Wells' Worth

Many here at SR.com have wondered out loud, why are the Kings doing so poorly this season?  Aren't they the same team, minus Mr. Wells, who almost felled perennial title contender San Antone? The answer, ladies and gentlemen, is an emphatic NO. Say what you will, Bonzi was worth every penny Petrie was going to give him... perhaps even worth what Bonzi's former agent was demanding (but to the Kings only..let me explain).  I will freely admit that as an individual BW is an above average player, nothing more nothing less. Okay I lied, Bonzi is a mediocre player some of the time, a stellar player some of the time and hurt the rest of the time, but when he is on... it's lights out baby.

What Wells did provide for the Kings was actually more than the stat-sheet can show... by BW starting, he dramatically improved the quality of the bench. Last year, BW would be spelled by K-Mart, and with his awesome efficiency was tremendous off the pine.  Who wouldn't love a guy who can score almost a point a minute? What Bonzi also provided was another clutch go-to-guy who wasn't afraid to take it to the basket or get that offensive put-back to keep the opponents at bay.

Lastly, BW played decent defense and certainly is an improvement over K-mart. I love Kevin but at this point he is not strong enough to contend with a top-tier SG of the league. Not to say Wells will shut down Kobe or T-Mac.... but at least the post-up opportunities will be limited. If I was Kobe and saw Martin in front of me I would just turn my back to him and shove my way (Shaq-style) to within ten feet...turnaround jumper...basket.

Let me sum-up...
(1)    Vastly improved bench
(2)    Improved defense from starters
(3)    Increased "scrappiness" (i.e. offensive put-backs)
(4)    Just once I wanted to see Ron and Bonzi fight some other team...maybe even in a tag-team bout. That would have been the moment of my life.