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Hello everyone I was wondering what people thought about our second round pick Hassan Whiteside. His highlight tapes on youtube make him look like a potentially amazing player. However, our team is loaded with bigs so playing time will be hard to come by. I was wondering if people think a more favorable situation for Hassan is to spend time in the D-League until we need him or if he can work his way into the rotation this season

That's actually a good question. As it stands now, we have:

Thompson/Landry/Whiteside/Brockman
Cousins/Dalambert/Whiteside

Whiteside would end up being the third string guy at either position. Which is also why I questioned why we need to resign Brockman. I realize he's a fan favorite and all, but there's really no minutes for him. Although for what it's worth, we'll NEVER have to worry about foul trouble ever again.

I think some time in the d-league will do whiteside some good. If there is a trade/injury we can pull him up and he'll be ready for us. I think that if he's put onto a d-league team where he is a leader and playing against good competition he can really gain a lot of confidence and put any doubts he might have about playing at the next level to rest.

SacTownKings4Life wrote:That's actually a good question. As it stands now, we have:

Thompson/Landry/Whiteside/Brockman
Cousins/Dalambert/Whiteside

Whiteside would end up being the third string guy at either position. Which is also why I questioned why we need to resign Brockman. I realize he's a fan favorite and all, but there's really no minutes for him. Although for what it's worth, we'll NEVER have to worry about foul trouble ever again.

Brockman right now is the third big not Whiteside. Brockman is already a proven talent who can bang, play good D, and grab about 10-15 rebounds a game. I am confused at why you wouldnt want that on this team, especially when Hassan hasnt even played a game yet and is extremely raw right now.

My issue isn't that I don't WANT him, I'm just bringing up the fact that there realistically aren't a whole lot of minutes available to him on this current team, as we now have all the size that we need, and he still remains an undersized big man. I'm not dogging him or anything, I'm just saying, if Cousins (for instance) brings that exact same kind of play with much improved scoring ability and bigger size, when's Brockman gonna play? There's 4 guys ahead of him filling 2 positions, even if you don't count Whiteside.
Hey, if it works out, then so be it. I'm just bringing up something for us to talk about.

Depends on how ready he is. If he comes into practice and shows he's ready to contribute I can't see Westphal leaving him off the floor. They've already come out and said they view him as a 4 so that could help him getting minutes. No doubt however, there is a major minutes crunch. I still think 1 or 2 of Landry/Daly/Thompson will be gone at the deadline.

I actually hope neither of them go (yet). I'm eager and anxious to see the first Kings team in my 17 years as a fan that ACTUALLY BULLIES PEOPLE INSIDE! We've got an endless stream of big bodies to throw at other teams! I'VE NEVER SEEN THIS BEFORE! (lol) Sure we're really young and raw, but going on sheer size-for-size, I think we may be the only team that could legitimately go toe-to-toe with the Lakers' front line. Not saying we would be "on par" with them, but I think it would be an interesting matchup.

DickVitale wrote:I think some time in the d-league will do whiteside some good. If there is a trade/injury we can pull him up and he'll be ready for us. I think that if he's put onto a d-league team where he is a leader and playing against good competition he can really gain a lot of confidence and put any doubts he might have about playing at the next level to rest.

Yes I completely agree that the D-League would be good for Hassan if he cant crack our big man rotation by the start of the year. I'd rather have him playing 25-30 minutes a game in d-league than 0 for us.

SacKingZZZ wrote:Depends on how ready he is. If he comes into practice and shows he's ready to contribute I can't see Westphal leaving him off the floor. They've already come out and said they view him as a 4 so that could help him getting minutes. No doubt however, there is a major minutes crunch. I still think 1 or 2 of Landry/Daly/Thompson will be gone at the deadline.

As I mentioned earlier Whiteside's highlight tapes make him look amazing. I think it is very possible that he can come into practice and show he can contribute this season even tho he is still very raw. This scenario, however, is going to pose Westphal with some very serious playing time issues. If both Whiteside and Cousins are ready to contribute, Landry is still able to average around 16 ppg, Thompson continues to improve and Dalembert remains a legit starter then I don't know who from that group is going to get the bulk of the minutes. It will be interesting.

