Start Spreading the...

Ball all over the field. It's pretty evident that that is what the Niners need to start doing to be productive on offense. Their first half effort against Green Bay was horrible. Then, like someone flipped a switch, they came out in the second half pitching the ball all over and scoring at will.

I swear we've seen this before... Oh, that's right. Just a few weeks ago in Houston. Sure the Texans and Packers D probably let up a little in the second half with huge leads. I'm sure that pressure returned once the Niners cut it a two score game. Yet, in both cases the Niners were able to make it a one score game.

One of the biggest gripes fans had about Mike Nolan was his unwillingness to change. He was going to do it his way and everyone else be darned. I am starting to get the same feeling from Singletary and Jimmy Raye. The Niners have gone to a spread look in both games and scored 21 points in a half. So, explain to me why you would not want to run this more often.

Two of the biggest draft picks in your recent history, Smith and Crabtree, came from the spread system. Vernon Davis has caught most, if not all, his touchdowns from the formation. Frank Gore is great receiver out of the backfield and I would argue one of the best pass blocking RBs in the game. You have Morgan, Hill and Walker chomping at the bit to get on the field. Your O-Line has shown it cannot maintain blocks or move the line of scrimmage. With all those factors telling them otherwise, Raye and Singletary spent an entire half yesterday running into a brick wall. I am starting to see a definition of insanity reference coming on here.

I am not saying that the spread offense is a panacea. This team has issues. The entire team looked like it forgot to get on the plane in the first half. The D could not stop the run game nor get pressure through the supposedly porous Packers O-Line. The Niners line continues to struggle and now is dealing with further injuries. These three things all need to be addressed. But most of them will have to wait til the off-season. The Niners can change their offensive philosophy now. The coaches would have us believe otherwise and that it makes the team one dimensional. The play on the field doesn't support that. The scoring numbers are higher and Gore's rushing numbers are just as good out of the spread and single-back as they are from the I-formation.

This is about a philosophical change. One that if not made soon, could result in some other changes...

Kings Need a Shooter

I never thought I would say this, but the Kings need a shooter. Last night's game against the Bulls was an indication that, with Kevin Martin and Francisco Garcia out, the Kings are lacking a consistent shooter.

Like the Kings, the Bulls were playing scrappy. They were clogging the lane, daring the Kings to shoot from the outside and there was no one to answer the call. It was a far cry from recent Kings teams where as soon as the ball crossed mid-court there was a good chance it would be shot by whoever touched it first.

I am glad shots were not going up from all over the gym, but someone has to be able to shoot from the outside to keep teams honest. It is clear that without K-Mart and Cisco, and to a lesser degree Nocioni, this is a weak spot for this team.

At one point Tyreke had a wide open three. He double clutched it and tried to force a pass inside. Turnover. The confidence in his shot was gone. Donte Greene, who last season would jack three's with no hesitation, was willing to shoot, but his shot is still the weakest part of his game. Sergio Rodriguez was zipping beautiful passes all over the place, but you can tell he believes he has no jumper. Beno was the only one with a consistent stroke and yet Sergio was playing well enough that he couldn't get off the bench.

Don't get me wrong, if this is the biggest problem the Kings have in the short term, I'll take it. Nocioni should be back soon. K-Mart and Cisco, soon enough. In the grand scheme of things, it's actually quite encouraging that this team is only losing when their outside shots aren't falling. That's a far cry from teams of the recent past.

The Okafor Discussion

After reading the recent Bee article about a discussion between the Kings and Hornets that would send Kenny Thomas to New Orleans for Emeka Okafor.

In name value this sounds like a big win for the Kings. In contract and overall value this is a horrible deal for the Kings. Okafor has huge money, 5 years, $62.5 million, left on his deal. This would give the Kings two near max contract deals and a bunch of young talent that will quickly be running out of team options. In other words, they'd be right back in salary cap hell.

Let's not also forget that Okafor has a history of back problems. These have not been there since turning pro, but last time I checked back problems don't get better as you get older.

Petrie holds a really large bargaining chip with Thomas' expiring contract. The kind of piece you use to pick up a couple young promising players with team options and draft picks, not one high (some might say over) priced player. Petrie should think Artest trade, not Webber trade. Think Trailblazers, not Knicks.

The Kings are building and shouldn't forget that. They have had a small amount of success early this season, but this is not the time to get punch drunk and thinking this is a playoff team. There is no need to make quick fixes. Stick to the plan. Clear payroll. Build a core through the draft. Then, add pieces through trade and free agency.

The dividends are starting to show. No reason to change the strategy now.

I'll Have the Crow!

I know it's only eight games into the season, but I have to eat some crow on the Kings. I was really not impressed with their opening night loss. Thankfully they have proven to be a very competitive team and that is all I ever wanted from this young squad.

I give major props to Coach Westphal. He appears to be the right man for the job. His lineup has been in flux and even with the injuries and roster changes he is finding pieces that work. He is not static in his playing time, rewarding players who perform, and penalizing those who don't. Contracts and draft numbers don't seem to dictate playing time under Westphal. It's the way coaches are supposed to operate. His game management is the best I've seen of a Kings coach since, well, ever.

As much as I know it pains some Kings fans, Petrie deserves some credit too. He did hire Westphal, even though I am positive the Maloofs wanted Rambis. After a couple off-seasons of bad contracts, the signings of Sean May, Desmond Mason and Ime Udoka to bargin contracts, were very good moves. Kenny Thomas is performing and Petrie, should he want to, can move him for significant value at the trade deadline. I thought for sure Donte Greene was packed for Reno, but an attitude change appears to have given him new life.

Look, I am not signing up for playoff tickets or anything, but the Kings are a quarter of a way to their win total from last year after only an tenth of the season. For you math wizards, that puts them on pace for forty wins. All this without two of their arguably best players. Do I think they'll get to forty? Probably not, but I don't think thirty is out of the question, and seventeen is a distant memory.

New Season. Same Kings.

It was their first game, but is sure looked like the same old Kings. Initially impressed that a Kings road game was in HD, I quickly realized that it simply meant that I would simply have a clearer picture of a horrible Kings loss.

There it was again. The red carpet down the lane. The lack of effort on the boards. The incessant need to shoot from the outside. Like Yogi said, "It's Deja Vu all over again".

Missing was the toughness, effort, and hustle that we all went into the season hoping we would see. No one, myself included, expected this team to win even 30 games. Heck, I was going to be happy with 20 as long as the losses were because of lack in talent and not effort. This loss had nothing to do with talent.

I know I've seen this before. Thompson getting in foul trouble in the first six minutes (though some of the calls were pretty weak), and arguing every one. Spencer jacking threes. Westbrook running down the lane like there were lights guiding the way. Several Thunder players in double figures. Kevin Martin with a spectacular first half and disappearing in the second. I've seen it all before.

It was all bad, right? Thankfully, no. There was one lone bright spot in this game. Omri Casspi, overcame a rough first half and realized he is an NBA player. He came out in the second half and broke down his defender, hit outside shots, ran the floor, all the things that should make him a valuable member of this team.

What about Tyreke Evans? It's an incomplete. He showed flashes of what will make him a good player but like his teammates he settled for too many outside shots when he clearly had an advantage over Westbrook in the post. It was evident that his shot is clearly the weakest part of his game.

Normally I would say it was only one game, but we've seen it too many times to think this was the exception and not the rule.

My (hopefully) Weekly Rant

So, I have tons of things that I think of every week that I could put into a blog post, but then my darn real job gets in the way and I forget about them. My new goal is that if I cannot get a full post out I will at least post a weekly regurgitation of everything from that week and maybe the week ahead.

• I am so sick of Michael Crabtree. You hide behind your agent and Deion. Be a man. Speak up. Either sign the contract, or tell everyone why you won't. Quit all this crap. You are making far more enemies than friends.

• The game between the Steelers and Titans was almost entertaining. Makes me wonder if even though the Niners are my team, I am going to enjoy an entire season of 3-yards and cloud of dust.

