We have been screaming this from the mountain tops since the first day of training camp last season. Jimmer Fredette is too nice. He wants to fit in too badly. He doesn’t want to steal the spotlight, he just wants to be one of the guys and by doing so, he has lost the edge that made him great.
Following the Kings’ final summer league game in Las Vegas, Jimmer finally said what needed to be said, for himself and for everyone involved.
“I think I changed my game too much,” Jimmer said on the NBATV telecast. “I was too passive. I was trying to fit in a little bit too much. That’s what I was working on this year. Just getting that confidence back. Just getting that stroke back and just being aggressive when I’m on the floor. That’s what they (Kings) got me for, to score the basketball and make plays for this team.”
I don’t know about you, but I feel better now, and no, I’m not joking.
Below is Jimmer on one of the first days of training camp last season. Notice that Adrian Oliver, an undrafted free agent who did not make the team, is working alongside Jimmer and not fellow rookies Isaiah Thomas or Tyler Honeycutt. I have more clips similar to this, like Jimmer handing out water and Gatorade to his ALL of his teammates who are busy stretching on the floor after practice. Being nice is one thing, but I have always held the belief that he was flat out trying too hard to fit in.
Jimmer came into the NBA as more than a basketball player. He has a following that is as devout as any player that I have ever seen coming from the college ranks. He has pressure that normal players don’t have, but somewhere along the way, he added to that pressure by trying to be something that neither he, nor anyone else is – perfect.
When the Kings added Aaron Brooks earlier this week, the message was made very clear - the Kings aren’t comfortable walking into this season with Tyreke Evans, Marcus Thornton, Isaiah Thomas and Jimmer as their four guard rotation.
What does that mean?
It means that if Jimmer wants to play, he is going to have to fight his way into the rotation. He is going to have to compete for minutes against Thornton, who led the Kings in scoring last season, Tyreke Evans who won the NBA’s Rookie of the Year trophy three seasons ago, Aaron Brooks, the 2009-10 NBA’s Most Improved Player, and Isaiah Thomas, the final pick in the 2011 NBA draft who played so well the Kings had no choice but to anoint him the starting point guard last season.
“Isaiah (Thomas) is obviously kind of the incumbent, regardless of the experience that Aaron (Brooks) had,” said Kings Director of Player Personnel Jerry Reynolds. “He is a proven guy and Jimmer is still in the proving stage.”
It’s an uphill climb from here on out. Mr. Nice Guy is done or at least he is if he wants to step foot on the court.
Jimmer had an up and down summer league, but the aggressive play that helped lead him to the NCAA scoring crown two seasons ago started to show up. Call it what you will, but while he wouldn’t admit it, his 30 point performance on Monday against the Houston Rockets sure did look like a response to the Kings signing Brooks earlier in the day.
The Kings aren’t looking for Jimmer to yell and scream, but they want him to fight and they want him to progress as a player. While they liked the 30-point outburst, they want to see more. They want to see an aggressive player who demands playing time through his play.
“Did he show progress?” asked Reynolds. “Sure. Did he do everything that you wanted him to do? No, because at the end of the day, his shooting percentages were what they were and that’s not very good.”
While his shooting numbers were abysmal (35.8 percent from the floor, 22 percent from distance), the Kings have to be encouraged by the fact that Jimmer averaged eight free throw attempts per game. He was aggressive going to the basket and constantly drew contact. He averaged 18 points per game, while leading the Kings to a 2-3 record.
Was he playing against elite talent? Not even close, but he was also not playing with elite talent. The Kings brought just two players guaranteed a roster spot – Jimmer and rookie Thomas Robinson. Darnell Jackson and Tony Mitchell will probably get training camp invites, but both will have to fight a numbers game to make the final roster.
What is Smart looking for from Jimmer? How does he separate himself in a crowded back court?
“You have to be aggressive in your thought,” head coach Keith Smart told our own Jonathon Santiago on this week’s Cowbell Kingdom Podcast. “You come off a pick and roll, come off the pick and roll aggressively, because you’ll make plays not only for yourself, but also for your teammates, because it forces someone else to help. So when I want a player to be aggressive, I’m not necessarily carrying over, saying be aggressive by shooting. When you’re aggressive, you are going to do the things that you are accustomed to doing in that aggressive personality.”
Smart has his work cut out for him come training camp. Geoff Petrie, the Kings President of Basketball Operations has spent the summer accumulating talent, but it is Smart who must fit these pieces together.
“Keith (Smart) is going to be the one who decides who plays and who gets the minutes,” Petrie said following Brooks’ introductory press conference on Friday. “It’s just way too early to make a call on that.”
