Good, Bad and Ugly: Game 31 at Brooklyn

Nik Stauskas is getting more playing time and starting to show why the Kings drafted him No. 8 in last year's draft.

One of the things I will have on this blog after every game is a "Good, Bad and Ugly" Recap. Instead of doing a traditional recap, I will highlights some good, bad and ugly things about the most recent Kings game. Some may be a little late if I don't have League Access to that night's game and have to watch it the next day (due to Blackout rules).

So, without further adieu, here is the first "GBU" of the 2014-2015 season from Kansas City Kingdom.


The Good

-Darren Collison

Collison battled foul trouble all game, and his absence in the 2nd quarter really hurt the Kings and probably cost them (they were outscored 30-16 in the second quarter; it proved to be the only quarter the Kings really lost, but it was so bad that they couldn't make it up). With all the trade talk going on about the Kings trading for Deron Williams, Collison made damn sure that the Kings management tonight that he was just as good an option for this team going forward than an aging and constantly injured Williams. As Williams underwhelmed off the bench (6 points on 2 of 6 shooting, 3 rebounds, 3 assists), Collison posted a line of 16 points on 5 of 7 shooting and 8 assists. He did commit 4 turnovers, but Collison helped keep this Kings team in the game in the second half, even when things looked bleak at halftime. It's amazing how confident Collison looks out there and how crucial he is in pushing the ball in transition. He has a tendency to catch defenses asleep by driving quick to the basket on the secondary break, and he did it a couple of times tonight against Brooklyn.

-Nik Stauskas

Stauskas posted a modest line, scoring 8 points on 3 of 5 shooting, including 2 for 2 beyond 3-point line, but it's nice to see coach Tyrone Corbin give him some time, as he played in nearly 17 minutes tonight (16:53 to be exact). Stauskas struggled to find minutes early this year, but Corbin has been giving him some floor time and he's been looking more and more confident with more minutes. His shot is looking better and he is looking more comfortable finding his spots and converting on catch and shoot opportunities. I am not sure Stauskas will ever be more than a catch and shoot player. However, if the Kings want to play more up-tempo, shooters like Stauskas are going to be depended on for playing time and production, and it's good to see Stauskas growing more confident as the season progresses.


The Bad

-Foul Shooting Differential

Some might blame the refs, but it was obvious from the opening whistle that the refs were going to call a tight game. The Kings failed to adjust on both ends. They were sloppy with defensive positioning on too many possessions that resulted in the Nets being bailed out by calls, and they weren't aggressive in taking it to the hoop or trying to draw fouls on the offensive end. The Nets' poor free throw shooting kept the Kings in it longer than they needed to be (they shot 69 percent), but one cannot ignore the 39-20 Free Throw differential in favor of the Nets. Home cooking, lack of aggressiveness, whatever. The Kings had the athleticism and size to get to the rack and consequently get to the line more, but they seemed to settle too much for mid-range jumpers instead.

-Offensive Rebounding

Demarcus Cousins posted a solid line with 24 points on 9 of 12 shooting and 13 rebounds, but if there was one critique of his game, (and I'll get to the other in the Ugly) as well as the other post players, it was allowing the Nets too many second chance opportunities. The Nets are 24th in the league in offensive rebounds per game, and yet they outrebounded the Kings on the offensive glass 14-11. The Kings have too much size and athleticism to be outrebounded on the offensive glass, and too many times, they were out of position, which ended up killing them in crucial points of the game (one being a missed Karasev 3 pointer; an offensive rebound and kick back to Karasev and a made 3 pointer on the second try in the 4th quarter).


The Ugly

-Not taking care of the ball

Whether you play up-tempo or slow it down, you got to take care of the ball. The Kings failed to do that in a myriad of ways, as they turned the ball over 21 times in comparison to the Nets' 9. When a team has a turnover differential of minus-12, they are going to have a hard time to win...period. (The Kings did lose 3 of the 4 factors, as they lost turnover differential, offensive rebounding differential and free throw attempt differential). Cousins especially was heinous in this area as he had 5 turnovers, mostly stemming from forced passes and trying to force penetration into double teams. To make matters worse, Cousins showcased his old self at time in these turnovers, not getting back on defense or moving slowly while pouting or complaining to the ref after those turnovers. The Kings have enough issues defensively, and they need Cousins' presence defensively (something he has been better at this year) on every possession. Collison also committed four turnovers, and Ray McCallum committed 3 as well. Seven turnovers from the point guards is way too much, especially in tight, winnable games like tonight. While you have to give credit to the Nets' defense (who really pressured the Kings with a lot of traps and showcased a lot of zone looks tonight), the Kings have to take better care of the ball and get back on defense. The 25 points allowed off turnovers tonight (in comparison to their 9) proved to be backbreaking.

