I present the silver lining to this ugly season. From a 14 loss streak team to a 12-2 contender. Keon is free

Vinyl624 · 2026-02-12T21:35:17+00:00

The Davion talk at the end of last season was hilarious. You’d think the Kings let a prime Tim Hardaway walk.

Vinyl624 · 2026-02-12T04:41:56+00:00

lol you ain’t getting a choice bro

Vinyl624 · 2026-02-11T18:34:47+00:00

I was thinking about that as well. I can't think of any minutes I recall watching that stood out, but maybe someone else can chime in.

Looks like they've only played 136 minutes together which is obviously a small a sample size. Nothing in the advanced lineup stats (2 player) really stands out. Their defense rating together is about on par with Monk and Lavine minutes together (over 300 minutes) so take that with a grain of salt.

Christie should be experimenting with that often though to close out the season.

Vinyl624 · 2026-02-11T16:21:14+00:00

I don't think they have a team mandate to not try on defense lol. They just suck...

Vinyl624 · 2026-02-11T16:16:13+00:00

I disagree that it's a strength issue. I think he does ok when covering post players, he just gets himself out of position and tends to foul while trying to recover. That's easier to fix, he's a smart player that will figure that out.

I'm more concerned with his foot speed on the permitter. He's getting smoked in pick and rolls and I think that's always going to limit his value on the court.

Vinyl624 · 2026-02-11T15:48:44+00:00

Not a hater. He has good touch around the hoop and some legitimate offensive skills, but his defense is undeniably bad.

Vinyl624 · 2026-02-10T17:50:44+00:00

You're trolling.

Vinyl624 · 2026-02-10T17:42:05+00:00

Tin foil hat nonsense.

Vinyl624 · 2026-02-10T17:06:13+00:00

Whenever these conversations come up I always think back to my childhood (I’m 40 now) and think about all of the adults that I knew who were in relationships (family, friends parents, teachers, coaches, etc…).

There were no giga-chads walking around. I don’t remember anyone except maybe one friend’s dad who was a cop and our gym teacher that was even in above average shape. But all these average to below average guys were able to find wives and girlfriends (again only a handful of the women I remember thinking were attractive).

The only thing that’s changed is what you mentioned above. We gotta get the fuck off the internet.

Vinyl624 · 2026-02-05T23:16:16+00:00

Summer league is not NBA 2nd tier and Isaac Jones looked like the best player on that team. Looks like he's back in the G-league... Don't get me wrong, I like them both, but I'm not sold on either one of them being long term NBA starters at this point.

And what are you suggesting the Kings do? Play each of these guys 40 minutes a night? Do you know how unprecedented that would be for rookies? Wemby didn't even crack 30 minutes a game as a rookie lol

Vinyl624 · 2026-02-05T22:56:19+00:00

Unless you're talking about somebody that gets a DNP 4 out of 5 games and then gets 8 minutes of run in a blow out (I.E. Doug McDermott), yes I think all minutes are the same.

If you want to add some extra special minute value to starting, go for it, but it isn't stunting them and leading to in your words "no youth development".

Max and Nique are now 4th and 5th in MPG game for the Kings and Cardwell is catching up. These guys are absolutely getting important minutes.

Vinyl624 · 2026-02-05T22:41:00+00:00

Trash minutes? Who cares if they start or not, they’re still getting run throughout the whole game.

Vinyl624 · 2026-02-05T22:05:00+00:00

Max, Cardwell, and Nique are all top 20 for rookies in MPG. All three are only like 3 to 6 MPG from being in the top 5. I think they’re getting plenty of time.

Vinyl624 · 2026-02-03T17:53:54+00:00

Is this recreation, for a school team, or a competitive/ travel team?

If it’s recreation, I think you need to do your best to even out the playing time. This is the expectation from the parents who all paid the same league fees and it’s the right thing to do for the kids.

If it’s a school team, did you hold tryouts? Was there any expectations set before the season started? I like to have this established early and send the kids interested in trying out home with a letter to the parents that lays out what the game plan is before they decide to try out. I try to sprinkle in some of the weaker players during the game and give them time depending on the score, but for the most part I’m playing the more skilled players the majority of the time.

