After a 33-point drubbing at the hands of the Memphis Grizzlies, the Sacramento Kings try to bounce back this evening against the Portland Trailblazers. Tonight’s contest is the last game of a three-game road trip for the Kings.
The Sacramento Kings were simply outclassed Saturday evening. They suffered their second blowout defeat to the Memphis Grizzlies this season, losing 128-95.
Marc Gasol, O.J. Mayo and Mike Conley Jr. were the catalysts for the Grizzlies in the 33-point blowout. Both Mayo and Conley tallied 22 points, while Gasol chipped in 20. The three were practically flawless offensively, shooting for a combined 65 percent from the field.
In defeat, the Kings had standout performances from their bench. Donte Greene had his best game of the season, chipping in 19 points on eight-of-11 shooting in 33 minutes of action. Rookie point guard Jimmer Fredette also played well, notching career-highs with 20 points and six assists.
Fredette and Greene’s performances came due to the absences of John Salmons and Marcus Thornton. The starting Kings small forward sat out tonight’s game due to illness while the Kings sharpshooting guard left the contest two minutes into the second quarter suffering from a stiff left thigh.
Marcus Thornton defends former teammate Darren Collison.
“Play hard.”
That’s been one of Keith Smart’s mottos since taking over as head coach of the Sacramento Kings. Wednesday night’s 92-88 victory over the Indiana Pacers was an illustration of how good things can happen when the Kings follow Smart’s straightforward message.
But how do you measure a concept so abstract?
Every great team has an identity.
The Boston Celtics of the 1960s were known for their staunch defense, the New York Knicks of the 1970s were gutsy, the Los Angeles Lakers of the 1980s had “Showtime,” and the Chicago Bulls of the 1990s had that killer instinct led by the greatest player ever.
While not great, the very good Sacramento Kings teams of the early 2000s were at least known for their crafty passing and the Phoenix Suns of the same decade had the “7 Seconds or less” rule on offense.
For this Sacramento squad to get to the next level, they need something to define them.
Head Coach Keith Smart wants to run, but admitted that the Kings are not quite ready to begin a continuous fast break.
“They are not in the type of shape that is necessary to have a team run, or how I have been able to coach teams to run.” Smart said after practice last week. “Everyone wants to run, but I have been given the opportunity to know how to train a team to be a running team.”
You may need a lot more than knowledge to take on this identity.
Not pleased.
“We could have and should have won that game,” said Head Coach Paul Westphal following tonight’s 108-98 loss to the Chicago Bulls. “And it’s not an excuse for our team to be young.”
Tonight’s contest was a game of runs between both clubs, with the Bulls edging out the Kings in the end. Defense, especially in transition, was not stellar. The Bulls scored 33 fastbreak points against the Kings in the victory. And missed free throws cost Sacramento 14 easy points.
Portland comes into this season once again stricken by the injury bug. Franchise-player Brandon Roy retired at the ripe age of 27 due to a knee condition, while former-first overall pick Greg Oden, once again had his season end before it even began. LaMarcus Aldridge anchors an athletic and talented Blazers team coming off a 107-103 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers in last night’s home opener.
The Kings used 11 players last night, with most minutes going to the newcomers. Our friend Tom Ziller noted his observations of Paul Westphal’s rotation in a post today at Sactown Royalty:
John Salmons played 30 minutes and Travis Outlaw picked up 18; between those two and some smallball minutes with Evans and even Thornton at small forward, last season’s threes were one possession from being shut out. Chuck Hayes played 27 minutes up front, (DeMarcus) Cousins had 25 and Hickson picked up 22; those three plus (Jason) Thompson’s nominal time and Outlaw’s power forward spells accounted for all of that. (Francisco) Garcia couldn’t get space in front of (Tyreke) Evans, (Marcus) Thornton, Jimmer Fredette (26 minutes) or Isaiah Thomas (13).
After last night’s game, I asked Coach Westphal if this is the rotation he hopes to continue using as the season moves forward:
As long as we’re healthy, I think this is the framework we’re trying to set. Players off the bench, sometimes their minutes will grow depending on foul trouble and the flow of the game. But I like the way our starters fit and I think as long as we’re healthy, this is the way we’ve always anticipated going, and I think it’s a real good way to play.
In front of a sellout crowd tonight at Power Balance Pavilion, the Kings avenged last season’s emotional home finale defeat to the Los Angeles Lakers by beating their Southern California Rivals, 100 to 91.
If not for the city’s tenacious fight to keep the Kings last Spring, this evening’s game might have been played in Anaheim rather than Sacramento.
“It’s nice to be back,” said Head Coach Paul Westphal following the win. “It was loud in there and our players really liked the feeling of that game. The fans were just fantastic.”
In case you missed this TNT video yesterday, here is some incredible primer to get your heart pumping.
The Sacramento Kings open up the 2011-12 season this evening against their longtime rivals, the Los Angeles Lakers. Regardless of tonight’s outcome, the emotions of the evening will be at a fever pitch, as Kings fans return to Arco Arena/Power Balance Pavilion for an improbable 27th season. The Kings are young upstarts, with two new veteran starters, while the Lakers are a much different team than in previous seasons.
Yes, that is Tyreke Evans wielding a sword. (Photo: Kings.com)
Yesterday, the Sacramento Kings held annual media day festivities along with a free open scrimmage for fans. It was unusual timing considering we’ve already had full access to the Kings for since Saturday. But because of the lockout, the Kings and the rest of the NBA aren’t running on your typical league calendar.
Starting off on a serious note…
The injury bug has all of a sudden bitten the Kings. Four of their five presumed starters are suffering some sort of ailment today: John Salmons (right quad contusion, happened during last night’s open practice), Chuck Hayes (a possible heart abnormality, information still developing), Tyreke Evans (bum left foot), DeMarcus Cousins (bum right ankle and tweaked left shoulder). Of the four injured, Evans and Cousins should worry Kings fans the least since both were seen lightly shooting baskets on the court during media day.
Evans on his health: “No concern. I could’ve really finished practice (on Wednesday). I just wanted to be careful because DeMarcus tweaked his (foot). We didn’t want two people going down on a short training camp.” He added he’ll be ready to play in Saturday’s preseason game against Golden State.
Cousins on his health: “I’m fine. It’s going to take a few days (to) heal up (and) I’ll be back.” He added that he’ll be wearing a shoulder strap again this season, so he isn’t too concerned about his shoulder. Unlike Evans, Cousins doesn’t expect to play Saturday even though he’d like to, but he’s confident he’ll be ready for the home opener.
The Jamal Crawford to Portland deal broke as we were picking the brains of new assistant coaches Jim Todd and Keith Smart during media day. Both men coached Crawford – Smart in Golden State and Todd in Atlanta. Jimmer Fredette found out about the Crawford-to-Portland signing while he was addressing media. Isaiah Thomas shares good insight on his mentor’s move in this week’s Cowbell Kingdom podcast.
