It's A Virtue
by Exhibit G on Jul 21, 2009 2:59 PM PDT
in Commentary
60 comments
The rebuilding process takes time. And, as TZ pointed out, we have time. What we seem to be lacking is patience. The turnaround will not happen overnight, but it is easy to become restless over the summer. We have less to talk about than usual, and it will only get worse now that Summer League is over.
With the summer heat and the lack of new information, we become desperate. We devote our afternoons to Sean May comment threads. No offense to May, but his biggest problem in coming to Sacramento is that we don't have much else to talk about right now. We're busy grasping at any piece of Kings news that we can find.
Well, it is time for us to grasp the idea of patience.
So, how can we practice patience? It starts with us not declaring Tyreke Evans the savior, or a steal. He's played in 5 Summer League games. Sure, he looked good, but let's wait until he's shown his stuff in regular season games. On that same note, let's not declare that he will never be a successful point guard. Again, he's played 5 Summer League games. He's 19. Let's see what he grows into.
Along those lines, let's also slow down on Donté Greene. Donté is another young player, taken late in the first round of last year's draft. I'm not saying he'll be a bust, I'm not saying he won't be a bust. I'm saying he played limited minutes in one season, it is too early to pass judgment.
We must also practice some patience when we're considering free agents and trades. There's been a lot of talk about trading players. Kevin Martin, Beno Udrih, Andres Nocioni, Jason Thompson, Spencer Hawes, and Donté have all been mentioned recently in trade discussions. While I'm not suggesting that any of these players is untradeable, I think the trade proposals have been inspired by a desperation for something, anything, to happen. But this team cannot afford to make moves out of desperation. Not now.
Nobody enjoys meaningless banter more than I do, so please don't misinterpret what I'm saying. I'm not saying that we shouldn't discuss trade scenarios or ways to improve the team. That's what we're all about. And I'm just as guilty of some of these behaviors as anyone. But we need to relax a little. Barring a miracle, the Kings aren't championship contenders next season, regardless of what moves are made. When the games begin, we can go back to jumping to conclusions. Until then, let's follow K9(woof!)'s lead and just relax a little.
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There is great wisdom and insight to your post
And that really pisses me off.
Kidding.
From the people who brought you Reggie Musselnatt.
by My Losing Season on Jul 21, 2009 3:09 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs
What?
A post that has no mention of how fat Sean May is???
- checks to make sure he’s on the right website *
Excellent post Exhibit 216!
by Devastation Co. MMA on Jul 21, 2009 3:13 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs
We've been building this team
around Kenny Thomas for years. We can’t afford to have patience in the last year of his contract. We need to give him the players needed to take us over the top.
Father of the "Natt this!" movement and Grandmaster of the "Never let AnotherStupidSN forget what a Sham-Wow is" Order.
by Aykis16 on Jul 21, 2009 3:13 PM PDT reply actions 9 recs
Is he eligible for an extension/
We could wrap him up now and relieve the stress.
by ElRonToro on Jul 21, 2009 3:21 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
Exhibit G...
When is the next post coming?
by NorCal BillsFan on Jul 21, 2009 3:25 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs
What the hell is going on!?!
Its been a whole two minutes and no new posts…forget this, I am going back to work…
by NorCal BillsFan on Jul 21, 2009 3:26 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs
Barring a miracle, the Kings aren’t championship contenders next season, regardless of what moves are made.
Like every star getting injured for all season other than the Kings players? That’s the only way the Kings win a title next year.
Good points all G.
No mistakes in the tango, darling. Not like life. Simple. That's what makes the tango so great. If you make a mistake, and get all tangled up, you just tango on.....
by pookeyguru on Jul 21, 2009 3:28 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs
…every star getting injured for all season other than the Kings players?
Sounds like a job for Doratio Kane.
