Tag: George Hill

Same teams, different city with different result: Blazers down Kings 102-90

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment

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by Charlie O. Mallonee

The Sacramento Kings traveled to Portland to play the second game of a home and home, back-to-back set on Saturday night. The Kings hoped to make it two in a row over the Trail Blazers after their big win on Friday night. Those hopes would not be fulfilled.

The Blazers took their revenge on the Kings by winning game two 102-90. Portland combined strong defense with high-percentage shooting to prevent the Kings from ever having a real chance of winning the game.

PORTLAND (9-7)

Portland backcourt comes aliveELY_2788.CR2

 

The Trail Blazers starting guards – Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum – are the focal point of the Portland offense. If the two guards cannot be shutdown, the chances of beating “Rip City” becomes very problematic.

Against the Kings Saturday night, Lillard and McCollum combined to account for 47 of the Blazers 102 points.

McCollum scored a game-high 25 points shooting 9-for-16 overall and 4-for-7 from beyond the 3-point line. He also was a perfect 3-for-3 at the free throw line while dishing out four assists, grabbing four rebounds and making two steals.

Lillard posted 22 points hitting 8-of-18 shots from the field. He did have a rough night from long-range going just 1-for-8 from downtown. Lillard did convert 5-of-6 from the free throw line and recorded six assists.

Nurkic was a different player 

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Jusuf Nurkic was not factor on Friday night in Sacramento. On Saturday, the big man scored 14 points and pulled down seven rebounds. Nurkic was factor under the basket on both ends of the court.

Meyers Leonard was a real pain

A 7-foot-1 center is supposed to be parked down low near the basket – not if you are Meyers Leonard. Leonard is a long-range shooter who really does not have a great deal of skills under the bucket.

Leonard came off the bench to score 11 points for the Blazers. He shot 4-for-8 overall and hit 3-of-5 from beyond the 3-point line. Leonard also hauled in seven rebounds.

Rip City was on fire shooting the ball

Portland shot 54.3-percent (38-for-70) from the floor in the game while hitting 10-of-21 (47.6-percent)  three-point opportunites. The Blazers took advantage of the free throw line converting 16-of-21 opportunities from the stripe.

SACRAMENTO (4-12)

Cauley-Stein leads the way again

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Willie Cauley-Stein came off the bench for the Kings again on Saturday night and for the second game in a row he was the Kings high-scorer. The big man scored 18 points and grabbed nine rebounds against the Blazers.

Cauley-Stein went 1-for-1 from 3-point land. It was the first 3-point basket for Cauley-Stein of his NBA career.

Z-Bo is back

Big Zach Randolph did not score a point and looked tired on Friday night versus Portland. On Saturday night, he looked energized and ready to play. Randolph scored 17 points and pulled down five rebounds in his 21-plus minutes on the floor.

Randolph shot 6-for-11 overall including one 3-point basket. He went an impressive 4-for-5 from the free throw line.

Four guards scored in double figures

Frank Mason is making the most of his playing time. Saturday night he scored 13 points shooting 50-percent (5-for-10) from the field in his 19-minutes of playing time. Mason also added two assists.

George Hill had another strong game shooting 5-for-11 from the field and scoring 12 points. He converted 2-of-3 three-point opportunities.

Bogdan Bogdanovic showed signs that his shot may be coming back as he went 5-for-13 from the floor and hit 2-of-6 from downtown. His form has been looking good but the ball has just not been going through the hoop.

De’Aaron Fox got the start again as Dave Joerger went with the two point guard look once again. Fox scored 11 points in 27-minutes on the floor. Fox hit 5-of-9 from the floor and dished out two assists to go with two steals.

Almost everyone played

The Kings went with a 12-man bench for this game because Buddy Hield rolled his ankle on Friday night. The good news for Kings fans is that Hield was feeling much better on Saturday but was held out as a precaution. He is expected to be available for the game on Monday against Denver.