-McCallum and Evans

The Kings accidentally tried the much anticipated "4 on 5" strategy Vivek has been advocating since the start of training camp. But despite their best efforts, McCallum didn't see Evans quickly enough and Evans missed the dunk (taking an unnecessary dribble before going up). This play proved to be a microcosm of the performances from McCallum and Evans (i.e. UGLY). After a solid performance against the Knicks, McCallum looked like an end of the bench player, going 0-for-5 from the field with 3 turnovers. McCallum had a couple of open 3 point looks that could have closed the gap, but Ray Mac failed to convert. Furthermore, while playing major minutes with Collison in foul trouble in the second quarter, Ray Mac struggled to hold the fort, as he was on the floor during the Nets' 11-1 run to finish the second quarter. I still think McCallum has a lot of potential, but he needs to have less games like this if he wants to prove that he can be a capable NBA backup point guard going forward.

As for Evans, while his physicality and team-focus is appreciated, he simply struggled in terms of play. He went 0-for-2 from the field and had a couple of bad turnovers where the Nets' trapping defense just got the best of him. While Evans did well on the glass with 5 rebounds, he looks so uncomfortable with the ball in his hands at times, especially against better defensive teams. I think Evans' physicality is needed on this team, but he can't kill the team offensively when he's in. He had a good offensive game against Phoenix, and his ability on the offensive glass is a real asset to this Kings team, so I'm not throwing in the towel on him. That being said, with the solid game Carl Landy had tonight (6 points on 3-of-3 shooting in 12 minutes), I wonder if Evans is going to be the odd man out after performances like this.

Comparing Darren Collison and Isaiah Thomas 30 Games In

Last year, Thomas (right) seemed to fit the Kings roster better than Collison (red, left). That hasn't been the case with Collison a King and Thomas a Sun.

One of the biggest debates this off-season among Kings fans was the decision to not only let Isaiah Thomas sign in free agency with the Phoenix Suns (through a sign and trade), but to replace him with Darren Collison, previously of the Pacers, Mavs and Clippers. Thomas was coming of a 20 ppg season where he looked to be the clear third option and a bargain for a second round pick, while Collison was coming off an underwhelming Clippers campaign where he looked unable to match up on the better point guards in the league. To many, signing Collison rather than anteing up for Thomas looked to be a head scratching move by management, especially considering many felt the Kings could have drafted Elfrid Payton and gotten something similar to Collison's skill set for a whole lot less money.

Despite the pessimistic predictions from fans, Collison has been a pleasant surprise. Not only is he averaging a career high 16.3 ppg, 6.0 apg, 3.2 rpg and 1.8 spg, but he has been an instrumental factor in the Kings' 13-17 start as well as a key building block for their up-tempo plan going forward. As for Thomas, he primarily comes off the bench, unable to get starting minutes with Goran Dragic and Eric Bledsoe ahead of him. Despite his reserve status though, he has still been a potent force off the bench, scoring 15.3 ppg and averaging 4.0 apg in only 24.3 mpg (a downgrade from the 34.7 minutes he averaged last season in Sacramento), and his 36 minute numbers (22.3 ppg per 36 minutes) actually compare very favorably to his last season in Sacramento.

So did the Kings make the right call on this? Is Darren Collison a better fit for Sacramento or is Thomas simply being overshadowed by a crowded back court in Phoenix? Let's take a look at the two this season.


Where Collison has Been Better

One of the main reasons Pete D'Alessandro parted ways with Thomas is due to the fact he underwhelms defensively and is unable to match up with the better and bigger point guards of the league. Last year, Thomas posted a minus-2.0 Defensive Box Plus/Minus and posted a defensive rating of 111 (points per 100 possessions). Now, point guards are always vulnerable to lackluster defensive advanced numbers (simply due to the fact that defending NBA point guards is pretty damn hard to do). But at 5'7, Thomas simply didn't match up well physically, and he always seemed more inclined on the offensive end as evidenced by his advanced numbers as well as his defensive play on the court.