Maybe Smart is the perfect guy. A collegiate legend in his own right, Smart found the transition from winning an NCAA title at Indiana, to making it in the NBA a tough go. He understands expectations and managing personal failure and success. He has laid down the path for Jimmer – be aggressive, don’t let up and the player we watched in college will materialize. Be the player that got you here. Be yourself.
If summer league is any indication, Jimmer has heeded the warning. He now understands that fitting in is nice, but he needs to bring the skill set that won him so many accolades as a college senior at BYU. If not, he will sit on the bench and watch his friends steal all of his minutes.
James Ham provides coverage through news analysis and in-depth interviews with Kings players and staff. James is also one of the producers behind the award-winning, independent documentary "Small Market, Big Heart". James graduated UC Davis with a degree in history and is happily married with two children.
as far as Training Camp invites it has to be in this order 1. Tony Mitchell SF 2. Josh Akognon PG are the two that really stood out in Las Vegas Summer league.
http://twitter.com/Kingsguru21 Nate Hughart
Great piece James. Well done sir.
Newt916
I have no idea why Kings signed Chuck Hayes when they had D. Jackson ready to be signed for alot less. Jimmer doesnt fit on this team. I would like to see Kegonon make the roster.
Newt916
Yes, my thoughts exactly.
http://profile.yahoo.com/A57G6ZGIMOKIW7P3I4J4JEHXKI Chad
if he plays aggressive, the same things that plagued him last year will rear the ugly heads again this year. he will be ignored, not passed to, not screened for properly, not helped on defense etc etc.. he will be alienated just like he was last year.. and there is no one on that staff that will help him fight back. any decent coach see’s a player shunning another player to the detriment of the team and that coach without a doubt will sit that cancer.. yet this will never happen under smart. this franchise is dooms day for a star white basketball player like fredette. he is the only one of his kind in sacramento… even counting the coaching staff. and those coaches seemed to kill his confidence again and again in favor of their fav guys.. after big moments this past year for fredette, such as the four starts where he was averaging 16 points on 60% shooting from downtown, after the memphis game, the timberwolves game, the lakers game, etc etc, he would immediate be benched.. after the four starts, it took smart one game before slipping fredette into back to back dnps… no one ever mentions this fact…. its like it didnt even happen… why? because it for intent and purposes didnt.. it happened in sacramento and no one cares one bit what goes in with this terrible franchise.. so its like this, when fredette gets to choose his situation, the fredette of old will return.. if he can just stay strong during his time in purgatory.
http://twitter.com/Kingsguru21 Nate Hughart
Actually Darnell Jackson was in the Ukraine on a non-out to the NBA contract. The Kings couldn’t have signed D-Block even if they wanted to because he wasn’t available last December when the FA period happened.
Jurgen
Those are stupid thoughts that you shouldnt have… let alone put in writing. I watched nearly every game last season and Jimmer played his way on to the bench and then deeper on to the bench. That is Fact! When he did play he was highly supported and encouraged by his teammates. The bench would constantly stand up in celebration every time Jimmer fired up a shot. He was expected to score by everyone and just didnt! Maybe he will this year.
Your claims are ignorant.
Guest
People are just afraid to face the fact that he just isn’t NBA material. College and the NBA are like apples and oranges. He’s too small and too slow. He isn’t a playmaker and cannot play anything resembling defense. The one thing he’s good at, shooting, he was anything but spectacular last year. I believe Isaiah Thomas, a guy not really known for his shooting (although he’s definitely improved), shot better last year. Not only that, but he has what Jimmer doesn’t: confidence, leadership skills, intangibles… Sacramento made a huge mistake by drafting Jimmer, when more quality players were still out there. It must have been for publicity. Either way, the best thing to do is trade him while he still has value. His ceiling is a decent bench player at best.
Ryan
I watched nearly every game last year as well as went to 2 in person. They did not cheer him like that until he hit 2 or 3 shots in 4 possessions. I also heard the announcers of the Mavericks question why Keith Smart would pull Jimmer right after he hit back to back 3′s and started to look like the guy he did in college. I also watched a play that blatantly showed how the refs regard him in this league and every other coach in the NBA would have gotten a technical and possibly thrown out, but Keith Smart said about 5 words to them and then sat down. Not exactly supporting your player. And as far as losing minutes to friends on the team are concerned, he only spoke to 6 teammates off the court by the end of the year. But it’s not easy fitting in and being one of the guys when you don’t smoke the gonja every day. I’ll reserve judgement for him until after year 3, which is about how long it takes the majority of players in the NBA to adjust to the game.
