NBA: I am the card dealer

No. 12 Cousins, the last time the Kings made it to the playoffs was ten years ago, but there is no problem with Cousins' personal ability at all.

Especially his offensive ability. In this era of zero centers, his scoring ability is definitely the first among centers. Last season, he averaged 26.9 points, 11.5 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game. He is a monster that ravages the inside, and he also has A very good three-pointer.

As for why the Kings are sinking all the way?

That's hard to describe.

There are too many factors.

For example, the management changed their minds and selected Tyreke Evans in 09. In his rookie season, Evans used his tall stature, strong body, and excellent sense of rhythm to dominate the world, averaging 20.1 points and 5.8 assists per game. 5.3 rebounds and 20+5+5 data directly made him elected the best rookie without any suspense.

Logically speaking, as long as he polishes it well, Evans' future can be said to be bright.

As a result, in the second season, after the management selected Cousins, they immediately changed their strategy and trained Cousins ​​as the core of the team.

In particular, head coach Westphal had a sudden idea to put Evans in the shooting guard position.

Evans, who originally had an advantage in physical confrontation, found it difficult to gain advantage. As confrontations increased, injuries also followed.

Then in the third season, Westphal went even more bizarre, directly setting up a set of Thomas, Marcus Thornton, Evans, Salmons, Cousins, four guards + one center. line-up.

Such a lineup structure, even in the current small ball era, is a very explosive existence.

What's even worse is that Marcus Thornton plays more offensive roles than Evans at this time, making Evans the third choice.

As the first core, Cousins ​​is just the second choice.

This is simply unbelievable.

What's even more surprising is that this season, Evans played from the No. 1 position to the No. 4 position, then from the No. 4 position to the No. 1 position, and finally settled at the No. 3 position.

The Kings have had another bad season.

Then the next season, the Kings management reacted, killed Westphal, and supported Keith Smart, now the Miami Heat's chief assistant.

But Keith was a complete rookie. He was in a panic when he took office. He just wanted to produce results to prove himself, and he had no clear training standards.

As a result, all players take similar shots. What stands out is balanceism, and even Cousins ​​is no exception.

In season.

Cousins ​​averaged 13.8 shots per game and averaged 17.1 points, 9.9 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game.

Evans averaged 11.8 shots per game and averaged 15.2 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game.

Thomas averaged 10.5 shots per game and averaged 13.9 points, 4 assists and 2 rebounds per game.

Marcus Thornton was put on the bench, averaging 10.8 times per game and averaging 12.7 points, 2.5 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game.

He is really treated like a prince. He takes more shots than Thomas, but the points he contributes are more than 1 point less than Thomas.

Such an inefficient performance, but still being entrusted with important tasks, I have to say that Thornton is indeed lucky.

of course.

The most important thing is that Thornton produces three-pointers in large quantities and is the team's most stable three-pointer.

Then there is center Jason Thompson, who took 9.1 shots and averaged 10.9 points and 6.7 rebounds per game.

Salmons took 8.1 shots, averaging 8.8 points per game and shooting only 39%.

Other role players also have good shot rights.

There is no doubt that this season, even Cousins' core position is gone, and Evans is completely useless. He is still at the small forward position, messy in the wind.

But the problem is, if you want to play team basketball, you must at least achieve results.

The result is that the Kings' record is still last, and the potential new stars in the team have all become big sweet potatoes.

What's more, this is obviously putting the cart before the horse.

For a bad team like the Kings, the first task is to establish the core and then cultivate the core, not to achieve any record.

Got it...

After doing this, nothing was accomplished.

The following season, Evans left, wasting four valuable years with the Kings.

The Kings changed coaches again and replaced them with Mike Malone. The Kings began to correct the chaos. Cousins ​​finally came forward. He averaged 22.7 points, 11.7 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game that season, playing the statistics of a top center.

Thomas Jr. is established as the core outside line, averaging 20.3 points, 6.4 assists and 2.9 rebounds per game.

They also got Rudy Gay, and they have a serious forward.

Marcus Thornton and Jason Thompson, who had been vigorously cultivated before, both fell.

Especially Marcus Thornton, who played 46 games with the Kings that season, averaging 8.3 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1 assist per game, and his shooting percentage was an astonishing 38.1%.

The Kings management couldn't bear it, and finally gave it to the Nets like garbage before the trade deadline.

So, after cultivating it for so long, I finally cultivated loneliness.

Many fans said they couldn't understand the King's brain circuit. Evans has already figured it out, so you can train it well, and others can be used as screws.

result.

The King turned his attention to Thornton, moved Evans' position around, and directly trained Thornton.

And Cousins ​​also wasted three precious years with the Kings.

Originally, he and Evans were both internal and external, but as a result, he became the co-ordinator of Thornton and Thomas.

It was nothing more than half-hearted, and it made the supernova he selected unable to play.

Evans and Cousins ​​are actually victims.

The Kings have not made the playoffs in ten years, and it can be said that the Kings' president of operations Dumars is indispensable. He has completely forgotten about long-term team building ideas, and his main focus is to do whatever he wants.

No. 11 Lillard, as the Blazers' first five generals, began to take the lead last season.

Everyone thinks the Trail Blazers are going to start a long rebuild.

As a result, the original reconstruction was completed.

As the absolute core of the team, Lillard can contribute first-class data of 25.1 points, 6.8 assists and 4 rebounds per game. The only flaw is that when facing huge defensive pressure, his efficiency is relatively low. His season shooting rate is 41.9%, which is really It hurts the eyes.

However, by the end of the season, Lillard has gradually adapted to this defensive intensity, and I believe he will definitely perform brilliantly in the new season.

Ranking in this position is definitely not excessive.

Next is the important top ten ranking.

No. 10 Paul George, the Pacers reached the playoffs at the buzzer last season, which gave George a very big bonus.

You know, last season was the first time that George led a team with a single core in a strict sense. He averaged 23.1 points, 7 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game, while Ellis, who was second in scoring, only had 13.8 points, which was almost 10 points behind. .

In addition, George returned from a broken leg and was even more inspiring. At the same time, he also showed top-level influence on the defensive end, which Lillard does not possess.

This is also the reason why George was able to overpower Lillard and reach the top ten.