How the Kings can win Sacramento back......

by nerdninja on Dec 13, 2010 11:58 PM PST

Aside from the big matchups (Lakers and Miami) Arco is half full. Now granted winning would go a long way to filling seats back up. But Sacramento filled the stadium for 15 years of terrible teams. The teams led by Tisdale and Richmond, we rooted for Jim Less and made fun of guys like Dwayne Schinitzes and Dwayne Causwell. We sold out all of those games.

Then we got good. Now while the winning was a blessing, it also was a curse for the future. Expectations rose just as high as the ticket prices. The high ticket prices forced out the fans that were regulars during the lean years giving them a bad taste in their mouth (they waited for the team to get good and now they can't see the team play). Sacramento gans loved to attach to great personalities and the team from the early part of this decade has that in spades. We loved John Barry, we loved Bobby Jackson, and we love Scott Pollard. These were all bench players but they connected with this city. Then we had the Euro group led by Vlade with "little brothers" Hedo and Peja. People loved Christie's hard defense. And I haven't even mentioned Webber and Bibby. And not to be outdone Jason Williams.

But with every trade of these players people got a bad taste in their mouth. These were their players (hell, all of them got standing ovations when they returned with different teams). When John Barry, Bobby Jackson and Scott Pollard were traded in rubbed people the wrong way. They didn't like the business end of it at all. And as an aside, that is why John Brockman was perfect here, even if he was not going to play much. He was an heir apparent to that likable hard working character that this city loved. Why they traded him for Darnell Jackson is baffling to me.

The last thing that killed this city's love for the Kings was the officiating in Game 6 that is infamous. I think many people still feel the league set it up to get the Lakers in. I think the league lost many fans long term in this area after that game.

So when the winning stopped, the personalities became bland, and the ticket prices stayed high the casual fans left, the real fans felt slighted, and the ones angry at the league stopped following altogether. PR gaffs by the Maloofs both in trying to get a new areana, and the cost cutting trades instead of team improving trades have not helped the image of the Kings in the minds of most.

So what now?

Petrie has made some solid picks from the draft. That's a start.

The cost cutting has opened the salary cap up (although we won't use it until after the new CBA, so who knows what that might look like).

Those are good things. But they need to do more to get this city back on board and it can happen too.

As crazy as this may sound, we need to load up on personality, not just talent. That's why again, Brockman leaving was a huge loss to this team. Cousins has some personality, but he is not ready to shoulder the load. Tyreke is not going to be a PR man. If Petrie had gotten his man Jokihm Noah a few years ago he would have been perfect here! Maybe Petrie can pull some magic and make it happen in a trade some way.

The team needs to do targeted outreach to those fans they lost. Not team officials, but the players. Loosing Vlade really hurt us in this category, he was a huge ambassedor to the community and had such a giving heart. He led the way for all the others to join in. Finding a guy in that mold and having the team follow suit would be a huge lift for the PR of this team.

The team needs to find players, a coach, and a system that makes it at least appear they are having fun again. It look as though we were heading in the right direction in this department last year (despite the losses). This year the team looks out of sorts. Where is the joy? Where is the fun? I think people like Pooh Jeter because he brings a little of that 'flair for fun' thing. We need a lot more of that. Tyreke has some flash too when he is healthy. I think that's why this city clamored for Rubio (although in my opinion he would not have lived up to the hype he had). He reminded people of Jason Williams and let's face it, it was Jason Williams that put the Kings on sportscenter and on the map nationally, not Webber.

And one other thing it looks like they are already doing is trying to make King tickets appear affordable again. They really should be making a huge push in the local high schools with these low cost tickets. It's the youth that will continue on and become season ticket holders down the road. I remember back in high school it was affordable to go to a game. Get the young guys in there. Maybe free parking to high school students, something like that.

So if I were Geoff Petrie and made the moves in the off-season (-minus specific players in the upcoming draft as I admittedly do not know many college players). Here's what I'd do.

MOVE #1

KINGS get : Chris Anderson and Dan Gallinari

Knicks get : Carmello Anthony

Denver gets : Carl Landry, Ed Curry's contract, Landry Fields, and Tony Douglas along with a future 1st from NY.

MOVE #2

Kings get Ben Gordon

Detroit gets Francisco Garcia and Beno Udrich

MOVE #3

Kings get Gerald Wallace and take on Omeka Okafor's contract

Charlotte gets Chris Paul

New Orleans gets DJ Augestin, Samuel Dalembert, and Donte Greene along with a 1st round pick from Charlotte and a 1st round pick from the Kings.

