Impressions from Preseason #3

by Ziller on Oct 13, 2008 8:36 AM PDT Comment 28 comments

* In the third quarter, Jason Thompson flashed to the left elbow extended. He put his hands out to receive the pass from Beno Udrih, who held at the top of the key extended. As Udrih went to pass the ball, Thompson instead flashed inside. Turnover. Instead of hustling back on defense, Beno stood in place to yell at Thompson, who did try to hustle back but was completely behind the play. Easy two for the Lakers.

This wasn't shown on the telecast, but Sam Amick captured it:

Udrih stood frozen in frustration while the Lakers went on the break, leading Francisco Garcia to just about rush the floor and shove him back on transition defense while expressing his own frustration with the coaching staff. By the time Garcia and Udrih talked, the swingman took the more-tempered route and a message had been sent.

Thompson made a bad play by committing for only a half-second ... but Udrih made the worse play by allowing an unchallenged lay-up in protest.

Luckily, Udrih had received game-long immunity earlier in the contest based on this orgasmic play.

I will never get tired of seeing Kobe Bryant on his ass.

* It's too bad Quincy Douby is still injured. He came out for a few minutes and led a picture perfect break, leading Jason Thompson with a gorgeous bounce pass. Remember Douby to Justin William, the Garbage Time Globetrotters? I miss that.

* Fast breaks still rare, though the tempo was better in the first quarter. Unsurprisingly, the offense was at its best in the first.

* Spencer Hawes had a really, really strong game. It might have been a fluke, but he looked like the team's best defender in the post, excepting Shelden Williams, who also did really well again.

* Thompson looked far from comfortable, but his line looks fantastic: 15 points on 10 FGAs and 10 FTAs, 8 rebounds in 27 minutes.

* You'd think a lineup consisting of Bobby Brown, Donté Greene at the two, Jason Thompson at the three, Hawes and Williams up front ... that sounds like fun, right? Egads, no. No no no.

* Four factors:

	Pace	Eff	eFG	FT/FG	OREB%	TOr
SAC	98.0	90.8	40.1%	23.3	33.3	22.4
LAL		95.9	46.8%	26.9	28.9	22.4

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Hawes

Spencer looked more confident and, as a result, I think he played more within himself offensively (taking what the game was offering) and more assertively on the defensive end.

Udrih putting Kobe on his ass with an amazing spin move: priceless.

by Kusian on Oct 13, 2008 9:09 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

i was not able to view the game…can someone give a quick rundown of udrih’s play last night (aside from what sounds like a great move on kobe)? i ask because i believe a lot of our success (or failure…gulp) lies on the shoulders of our PG…

by sactoreg on Oct 13, 2008 9:28 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Six assists in the first half

Decent shooting, and he ran the team like a floor general.

The Kobe move (watch the clip in the post) was icing. Lots and lots of fudgey, gooey icing.

Let's go home.-Kevin Martin

by LeaguePassAddict on Oct 13, 2008 12:12 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Douby

While his minutes were short because of a lingering injury, he did look very good. He has a new confidence about his game. He seems ready to step up. I’m thinking he should be the 2G that comes in for Kmart at this point because Cisco, although he had one good game in Portland, he has showed since then he’s still a rookie.

by KingsFan on Oct 13, 2008 10:07 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Douby rather than Cisco

that’s a joke right? Right?………

Don’t count on Douby getting Cisco’s minutes. At this point, he’s still a chucker who can’t dribble with his head up and can’t create his own shot. He may look good at summer league and even in practice, but I’ll need to see a consistent pattern of play in actual NBA games before I’ll believe the hype coming from the pro-Douby crowd.

by Kusian on Oct 13, 2008 10:50 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

I think you meant

Green instead of Cisco. Cisco has not been a rookie for a few years now…

by The Ghost of Dick Bavetta on Oct 13, 2008 12:07 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

No mistake in my post

Right now I see Cisco not playing up to the level his years indicate and I see Douby stepping up. Nobody has to agree with me. To tell you the truth I am saddened by Cisco’s play lately because he just got a good contract extension. Hopefully Cisco returns to what he showed against Portland.

And to Kusian, I’m not in any pro Douby crowd or any crowd for that matter. You may remember last year I posted against Douby quite a bit. But I am starting to see real progress in his game. He’s making good court decisions, Cisco lately has been falling back to his rookie days making bone head rookie mistakes.

by KingsFan on Oct 13, 2008 1:25 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

I'm not really part of this conversation but something strikes me as odd anyway

You may remember last year I posted against Douby quite a bit.

Sorry, but I barely remember anything I wrote last year, let alone remembering your positions on Douby vs Cisco or vice versa. Nobody remembers that stuff mayne.

No mistakes in the tango, darling. Not like life. It's simple. That's what makes the tango so great. If you make a mistake, and get tangled, you tango on

by pookeyguru on Oct 13, 2008 1:28 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Remember

the forum was different and I had a different forum name. But I don’t have to prove anything. Let’s just say I had my doubts about Douby but he has been changing my mind because of what he showed in summer camp and last game. Let’s wait and see.

by KingsFan on Oct 13, 2008 1:32 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

YOu were the one who brought up what you knew last year

The forum wasn’t different. The format was changed a bit. Don’t tell me what happened like I wasn’t here.

My point, remember those 2 words, is that we don’t remember what your points LAST YEAR were! That’s it. That’s all! Let it go! I was just trying for a gentle reminder.

As far as your point about Douby I haven’t seen any of the games so it’s difficult to comment on style of play. I also don’t usually care for watching the pre-season much as I don’t feel it holds a ton of value. But I agree with the thought that being patient with Douby now is a reasonable way to go.

