If I wasn't certain before, I am now. Luke Walton needs to go. This morning I woke up to Twitter videos of Walton throwing a temper tantrum by hitting a clipboard out of assistant coach Jesse Mermuys' hands, splitting it in two, and then watching as associate head coach Alvin Gentry picked up his broken toys. While I sympathize with his frustrations, this is just a bad look. Like any of us, Luke Walton is human and has the right to be mad at his team. But Hulk-smashing a clipboard when the rest of the world is watching your team crumble helps no one. If anything, it just underlines the dysfunctionality that continues to infect this franchise. We can't expect this young team to grow and develop if they are being led and taught by a toddler.
De'Aaron Fox held himself and his teammates accountable in his post-game presser last night, stating:
"...there are times where there are just too many lapses and I don't think that has anything to do with coaching... go back to middle school stuff and practice boxing out? Like there's nothing that Luke or Rico or anybody on the coaching staff can do about that."
I agree with this sentiment - these guys are professional NBA basketball players and playing hard defense and boxing out shouldn't be things that they need to be coached on. But at the same time... CLEARLY THEY ARE. With the worst defense in the league and in NBA history, maybe it is time to go back to middle school drills because I've coached 8th grade girls who can run a shell defensive set better than these knuckleheads. It's time for everyone on the Kings, coaches included, to eat a big slice of humble pie and start working harder, even if that means going back to fundamental basics.
The Backdrop
The Sacramento Kings entered this game 12-20 and seeded at the 13th spot in the Western Conference.
The Detroit Pistons entered this game 9-23 and seeded at the 15th spot in the Eastern Conference.
It's hard to believe, but the Detroit Pistons are doing worse than the Sacramento Kings so far this season. Currently in last place in their Eastern Conference, and still trying to break into the double-digit win tally, the Pistons have been plagued by some injuries and general dysfunction, not unlike our very own Kings. The Pistons are led by their free agent pick up, Jerami Grant, who left his position as a role player on the playoff-bound Denver Nuggets team to bet on himself to be the main man in Detroit. Grant is averaging 23.3 points per game, well above their next leading scorer, Josh Jackson, who is averaging 13.6 points per game.
Many players with promising careers seem to have their futures fade away from them when they go to play in the Motor City. Blake Griffin and Jahlil Okafor are two current examples, both of which won't be playing tonight. Griffin is being held out of the lineup until he can be traded and Okafor is rehabbing from a knee surgery. The softball toss doesn't get much softer than this. It's dark times in Detroit and the Kings should be able to break their losing streak tonight, even with our rookie star, Tyrese Haliburton, resting his calf. But who knows? Jerami Grant might go for 50. I wouldn't be surprised.
Quick Stats
Because numbers make things make sense.
Outcome: Kings win, 110-107
Sacramento Kings: 110 PTS, 41.6% FG, 21.9% 3 PT, 24 AST, 10 TO
Detroit Pistons: 107 PTS, 45.1% FG, 36.4% 3 PT, 20 AST, 11 TO
De'Aaron Fox (SAC): 27 PTS, 6 AST, 8-11 FT
Richaun Holmes (SAC): 19 PTS, 17 REB, 6 OREB
Jerami Grant (DET): 30 PTS, 7 REB, 14-15 FT
Saddiq Bey (DET): 17 PTS, 6 REB, 5-9 3 PT
That was quite possibly the strangest and ugliest way to end their losing streak. It started out good, it became bad, and it ended weird. Somehow I almost feel worse about that game than I think I would have if they had just lost like they had been in their last nine. I think it's because they came out actually trying (which was great), eventually stopped really trying (which was disappointing), and then ultimately had to claw their way back to BARELY beat the Detroit Pistons in the most Kaaangz way possible. It was like a summary of the Kings' story as a whole, all condensed into one game, and it has left me feeling somber and confused. But, at the end of the day, a win is a win and I'll take it. And we have now finalized a new low to strive for with the end of this nine-game losing streak.
The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly
Because all three are consistent parts of Kings basketball.
The Good:
Aggressive Start: A common thread throughout the Kings' nine-game losing streak was slow starts. It has become a Kings' cliche that they come out looking half asleep and often find themselves in a deep hole by the end of the 1st quarter. Tonight, they were able to flip the script and ended the 1st quarter with a 35-25 lead. The energy started with their defense and converted into their scoring. They were aggressive on the defensive end, getting their hands in passing lanes and finishing sets with secure rebounds. The Kings are not yet good enough to win a basketball game in three quarters after putting themselves at a deficit in the first 12 minutes. Giving themselves a cushion in the 1st quarter was crucial to keeping them on top and within reach through the stretch of the game.