New Team Look

Starters : Tyreke Evans, Ben Gordon, Gerald Wallace, Demarcus Cousins, and Omeka Okafor

Bench : Omri Caspi, Chris Anderson, Dan Gallinari, Pooh Jeter, Hassan Whiteside, Jason Thompson, Darnell Jackson

Now we have a team with personality. We have outside shooting. We have a defensive SF. Our bench has toughness, hussle and skill.

And lastly I make a move at head coach (sorry Westphal) and I insert Mike Woodson in at coach.

All a pipe dream I know, but if I were in charge these are moves that I think are reasonable for all parties and definately gets this team jump started in the right direction. I think it gives us an attitude with many of these players and could return a swagger. Gordon loves big shots. Wallace plays 100% every play. We'd have veterns on this team mixed with the young talent. Anderson is a beast and the closest thing to Pollard. I'd love to see this team play. And I think Mike Woodson would get a lot from this bunch. He'd be stable and look at what he did with the Hawks. Woodson was the one who put them on the path to success.

So there's a solution, not just a complaint. What do you all think?

(This is a FanPost from a member of the Sactown Royalty community. The views expressed come from the member, and not Sactown Royalty staff.)

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I don't think

That the kinds could manage to get gallinari in that trade. Landry fields however would be amazing. I also think wallace isn’t better and easier to get than augustin. He works fill a need as well.

by oakland9 on Dec 14, 2010 2:54 AM PST via mobile reply actions

I don’t think the Nuggets will trade Carmelo without getting at least Gallinari from the Knicks He’s the only proven, reliable young talent they have.
Pistons will soon enter a full rebuilding mode. The last thing they want is taking two long term contracts by dumping one.
Hornets don’t want to lose Chris Paul, especially after trading Collison.

It’s nice to think about trades, I do it all the time. We all have a GM inside of us. But it has to be really difficult to take under consideration so many parameters in real life. No way a team could do 3 big trades in so little time.

by ZenBaller on Dec 14, 2010 3:41 AM PST reply actions

Trade Breakdown.

1. The nuggets want young talent and Salary relief. With getting Fields, Douglas, and even Landry they are getting a package of young talent. They would also get a future 1st round pick. They would also offload that 4 year contract of Chris Anderson in the process. Perhaps they request Gallanari but really the Nuggest are in a tough position of getting nothing for Carmello next season.

2. Pistons make this deal because they are in rebuilding mode. They signed Gordon when they thought they would be playoff material. By swapping Gordon for Garcia and Beno they would cut that contract in half giving them easier peices to move. Plus Beno’s contract comes off a season earlier saving them money or giving them an expiring contract to move earlier.

Gordon was better when he had a team with low post options that freed him up on the perimeter. His scoring average has plummeted in Detroit, but he’s not far removed from that playoff run where he hit big shot after big shot. In the right situation I think Gordon could rebound in a big way.

3. New Orleans is a cash starved team that is quickly plummeting from that good start. The faster they move to under .500 the quicker they will unload. In this move they get rid of huge contracts, get two 1st round picks and get some low cost talent in return.

Michael Jordon wants a marque guy and Paul would be huge for them.

We would get some pretty big contracts, but I think they would be great fits on a team that is building around Demarcus and Tyreke. Okafor and Wallace would provide that huge defensive help, don’t need plays run for them to get shots, and are fine with defferring to scorers.

Now these are moves I said I would do, not moves I think the current brass would pull off. I just wanted to give examples of how I would structure the team to fit the criteria of getting Sacramento excited about the team again.

by nerdninja on Dec 14, 2010 3:38 PM PST up reply actions

I disagree with your premise.

I think this team will get more personality as the young players mature and mesh and start winning. When we came back against the Bulls last year, I’d say we had personality in abundance.

Agreed that the team right now is not fun to watch, and that is hurting ticket sales. But you’re taking our rebuilding team, scrapping what we have, and starting over.

Not to mention that Chris Paul is virtually untouchable. Just because a trade works in the trade machine, that doesn’t mean that a team like the Hornets is stupid enough to pull the trigger on it.

StR Token Female

by LeaguePassAddict on Dec 14, 2010 7:52 AM PST reply actions

Real quick...

