Reggie Theus' Future and near exit

[humboldtkingsfan]

I read that Theus' tenure was nearly at an end following the 4 game road disaster (maybe obvious). The Memphis win kept him here long enough to give us hope again (det loss not withstanding). Joe Maloof pointed out the need to defend the 3 point line and for a change, I can't argue with him. Our one road win was nearly lost as we watched Ricky Davis hit from 3 in the 4th quarter too many times. I like Theus and our recent turnaround has me optimistic, but would Avery or another alternative be a better fit? I like our roster and when Kev comes back I think we can really run at the 8 seed or maybe even the 7. An early coaching change might change my opinion. What are your guys' thoughts on the articles and the near firing of Theus?

[_SRV_]

Avery is good for a veteran team, with already laid plan, to keep them intact and not screw around.
I don't think we should be firing a coach for the sake of change, if a great coach becomes available and he fits Petrie's philosophy, then jump on the chance, but right now, trying out rookie coaches will be just painful to watch, and will increase players' power and decrease coaches which is the last thing I want to see after te last years of Addleman and the year of Muss.

[KingInExile]

My thoughts are that Joe Maloof needs to keep his freaking yap shut and let Theus do his job with only having to listen to Petrie. I am really getting sick of his micromanaging and going to the media with complaints. He has a GM...let him do his job! He has a decent coach...let him do his damn job!

[deNIEd]

My opinion is that Maloofs need to suck it up and rebuild. The worst thing possible for our team right now is to fight for a playoff spot. It would be suicide for our franchise for the next 10 years or so.

Come out and tell the public or accept the fact that "developing players" is the primary focus for the year. Whatever else happens, happens.


Our team desperately needs another quality player via the draft. You would have to be delusional to think that any high quality superstar would ever come to Sacramento via free agency. Lebron isn't coming. Wade, Bosh, Amare, none of them are coming to Sacramento by choice. The ONLY way we can ever obtain game changing players is by forcing them to come to Sacramento, meaning draft or trade. And quite simply, we don't have enough talent or assets to facilitate any big trade.

[pillwenney]

My opinion is that Maloofs need to suck it up and rebuild. The worst thing possible for our team right now is to fight for a playoff spot. It would be suicide for our franchise for the next 10 years or so.

Come out and tell the public or accept the fact that "developing players" is the primary focus for the year. Whatever else happens, happens.


Our team desperately needs another quality player via the draft. You would have to be delusional to think that any high quality superstar would ever come to Sacramento via free agency. Lebron isn't coming. Wade, Bosh, Amare, none of them are coming to Sacramento by choice. The ONLY way we can ever obtain game changing players is by forcing them to come to Sacramento, meaning draft or trade. And quite simply, we don't have enough talent or assets to facilitate any big trade.

When it's your millions upon millions that is being invested into a team every year, we'll see how you feel. The bottom line is that a team that sucks is a team that sucks, and regardless of age, people are probably not going to want to fork over the money to pay for a ticket to watch young guys "develop".

For me, the bottom line is that we won't be able to run a coherent offense without Brad until Spencer is ready to fill those shoes. I think he's getting there, but he's not there yet. But the point is that the Maloofs won't let this team do what you want them to do because the fans will stop paying to watch. But if the team can remain competitive, the attendance will generally still not be so bad.

Having said that, I basically agree with KIE. They really need to stfu.

[a-rod]

My thoughts are that Joe Maloof needs to keep his freaking yap shut

He's the owner, he has spent millions of dollars on the team, he has every right to express his opinions regarding team issues, but he should probably express them behind closed doors.

let Theus do his job with only having to listen to Petrie. I am really getting sick of his micromanaging and going to the media with complaints. He has a GM...let him do his job! He has a decent coach...let him do his damn job!

From here i totally agree...

[deNIEd]

When it's your millions upon millions that is being invested into a team every year, we'll see how you feel. The bottom line is that a team that sucks is a team that sucks, and regardless of age, people are probably not going to want to fork over the money to pay for a ticket to watch young guys "develop".

For me, the bottom line is that we won't be able to run a coherent offense without Brad until Spencer is ready to fill those shoes. I think he's getting there, but he's not there yet. But the point is that the Maloofs won't let this team do what you want them to do because the fans will stop paying to watch. But if the team can remain competitive, the attendance will generally still not be so bad.

Having said that, I basically agree with KIE. They really need to stfu.

I don't want the King's to fire Theus and hope that a new coach would bring energy.
I don't want the King's to trade current players for vet players in hopes of getting a spark to potentially boost us into the playoffs.
I do want Moore traded asap.
I do want Miller traded for the best deal possible.

How are any of these things unreasonable or things that would cause fans to support the King's anyless.

[RoyalCourtJestr]

How can the Maloofs legit blame this on Thesus? A coach could be fantastic but with nothing to work with, he's not going to priduce wins. The difference here is our teams even when outmatched go out and play their hearts out, and I think Theus should stay until he gets a legit team to try to win with.