Living at the Line: The Kings got a lot of wind tonight as they traveled to the free throw line 41 times, converting 29 of these. Early and late aggressive play by De'Aaron Fox, along with consistent attacks by Harrison Barnes kept the Kings in this game. Since the Kings only got 10 points from their bench, they desperately needed to find their way to the free throw line, and I give credit to Fox and Barnes who combined for 25 of the 41 attempts.
The Bad:
Secondary Help: As I close my eyes, take some deep breaths, and rub my temples, I keep chanting to myself, "baby steps, baby steps, baby steps..." The Kings brought more defensive energy tonight, which made their primary help defense more effective. Just by trying harder, the help side presence was more immediately felt and forced the Pistons into tough shots. But it's the secondary help - helping the helper - that is still too elusively advanced for the Kings to grasp. Often times this secondary help responsibility falls on the guards, as the bigs are the ones to step up from behind the play to contest drives. When the first helper commits to the ball, it is the next closest player's responsibility to cover the helper's man, and the next guard's responsibility to play the middle ground to defend both his man and the second helper's man until the recovery can happen. With how fast the game is, this is difficult to be consistent at, but often times it doesn't even seem like the Kings recognize the rotation they need to make.
The Ugly:
One-Dimensional Offense: Some of the defense was better tonight, but the offense was still horrendous to watch. I complained about it in the last game for being boring, but it is also just downright ugly. It's just so simple. The only consistent movement we see is the on-ball screen that is rarely executed correctly while the other three players stand on the perimeter and stare at the ball. This means all five defenders are also able to solely focus on the ball, thus making it easier for them to contest and stop any attack by the Kings. Oftentimes, De'Aaron Fox is too quick even when all five defenders are honed in on him, but the remaining Kings offer little relief for De'Aaron from this attention when they refuse to move at all. In a league where the best teams are playing chess, the Kings are still trying to learn how to play checkers.
Royal Court Jester
Because someone is always actin' a fool.
In a game where I was constantly doing my best not to care, because I never thought it should have come down to the final possessions like it did, I wanted to SCREAM in the final 40 seconds. For making me blow a gasket when I was trying to be indifferent, tonight's Royal Court Jester goes to Nemanja Bjelica.
As I glared at my TV at the fact that the Kings were only up by four points with 41 seconds left in the game, I was still foolish enough to think that the Kings would be able to defend for longer than five whole seconds. To prove that I am indeed an idiot, enter Nemanja Bjelica. Out of a timeout and with 41 seconds on the clock, Nemanja set up on defense in the short corner on the right side of the basket, keeping an eye on his man in the corner. On the inbound, Dennis Smith Jr. quickly pushed the ball down the middle of the lane. Nemanja, like a FOOL, turned his head away from Josh Jackson in the corner to watch Smith's attack and Smith quickly dropped a pass to a cutting Jackson for the easy dunk. This all transpired within FOUR seconds and brought the Pistons within two points with 37 seconds left. If you couldn't tell by my use of capitalization, this really PISSED ME OFF.
The King of Kings
Because at least one person does at least one good thing, usually.
For the whole 4th quarter, I didn't want to see anyone else have the ball in his hands except for tonight's King of Kings. De'Aaron Fox is crowned tonight for his fighting spirit and willingness to put this lame ass team on his back. Although it will be Harrison Barnes' 3-pointer and Richaun Holmes' offensive rebounding and put backs that will be easily remembered from late in the 4th quarter, I credit De'Aaron for setting the tone early and late in the game to grind out the win. Right out of the gate, De'Aaron had a chip on his shoulder, getting handsy on defense and being aggressive in transition. He sent an early message that he did not want to lose a 10th game in a row. In the 4th quarter, he took it upon himself to bail the Kings out of their poor mid-game play with more aggressive attacks to the basket. I love this version of De'Aaron and I hope he's recharged enough to stay for awhile. As burdensome as it is, everything starts and ends with him.
Up Next
Sunday, February 28th vs. Charlotte Hornets @ 7:00 P.M. (PT)
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