I pointed out above I thought they were heading that way last year, then they traded Brockman and took a huge step back. There is not a game this year you can point to.

Plus personality wise, Brockman trancends the court. He has a huge following outside the normal basketball coverage. He’s a big personality.

Tyreke is by far the better player, but he’s quite and reserved. He will never have that big time charisma that a lot of other players have. Our team as currently constructed does not have the big personalities that the fans of this area are drawn too and the attendance shows that.

by nerdninja on Dec 14, 2010 3:42 PM PST up reply actions

I think the attendance is less about the personality of the team

And more about the fact that we aren’t winning.

DeMarcus and Omri, JT and Donté, Pooh, they all have a ton of personality. They’re passionate and entertaining. But that shows mostly when we’re doing well. Winning.

Again, as our team starts to mesh and then starts to win, the guys will start to have fun and show a lot more personality on the court.

Webber’s snarl would have been out of place on a losing team. Christie’s passion wouldn’t have made sense if he was having trouble getting into the flow of the offense. Vlade’s flopping and great ambassadorship, Pollard’s hair, none of that would have been entertaining on a 5-17 squad.

Wins will bring personality. It’s tough to show who you are and how much you love the game when you’re struggling to remember plays, focusing on defensive rotations, and being frustrated. And actually, considering the level of frustration these guys must all be feeling, I’m glad that their personalities aren’t showing through, or they’d be labeled whiners and crybabies.

Trading for personality guys is not the answer. I get that you love Brockman, and he was a favorite of mine as well. But with Dalembert, Cousins, JT, and Landry all having a lot more talent, where do you think he would have ended up in the rotation?

StR Token Female

by LeaguePassAddict on Dec 15, 2010 6:55 AM PST up reply actions

I think we are not talking about the same thing....

I am speaking almost strictly from a marketing/business perspective. Like I had mentioned above, this city sold out an absurd amount of games in a row when they stunk. Now often the areana is half full. Winning has something to do with it, but I believe it runs deeper.

I am actually not a Brockman fan, I am not one of his 300,000 twitter follwers. However I recognize his popularity and believe by having someone like him on the team would have started bringing fans back into the seats.

I also was trying to speak to the personality of the team not as it relates on the floor only, but off the floor and the players interaction in the community. That’s not to say everyone has to be the same and be huge “personalities”, but it would help them from a marketing position to have a number of different personalities serving different segments of the potential customer base. That is what the team of the early part of the decade had. Instead the player we’re building around got a ton of press for driving like a maniac and the national media continues to bill DMC as a ticking timebomb. Omri is the closest thing we have to a guy that will develop a longlasting base of support outside the diehard “King” fan. Unfortunately the coaching staff wants this guy not to reach out and some a**holes decides to deface his face with antisemitic grafitti. sigh

Ultimately it will be a huge uphill battle until the arena situation is taken care of as well. People don’t want to throw support to a team that may be gone. But the team may move without support. Kind of a double edge sword.

by nerdninja on Dec 15, 2010 3:00 PM PST up reply actions

No, I get that.

But I still think the cure to all our ills is giving this group of players the luxury of time to mesh and start winning and letting their personalities emerge.

In your trades above, you trade away two guys with tons of personality in Cisco and Donté. I don’t see the trades in being a net gain in that aspect.

StR Token Female

by LeaguePassAddict on Dec 16, 2010 6:56 AM PST up reply actions

I think you're right about Donte'

Donte is outgoing and funny. I agree he could fill a certain aspect of what I’m talking about.

Cisco on the other hand I don’t think is that guy. Plus he seems to have a cloud of bad luck that follows him. He has remained healthy so far this year, but you know some freak accident is just around the corner for that poor guy.

In the trade I proposed I think we would get back better fits on this team. And speaking of the trades, the goofy trade proposals I made (which I wrote was a pipe dream anyway) was the least substantial part of my post and yet it got the most response here.

I think you wrote something interesting above too, you said their personalities would “emerge”. I get the feeling the organization is telling these guys to do the team sponsored stuff and to stop all the extra curricular stuff. I think they did that to Omri, and I think they did that to Donte’. It’s really too bad. I understand they don’t want anything to interfere with the basketball, but the team needs that outreach. If the team stepped back a little we wouldn’t have to wait for personalities to emerge.

by nerdninja on Dec 16, 2010 8:43 AM PST up reply actions

Great post

I think you raise a lot of valid points, particularly about the Kings and their lack of personality. And your trades sound fairly reasonable, although naturally those are all speculation. But I agree those are the kind of deals we need to entertain to turn this franchise around.

