
Editor's note: Above is an exclusive video of Vlade Divac discussing his team's new look approaching the 2015-16 campaign
SACRAMENTO -- The march to the home opener continued in Sacramento on Friday, with the Kings holding their third straight day of practice.
The mood around the practice facility is still light as the team continues to work on bonding.
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So far, the team is playing extremely hard in the window we are allowed to watch. Rudy Gay dove for a ball on the floor and tried to call a timeout. The bigs are battling in the post and the guard play has been exceptional.
The Kings’ players had to leave the court early today to sit through an NBA meeting, but before they left the floor, both Darren Collison and George Karl sat for the media.
Karl goes old school on Cauley-Stein
Rookie big man Willie Cauley-Stein rolled his left ankle during Wednesday’s session and could be seen sitting courtside in street clothes. Karl is a veteran of the game who has coached more than 2100 professional contests. His old school mentality on injuries was on full display today and aimed directly at his youngest player.
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“I recommend he start practicing,” Karl said with a chuckle. “I think he’s going to be fine. He doesn’t look like he’s hurt.”
[HAM: The Kings Insider podcast -- Episode 2 with Chad Iske]
After his opening statement, Karl qualified his statement and added more.
“Injuries are not my forte,” Karl added. “I don’t handle them well. I’m usually too tough on players that are sitting on the sidelines and don’t look they are hurt. He’s a rookie. He’s got to get on the court. The more he’s on the court, the more he’ll play, the more opportunity he’ll get. Injuries doesn’t help you.”
Cauley-Stein’s injury does not appear serious, but the team has not given a timetable for his return to the court. No MRI has been ordered and the team is listing the injury as a sore ankle. Clearly this was a shot across the bow by an experienced coach to a young player.
The scoring lineup
Karl has talked multiple times about a potential lineup that includes Collison and Rajon Rondo in the backcourt, with Marco Belinelli at the wing. When the screen was lifted at the practice facility today, that is the look that was working together alongside veterans Rudy Gay and DeMarcus Cousins.
The look has the offensive-minded coach licking his chops, but there is work to be done before he commits to it fully.
“There’s a lot of strengths to it offensively and probably some weaknesses to it defensively,” Karl said. “Somehow we have to get better habits. Those five guys got to get better habits defending pretty seriously. At the end of games I think that would be a great offensive unit and right now it would be a scary defensive unit.”
Collison can see the potential in the lineup as well. The 28-year-old guard is turning heads with his outstanding training camp and preseason and likes the idea of the Kings running and gunning.
“We’re all playmakers,” Collison said. “If you look at that lineup, everyone’s a playmaker and we have a lot of shooters on the court. That’s going to be a good lineup for us down the stretch and hopefully we have great success with it.”
The Kings have 10 new bodies on this year’s roster, including Eric Moreland who played just two minutes with the team last season. That is a massive overhaul by NBA standards and one that will take time to mesh together.
“I think we’re heading in the right direction,” Collison said. “It’s going to take some time, but we’re heading in the right direction. Guys are understanding the importance of execution, the pace, the things that coach wants. I think we’ll be fine.”
Karl the philosopher
Karl always gives the media time, but sometimes he is slightly more philosophical than others. Friday was one of those days. Here are a few of his quotes to chew on from the post practice media session.
“I think you’re going to see this team have a lot of stretches where they play really good basketball, but I don’t know if they have the mental toughness to sustain 82 games. I think that’s our challenge a little bit, is to sacrifice and grow up a little bit from the mental side of the ball as much as the physical side of the ball.” -Karl on the Kings potential
“I think the way we play creates an energy that makes everybody play better. That’s why I like playing fast. I think there’s more possessions, there’s more opportunity. And the efficiency and effectiveness is the commitment to play together. To play with each other and read each other and understand the game is team game. The team is first. “We” is first and “me” comes along the way. There are a lot of opportunities to be a powerful individual, but the beginning of almost every opportunity comes with team first.” -Karl on the idea of team