Collison came from Los Angeles with a better defensive reputation though he struggled to find consistency with the Clippers. He posted a minus-0.3 DPBM and a defensive rating of 107, both considerable upgrades over Thomas' numbers. Furthermore, at 6-feet, 160 pounds and with excellent speed, Collison physically showcased all the tools to help the Kings on the defensive end, which had been mediocre in 2013-2014.

This year, both guys have regressed a bit defensively, but Collison remains the better player on the defensive end by far.  Collison is better than Thomas in points per possession (1.04 to 1.06), DPBM (minus-0.6 to minus-2.6) and effective field goal percentage allowed (46.8 to 49.1 percent). So in that regard, Collison has satisfied what management wanted when they made the decision to go with Collison over Thomas.

One of the most surprising aspects though of Collison has been his offensive efficiency this season as well as his ability to fit into the more up-tempo style that the Kings want. Not expected to have much of an impact offensively, the point guard out of UCLA has been a pleasant surprise, with an 18.9 PER, 56.2 TS percentage and a 2.9 OBPM (Offensive Box Plus/Minus). Thomas has posted better numbers than Collison this season in those categories (20.6 PER, 57.6 TS percentage, 3.9 OBPM), but it isn't significantly better and any offensive upgrades Thomas could have presented to the Kings have been negated by his defensive inefficiencies. Thus, Collison has been a much better overall value than Thomas this year for the Kings (further evidenced by Collison's 2.8 VORP, value over replacement player, to Thomas' 1.2).

Furthermore, while Thomas' is fitting in Jeff Hornacek's up-tempo style in Phoenix, he also plays in an offensive system that is very liberal when it comes to distributing the ball and without true "go-to" guys. And because of Thomas' "alpha dog" nature, he is able to fit into their system nicely, willing and able to be assertive and take control when necessary. In Sacramento, that is not needed, as the Kings have two clear alpha dogs in Demarcus Cousins and Rudy Gay. What the Kings need from their point, especially in an up-tempo style which they want to go to, is a clear sense of role and responsibility (all the positions need this in the up-tempo style, but point especially), and it's obvious that Collison understands his role: to distribute and create offense for his teammates. This season, Collison is besting Thomas in assist percentage (28.6 to 25.8), assists per 48 minutes (8.6 to 7.9) and passing rating (11.3 to 9.4). Thomas fits on a roster where there is equal opportunity, but on a team that is trying to play faster while still keeping their top two scorers a priority, Collison fits in much better as a distributor and third-scoring option.


Where Thomas Has Been Better

While you could argue the validity of "clutch" stats, the numbers point that Thomas has been the better crunch-time scorer this season and beyond. In "clutch" situations (4th quarter or OT, less than 5 minutes, neither team up by more than 5), Thomas gives the Suns an offensive rating of 135.2, a defensive rating of 88.2, and a net48 of 47. Per 48 clutch-time minutes, Thomas is averaging 35.3 points and posting an eFG percentage of 55 percent. And lastly,when Thomas has been on the floor in the clutch (he has earned 35 percent of total clutch time minutes), the Suns have been plus-27 in net points and are 5-1.

The numbers don't favor Collison as much in "clutch" situations. When he is on the floor in clutch-time situations, the offensive rating and defensive rating are both lackluster at 84.8 and 107.3 and the net48 hasn't been good at minus-22.6. Hence, it makes sense why the Kings have a point differential of minus-29 and are 5-9 in clutch situations when Collison is on the floor. This isn't to say Collison isn't clutch or he is the sole reason they struggle in clutch situations, but it is obvious that he doesn't have the kind of impact that Thomas has had this season in Phoenix.

Why is this important? Well, with Cousins and Gay both battling ailments at various times this season, the Kings have had to rely on Collison in these important situations with neither go-to guys at a 100 percent or even in the lineup at times. It is in these scenarios (with Cousins and Gay hurt or ailing) that having Thomas would be an upgrade over Collison, as Thomas has that alpha dog mentality in these crunch time situations that Collison doesn't have or seem to have developed yet on this Kings squad.


The Final Verdict?

Thomas is missed and he deserved the standing ovation he got in Sacramento last Friday. But, the Kings are better without Thomas this year. As good and proficient a scorer as he is, Thomas simply was one Alpha Dog too many on roster that already has two. Collison plays a better complimentary role offensively, plays a more natural point guard, pushes the tempo a lot better thanks to his better passing than Thomas, and is a significant defensive upgrade over Thomas.

As sad as it was to see Thomas go, this is one situation where you can say D'Alessandro made the right call in choosing Collison over Thomas...or at least thus far this year (we still got 52 games to go after all).