SacTownKings4Life wrote:That's actually a good question. As it stands now, we have:

Thompson/Landry/Whiteside/Brockman
Cousins/Dalambert/Whiteside

Whiteside would end up being the third string guy at either position. Which is also why I questioned why we need to resign Brockman. I realize he's a fan favorite and all, but there's really no minutes for him. Although for what it's worth, we'll NEVER have to worry about foul trouble ever again.

Thank you this was actually the first topic I've ever started being that I'm new to the site. I don't like resigning Brockman either. He barely got playing time last year and now we have a plethora of bigs.

Resign Brockman for a year, no reason to think he can't squeak a few minutes in and at worst is a great locker room presense and a guy who'll make the others work their butts off in practice.

If Whiteside gets ANY time this year other than D-League, I'll be surprised. Love the guy, love the pick, he was on my top 10, but I think we all knew he'd be a project.

Whiteside's playing time will come in the D-League this year unless he outplays someone.

twoolfork1 wrote:

SacTownKings4Life wrote:That's actually a good question. As it stands now, we have:

Thompson/Landry/Whiteside/Brockman
Cousins/Dalambert/Whiteside

Whiteside would end up being the third string guy at either position. Which is also why I questioned why we need to resign Brockman. I realize he's a fan favorite and all, but there's really no minutes for him. Although for what it's worth, we'll NEVER have to worry about foul trouble ever again.

Thank you this was actually the first topic I've ever started being that I'm new to the site. I don't like resigning Brockman either. He barely got playing time last year and now we have a plethora of bigs.

Gotta re-sign Brock. Good dude, glue guy, and with whatever minutes he gets, whether it be in a game or practice he's going to work harder than anyone else. Any guy that can get extra possessions for his team like Brock should be re-signed. If one of Landry or Thompson aren't in the long term plans then he automatically gets bumped up. He's a better defender than both as well.

Whiteside is a wildcard, he seems too raw to contribute, we know what Brockman brings, Brockman should be re-signed, he won us few games last year.

I think re-signing Brock should be a given. He still brings something the other guys don't really. He's a specific kind of player.

I agree that one of the veteran bigs will have to be moved, but regardless, I expect Hassan to see some d-league time this year. But the thing is, he's also bound to get some time, and getting SOME time is probably a good thing. I don't think he's ready to be a contributor in the rotation yet, but Dalembert, JT and Brock are all very foul prone and Cousins likely will be as well. Plus injuries are basically inevitable. I think opportunistic minutes and d-league time will be good for him. I also think it's good to have two centers ahead of him, whether it's Boogie and Dalembert or Boogie and JT.

mitchweber wrote:I think re-signing Brock should be a given. He still brings something the other guys don't really. He's a specific kind of player.

I agree that one of the veteran bigs will have to be moved, but regardless, I expect Hassan to see some d-league time this year. But the thing is, he's also bound to get some time, and getting SOME time is probably a good thing. I don't think he's ready to be a contributor in the rotation yet, but Dalembert, JT and Brock are all very foul prone and Cousins likely will be as well. Plus injuries are basically inevitable. I think opportunistic minutes and d-league time will be good for him. I also think it's good to have two centers ahead of him, whether it's Boogie and Dalembert or Boogie and JT.

Well in any case, that's 24 fouls between the 4 of them (30 if you actually count Whiteside). I'll take my chances.

deNIEd wrote:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uD5U3eQY-k0

Luke... Come to the Whiteside...

Lol. Good stuff.

As far as comparing Brockman to our other bigs I dont really see anything he can do significantly better than the other guys we have. I mean. . . yes he plays hard and hustles but when your most attractive characteristic is how hard you play it says something as to your limits as a player. Brockman is a 6'7" post player with an EXTREMELY limited offensive game. His height also limits him as a post defender most starting 4's in the NBA are able to shoot right over this guy. He is a good rebounder but If he cant develop a consistent midrange shot he wont find playing time anywhere IMO.

Well I can tell you one right now, he's more polished and knows the game better than any of the others. He sets solid screens, knows where to be on defense, and knows where to be on the offensive boards.

And he's not just a "good" rebounder, per minute he's one of the best, if not the best, in the league. At least on the offensive glass. He's really the ultimate type of offensive rebounder because the majority he gets are literally extra possessions. He isn't one of those types that just rebounds their own misses over and over. He literally retrieves the ball, a rare, rare skill in the NBA when doing it at that level.

That mid-range shot started looking pretty good by the end of the season if I recall.