Only Justin Jackson did enter the game on Saturday night for the Kings. Jackson did not play on Friday versus the Blazers.

UP NEXT

KINGS

The Kings will return to action Monday night when they will host the Denver Nuggets at home. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 pm.

PORTLAND

The Trail Blazers head out on the road and will play in Memphis on Monday night.

 

 

Kings Press Row Podcast with Charlie O for October 24th – Hello Mr. Cousins

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment
Dal Hill
George Hill was the Kings scoring leader with 21 points Photo: USA Today Sports
    Was the the Kings three game road trip good, bad or ugly?
    The Kings lost to an 0-3 Phoenix Suns team on Monday – should that have happened?
    Why did the Kings win in Dallas?
    Why did the Kings look so different on Saturday night in Denver?
    Which Sacramento players have impressed you to date?
    Which players need to show some improvement?
    What is up next for the Kings?

 

 

Kings post first win of 2017-18 on the road Friday night beating Dallas 93-88

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by Charlie O. Mallonee

Dal Hill
George Hill was the Kings scoring leader with 21 points Photo: USA Today Sports

Sacramento won the game because they played with intensity

Nothing may illustrate that point more than the sequence that took place with 34.1-seconds left to play in the game and the Kings leading 89-86. Zach Randolph missed a 16-foot fadeaway jump shot. Buddy Hield made a hustle rebound under the basket to keep the possession alive for Sacramento. George Hill ultimately hit a 17-foot jumper that for all intensive purposes sealed the win for the Kings.

This was a game of runs

In the second quarter, the Mavs went on a 12-0 run to go up 38-26 and it looked like Kings were going to be in real trouble on the road before halftime. The Kings woke up and went on to outscore the Mavericks 20-8 in the final 5:22 of the period. George Hill was the leader with help from Z-Bo, Cauley-Stein and Buddy Hield.

Sacramento came back to floor ready to go after halftime. They won the 3rd quarter by posting 25 points to just 14 for Dallas. Buddy Hield led the scoring barrage with eight points while Hill added seven points and Randolph put up six. The Kings went into the 4th quarter with a 71-60 lead.

Another run started immediately at the beginning of the final quarter. Unfortunately for the Kings, it was the Mavericks who went on an 11-0 run to take a 72-71 lead with 9:38 to go in the game. Dirk Nowitzki — yes the old guy — and J.J. Barea were the players who fueled the run for Dallas.

The Kings retook the lead when Skal Labissiere hit a 19-foot jumper (assist Fox) at 8:46 to make it a 73-72 game. The Kings would never relinquish the lead again in the contest. They did not have an easy time in those final minutes but they played them with a lead.

Top Performers

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Zach “Z-Bo” Randolph made his presence known in Dallas Photo: USA Today Sports

Sacramento

  • George Hill was the man again on Saturday night with 21 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals. He shot 9-for-12 from the floor and was a perfect 3-for-3 from beyond the 3-point line.
  • Zach Randolph got the start at center in Dallas after having to miss the home opener due to oral surgery. Z-Bo showed off his toughness on both ends of the court as he scored 13 points and grabbed 6 rebounds. Three of those rebounds came on offense — think second chance point opportunities.
  • Buddy Hield recorded 13 points and 6 rebounds but it was that one offensive rebound with under a minute to go in the game that was really clutch. He did not have a great shooting night going 4-for-11 from the floor (1-for-6 for 3’s). Hield was a perfect 4-for-4 from the free throw line. He also dished out 3 assists.
  • Willie Cauley-Stein or maybe we should call him “Mr. Double-Double”. He scored 10 points and hauled in 11 rebounds for his second consecutive double-double game.
  • “The Fox” was hot again on Friday night. How about 10 assists in the game coming off the bench? He scored 9 points, had 6 rebounds and 1 steal in 26-minutes on the floor.
  • Other contributors: Labissiere 8 points + 5 rebounds, Temple 8 points + 6 rebounds,  Vince Carter 6 points, Koufos 3 points + 5 rebounds and Justin Jackson 2 points + 4 rebounds.