No mistakes in the tango, darling. Not like life. It's simple. That's what makes the tango so great. If you make a mistake, and get tangled, you tango on

by pookeyguru on Oct 13, 2008 1:45 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Don't fall in love with preseason

Especially after 3 games. Douby looks improved, but he had a lot of improving to do. Wanting to give Cisco’s minute to Douby after a couple of pre-season games is idiotic.

Kevin Pritchard has Chuck Norris tied up in the trunk of his car.

by otis29 on Oct 15, 2008 3:05 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

You had a few extra words in your post, Otis

You could have left out “after a couple of pre-season games” and still have been good.

Cisco is mostly going to play the 3 with Salmons. Douby’s best shot at ANY minutes has to be at SG, because he can’t play the point and if he’s an undersized 2, no way should he spend any time at SF.

Let's go home.-Kevin Martin

by LeaguePassAddict on Oct 15, 2008 2:39 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

My impressions

Ball movement was much better this time around and the Kings were competitive with a much, much better team. The Lakers looked like they were playing at about 3/4 speed, but I’ll take the moral victory anyway.

Kevin Martin didn’t do much, but it’s the preseason, so I’m not worried about it. The team was competitive/leading with Kevin in the game, so that’s what counts.
Bobby Brown really struggled, as young players often do. The offense was ragged when he played in the first half though it was better in the second half. He’s still creating too many turnovers and not dishing enough assists.
This was Spencer Hawes best game in the preseason. He was consistently active on the defensive end, going for blocks and fighting for rebounds. Plus, he only took one three this time.
Shelden Williams didn’t get into the game until the fourth, but I’ll take 4 offensive rebounds in 11 minutes. Shelden is too short and ground bound to finish effectively around the rim, but he’s active and using his strength to be effective. Defensively, he looks much, much better than he did late last season.
Jason Thompson’s game wasn’t as good as his numbers would indicate. He is still rushing his shots and can’t hit anything from the outside. The energy is still there, and it will serve him well going forward.
Beno looked great. He rebounded, dished and knocked down shots from inside the three point line. I’ll take this kind of play all season.
Salmons jumper is still off, but he did a very good job defending a half-speed Kobe Bryant.
Donte Greene looks like an NBA rookie. It’s going to take time. (I’m going to keep saying that).
Too many turnovers, but it’s preseason, so that’s to be expected.

Shut up and Coach

by Carl on Oct 13, 2008 10:39 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

young guys

Donte’ Looks to be one of the guys well down the bench this year unless he starts showing more veeery soon.

Thompson also looks like a rookie dispite his numbers. I have an impression though that he’s much closer than Donte’ to calming down and may start putting it together soon enough to get some real (non garbage) minutes.

BobbyB confused me this game. Did he get nervous over his press clippings – or intimidated by playing the Lakers?

Vets:
Cisco? Cisco? CISCO! Is he nervous about earning that new contract? I hope thats it and he’ll soon be progressing from where he left off the last 20 games last year. If not, Thompson and others will be getting those minutes.

Beno – looked good – enough said.

Kmart – looked good, whats with the ice on his knee? Making me nervous man!

BMiller – looked sharp in his few minutes.

Salmons – looked ok, only ok, guarding Kobe can be pretty distracting, I think Kobe was playing near full speed(?) It seemed like Salmons was really bothering him.

SWilliams – like I’ve said, I love his rebounding and paint D and think he should get real minutes. His offense looks nervous, that will probably pass and he’ll be adaquete (sp?) offensively.

Mikki – looked like Mikki.

eternal skeptical optimist

by lietothegirls on Oct 13, 2008 5:12 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

+

oh yeah,

Hawes looked very very good – again.

Cisco? Cisco? CISCO!!!! #*$!%! !

by lietothegirls on Oct 13, 2008 5:45 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

I can't wait for...

game 5 of the preseason when we get to see actual rotations and minutes…or at least that is what Coach Theus says.

by Ultrakingsfan on Oct 13, 2008 11:27 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Guys,

As I struggle to see much of Kings’ games (partly due to the coverage partly as they begin at 3 or 4 am of the local time), could someone describe Kevin Martin’s defense? I know he played very little, but there were some encouraging comments on his offensive performance, so what about this?

Cheers

by KingsFanfromCentralEurope on Oct 13, 2008 12:00 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Not enough time to see

Martin just wasn’t in the game long enough for me to see if anything was different.

Shut up and Coach

by Carl on Oct 13, 2008 12:27 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

true

and too many guys running in and out

eternal skeptical optimist

by lietothegirls on Oct 13, 2008 5:14 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Martin won't prove anything this pre-season

This isn’t his time to shine.

No mistakes in the tango, darling. Not like life. It's simple. That's what makes the tango so great. If you make a mistake, and get tangled, you tango on

by pookeyguru on Oct 13, 2008 6:24 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

I have to agree with the comment about Beno, in one of the pre-season games, it must have been the first one, I already thought to myself that they looked to be in mid-season form when Beno decided to stand at the far end of the court and argue with a ref about not getting a call rather then getting back on D.

by Bitgod on Oct 14, 2008 1:14 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

a better angle

by kingme on Oct 14, 2008 3:41 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

What a terrible flop by Kobe

No mistakes in the tango, darling. Not like life. It's simple. That's what makes the tango so great. If you make a mistake, and get tangled, you tango on

by pookeyguru on Oct 14, 2008 5:57 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Huge flop

Vlade must be proud.

Let's go home.-Kevin Martin

by LeaguePassAddict on Oct 14, 2008 7:00 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Beno has that same bad habit Webb had LPA

Where he would stick his arm out and it would like he was doing more with it than he should. That being said Kobe still shouldn’t have flopped.

No mistakes in the tango, darling. Not like life. It's simple. That's what makes the tango so great. If you make a mistake, and get tangled, you tango on

by pookeyguru on Oct 14, 2008 7:19 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs