Category: NBA (Page 550 of 595)

After parting ways with Rick Adelman, the Sacramento Kings hired Eric Musselman to lead the team.

The Maloof brothers introduced Musselman on Saturday as the 20th coach in franchise history, but the first they’ve hired since buying the team. After interviewing just three serious candidates, the Maloofs chose the 41-year-old coach for his second NBA head coaching job following two seasons with Golden State from 2002 to 2004.

After deciding to replace Rick Adelman this summer, the brothers went looking for a coach with a defensive background and an outgoing personality — and with nearly everything Musselman said in their two lengthy interviews, the coach fit their vision.

I thought Rick Adelman did a great job after the team acquired Ron Artest mid-season, leading the team to a playoffs and taking the defending champs to six games. But it appears that the Maloofs never took to Adelman’s aloof (pun not intended) demeanor and wanted a coach with more personality.

Cap Situation

Despite missing the playoffs with a 35-47 record, the Sonics have a pretty good team. After trading for Chris Wilcox and Earl Watson, Seattle finished 13-10 over the final two months, which would translate to a 46-36 record over an entire regular season. And the team hasn’t even had a chance to gel.

Seattle is on the books for around $48 M next season, giving the team roughly $4 M in cap space. The team’s best player, Ray Allen, is signed for another four years at the tune of $67 M. With an EPM of .546 (39th in the league), he’s not worth quite that much dough, but he’s probably the best shooter in the league, making him a valuable asset. He averaged a career-high 25 points per game (on 45% shooting, 41% from long range), along with four rebounds and four assists.

Rashard Lewis has another year on his contract ($9.3 M), and then has the option to extend the deal another two years for a total of $21 M. His decision will likely hinge on how well the team plays next season. His EPM of .507 (#67 in the league) makes him a good value for the price.

Earl Watson was a nice mid-season pickup. He’s a tough, defensive-minded player with a decent EPM of .433, and is signed for four more years at a total price of $24 M. Not bad for a combo guard who averaged 12 points, five assists and three boards after the trade brought him to Seattle.

Luke Ridnour improved his numbers to 12 points and seven assists, but still doesn’t shoot the ball all that well (42%). He’s entering the last year of his contract, and the team will soon need to decide if he is in their long term plans.

But the more pressing question is free agent Chris Wilcox. In 29 games with the Sonics, he averaged 14 points and eight boards while shooting 59% from the field, proving that he could step out of the shadow of Elton Brand if he just got minutes. Wilcox and Watson served as catalysts for team’s solid play down the stretch, and it is crucial that the team re-sign him if they hope to build on their late run and contend for a playoff spot next season.

Offseason Blueprint

Like the Knicks, the Sonics are another team that would be best served running the Suns’ up-tempo offense. Ridnour is a poor man’s Steve Nash, while Allen, Lewis and Watson can all light it up from the perimeter. In this system, Wilcox would be an effective center, although he doesn’t pass the ball nearly as well as the Suns’ Boris Diaw does.

The Sonics averaged a league-worst 105.1 points per game last season, but they proved they could simply outscore their opponents late in the season – they allowed 107 points per game during their 13-10 run over the final two months, but scored 109 per game. Ridnour, Allen and Lewis aren’t particularly good defensively, so the Sonics would be better off speeding things up the way the Suns do, taking advantage of the team’s strengths.

The team has the #10 pick, and NBADraft.net projects them to take Shelden Williams. Williams would be a particularly good fit, especially if the Sonics are unable (or unwilling) to re-sign Chris Wilcox. Williams would bring toughness and shot blocking to a team in desperate need such things. He also runs the floor really well for a big man and would be a good fit in the post for a wide-open, up-tempo offense. Since the Sonics are loaded in the backcourt, they should focus on a frontcourt player if Williams is not available at #10. If they want to run Lewis at power forward and Wilcox at center, a small forward like Rodney Carney might make sense.

While the Sonics ran the ball a lot last season, they’d be wise to adopt an even more up-tempo offense, taking advantage of the team’s strengths while limiting their deficiencies. Ridnour should pattern his game after Steve Nash and focus on improving his jump shot as well as practicing awkward (right foot/right hand or left foot/left hand) layups inside. Ridnour’s passing ability and ball handling would make him a nice fit for the Suns’ offense. Wilcox played great (14 points, 11 rebounds) after the trade and, at 23 years old, he’s just getting started. The team needs to make his contract extension their #1 offseason priority.