Dallas

  • Top scorer for his team and the game — Harrison Barnes 24 points on 8-for-18 shooting.
  • Yogi Ferrell hit some key baskets to keep his team in the contest and finished with 14 points.
  • Dorian Finney-Smith scored 14 points coming off the bench and was a big factor late in the game.
  • J.J. Barea — who started at point guard because Dennis Smith, Jr. was held out due to swelling in a knee — scored 9 points and distributed 10 assists.
  • Dirk Nowitzki — first vice president of AARP — played 29-minutes scoring 10 points and pulling down 9 rebounds. He really is my hero.

Team Stats

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Mr. Double-Double Willie Cauley-Stein Photo: USA Today Sports

Kings

  • SAC shot 42.5-percent from the field (37-for-87)
  • They hit 10-of-23 from 3-point range. That is 43.5-percent shooting. Joerger has to pleased with that.
  • The Kings made 9-of-13 free throw attempts. They had only 10 attempts versus Houston. The 13 on Friday was an improvement but that total needs to get up into the 20s.
  • Kings out-rebounded the Mavs 57-36. More importantly, they owned the offensive glass 16-7.
  • The team had 20 assists and 14 turnovers giving up 14 points off those TOVs.
  • Second Chance Points Kings 14 vs Mavericks 6

Dallas

  • The Mavericks shot 41.3-percent from the field (31-for-75)
  • They were 11-for-33 (33.3-percent) from beyond the arc
  • Dallas went to the FT line 21 times and converted 15 of those attempts
  • The Mavs posted 19 assists while turning the ball over 12 times (6 points for Kings)

Both teams play Saturday night on the road

Sacramento

The Kings (1-1) head north and will play at a “Mile High” in Denver when they will face the 0-1 Nuggets. This will be the first road back-to-back set for the Kings rookies. Denver is 0-1 this season. Game time is 6 p.m. PDT.

Dallas

The 0-2 Mavericks will head south to face the 2-0 Houston Rockets in their home opener. They will not have to see Chris Paul who will be out 2-4 weeks due to his knee injury.

Kings Press Row Podcast: Post-Mortem on loss to Rockets in season opener

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hosts Charlie O. Mallonee and Jordan Chapin

Fox to hoop
Fox was fearless in driving the lane against the Rockets on Wednesday night

  • Kings showed great effort versus the Rockets on Wednesday night

  • This was a classic battle between a Tier 1 team and a Tier 3 team

  • Willie Cauley-Stein silenced many of his detractors

  • The Kentucky connection came up big for the Kings in the opener – Cauley-Stein, Labissiere and Fox made a major impact in the game

  • Buddy Hield was a major player for SAC in the game

  • George Hill showed why the front office wanted him on the roster to provide a veteran presence on the floor

  • The Kings play their first game on the road Friday night in Dallas – this will be a Tier 3 vs Tier 3 game. Both teams will be in the 2018 Draft Lottery

  • It will be a chance to see Dennis Smith who many media reporters feel has the inside track on becoming Rookie of the Year

Join us for out next Kings Press Row Podcast next Tuesday only on SportsRadioService.com.

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Cauley-Stein goes up for 2 of his 21 points

Kings fight to the final buzzer but come up short as Rockets win 105-100

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment
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Cauley-Stein puts in a dunk to cut the Rockets lead to three points with seven seconds to go in the game

by Charlie O. Mallonee

Kings open the 2017-18 regular season with loss to the powerful Houston Rockets

The Sacramento Kings kicked off their new season before a sellout crowd of 17,583 at the Golden 1 Center on Wednesday night. Their opponent was the very powerful and talented Houston Rockets who started their season on Tuesday night with a last second win over the defending NBA Champion Golden State Warriors in Oakland.

