Sacramento Kings Pre-Season Press Conference 2011-2012

[NOLa.]

Things did not go as expected for us last season. After moving on from the McGrady/Chandler/Hinrich era, I positioned this team to gather young prospects and begin the rebuild process. The rebuild, I had thought, happened very quickly last offseason. With Collison and Tyreke Evans, we brought in DeMarcus Cousins, Greg Monroe, Randy Foye, and OJ Mayo.

"Quick and easy, time to compete for the division and playoffs" I had thought.

Then I proceeded to field one of the most inconsistent teams I've ever had during my tenure as the Sacramento Kings GM. They weren't the worst team I've fielded by a large margin, but I had high expectations that they didn't come close to meeting. A 33-49 record to close the season ended a miserable chapter in which my team started off poorly and just couldn't make up enough ground to make a difference in the standings. I overestimated a very young and undeveloped team.

With two picks in the lotto, I felt I had a luxury in being able to pick the best player available with each, even if it meant taking a few seasons to develop the player. With our first pick we were able to draft SF Chandler Parsons, who will play behind Danny Granger for the next two seasons until Parsons has had a few training camps to fill out into the balanced player we know he can become. Parsons will be a great addition to our team as he can be a threat from the perimeter and will immediately fill our teams biggest need going into the season: backup SF.

With our second pick, Reggie Jackson was a player we contemplated using our first pick if we felt the need to reach for him. Although he is very raw and will take a few seasons to be groomed to even be a reliable backup, Jackson has the potentials in all the right areas and the physical tools to become a very good player for us. We love his long-term potential and will remain patient in developing him, much like Greg Monroe.

That was about it. We didn't make any big trades or go after any big UFA's. We brought in two backup PFs in FFA to fill out our team. We did not want to create havoc with our cohesion after last season's roster overhaul, which we believe really contributed a lot to our very poor start. As the season went on, our team began to play slightly better each month. Hopefully with the main roster staying the same and a very solid training camp for everyone, we will start the season stronger and finish stronger.

Our hope is only to compete with the better teams in the league. We don't know how this team will play, but I'm hoping for the best.

Questions or comments?

[JNR]

GWR: Now that you've had a year of rebuilding under your belt, are you more confident that your initial assertion of being able to compete for a low playoff seed?

[logpmess]

You have a star at center in Cousins. Talk a little about Greg Monroe. What role do you see him having, or is he a potential trade bait?


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[NOLa.]

GWR: Now that you've had a year of rebuilding under your belt, are you more confident that your initial assertion of being able to compete for a low playoff seed?

After last seasons complete letdown, I won't lie and say I'm unphased by how my team started last season. We did see signs of improvement towards the end, but not a lot.

It was a gamble by me to roll the dice with this team one more time. I'm hoping after sabotaging the chemsitry last offseason, a fully brought back team plus another good training camp will provide better results to get into the playoffs.

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[NOLa.]

You have a star at center in Cousins. Talk a little about Greg Monroe. What role do you see him having, or is he a potential trade bait?


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Monroe is an interesting asset of mine. I've actively shopped him last season because of me javing Cousins, but I'm not going to give him away. His potentials are too promising, and I have high hopes for him.

At the moment, his role will be backup center behind Cousins. Having him there is a unique luxury for me in having a young, cheap ans good center behind my star.

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[78#]

Henry Gates, the Houston Globe;

Last season the you guys missed the playoffs while seeing teams like the Suns, Kings, and Rockets finish ahead in the standings. How do you view the west, especially the bottom half when it comes to competing for a playoff spot?

[Xist2Inspire]

Random Reporter: With all of the talent on your roster, do you foresee gameplanning as a potential issue as you attempt to spread minutes around?

[WigNosy]

Rumor has it your young players are showing no respect to the veterans, going so far as to never refer to Drew Gooden by name but instead calling him "trade bait" to his face. Won't this lead to a toxic locker room?

[NOLa.]

Random Reporter: With all of the talent on your roster, do you foresee gameplanning as a potential issue as you attempt to spread minutes around?

I think finding the right gameplan will be the biggest challenge going into the new season. We had challenges last season with an undeveloped squad trying to figure out what the team did best as a whole, rather than trying to fit the strengths of individual players.

It should be fun trying to figure out this team.

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[NOLa.]

Rumor has it your young players are showing no respect to the veterans, going so far as to never refer to Drew Gooden by name but instead calling him "trade bait" to his face. Won't this lead to a toxic locker room?

I can confirm the only player doing this is Boogie. We aren't sure what his deal is, but alpha gonna alpha is our guess. Boogie has to focus on producing in the court, however, instead of creating lockerroom problems.

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[Conroy]

Sports Guy Bill Simmons here, the rumor going around Boston is that Boogie took John Wall out to a napa valley wine tasting weekend before Training Camp. Once he was good and drunk off wine he tonya harding'd his knee caps causing him to have a disasterous TC. Would Boogie care to comment?

[NOLa.]

Sports Guy Bill Simmons here, the rumor going around Boston is that Boogie took John Wall out to a napa valley wine tasting weekend before Training Camp. Once he was good and drunk off wine he tonya harding'd his knee caps causing him to have a disasterous TC. Would Boogie care to comment?

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