Cmoss236
Sounds like you were the last one picked in P.E. one too many times. If the one thing you can do well is shoot, and you shoot 35%fg, and 22% 3pfg…. well you get benched. It’s not because he’s white, it’s because he hasn’t done what they drafted him for. Anyway I wish him well and hope he gets outta this slump.
hoost
I also watched just about every game and didn’t see the team encouragement you are describing except for a handful of games (which usually happened to be games where the Kings actually had a remote chance of winning). Isaiah Thomas cheering doesn’t count either, he cheers for everyone. He was definitely not welcomed by his teammates and Coach Smart has admitted as much saying there was lots of jealousy of his celebrity. Having said that, I disagree that Jimmer was benched for no reason. He gave up so many easy and-1 buckets last year he simply had to be taken out of games. He’s improved his on-ball defense a lot over time, but his defense against the break is horrible. You can pretty much chalk up a three point play every time he’s trying a draw a charge instead of fouling hard to stop a basket. It was still evident in the summer league. Since he was always floating out beyond the top of the key he was often the last line of defense against the break and failed terribly. I’m a Jimmer fan, but he’s definitely got start getting meaner out there on D. It’s not like he’s a featherweight. He should be able to foul hard and keep shots from going up instead of flopping. Maybe he will.
hoost
He was easy money. He sold tons of jersey’s and they sold more season tickets the first day they were available than the total season tickets sold the year before. Sounds like he might get traded to the Jazz.
Jurgen
Are you a member of the kings staff or something? I’m curious how you know that Jimmer was only talking to “6″ players off the court? Also apparently the entire team is a bunch of stoners? How might you know this information? If that is the case then Jimmer should take a couple bong hits!! FYI to Jimmer and anyone else smoking marijuana. NOT a big deal!!! Who cares!!!!
All of these amazing athletes smoke dope, and these are just the ones that have got caught or admitted it. PG Damon Stoudamire, SG Allen Iverson, F Josh Howard, F Carmelo Anthony, F Rasheed Wallace, F Chris Webber, Isaaiah “JR” Rider, Kareem Abdul Jabar, Bill Walton, Josh Howard, Randy Moss, Ricky Williams and best of all MICHAEL PHELPS!!! Watch that stoner win 8 more GOLD medals starting next week!! USA USA USA!!!!!!
Smoking a joint with your teammates wouldnt be the worst way to build team chemistry actually. Its ok Jimmer, take a puff, you wont go to hell. God probably smokes it himself; he created it right? Why create it and not smoke it? Can you imagine creating strawberries and not eating them? not me
MBS
Actually you are right and wrong in your posts. Jimmer did play himself onto the bench, but the whole point of this piece was that he did that by trying to be too nice and by not playing his game. Not being aggressive.
Also, it was semi-public knowledge that there were people on the team that did not like Jimmer. Nothing ever specific about why, but that his teammates didn’t really accept him.
I guess the Jimmermania may have made the team think he was some kind of egomaniac. Not a team player, but that isnt’ the case and like a nice guy would. He tried to fit in.
Toward the end of the season they started to be more supportive and celebrate his success, but not at first so clearly there might be more facts than you are privy to and other thoughts that are based on those facts, and thus not stupid…
DrewNusser
Jimmer was playing pretty well before he got benched last season. He was pretty much doing what people pegged him for – he was scoring and shooting well, but he was a liability on defense. I would have done the same thing as Smart, with bringing in Isaiah – he’s more of the pure PG, and he can stay in front of his defender, which is what the Kings needed. However, I would have still tried to get Jimmer more minutes. It seemed like whenever he played well, he would get sentenced to the end of the bench for the rest of the game, and sometimes the next. Jimmer obviously needed to improve on some aspects, but the way he was treated seemed like it just shattered his confidence. It’ll be interesting to see if he goes into training camp with a chip on his shoulder and something to prove – that’s what he really needs right now.
Jeffrey Thompson
That and just like Jimmer, they like the ball planted in their hands as well.
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=17806114 Stephen Robbins
Not a Kings fanatic, but as a BYU alum I tried to catch a few games. I definitely noticed teammates not passing to him, ignoring him, guys taking ridiculously difficult shots with Jimmer standing wide open, etc. I remember one play, there was like .01 left on the clock, and Francisco Garcia just needed to inbound it to whoever to let time expire. Jimmer was standing right in front of him with his arms outstretched. Garcia hesitated, and literally through it OVER Jimmer to another teammate for no reason. I played on a team like that in HS and it sucks. No excuse for his defensive failings, obviously, but it makes you realize that for a lot of these non-super stars, situation can be key to success.
JBurhenn
chadwick12- are you still spouting off this “racist” garbage. stop with all that
Jimmer Fredette comes clean, admits he was trying to fit in
19We have been screaming this from the mountain tops since the first day of training camp last season. Jimmer Fredette is too nice. He wants to fit in too badly. He doesn’t want to steal the spotlight, he just wants to be one of the guys and by doing so, he has lost the edge that made him great.
Following the Kings’ final summer league game in Las Vegas, Jimmer finally said what needed to be said, for himself and for everyone involved.