• One thing I didn't like about the Thursday game, overtime. I cannot stand the NFL overtime rules. How is it fair that one team doesn't touch the ball? I know, the Titans should have come up with a stop. Well who knows, maybe they would have if the Steelers weren't allowed to kick a field goal on first down to win the game. Look what they did to Ward at the end of regulation to prevent the winning TD.

• How would I play OT? Coin toss to determine possession. Winner gets to choose if they want ball first or second. Each team must get at least one possession. If first team kicks FG and second scores TD, game over. Second team wins. If both teams match score, repeat, but now, no FG's allowed. This will repeat until either team cannot match score. You can punt, if you want, but that is a zero for that possessions. Same for fumbles, interceptions, etc., all are live plays and defensive score ends the game even on the first possession. I'd even be OK with taking FG's out completely.

• What were the Raiders thinking? You send a first round pick in 2011 for a player who will be 30 and may not even be on your team after next year? Did they not think they could have gotten a decent DT/DE in the 2011 draft? If they thought that highly of Seymour, why not just go after him in free agency. It's not like the Patriots were going to pay him.

• Not to mention this is the same team that you gave Randy Moss to for a fourth rounder. Does Bob Kraft have dirty pictures of Al Davis or something? I think what irritates me even more is that the Raider Nation sits by with blinders on and tries to talk about how this was a good deal. Well, I guess in some sense it was. FOR THE PATRIOTS!

• Baseball season appears to be over. Unless the Braves go all miracle and the Rockies, Giants and Marlins fall apart. I like where the team is headed, but they need to add some pop to that outfield and Chipper isn't going to play forever.

• Got my free copy of Madden 10 yesterday. Haven't played it yet. But I'm thinking it will be taking up a large portion of my weekend.

• Is anybody reading this? If someone even stops by I'd appreciate a comment one way or the other. Even if you think it sucks, please let me know.

Crickets...

Holy cow, its been over a month since I've posted anything here... I have had plenty of things I could be posting, but for some reason they haven't made it here. With that, I'll just run down a list of grumblings (in no particular order):

• Welcome Back, Koz! For once Sports 1140 did the right thing and made sure you were on the air, too bad the Kings didn't do the same. Now if we can get rid of Sportsline with Blowhard and Homer, I'd bet their ratings would be better.
  
  
• A bird in the hand is worth two in the Crabtree. Your cousin might as well have stuck a gun in your face and taken the money he cost you with his moronic hold-out statement. Give it up. Just sign the contract and get into camp.
  
  
• Welcome Back, Brett! NOT! Some people just don't know when to give it up. I almost feel back for Peterson. This should be his team and his year and Favre just grabbed the spotlight and hit him over the head with it.
  
  
• I'm Ready for Some Football! I blocked out my calendar to watch the HOF Game.
  
  
• The Braves are playing with my emotions. Don't think they will make the playoffs, but they are giving me hope, which something I couldn't say the last couple years.
  
  
• My golf game needs help.
  
  
• MLB At Bat 2009 for iPhone is one of the greatest inventions ever, second only to the iPhone itself...
  
  
• Should I twitter more? People have actually starting following me so I almost feel obligated to post things.
  
  
• One Fantasy Football draft down (my WR's suck and I have no backup QB) and one to go!
  
  
• SI is going to give me a copy of Madden 10 just for renewing a magazine I just renewed in a couple months ago. Greatest marketing idea EVER!
  
  
• I really want to get excited about the Kings this season, but it is going to be hard.
  
  
• The A's continue to be a feeder system for playoff teams. Wonder if they moved to Sacramento if it would be any better? Probably not, but I can hope.

OK, I guess that is good for now. I'll try and be better about updating this for the one or two people (myself included) that might actually read this.

Evans or Odd?

Was Tyreke Evans the right pick for the Kings or will this be one of those Sam Bowie type moments for the Kings? (Wait, didn't they already have a couple of those)

I'm not sold on the Evans pick. I don't like point guard projects. He says he wants to play the point, but CAN he play the point? The knock on him is that he can be, as Jay Bilas put it last night, "ball dominant". I read this as a nice way to say he's a floor-pounding, movement killing, black hole looking to get his. The Kings had this guy last year. His name is John Salmons.