The Kings hoped to take advantage of catching the Rockets on the second game of a back-to-back set on the road. They also received some good news when they learned that Chris Paul would not play due to ongoing problems with a knee contusion.

Sacramento (0-1) kept the game close through all four quarters. They even won the third quarter 24-23. The lead changed eight times in the game and the contest was tied four times. Houston’s largest lead was 11 points while the Kings biggest lead was six.

James Harden struggled through the first three quarters of the game appearing to be tired from effort that expended versus the Warriors on Tuesday night. Unfortunately for the Kings, Harden caught a second wind in the final period and scored 12 of his game-high 27 points over those last 12 minutes. That performance really made the difference for the Rockets (2-0).

Despite being down by 11 points with 5:13 remaining in the game the Kings did not give up and cut the Houston lead to just three points with 26-seconds to go in the contest. It was at that point this game took a left turn that the Kings would never recover from.

The Kings George Hill sank two free throws to make it a 98-95 game with Houston in the lead with 26-seconds remaining. On the inbounds play, Hill appeared to disrupt the possession by Eric Gordon who lost control allowing the ball to go out-of-bounds. The big crowd went wild but settled as a video replay was ordered.

What the crowd, the Kings bench and the majority of the media did not understand was the replay was not to determine if Gordon was the last player to touch the ball before it went out-of-bounds. The replay was to confirm a foul call that made on Hill by the referee on the far-side of the court. The replay center in Secaucus upheld the foul call and Gordon was sent to the charity stripe to shoot two shots.

Gordon hit both shots to give Houston a five-point lead with 26-seconds to play essentially sealing the win for the Rockets. The Kings gave it their best effort but came up short.

Kings head coach Dave Joerger addresses the call in a very subdued manner in part two of his video comments.

Dave Joerger was very proud of the effort his team gave against the talented Rockets

  • Sacramento shot 42-for-88 (47.7%) from the floor
  • The Kings shot 8-for-23 (34.8%) from 3-point land
  • The team went just 8-for-10 from the free throw line vs. 27-for-29 for the Rockets

Joerger was not happy about the foul call that was upheld by the video replay center

  • De’Aaron Fox 14 points (7-for-15 shooting), five assists, four rebounds, 23-minutes of playing time
  • Buddy Hield 19 points (8-for-17 shooting including three 3’s), five rebounds, four assists, one steal

Coach Joerger was pleased with the play of Willie Cauley-Stein

  • Cauley-Stein with the double-double: 21 points (game-high for SAC), 10-for-15 shooting, 10 rebounds (four offensive), three blocked shots

This was a Tier One vs a Tier Three game

  • Kings played without Zach Randolph who was sidelined by oral surgery
  • Bogdan Bogdanovic did not play because of a sprained right ankle

The Kentucky connection was very important to the Kings on Wednesday 

  • Skal Labissiere 12 points, 10 rebounds to post a double-double
  • Cauley-Stein, Labissiere and Fox = 47 points, 24 rebounds, seven assists

Up next for the Kings and Rockets

  • Sacramento heads out on the road and will face the Dallas Mavericks on Friday night
  • The Rockets will have their home opener on Saturday night when they host the Dallas Mavericks

No chicken dinner for Kings in Vegas as they lose to Lakers 75-69

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carter vs lakers
Vince Carter directs traffic in the Kings — Lakers game in Las Vegas Photo USA Today Sports

by Charlie O. Mallonee

The third preseason game of the year for the Kings was a premiere matchup between Pacific Division rivals. The Kings and the Lakers are both very young teams that are trying reestablish themselves as legitimate playoff contenders in the NBA Western Conference.

Frankly, neither of these teams will be playing a game after the end of the regular season in April. That being said — both the Lakers and Kings are going to be much more entertaining to watch in 2017-18 than they were last season with the players they acquired in the draft and in free agency.