Seattle’s EPM by player (league average = .445)

Player EPM League Rank
Chris Wilcox 0.555 # 36
Ray Allen 0.546 # 39
Rashard Lewis 0.507 # 67
Nick Collison 0.479 # 92
Luke Ridnour 0.451 # 119
Robert Swift 0.447 # 124
Earl Watson 0.433 # 137
Danny Fortson 0.408 # 171
Johan Petro 0.392 # 196
Damien Wilkins 0.371 # 235
Mikki Moore 0.354 # 258

With seven players in the Top 150 in EPM, there is reason for excitement in Seattle. With his #36 EPM last season (#12 for power forwards), Wilcox will be a bargain for someone in free agency.

Cap Situation

With Mike Dunleavy’s 5-year/$44 M extension last summer, the Warriors owe approximately $64 M in payroll next season. Dunleavy was coming off his best season (13 points, six rebounds, 45% shooting) but still wasn’t worth that kind of money. Last season, his numbers fell across the board and with an EPM of .386, he isn’t worth that kind of money.

Baron Davis is the team’s most expensive player with three years and $48 M remaining on his contract. Complicating matters, he missed 28 games with a sprained ankle. A career 41% shooter (39% last season), Davis was strong in just about every other aspect of the game – 18 points, nine assists, four rebounds – yielding a solid .509 EPM, #61 in the league. But at his price, the Warriors don’t need solid – they need spectacular.

Spectacular is what they got from Jason Richardson. J-Rich has five years and $61 M remaining on his contract, but he continues to improve and with an EPM of .502, he is a good value. He averaged 23 points, six rebounds and three assists a game, while shooting 45% from the field. He needs to improve his free throw percentage, but otherwise he’s on his way to stardom.

Troy Murphy, with 5-years/$50 M remaining on his deal, averaged a double-double for the second consecutive season en route to a team-high .518 EPM, which makes him the #18 power forward in that category. He needs to improve his shooting – 43% for a power forward just doesn’t cut it.

Aside from the Dunleavy signing, the Warriors have one other bad contract. Adonal Foyle is set to earn $27 M over the next three years. This is a guy who has averaged five points and six rebounds the last two seasons, making the team wish they had kept Erick Dampier. Without these two contracts, the Warriors would have about $4 M in cap space heading into the summer.

Rookie Ike Diogu has the team’s third highest EPM (.502) and will continue to improve with more minutes. He has three years left on his rookie contract that will pay him just $7.4 M. Another rookie, Monta Ellis, averaged 12 points, four assists and four rebounds in the month of April, which was the only month where he got more than 18 minutes of playing time. His EPM (.336) isn’t good, but his play during the final month was encouraging.

Offseason Blueprint

The team needs to build around Jason Richardson and Ike Diogu – everyone else is expendable. Unfortunately, I doubt that the team will be able to unload Foyle or Dunleavy anytime soon. The good news is – if Davis stays healthy – a lineup of Davis, Richardson, Dunleavy, Diogu and Murphy isn’t bad, especially with the likes of the always solid Derrick Fisher (EPM=.406), center Andris Biedrins (.486), and guards Mickael Pietrus and Ellis coming off the bench.

Murphy isn’t really a center, and since he and Diogu play basically the same position, he’s probably the team’s most valuable trade asset. A Murphy for Jamal Magloire swap would make sense for both Golden State and Milwaukee, but neither guy is particularly fleet of foot, which is becoming more and more important in today’s NBA.

The team has the #9 pick this year and NBADraft.net projects them to select Rodney Carney. Carney would give the team the athleticism at small forward that Dunleavy lacks, but I wonder if the team would select another small forward after recently committing so much money to the position. Brandon Roy or Marcus Williams could run the point if the team is intent on moving Davis, who would be trade-able (maybe for a first round pick and an expiring contract?) once he proves he’s healthy. Patrick O’Bryant is a prospect at center and might not be a bad fit with Diogu up front.

The team could go any number of directions depending on which players they are going to try to move in the next several months. Golden State tied with Houston and Charlotte as the worst shooting teams in the league, so whoever they draft should be able to shoot the ball.

Notes:

Golden State’s EPM by player (league average = .445)

Player EPM League Rank
Troy Murphy 0.518 # 57
Baron Davis 0.509 # 61
Ike Diogu 0.502 # 69
Jason Richardson 0.502 # 70
Andris Biedrins 0.486 # 83
Derek Fisher 0.409 # 170
Adonal Foyle 0.392 # 195
Mike Dunleavy 0.386 # 206
Monta Ellis 0.336 # 278
Mickael Pietrus 0.295 # 308
Calbert Cheaney 0.231 # 345

Diogu’s EPM is very encouraging for such a young player. Biedrins is another young player who deserves more minutes. The team just needs to make a decision on Baron Davis and go from there.