Add to that the fact that if he doesn't turn into a point guard, he will be playing the same position as your current best player. Wonder how this pick sits with Kevin Martin? Grant Napier the other day said current players don't really care too much about the draft unless the guy picked plays the same position as them. Well Kevin, you might want to start caring.

Now the Kings can minimize the impact of Evans' lack of facilitation if they end up running the good'ole Princeton Offense that made them so effective a couple years ago. Mike Bibby wasn't a great distributor. That job belonged to Chris Webber and Vlade Divac. Can Jason and Spencer recreate that? Let's hope so!

I loved the rest of the Kings draft. Casspi was my guy at 23. I was afraid when I heard all the rumors about Portland moving up to 22 to get him. Love his aggressiveness and attitude.

A commenter over on SacBee.com brought up the fact that Sergio Rodriguez was the Ricky Rubio of last years draft. So, maybe the Kings did get their PG of the future...

The Brockman pick will go over very well in Sacramento. The guy is pure lunch pail player. He'll just go get the ball. Something the Kings have lacked for years.

Now, we wait and see. We all love to mumble and groan about our teams draft picks, but in the end, we don't know any different than anyone else. Personally, I hope I'm wrong about Evans, cause if I am, that means the Kings are probably winning a lot more games, and how can any fan not like that?

Is There A Draft In Here?

The NBA Draft is a little more than twenty-four hours away. Who's going where? This team trading with that team. There is truck loads of garbage out there. So, who are the Kings going to draft? Well if I knew that I wouldn't be sitting here writing this post...

I have to believe they have narrowed there #4 pick down to three players. Memphis guard Tyreke Evans and Spanish point Ricky Rubio and the dark horse is Syracuse PG Jonny Flynn. I'm not breaking any news here. But which of the three will it be? To answer that you have to look at who will go in the top 3. So, here is my mock top 5.

1) Clippers - Blake Griffin. This is the biggest no-brainer since LeBron and possibly the biggest bust since Michael Olowokandi. I am not a huge Griffin fan. I think he will be an average NBA player at best, maybe make a couple All-Star games, but nothing spectacular. Far less than you would expect from the #1 overall pick. But, many have said it, this is a weak draft.

2) Grizzlies - Hasheem Thabeet. I really think Memphis wants to trade this pick, and Minnesota now has the stuff to make an interesting offer. If they have to make a pick here, it will be Thabeet. They have scorers on their roster, it's defense that's lacking. If the Wolves do jump in here, the pick could still be Thabeet. Allowing the Wolves to move Jefferson back to the 4. Ricky Rubio would also be on the Wolves radar, as are James Harden and Tyreke Evans.

3) Thunder - Tyreke Evans. I don't see Rubio going here. They spent a #4 on Westbrook last year, they are not going to spend a #3 on another PG this year. Evans gives them versatility in the back court and slasher who will compliment Durant and Green very well.

4) Kings - Ricky Rubio. How do they not make this pick if he is there? They like Evans and if he is there the pick could change. I am not a big fan of PG projects and that is just what Evans is. The Kings already have a two-guard. In fact they have a bunch of them. Evans seems like a wasted pick to me. What if Rubio is gone? My view on Evans doesn't change, but they may be reaching by picking Flynn.

5) T-Wolves - James Harden. Top two-guard in the draft. The guy can flat out score. The only reason he goes after Evans is that Evans has the possibility of playing the point and there are questions about Harden's work ethic and attitude.

As for the rest of the Kings picks, much will depend on what happens at #4. If they pick Evans, I think a PG is still very much in play with 23 and 31. If the pick is Rubio, look for a true small forward to build depth there behind Nocioni.

Possibilities at 23: Omri Casspi (SF, Isreal); Sam Young (SF, Pitt); Jeff Teague (PG, Wake Forest); Tyler Hansbrough (PF, North Carolina); Ty Lawson (PG, North Carolina)

Possibilities at 31: Patty Mills (PG, St Mary's); Darren Collison (PG, UCLA); Nick Calathes (PG, Florida); Taj Gibson (PF, USC)

The Stallworth Dilemma

I was going to avoid this topic if I could, but listening to The Rise Guys this morning ramble on about what will come of the Donte' Stallworth situation I couldn't help but post my thoughts.