"It really was amazing to see the difference in this team when Pooh was out there moving the ball. Crisp passing, set plays, movement, and Oh yeah, SMILES & PASSION exhibited by the other players on the floor."

by NewEraKings on Dec 14, 2010 8:23 AM PST reply actions

When John Barry, Bobby Jackson and Scott Pollard were traded in rubbed people the wrong way. They didn’t like the business end of it at all.

Pretty sure Pollard’s departure had more to do with stuff on the court. That’s how we got Brad Miller.

And as an aside, that is why John Brockman was perfect here, even if he was not going to play much. He was an heir apparent to that likable hard working character that this city loved. Why they traded him for Darnell Jackson is baffling to me.

They traded him because if we signed him and then didn’t go along with the sign and trade we would have the biggest douche bag franchise in pro sports.

As crazy as this may sound, we need to load up on personality, not just talent.

I get the sense that if that “personable” Kings team from the glory days was winning 25 games a year then we wouldn’t look back on them as fondly as we do now.

I predict JT will never breathe through his nose.

by wallywagon11 on Dec 14, 2010 8:58 AM PST reply actions

Heck

don’t recall Artest being bland yet he is in the bland era you speak of. I also don’t recall Peja being an exciting interview.

I predict JT will never breathe through his nose.

by wallywagon11 on Dec 14, 2010 8:59 AM PST up reply actions

Yeah, trading away Nessie wasn't for the Kings.

The Kings were doing Nessie a solid by giving him a better chance. They saw the opportunity to do so without negative repercussions for themselves, and so they pulled the trigger.

"Cousins is the Blaster to Evans’ Master, the Hammer to Evans’ Sickle"- HP

by tomroadrunner on Dec 14, 2010 9:36 AM PST up reply actions

+1

J-Will had personality on the court, not off. From what I recall, he was a pretty lousy interview, and would give one sentence answers. Same goes for Mike Bibby. I guess you could say they were characters in their own way (Team Dime, etc), but Sacramento loved these guys for their charisma on the court, not away from it.

Jon (not John) Brockman fate was sealed when we gave $4 million dollars guaranteed deal to Whiteside. Petrie deemed him as having more Upside, pun intended, than Brockman at PF, and I don’t blame him. When the Bucks offered two year deal, pedaling him off for DJ was the right thing to do. I agree it would be nice to have him, but the Kings have larger issues he would not solve.

I heard Michael Jordan is trying to move Gerald Wallace in a package to land Carmelo Anthony. And if you are looking for personality, Wallace is not Mr. Charisma. And he has a lot of miles on him as 9 year vet. Obviously he is a great talent, but I would have wanted him two years ago. Not now. Dealing for a player approaching 30 years old with declining stats and big deal and who relies on athleticism and has history of hard spills; its a suckers bet.

I predict JT puts up 7 and 5 this year - Aug '10. (Current: 6.0 Pts 5 Rebs)

by bench_blob on Dec 14, 2010 10:09 AM PST up reply actions

Quick response

1. The trade of Pollard had everything to do with getting better on the court, but a lot of fans followed the player Pollard and were not happy with the trade because their favorite player was traded, which was the point I was making. The trade got us a much better player in Brad Miller at the time.

2. The same with Brockman. It doesn’t matter that they were trying to do him a favor by getting Brockman in a better situation for playing time. Brockman quickly became a fan favorite here. His personality would have attracted many more fans that the addition of Darnell Jackson. And having Brockman play Jackson’s minutes would have been fine, really.

3. We sold out many lean years because of the reasons I wrote above. One big reason is because the fans liked the players. No one felt a connection to Kevin Martin or Ron Artest like they did Wayman Tisdale. Spudd Webb, or even a guy like Jim Less. We don’t have that “guy” people really rally around and like.

by nerdninja on Dec 14, 2010 3:49 PM PST up reply actions

but a lot of fans followed the player Pollard and were not happy with the trade because their favorite player was traded,

Well I guess people payed attention to him elsewhere but I don’t know one person who complained about the Pollard side of that deal (heck the Hedo part was the bigger part of it)

The same with Brockman. It doesn’t matter that they were trying to do him a favor by getting Brockman in a better situation for playing time.