The game on Sunday night at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas was not a “beautiful game”, but it was an entertaining game. The Lakers established a big lead in the first quarter and then the Kings fought their way back into the game in the second period.

The Kings actually took the lead in game in third quarter behind 22-9 run but they would not be able to hold on to that lead in final quarter of the game. When the final buzzer sounded, the Lakers had held on to record their first win of the preseason 75-69 over the Kings before a decidedly pro-Laker crowd in “Sin City”.

There were really no losers on Sunday night in Las Vegas

Magic talks to crowd Lakers
Magic Johnson spoke to the fans in Las Vegas before the game on Sunday Photo USA Today Sports

Both the Kings and Lakers donated their proceeds from the game on Sunday night to victims and first-responders of the mass shooting that happened last Sunday in Las Vegas. The donations will go to the MGM Grand Foundation who will administer the distribution of the proceeds.

This was a very nice gesture on the part of both teams.

The Ball vs Fox matchup did not happen again

The summer league rematch between Lonzo Ball and De’Aaron Fox did happen due to an injury reported by Ball. That brought out many comments about Ball not wanting to be embarrassed by Fox the way he was in the UCLA — Kentucky matchup.

On Sunday, it was announced that Ball would not be available due to an ankle problem. Fox would not have been able to play in the second-half due to a lower back bruise suffered in the first-half of the game.

Do not worry. The big face off is going to happen during the regular season and it will be worth the wait.

Neither team had impressive stats in the game

Kings

Sacramento shot 25-for-80 (31.2-percent) from the floor. They connected on just 7-of-25 (28.0-percent) for 3-point attempts. Those are not the kind of shooting numbers that will win games in the regular season. Sacramento went 12-for-16 (75.0-percent) from the free throw line. The percentage was fine but the number of attempts was too low.

Sacramento grabbed 37 rebounds (5 offensive). They recorded 15 assists and 12 turnovers which is not an acceptable ratio. The Lakers scored 10 points off the Kings 12 turnovers.

Lakers

Los Angeles shot 41.4-percent (29-for-70) from the field. The Lakers hit just 6-of-24 (25.0-percent) from beyond the 3-point line. They were 11-for-15 (73.3-percent) from the charity stripe.

The Lakers hauled in 49 rebounds (2 offensive). They recorded 21 assists and 20 turnovers which is not acceptable to any coach. The Kings scored 18 points off the Lakers 20 turnovers.

Team Leaders

Sacramento

Z-bo vs Lakers
Zach Randolph was a team leader for the Kings on Sunday night Photo USA Today Sports

Zach Randolph led the Kings scoring attack with 16 points. Z-Bo was 7-for-15 shooting. Garrett Temple put up 12 points while Vince Carter added nine. Bogdan Bogdanovic, George Hill and Buddy Hield each added seven points in the game.

George Hill was the Kings top rebounder with eight. Kosta Koufos grabbed seven.

The Kings used just 11 players in the rotation on Sunday night.

LAK

Kuzma Lakers
Rookie Kuzma was a star for the Lakers on Sunday Photo USA Today Sports

Julius Randle posted a double-double by putting up 17 points and pulling down 10 rebounds. Rookie Kyle Kuzma dropped in 15 points. Many observers feel that Kuzma could be a bigger story than Ball this season but remember this is just the preseason. Brook Lopez scored 12 while Jordan Clarkson added 10 points.

Kuzma also pulled down eight rebounds.

Alex Caruso led the Lakers in assists with four and Kuzma had three.

Interesting stat of the game

When you look at the stats, you know this was not a great field goal shooting game. It really became an “old style” NBA battle in the paint contest. Sacramento scored 24 points in the paint (12-for-28) while the Lakers scored 40 points in the key (20-for-34).

Up next

The Kings (1-2) will be back in action on Monday night in Sacramento when they will host the Portland Trail Blazers (2-1). Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.

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

NYK

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.

carmelo3
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?

hamilton

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

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment

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

zach Randolph

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.