Father of the "Natt this!" movement and Grandmaster of the "Never let AnotherStupidSN forget what a Sham-Wow is" Order.
by Aykis16 on Jul 21, 2009 3:30 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
Sometimes I wonder about you
No mistakes in the tango, darling. Not like life. Simple. That's what makes the tango so great. If you make a mistake, and get all tangled up, you just tango on.....
by pookeyguru on Jul 21, 2009 6:07 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
Gross.
Father of the "Natt this!" movement and Grandmaster of the "Never let AnotherStupidSN forget what a Sham-Wow is" Order.
by Aykis16 on Jul 21, 2009 6:38 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
I wanted to read the entire post,
but I lost patience after the third paragraph. That and the fact that I can’t get my “We’ve lost more patience/patients than Kaiser” joke to come together.
Well stated, G.
SACTOWN ROYALTY - Try our thick creamy shakes!
by section214 on Jul 21, 2009 3:54 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs
If this wasnt written you could go with
patience/patients are for hospitals not the Kings.
by passionforPERPS on Jul 21, 2009 5:21 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
Patience is a virtue
When the team improves yearly. But the Kings have all but decided to rebuild (at least publicly) since 2007 at the trade deadline when they tried to move Bibby and team went from 33 to 38 and plummeted to 17.
There is patience and there is conservatism. I think management’s been practicing the latter. I’m pinning this just on Geoff because the Maloofs are to blame as well.
BOOK IT!
by kingme18 on Jul 21, 2009 4:00 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs
If we string together 2-3 more good drafts then we'll get somewhere.
So being patient is all we can do.
Although one player that I’m losing patience on is Garcia. Let’s trade him before other teams realize he has little value ( in 2-3 years when we try to trade him we’ll get less then what we could get now). We’ll tell other teams he has lots of POTENTIAL!!!!! oh yea, I’m suppose to be patient . . .
Ba-da
by Ba-Da Bing on Jul 21, 2009 4:46 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs
Why...
are you losing patience with Cisco? He’s pretty good.
by bench_blob on Jul 21, 2009 4:48 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
pretty good is what he'll probabally stay for the next 5-6 years.
I haven’t seen any growth. He still does not make very good decisions on the court. Is he really any better now then his rookie year? not much, if any.
Ba-da
by Ba-Da Bing on Jul 21, 2009 4:59 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
Certainly he's better than his rookie season
Have you looked at his stats?
He’s improved every season except for this last one – and I’d venture that nearly every Kings player had subpar numbers last season.
I don’t get the angst many have with Garcia. The guy’s going to give you effort, he’s going to shoot the 3, his defense is solid. He’s still relatively young and not making a ton of money. He’s really one of the lesser concerns when it comes to rebuilding this team.
by otis29 on Jul 21, 2009 5:07 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
hopefully last year was a "slump year"
but if this year is similar . . . then what I posted previously will be accurate.
I also wonder if the improvement that was seen since his rookie year was based on more minutes played? Well, I hope I’m proven wrong this next season by his play.
Ba-da
by Ba-Da Bing on Jul 22, 2009 10:59 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
There is a middle period in development that can be slow for NBA players. Doug Christie didn’t improve for several years (many think he got worse), Jason Terry was the same inconsistent player for several years in Atlanta. Hedo was merely a marginal starter until 2 years ago. Even Hakeem couldn’t take his game to another level until later in his career. That’s just to name a few.
There are a percentage of NBA players they don’t take that next leap until there late 20’s. Cisco is good enough to fill his role so he is worth hanging onto. He will reach point were he becomes a willy veteran, no longer makes those mistakes and will be a hell of basketball player.
by bignerd on Jul 21, 2009 5:11 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
I agree, but it's a big IF.
For every player that improves in their late-20’s there are 3 players that end up staying mediocre until they are waived by their team. Hopefully he’s what your saying will happen.
Ba-da
by Ba-Da Bing on Jul 22, 2009 11:03 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
Garcia is a BYC because of his new contract, and therefore difficult to trade. Maybe February.