First, stop comparing Stallworth to Vick on a legal basis. The two have nothing to do with one another. If you want to debate the morality of their crimes, that is one thing. But to say "Why is Stallworth only getting 30 days for killing a person and Vick got 18 months for killing dogs?" is not a valid question. Stallworth is not getting 30 days, he is getting 25 months. House arrest, is still confinement.

Second, Michael Vick was not actually convicted of killing dogs. Vick was convicted of running an illegal inter-state dog fighting business. The Feds prosecuted that case as a tax and racketeering case, not as a cruelty to animals case. Had Vick pleaded guilty in Virginia to just killing the dogs, he probably would have gotten a much shorter sentence, instead he tried to save face and claim he never killed the dogs and therefore the Feds stepped in and he was punished for his other crimes.

Now to the Stallworth case. I found it interesting that there was a strong possibility that Stallworth could have walked away without any conviction other than the DUI. Florida law says that if the other party led to the 'causation' of the incident the DUI offender is not necessarily responsible. Since Mario Reyes was jaywalking across a major roadway when he was struck by Stallworth, there is enough question that a jury could have found reasonable doubt that Stallworth alone caused the accident and acquitted him of the manslaughter charge. He would have been convicted of DUI, probably would have had to pay a fine, do some community service and wait for a civil trial brought by the family.

So, based on his plea deal, Stallworth pleaded guilty to manslaughter (may not have gotten that at trial), will serve 30 days in jail (or that), 2 years house arrest (or that), 1,000 hours of community service (probably would have been half that), pay the family a large amount of money (saves court time/cost from civil trial), and lose his Florida drivers license for life (wouldn't have gotten that either). Personally, I'd say the Florida attorney took a look at the possibility of an acquittal and took what they could get. All things considered, from a legal standpoint, I'd say they did pretty good. Morally, that's a whole-nother story.

Now, what does the NFL do about this. This is where you could start to introduce the Vick scenario. Vick was suspended indefinitely by the NFL while he was in prison and under house arrest. Goodell has said he will wait until Vick's legal situation is resolved before he rules on his suspension. So really, Vick hasn't been suspended for a specific amount of time. Vick may only be suspended for a few games once he is actually released.

So what does that mean for Stallworth. If I am Goodell, I suspend him indefinitely too. Until he is able to participate freely in the NFL (that would probably be hard to do while under house arrest), I don't rule. If the Florida probation department says he can travel while under house arrest, then Goodell's hand is forced. Leonard Little got eight games for his DUI back in 1998, but that was a softer, gentler NFL. I don't see Goodell handing down any less than a one year suspension. And if I am Goodell, I use the house arrest as a starting point. Until Stallworth is free of his legal situation, he is suspended, i.e. two years. The union will appeal. Guess who they appeal to. That's right, Goodell. Maybe it gets lowered to eighteen months, or a year, either way, Goodell wins and a new precedent is set.

Wow. Now I see why I was trying to avoid this topic...

Ricky's Sacramento Vacation

With the much anticipated arrival of Ricky Rubio in Sacramento yesterday the Kings draft process went into high gear. Sure there's been visits by from other players, but let's be honest, Rubio is the only potential star to visit with the Kings. Heck, Rubio could be the only star in this draft.

Rubio didn't just stop in for a quick meet and greet. He spent the night. All indications are he'll spend two nights. What does this mean for the Kings? Selfishly, I hope it means he would love to play for the Kings. Problem is it's not his or the Kings choice at this point.

What will Memphis do with their pick? Ricky doesn't want to play there. So my guess is the Griz are looking to auction the pick to the highest bidder. Is #4 and #23 enough to get the Kings up two spots? Do they have to give up some of their young talent? Next years first?

How much faith does OKC have in Westbrook? They took him #4 last year, so one would think they aren't going to take another PG at #3 this year, so the trade machine kick in again at pick three.