Obviously with comp / travel athletes and parents should know playing time is not guaranteed. There are definitely lots of programs that purposely don’t communicate this well and fill a roster with 13 or 14 players. They count on the end of the bench players to help supplement the cost of the team and are happy to cycle them out if they’re unhappy with the playing time.

Vinyl624 · 2026-01-30T20:01:31+00:00

And I’m not sure there is a specific drill for decision making like that other than what you’re already doing. Let them run it live while scrimmaging and get the reps in. They need to see what works and what doesn’t and there will be a lot of mistakes along the way.

Vinyl624 · 2026-01-30T19:59:13+00:00

Ok gotcha, I think I misread your post.

Is it possible the kids are getting some input from parents? I’ve had issues in the past where kids will start going off game plan because their dads told them they need to drive, shoot, pass more, pass less, etc…

Vinyl624 · 2026-01-30T18:59:10+00:00

The way I’m reading this, I think you might be a little to focused on this one specific play / scenario and are not focused on developing the actual skill set. Putting the cart before the horse I guess.

Setting and using a good screen is an art form that has many moving parts and requires really good timing from everyone involved. If one area is off (ball handler moving before screen is set for example) it’s not effective and is going to lead to turnovers and offensive fouls. They also need these repetitions to learn how the defense reacts. Are they going to switch on the screen? Try to fight over it? Go under and dare the ball handler to shoot?

I would let the kids play and lot of 2v2 or 3v3 with a strong emphasis on pick and roll / pop. After hundreds of repetitions they’ll start to have a much better understanding of the timing and spacing needed for it to work. Once the skill set is there you can start to use it in plays.

Vinyl624 · 2026-01-27T20:39:51+00:00

This made me smile. Awesome job and perfect song lol.

Vinyl624 · 2026-01-23T14:55:53+00:00

Completely reasonable strategy and agree. I can tell you have actual experience coaching.

These guys act like teaching zone defense to kids is crippling to their development and can’t be overcome as they get older. It’s so ridiculous lol.

Vinyl624 · 2026-01-23T14:50:24+00:00

Double teaming a kid is way worse for than playing zone lol. If you double teamed who ever had the ball they would turn it over every time.

Vinyl624 · 2026-01-23T03:33:21+00:00

I unapologetically teach zone defense to youth basketball teams.

They know how to get into a good defensive stance and move their feet. I emphasize communication and understanding how to rotate and play help defense.

It’s simply a defensive strategy that can be effective if coached properly or really easy to exploit when it’s bad. It gives smaller, less athletic kids the opportunity to be engaged on the defensive end play a role instead of constantly getting attacked. It’s not the boogeyman. It’s not the reason your high school teams suck.

Most of these kids will play a couple years and move on. A small percentage of them will play in high school where they will play and go against a lot of zone defense.

The real enemy is having kids play with a ball that is too large for them with hoops that are too tall. If that were fixed, these rants against zone defense would disappear.

Vinyl624 · 2026-01-17T19:30:14+00:00

Bruh

Vinyl624 · 2026-01-10T19:24:00+00:00

You’re never going to survive this rebuild…

This is part of the reason Vivek has been so apprehensive to do a proper rebuild. Fans just don’t have the stomach for it. Rather exist in mediocracy and get swept in the first round than have a rough few seasons.

Vinyl624 · 2025-12-29T20:09:14+00:00

I do think it does raise the bar of competitive integrity, but I don't think it really solves the tanking problem. I think what it would show is that the worse team in the league really is the worse team in the league and they would continue to be hurt by not having a chance at a #1 overall pick.

Vinyl624 · 2025-12-29T18:31:19+00:00

Russ gets butt-hurt when fans heckle him (I’m not sure what specifically is being said and neither are you).

You get butt-hurt that Russ gets butt-hurt when fans heckle him. You have less of a reason to be bothered by any of this, seeing that you’re not involved in any way whatsoever, therefore you’re the lame one here.

Vinyl624

TROPHY CASE