
But despite what the final 13 point deficit might suggest, the Kings did not make it easy for the Thunder to grasp the victory. After being up as many as 13 points in the first half, the Kings battled back to head into the final frame with just a six point deficit. However, the Thunder would not relinquish their grip on the lead, and would outscore Sacramento by seven points in the fourth to hold on for the win.
Like the Thunder, the Kings scoring attack was fairly balanced, with Ben McLemore leading the team with 20 points on 8-of-17 shooting. He was followed by Omri Casspi, Ray McCallum and Derrick Williams, all of whom finished with 15 points or more on the night.
The Kings have now lost 7 of their last 8 games while clearly missing their top two scorers in Gay and Cousins. They still have three games left in order to finish the season on a high note by concluding their road trip at Denver before heading home to face the Lakers for their final home game of the season on Monday. They will then travel to Los Angeles to take on the Lakers yet again to play their season finale on April 15.
The injury ridden Sacramento Kings could not stave off a late scoring run by the Jazz on Wednesday night, as Utah went on to clinch the season series with a 103-91 win at home.
Sacramento was without two of their top scorers in the lineup on Wednesday, as DeMarcus Cousins, Rudy Gay and Darren Collison were all held out of action with their respective injuries. Omri Caspri led the Kings makeshift starting lineup with 16 points, while Jason Thomas followed with a double-double on 12 points and 11 boards.
Despite their lack of starting depth, the Kings headed into the locker room at halftime with a six point lead over the Jazz, who struggled to get on the board early. But the Jazz would come out stronger in the third, outscoring Sacramento by 8 in the quarter to regain control of the game.
The two teams traded buckets early in the fourth before the Jazz would go on a 15-0 run with a little over 9 minutes left in the game to secure the victory, and the season series, against Sacramento. The Kings were brought down by poor perimeter defense in the second half, allowing the Jazz to dump in 10 three-pointers in their comeback effort.
Rodney Hood led Utah with 20 points and seven rebounds, while Derrick Favors followed him with a double-double on 18 points and 11 rebounds. Utah finished with six players in double figures.
Despite the Kings being poised to end the season on a sour note after losing six of their last seven games, fans of the team were treated to a historic moment with just under 20 seconds to go in the game as Sim Bhullar, the 7’5 giant recently acquired by Sacramento, became the first person of Indian decent to score in the NBA after dumping in a nifty jump hook in the middle of the post. He finished the game with just those two points.
The Kings will travel to Oklahoma City to take on the Thunder on Friday night.
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