Sacramento Kings Preseason Media Presser 2016-17

[NOLa.]

Welcome to another edition of the Sacramento Kings Preseason Media Presser! In this 2016-17 season, we have many things to be excited about, but I want to briefly talk about the last season. We made signings, we made playoffs, that was about it. Awesome! We're done with recapping what we already know.

The lead up going into the offseason was particularly stressful. Due to some prior signings for one-year deals, I effectively screwed up my planned rebuild. It wasn't intentional but we had to deal with it and figure things out as they come. I knew I had several picks in the draft, one being a lotto pick, and Harrison Barnes hitting RFA. My team had a mix of young, developing rookie deal players, maturing young players who were ready to play now, and veterans to lead them. While it was nice to have the mix, it doesn't make it an ideal build once you have to commit salary.

We were able to select PF James Pearsall with our first pick and some other weird looking guy with our other. Pearsall is one of the rawest rookies of the class, but with a patient approach I know it will pay off to develop him into the two-way player he has potential to be.

The other big move was after the draft when we said farewell to Vucevic and a couple of other picks in exchange for CJ McCollum. My team was in desperate need of a number 1 key option and I was prepared to go all in on a veteran if needed. I was extremely high on CJ McCollum in the draft several seasons back and feel good having a young elite scorer on the roster.

In RFA I was able to re-sign Harrison Barnes to a long-term deal. Barnes figures to play a key role in my team moving forward and I've been happy with his progress on the court. Unrestricted free agency was quiet and didn't make too many signings. Didn't feel the need.

Training camp was solid, I was ecstatic no one on the team got hit. In training camp sometimes that's all you can hope for, but overall my team had a great showing.

Open for questions.

[IamQuailman]

Do you feel like Reggie Jackson can step up and be the floor general your team needs? Or will you be looking to the outside to fill your hole?

[garbageman]

First off, congratulations on having a very strong training camp. Despite that, though, your division looks incredibly tough. With Kevin Love always there to keep the Suns in contention and the same story with Durant on the Clippers, you also have to deal with a Lakers team that looks better and a Warriors team that's reloaded to make a huge impact.

Where do you feel the Kings fit into this division?

[LoCo89]

Do you ever see a point where you would unleash Nerlens at Center, where he looks like he could cause havoc as an athletic force?

[NOLa.]

Do you feel like Reggie Jackson can step up and be the floor general your team needs? Or will you be looking to the outside to fill your hole?

I sure do hope Jackson can step up because I just traded Vasquez, effectively me choosing Reggie over Vasquez.

I'm always looking at the trade blocks and messages about potential trades and who is available. If there's an option to better my team I will explore.


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[false9]

What continent will Jeff Duren be backpacking through this season?

[NOLa.]

First off, congratulations on having a very strong training camp. Despite that, though, your division looks incredibly tough. With Kevin Love always there to keep the Suns in contention and the same story with Durant on the Clippers, you also have to deal with a Lakers team that looks better and a Warriors team that's reloaded to make a huge impact.

Where do you feel the Kings fit into this division?

Appreciate the congrats!

I'm probably the worst team in the division. Warriors, Clippers, and Suns have players to compete for a title, and the Lakers have players that can help them win now.

The Kings are young and still developing. I think guys like Barnes, Noel, and CJ have established themselves but they are still a couple of years away from their primes. Reggie was a great 6th man last year but we don't know how he looks as a starter. Who's my PF? Lol no srsly who's my PF I'm desperate for any advice I don't want to start Asik.


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[NOLa.]

Do you ever see a point where you would unleash Nerlens at Center, where he looks like he could cause havoc as an athletic force?

I think that point is this first sim on Friday! I've been wanting Noel to play the center spot but his weight is a concern. He's at 239 but did gain 10 lbs this training camp. We will try it out and see how it goes.

Projected first lineup:

C: Noel
PF: Barnes
SF: Not Sure
SG: CJ McCollum
PG: Reggie Jackson


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[Inner_GI]

Who is the cornerstone of your franchise? Is Noel a lock to stay through RFA?

[NOLa.]

Who is the cornerstone of your franchise? Is Noel a lock to stay through RFA?

I see Jeffrey Duren as the cornerstone for me. His potential as a true combo guard with size and athleticism doesn't come around often and I'm excited for the day when he's ready to play.

Noel in RFA will be interesting. I'm not sure if I'm allowed to comment on this just yet


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[WigNosy]

Jimmer Fredette did a great job as a bench scoring sparkplug during the preseason. How much of Jimmer can we expect to see during the regular season?

[78#]

What position do you feel suits Harrison Barnes the most?

[Darth Vegito]

How often does the TC God require you to stroke him to ensure great TC year after year? And are you afraid that he will ever get bored of you and simply strike down every player to Orange/Orange in one fell swoop?

[NOLa.]

Jimmer Fredette did a great job as a bench scoring sparkplug during the preseason. How much of Jimmer can we expect to see during the regular season?

I'm not sure what to make of Jimmers offensive spark. In very limited minutes last season he showed promise, and in the preseason he showed us what he can potentially do. Right now Jimmer looks to be the primary backup SG.



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[NOLa.]

What position do you feel suits Harrison Barnes the most?

Tough question because he's a tweener. Average defense but not quick enough to be considered a true SF, strong enough to play down low but only 6'8.

Barnes does well scoring at SF, but we never played him at PF before. I'll give it a try the first sim and go from there to test out a small-ball approach.


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[NickMalone77]

Nick Melon; The Advocate: You were very adamant that your team last year could've been a lotto team had it not been for a few key signings during the offseason. With that not coming around this year outside of bringing in Omer Asik and CJ McCollum, do you see a few more moves coming to address the lack of a 4?

[NOLa.]

Nick Melon; The Advocate: You were very adamant that your team last year could've been a lotto team had it not been for a few key signings during the offseason. With that not coming around this year outside of bringing in Omer Asik and CJ McCollum, do you see a few more moves coming to address the lack of a 4?

I think right now we are going to try Barnes at the 4. If it works, we will need a 3. If not, I have a couple of guys that can plug in at the position if needed.

As far as moves are concerned, I currently have 0 talks ongoing. I'll see what's available, but currently we haven't reached out to any team about a potential trade.


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[NOLa.]

How often does the TC God require you to stroke him to ensure great TC year after year? And are you afraid that he will ever get bored of you and simply strike down every player to Orange/Orange in one fell swoop?

The trick is not quantity but quality. TC only cums around once a season so you have to really use your forearms and wrists. Other GMs get lazy with it like it's a chore AND THEY QUESTION WHY THEY WERE SMITED.

It's an honor for us.


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[Soundwave]

Strawberry or Grape Jelly?