What about the buyout? Petrie has had success getting European players over here, but this one sounds more difficult than Peja and Hedo's deals. Do you draft a player and risk the fact that he isn't on your team this year? If I am the Kings, YES! This team is not going to be very good next year anyways. Sure it would be nice to have your PG of the future here and growing with your team, but if that is the only negative, make the pick. There should still be plenty of young PG's available at 23 and 31 to hold you over for one more year. Plus Beno can't be any worse right?

If nothing else, the Kings draft prospects make for an interesting week. Imaging being a Clippers fan right now?

Westphal is King

Like many Kings fans I am left with a feeling of indifference about the hiring of Westphal. He strikes me as a very similar coach to Adelman (not a bad thing). I hear that Terry Porter and Mario Ellie on his short list of assistants (also not a bad thing). I think the no-defense knock is similar to what we heard about Adelman (this years Houston team more than proved that was a bad argument). His teams are known to be fast paced (again, not a bad thing).

The question is can he teach and instill a culture in the young Kings. Too many bad habits have been developed over the last couple seasons. Arguing calls, taking plays off, ball stopping, poor defensive/rebounding effort, I think Kings fan's know the story. It is going to take a strong message from Westphal that these things need to change. He's played in the league and taken teams to the Finals, so he has cred, now can he translate on the court.

I do think it was imperative to have a coach in place before the draft. Petrie drafts well, but it is never a good idea to be picking players without a coach. Bill Parcells said it best. How can you be expected to cook if you can't shop for the groceries. Westphal and Petrie have two weeks to look at the roster, what Westphal wants to accomplish, and find the best players to do that.

It's going to be a busy month of June in the King-dom.

Faber's Hand

Watching the WEC fight last night I couldn't help but be amazed by Urijah Faber's will and determiniation. He fought three and half rounds of a championship fight with one hand. I broke a finger once and was pretty much useless. I could never imagine doing what Faber did. Huge props to you Urijah. You'll get your rematch, and I for one can't wait to see it.

My Teams

So, this blog is geared towards Nor Cal sports fans. Most of my allegiances are to Nor Cal teams, with the exception of baseball. Allow me to break down my favorites (as if you care):

NFL: San Francisco 49ers. I have been a fan since I can remember. My first true memory was John Taylor's TD in Super Bowl XXIII. I guess that gives you some idea of my age...

NBA: Sacramento Kings. I moved to Sacramento in 1998, which just happened to coincide with the start of their run, guess that makes me a bit of a bandwagoner, but I never really followed basketball before that, so it wasn't much of a jump.

MLB: Atlanta Braves/Oakland A's. Why two? Well growing up all my friends were Giants fans. My family was Dodger fans (don't ask me why). I couldn't really get behind either, so I figured I would root against both. The Braves were in the NL West at the time and I was able to watch their games on TBS, so I just started following them.

The A's actually came out of the 1989 World Series. They were playing the Giants, so of course I had to root against them. Not to mention the Bash Brothers were cool. Admit it. Now, having the RiverCats here in Sacramento has allowed me to follow many of their players as they develop and built the interest.

NHL: San Jose Sharks. It's hockey in California, options are limited. I'll be honest, High Def TV increased my interest. I sure didn't grow up around the game, so it was hard to follow. HD has surely changed that. Now I would consider myself a pretty educated fan.

College: Michigan/Sacramento State. One Saturday afternoon, Michigan vs Notre Dame in the Big House. Hundreds of thousands of screaming fans. Notre Dame was "popular" at the time, so I rooted for the other team (is there a trend here). Have been following them ever since. No ties to the state, school, etc., just a fan!

I'm a Sac State alumni and I follow them as closely as I can. I have been impressed with what the football and basketball program have been building. Hopefully the coaches and facilities will keep it going. Also a nice showing by the baseball/softball teams this year.

Welcome, Me! (and anyone else who might read this)

This is the first post to my blog. I started it as a way to post my random grumblings of all things sports. I live in Sacramento (hence the 916) and follow mainly Northern/Central California teams and happenings. But it's my blog, so really, I'll post whatever I want.

Don't look for any breaking news (unless someone starts paying me to do this), but opinions and commentary will be plenty.

If you enjoy it, please let me know. If you don't, I'm cool with that too. All I ask is that you tell me what I might do differently.