"If you don't have anything good to say, LIE" - Mom
by HighTops on Jul 21, 2009 4:56 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
Need a team with cap room to do that HT
Otherwise it won’t work. Jes sayin boss…
No mistakes in the tango, darling. Not like life. Simple. That's what makes the tango so great. If you make a mistake, and get all tangled up, you just tango on.....
by pookeyguru on Jul 21, 2009 10:38 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
Frankly...
I have heard this argument before, and it has holes aplenty. Patience for patience sake is fine and dandy, only if deemed necessary to ultimately lead to pay off. In other words, is the wait worth it? You could take your post a step further and say we should still have Quincy Douby on our roster, let’s be patient with him, and maybe one day he will better than 33% FG accuracy. Let’s be patient with K9, give him 25 minutes a game, so he can return to his 14/9 form.
I can be patient with Tyreke Evans because of what I saw in LVSL, he is going to be special. FYI, as side note, those with NBA TV, 4 King summer league games will be aired on Thursday back-to-back-to-back-to-back. (Thank you TIVO). Tyreke can run the pick and roll, is a really nice ball handler and passer, and has all the instincts and physical gifts to be a helluva player. So I can be PATIENT with the fact that Tyreke has a sporadic outside shot. His shot will come, so let’s be patient.
I am less inclined to be patient with Donte Greene, who’s overall game is a bit disconcerting. It almost seems like he should take up a different sport. He is slowly playing his way out of the league. So I am less inclined to be patient with Mr. Greene. Especially when Cisco, and Omri, and Noccioni are available to take ‘3’ spot minutes.
So, while I agree we should all be patient where it counts, let’s not be patient when we are fooling ourselves into thinking it will be a panacea. We can win 35 games next year if things fall into place, which would be doubling our win total. Personally, I root for this type of improvement, instead of being patient while we suffering through another woeful season with a roster with Shelden Williams, Q, Bobby Brown, the 2008 version of Brad Miller, and their ilk.
by bench_blob on Jul 21, 2009 4:46 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs
Just various brain firings from reading your post
Lets hire a Raptor coach to turn Donte Greene around.
Put K-9 back in the rotation. Maybe Blake Griffin rubbed off on him.
I really don’t have solution for the suffering. At least know we are in the build up and not tear down mode of a rebuild. And we are not the Clippers, T-Wolves, Grizzlies or Bucks . . . there is a small fragment of future hope.
Please don’t kill patience, it’s all we pathetically got. Half our roster cannot buy beer and most clerks believe K-Mart’s ID is fake.
by bignerd on Jul 21, 2009 5:02 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
You are expecting a 35 wins season??
Ohh boy, get ready for a looonnggg season
The future begins now...
by eduardo_m7 on Jul 21, 2009 6:33 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
I think 30 is possible...
if we stay healthy (Kevin, Cisco and Spencer), and the kids progress. But most of all, if we have a little better leadership from the coach, we can pick up a number of games. The last few years, the lack of any clear definition on defense or offense killed us.
by R-Man on Jul 21, 2009 10:18 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
It's funny
(or perhaps ghastly is a better word), but if this team loses twice as many games as it wins, it will be considered a HUGE improvement.
HA HA.
But if you’ll excuse me I need to go take some cyanide.
From the people who brought you Reggie Musselnatt.
by My Losing Season on Jul 21, 2009 10:35 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
If we get to 30 wins that would be a great improvement
I think a lot of things need to go right (wrong for other teams) for the Kings to win 35. It’s early and predictions won’t start for another month or so but I think we win between 27-30.
How did I get to that number? My first thought was 33 but then I realized that I’m an optimistic hardcore fan so to come down to earth I needed to lower that number. Then I thought 27 and thought that was too low. I’m compromising and picking the middle number (but favoring the low prediction cause I have to stay realistic)
Remember, when predicting your number of wins, take your first hunch and subtract about 10% of that number. Works everytime!