[element_88]

if reggie gets fired, and adelman does too, would u guys be in favor of bringing him back? i think i would, it woudl fit our players perfectly

[SacTown Kings]

Joe Maloof is an idiot. Theus isn't going anywhere and appropriately so. I can't believe people want to see him fired. Keep Adelman away, he doesn't develop young players very well.

[pillwenney]

I don't want the King's to fire Theus and hope that a new coach would bring energy.
I don't want the King's to trade current players for vet players in hopes of getting a spark to potentially boost us into the playoffs.
I do want Moore traded asap.
I do want Miller traded for the best deal possible.

How are any of these things unreasonable or things that would cause fans to support the King's anyless.

Trading Miller will leave this team unable to really run a coherent offense, and IMO will make the team not very competitive. Right now this is a team that has a chance to win on its home court every game it plays there, so some people will still buy tickets. But if we can't run an effective offense, that won't be the case.

[KingInExile]

When it's your millions upon millions that is being invested into a team every year, we'll see how you feel. The bottom line is that a team that sucks is a team that sucks, and regardless of age, people are probably not going to want to fork over the money to pay for a ticket to watch young guys "develop".

For me, the bottom line is that we won't be able to run a coherent offense without Brad until Spencer is ready to fill those shoes. I think he's getting there, but he's not there yet. But the point is that the Maloofs won't let this team do what you want them to do because the fans will stop paying to watch. But if the team can remain competitive, the attendance will generally still not be so bad.

Having said that, I basically agree with KIE. They really need to stfu.

I don't want the King's to fire Theus and hope that a new coach would bring energy.
I don't want the King's to trade current players for vet players in hopes of getting a spark to potentially boost us into the playoffs.
I do want Moore traded asap.
I do want Miller traded for the best deal possible.

How are any of these things unreasonable or things that would cause fans to support the King's anyless.

I generally agree, although I don't think there needs to be an urgency to move Moore or Miller (realize you didn't say ASAP for Miller). It's fine to keep them until the deadline so Petrie has as much time as possible to get the best deal as possible for them. If we can't get a good deal for Moore, then bench him and cut him over the summer. For Miller, well, he will be more valuable next year as a big expiring deal.

[deNIEd]

I generally agree, although I don't think there needs to be an urgency to move Moore or Miller (realize you didn't say ASAP for Miller). It's fine to keep them until the deadline so Petrie has as much time as possible to get the best deal as possible for them. If we can't get a good deal for Moore, then bench him and cut him over the summer. For Miller, well, he will be more valuable next year as a big expiring deal.

When I meant ASAP for Moore I meant this season (by trade deadline), since I believe that we can obtain an expiring + little incentive for Moore. Maybe like worse expiring + 09 2nd, or something of that nature.

Miller, I would say asap, but I believe Miller can obtain a lot more value than Moore, and we should wait for the best deal possible. Now, that could be as early as January, maybe on draft night, perhaps a week before the 09/10 season starts, I don't know, but I trust Petrie has a better judgment of when exactly Miller's value will peak and we have a deal that is best suited for us.

But again, the worst thing possible for this team is to trade for a vet or firing Theus for a more experienced coach. Both things would prevent us from being in a position to draft a player of impact.

And again, our team's only realistic options of obtaining high quality players are via draft or free agency, or unless we vastly overpay a FA (something that wouldn't work on a Lebron, Bosh, Wade, etc. since they'll be getting the max possible anyways).

All of our FA signings in the past decade or so (off the top of my head)

Beno Udrih
Mikkie Moore
John Salmons
Shareef Rahim
Greg Ostertag
Loren Woods
Vlade Divac
Keon Clark
Scott Pollard
(Plus some others of course)

But the point is, no MAJOR free agent will ever want to come to Sacramento, unless if there is a specific reason (born here, parents live here, wants vip status at Palms, whatever).

Draft or Trade
Draft or Trade

[pillwenney]

I generally agree, although I don't think there needs to be an urgency to move Moore or Miller (realize you didn't say ASAP for Miller). It's fine to keep them until the deadline so Petrie has as much time as possible to get the best deal as possible for them. If we can't get a good deal for Moore, then bench him and cut him over the summer. For Miller, well, he will be more valuable next year as a big expiring deal.

When I meant ASAP for Moore I meant this season (by trade deadline), since I believe that we can obtain an expiring + little incentive for Moore. Maybe like worse expiring + 09 2nd, or something of that nature.

Miller, I would say asap, but I believe Miller can obtain a lot more value than Moore, and we should wait for the best deal possible. Now, that could be as early as January, maybe on draft night, perhaps a week before the 09/10 season starts, I don't know, but I trust Petrie has a better judgment of when exactly Miller's value will peak and we have a deal that is best suited for us.

But again, the worst thing possible for this team is to trade for a vet or firing Theus for a more experienced coach. Both things would prevent us from being in a position to draft a player of impact.