I don’t know about you, but I feel better now, and no, I’m not joking.
Below is Jimmer on one of the first days of training camp last season. Notice that Adrian Oliver, an undrafted free agent who did not make the team, is working alongside Jimmer and not fellow rookies Isaiah Thomas or Tyler Honeycutt. I have more clips similar to this, like Jimmer handing out water and Gatorade to his ALL of his teammates who are busy stretching on the floor after practice. Being nice is one thing, but I have always held the belief that he was flat out trying too hard to fit in.
Jimmer came into the NBA as more than a basketball player. He has a following that is as devout as any player that I have ever seen coming from the college ranks. He has pressure that normal players don’t have, but somewhere along the way, he added to that pressure by trying to be something that neither he, nor anyone else is – perfect.
When the Kings added Aaron Brooks earlier this week, the message was made very clear - the Kings aren’t comfortable walking into this season with Tyreke Evans, Marcus Thornton, Isaiah Thomas and Jimmer as their four guard rotation.
What does that mean?
It means that if Jimmer wants to play, he is going to have to fight his way into the rotation. He is going to have to compete for minutes against Thornton, who led the Kings in scoring last season, Tyreke Evans who won the NBA’s Rookie of the Year trophy three seasons ago, Aaron Brooks, the 2009-10 NBA’s Most Improved Player, and Isaiah Thomas, the final pick in the 2011 NBA draft who played so well the Kings had no choice but to anoint him the starting point guard last season.
“Isaiah (Thomas) is obviously kind of the incumbent, regardless of the experience that Aaron (Brooks) had,” said Kings Director of Player Personnel Jerry Reynolds. “He is a proven guy and Jimmer is still in the proving stage.”
It’s an uphill climb from here on out. Mr. Nice Guy is done or at least he is if he wants to step foot on the court.
Jimmer had an up and down summer league, but the aggressive play that helped lead him to the NCAA scoring crown two seasons ago started to show up. Call it what you will, but while he wouldn’t admit it, his 30 point performance on Monday against the Houston Rockets sure did look like a response to the Kings signing Brooks earlier in the day.
The Kings aren’t looking for Jimmer to yell and scream, but they want him to fight and they want him to progress as a player. While they liked the 30-point outburst, they want to see more. They want to see an aggressive player who demands playing time through his play.
“Did he show progress?” asked Reynolds. “Sure. Did he do everything that you wanted him to do? No, because at the end of the day, his shooting percentages were what they were and that’s not very good.”
While his shooting numbers were abysmal (35.8 percent from the floor, 22 percent from distance), the Kings have to be encouraged by the fact that Jimmer averaged eight free throw attempts per game. He was aggressive going to the basket and constantly drew contact. He averaged 18 points per game, while leading the Kings to a 2-3 record.
Was he playing against elite talent? Not even close, but he was also not playing with elite talent. The Kings brought just two players guaranteed a roster spot – Jimmer and rookie Thomas Robinson. Darnell Jackson and Tony Mitchell will probably get training camp invites, but both will have to fight a numbers game to make the final roster.
What is Smart looking for from Jimmer? How does he separate himself in a crowded back court?
“You have to be aggressive in your thought,” head coach Keith Smart told our own Jonathon Santiago on this week’s Cowbell Kingdom Podcast. “You come off a pick and roll, come off the pick and roll aggressively, because you’ll make plays not only for yourself, but also for your teammates, because it forces someone else to help. So when I want a player to be aggressive, I’m not necessarily carrying over, saying be aggressive by shooting. When you’re aggressive, you are going to do the things that you are accustomed to doing in that aggressive personality.”
Smart has his work cut out for him come training camp. Geoff Petrie, the Kings President of Basketball Operations has spent the summer accumulating talent, but it is Smart who must fit these pieces together.
“Keith (Smart) is going to be the one who decides who plays and who gets the minutes,” Petrie said following Brooks’ introductory press conference on Friday. “It’s just way too early to make a call on that.”
Maybe Smart is the perfect guy. A collegiate legend in his own right, Smart found the transition from winning an NCAA title at Indiana, to making it in the NBA a tough go. He understands expectations and managing personal failure and success. He has laid down the path for Jimmer – be aggressive, don’t let up and the player we watched in college will materialize. Be the player that got you here. Be yourself.
If summer league is any indication, Jimmer has heeded the warning. He now understands that fitting in is nice, but he needs to bring the skill set that won him so many accolades as a college senior at BYU. If not, he will sit on the bench and watch his friends steal all of his minutes.
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About the Author
James Ham provides coverage through news analysis and in-depth interviews with Kings players and staff. James is also one of the producers behind the award-winning, independent documentary "Small Market, Big Heart". James graduated UC Davis with a degree in history and is happily married with two children.
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