The future begins now...
by eduardo_m7 on Jul 22, 2009 12:26 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
Or take your first hunch and subtract 10
That would have been closer last year, but still too high. Anyone predicting 27 wins last year was considered a Kings hater. I guessed 34. John Hollinger was the only guy I know who came close, and he picked 23 wins. I e-mailed former Bee writer and current SI columnist writer Scott Howard-Cooper on this subject in April and he had the following to say:
I called 32, got swamped with hate mail, and now 32 will come off looking like a major homer. I thought it would be bad. Never would have imagined this bad. I don’t think anyone did.
Hollinger is not always the most popular guy among StR types, but he really did nail it on the Kings for his preseason prediction last year. Here’s the link:
From the people who brought you Reggie Musselnatt.
by My Losing Season on Jul 22, 2009 12:58 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
I remember reading this and shaking my head
but Hollinger is a Sac King hater and always has undercalled the number of wins per season ever during the near glory years.
by betweentheeyes on Jul 22, 2009 4:12 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
I don't think it's completely out of the question
But you’d have to have a lot of things go right. Evans would have to be ready to contribute in a big way at 19 years old, and mesh with Speed well. Spencer and JT would have to make a jump. You’d have to have good health (primarily from your best player).
Look at it this way – if we had been healthy last season and didn’t have such a crappy coaching staff and so much turmoil on the roster, that’s probably a 25 to 30 win team already. I don’t think tacking on an additional 5 wins to that would be crazy talk.
by otis29 on Jul 22, 2009 9:00 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
Agree to a degree
A lot of things do need to go right and it may take a bit for the players to learn Westphal’s style. Last year’s team was a mess, coaching and injuries bieng the main problem, so hopefully that will change this season.
35 wins would definitely be an awesome season in my book, I honestly don’t think it’s happening though’ would love to be wrong. The only problem with winning that many games is that it would mess with our lottery position and, while not counting ping pong balls yet, we do need another high lottery pick to keep building this team.
The future begins now...
by eduardo_m7 on Jul 22, 2009 10:52 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
Meh
I’m so sick of the lottery, I could puke. And I’d prefer not to spend another season arguing about the merits of wins versus ping pong balls! :)
I’d rather they improve dramatically this season, let Petrie find a diamond in the rough wherever his lottery pick lands, maybe make a trade (get something tangible out of KTEC) or get a decent free agent next offseason, and get ready to make a run at the playoffs.
by otis29 on Jul 22, 2009 11:19 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
Agree about the lottery
Last season I was pissed everytime we lost because of stupid crap and didn’t care about our lottery chances, and I still don’t.
I guess I just don’t want to overachieve when we are not nearly ready to take that next step. Not sure if the would be a good example but let me try: Let’s say a team like the Suns is making a strong push for the playoffs and Nash or Amare (again) go down and they start losing games left and right. The may end up with a worse record than the Kings just because of those circumstances and get a better pick. When both teams are healthy, maybe they are not close to each other, but because of the injuries the Suns get a higher pick. The following year they get more help and with everyone back they remain a better team compared to Sacramento.
This is all hypotethical and everything could happen in this league, especially injuries, but I’d much rather the Kings grow consistently while still maintining their chance of getting better players through the draft. If order is maintained, the lottery and draft truly try to balance the power in the league and looking at it from our perspective that’s beneficial to our future.
Never will I suggest to tank or lose just to get better positioning in the draft. I guess I just want the Kings to earn what they get and not benefit from other team’s misfortunes (at least not yet).
The future begins now...
by eduardo_m7 on Jul 22, 2009 11:53 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
I'm Exhibit G
But this is Exhibit A of exactly what I was referring to. Donté should take up a different sport? Spare me, please.
Never forget: I am a complete idiot
by Exhibit G on Jul 22, 2009 7:03 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
I guess
Our 21 year old, 28th pick in the draft and a player getting paid less than 1 million should be a star
The future begins now...
by eduardo_m7 on Jul 22, 2009 8:51 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
To be fair
Something between “star” and player who played the worst on the worst team in the league is probably a reasonable goal to ask of him. It’s silly to give up on Donté at this point, but far sillier to attempt to gloss over his shortcomings last season.
by furious.d on Jul 22, 2009 10:21 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
Completely agree
Never forget: I am a complete idiot
by Exhibit G on Jul 22, 2009 10:40 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
No doubt
It’s important to adjust expectations though. At summer league I saw Donte improve in many areas we were criticzing last year, namely defense and shot selection. Everything is a work in progress but if in the end it doesn’t work out, what do we have to lose?