Are you shitting me? Of course it matters they were trying to do him a favor. He was a free agent, he only signed for the sign and trade. That’s the only reason.

No one felt a connection to Kevin Martin or Ron Artest like they did Wayman Tisdale. Spudd Webb, or even a guy like Jim Less.

If we had the likes of Wayman Tisdale, Spudd Webb, or even Jim Less here recently instead of Kevin Martin or Ron Artest I would hate my life. Never liked Spudd, Less sucked, have to admit I did have a soft spot for Tisdale but would much much much prefer Kevin Martin. Heck back from the previous days of suck my personal favorites were Saurunis, Mitch, and Brian Grant and that was less about their personality (although Grant was very much a stand up guy) and more about how they were some of the better players here.

I predict JT will never breathe through his nose.

by wallywagon11 on Dec 15, 2010 9:35 AM PST up reply actions

Winning games

makes everything and everybody more fun and colorful.

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 Dec 14, 2010 9:38 AM PST reply actions

Winng does improve things....

But it doesn’t really make them more “colorful” and “fun”. I would never describe a team like the Spurs “colorful” or “fun” even though all they do is win. They are a really dull team. But if the Kings were in the thick of things people would pay a lot more attention, true.

by nerdninja on Dec 14, 2010 3:51 PM PST up reply actions

I would not even consider Gordon for Udrih AND Garcia.

That’s a lopsided trade based mostly on salary, and not on performance.

I’m not downplaying Gordon’s offensive ability, but his court vision doesn’t approach Udrich’s, and Garcia is not a mediocre offensive talent on a normal night. Also, Gordon’s defensive is not an improvement.

He’s not worth them both.

by Charles L. Pierro on Dec 14, 2010 11:15 AM PST reply actions

interesting

I predict JT will never breathe through his nose.

by wallywagon11 on Dec 14, 2010 12:16 PM PST up reply actions

ug

for a second I thought you were referring to Eric Gordon. Supreme fail.

I predict JT will never breathe through his nose.

by wallywagon11 on Dec 14, 2010 12:16 PM PST up reply actions

I’m not positive I’d trade them both for Eric, but I’d be a lot less angry than if they were both traded for Ben.

by Charles L. Pierro on Dec 14, 2010 6:34 PM PST up reply actions

On second thought – yes, I’d get rid of them both for Eric.

by Charles L. Pierro on Dec 14, 2010 6:36 PM PST up reply actions

Glad to see a valid thought occurred to you.

Because for a minute there I thought you were crazy.

EvilCowtownInc: Screwin Suckaz over since 1985...... On Twitter

No mistakes in the tango, Donna. 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 Dec 14, 2010 9:35 PM PST up reply actions

+1

by Drew Q on Dec 15, 2010 1:58 AM PST up reply actions

In the context of all three trades

I like the gamble on this trade. I think the team needs an outside shooter at the SG position. If we put Tyreke at the point and have a defensive SF in Wallace at the SF it makes sense to get a guy like Gordon there. For his career he is still a 17 point a game guy despite his 10 ppg this season. In the right situation I think Ben Gordon would be dangerous again. Detroit has no inside game to speak of. Gordon works best as a spot up shooter. He’d be perfect getting passes from Tyreke after he drives the lane.

Garcia is not going to get any better than what we’ve seen. He’s a streak shooter that tries hard on defense, but in the end is only an average defender. Beno is a terrible defender, but a capable ball handler. He would be a decent option as a back up, but Pooh Jeter has more upside and comes at a much lower cost. Why have Beno ride the bench as the third guard?

IN the end I think it’s worth taking a gamble on Ben Gordon and when in a big time situation he has proven he will take and hit the big shot. I like that.

And yes I’d rather have Eric Gordon but I was trying to keep it close to realistic and the Clippers would never swap Eric Gordon for Beno and Garcia.

by nerdninja on Dec 14, 2010 10:53 PM PST up reply actions

Bull Durham analogy

When Crash Davis (Costner) takes Nuke LaLoosh (Tim Robins) aside and explains the use of cliches and why you use them. His quote is such " Your shower shoes have fungus on them. You’ll never make it to the bigs with fungus on your shower shoes. Think classy, you’ll be classy. If you win 20 in the show, you can let the fungus grow back and the press’ll think you’re colorful. Until you win 20 in the show, however, it means you are a slob."

As far as personality I think the quote also applies

by Murf on Dec 15, 2010 2:43 PM PST reply actions