And again, our team's only realistic options of obtaining high quality players are via draft or free agency, or unless we vastly overpay a FA (something that wouldn't work on a Lebron, Bosh, Wade, etc. since they'll be getting the max possible anyways).

All of our FA signings in the past decade or so (off the top of my head)

Beno Udrih
Mikkie Moore
John Salmons
Shareef Rahim
Greg Ostertag
Loren Woods
Vlade Divac
Keon Clark
Scott Pollard
(Plus some others of course)

But the point is, no MAJOR free agent will ever want to come to Sacramento, unless if there is a specific reason (born here, parents live here, wants vip status at Palms, whatever).

Draft or Trade
Draft or Trade

It's important to note that cap space doesn't just mean free agency. It could also lead to a team trading their disgruntled star for pure cap space.

[Joseph17]

I don't think Theus should be fired. He's doing a good job of working with what he has. Why would the Kings not fight for a playoff spot and hope for a high draft pick? What's the point of even playing if your goal is to lose? I'm also confident that the Kings will draft a good player regardless of whether they get the 1st pick or the 30th pick. Petrie has done a great job of drafting players. Peja, Hedo, Wallace, and Martin were all steals from the mid to late first round. Hawes and Thompson look like great picks as well.

[SacKingZZZ]

I didn't hear anything about Theus being in jeopardy. I doubt that he truly was. The owners just like everyone else know the score. I actually think Theus could be a great coach for the young team we're hiding on the bench. I don't know if he's the right coach for the style this team will most likely have to play one day but he may be able to adapt when the time comes. I don't think the Kings trading their youth to compete now is an option:

Q: Joe, the elephant in the room is that his contract is up this summer. How short is his leash right now?

A: Well, I think Reggie's future depends upon Reggie and how he develops our young players. Just like anything in life, you have to look at your wins and losses, look at your success. Is your team progressing? Are they getting better? Can you see a bright future for your team?

[SacKingZZZ]

You know the interesting thing in Theus' response was that he called his system "...a C-action, high-post, double-high post team", and I really don't think he is involving Spencer or Jason in these sets near enough. That is most likely the best system to play in, not the Triangle IMO, and it all reeks of Geoff Petries direction (duh). Now it won't be perfect right away and the Maloofs need to know that it will look ugly at times, but that learning needs to happen now.

[ICMTM]

^
The way it's playing out right now it looks like the Kings will be starting the two of them come the end of the season when Miller is moved and Moore's contract is no longer guaranteed.

[Cruel_Ruin]

The future of this team is that the offense will be run through Spencer and Jason, in a combination of the high and low post, depending on matchups. We have a seriously versatile frontcourt on our hands. This team right now, with a Miller/Moore frontline, is like a dirt poor, living in the sewers man's version of what this team can do in the future. That is where majority of our internal improvement will come from.

We're just a few pieces away from completing our core. We need a player who can consistently score in ISO or pick and roll situations at SF or PG, and we'll be complete. Whether weget that guy through the draft, FA, or trade is yet to be seen. Maybe Donte Greene becomes that player. It's still up in the air.


But this season should be dedicated to giving Spencer/Jason as much experience as possible in running the offense and improving their defense, playoffs be damned. Trade Mikki ASAP, but keep Brad around to keep some stability, but eventually have Spencer take over. This year will be ugly at times, next year we make a run at the playoffs and the year after that we're midlevel contenders, and the year after we're making a championship run with Martin in his prime, Jason and Spencer just entering theirs.

It's going to take some time and lumps this year, but it's critical not to get frustrated and short-circuit the curve with delusional goals of playoffs this year.

[deNIEd]

I don't think Theus should be fired. He's doing a good job of working with what he has. Why would the Kings not fight for a playoff spot and hope for a high draft pick? What's the point of even playing if your goal is to lose? I'm also confident that the Kings will draft a good player regardless of whether they get the 1st pick or the 30th pick.

Yes, but there is no reason to fight for a playoff spot by jeopardizing the future. Again, this doesn't mean tank every single game or give Kenny and Moore 48 minutes a game, cause that'll certainly mean that we'll lose every game from here on out, but don't make stupid midseason trades to get some vet experience to help the "contending" team, don't make coaching staff changes hoping that a more "experienced" coach would be able to direct our team into the playoffs.

Play every game hard and try to win all of them, but it stops there. There should be no roster or personnel moves in hopes of winning a few more games.

This season should be completely dedicated to Thompson and Hawes, we need to know whether or not they can become a starting frontcourt for a contending team, because as of now they aren't at that level. Could they? Yes, they very well could develop into those players, but as of now we don't know that and can't bank on the fact that they will become future allstars.

Again, whatever front court we put together will have to be able to compete with Aldridge/Oden, Smith/Horford, Dwight/Howard, Barg/Bosh, Yi/Lopez, Whoever/Bynum, Wright/Biendris, etc. It doesn't matter how good we are, the only thing that matters is how good we are relative to others.