Is he taking minutes from someone else? Is his contract messing with our cap space? These opinions need to be put in the proper perspective. I have high hopes for Mr. Greene but I’m not losing any sleep over his slow development.
The future begins now...
by eduardo_m7 on Jul 22, 2009 10:47 AM PDT up reply actions 1 recs
Rec'd just cuz I feel like rec'ing something for no reason
Or, it’s a good point. I can’t decide.
No mistakes in the tango, darling. Not like life. Simple. That's what makes the tango so great. If you make a mistake, and get all tangled up, you just tango on.....
by pookeyguru on Jul 22, 2009 12:49 PM PDT up reply actions 1 recs
I'll rec your indecision
Never forget: I am a complete idiot
by Exhibit G on Jul 22, 2009 1:35 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
Patience can be a virtue or a fault
He who hesitates is lost. The yin to your yan.
Then there’s “the lord helps those who help themselves”, don’t know if that fits the circumstances but I’ve always liked that one but seldom get the opportunity to use it.
I perfer to NOT sit back and wait for things to get better. Action is what is demanded here. To blindly sit back and wait for the Kings FO, to pull us out of this PIT OF DISPAIR is not in my nature. They are after all the ones that got us to this place in time. We must take action. We need to take our future in our own hands.
POST my friends! America became strong from the ACTIONS of men of determination. The weak may inherit the earth. But, the impatient won CHAMPIONSHIPS.
Brother Bob has left the building.
"If you don't have anything good to say, LIE" - Mom
by HighTops on Jul 21, 2009 4:54 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs
Patience
I’ll be patient this year if:
If we do better than 3-16 in games decided by 3 pts or less
If 6’4" guys don’t constantly take the ball to our rim
If I see some evidence of a consistant offensive stategy
If I see growth – rather than decline
But Patience
bores the shit out of me.
So imitate the action of the tiger!.
Lend the eye a terrible aspect
- and teach them how to war!
Henry V iii
by lietothegirls on Jul 21, 2009 7:53 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs
I've been whistling that intro since reading this post earlier today!
"It would be my honor to be your new stepfather."
by PhutureKings on Jul 21, 2009 9:12 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
patience
Means accepting some serious mistakes were made.
And luck means creating your own odds.
Forgiveness is more than saying sorry.
A nice personality means she ain’t that pretty.
All rules to live by.
by Ice_9ine on Jul 21, 2009 11:02 PM PDT via mobile reply actions 0 recs
From the beginning of the 1986 season -
through the end of the 1994 season, the Kings failed to crack the 30 win mark for a season. That’s eight straight seasons of sub-30 win seasons. They would dial in four more sub-.500 seasons before going 27-23 in the lockout-shortened season of 1989-90.
If patience is not a virtue, it certainly is a requirement if are going to attempt to be a Kings fan.
SACTOWN ROYALTY - Try our thick creamy shakes!
by section214 on Jul 22, 2009 7:53 AM PDT reply actions 1 recs
Look up and you'll see a lot of people here failing
The future begins now...
by eduardo_m7 on Jul 22, 2009 8:52 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
Patienter than you, dude.
Patienter than you.
by DustyG on Jul 22, 2009 9:02 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
Well put
I posted something very similar to this not too long ago. But you definitely wrote it better than I did. Good stuff.
And that's wassup.
by Sacramento_Strong on Jul 23, 2009 4:07 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs
When can I throw my feces?
Lower their expectations and rise to met them
by left hand on Jul 24, 2009 9:12 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs
Tuesdays between 5 and 8 AM or Thursday after 9:40 PM
Didn’t you get the memo?
by propane on Jul 25, 2009 12:35 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs
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