Sacramento busted its butt to get an arena deal done. Everyone was happy (including the Maloofs). Fans were energized. The team was balling against the best in the league.

Then George Maloof pulled a George Maloof. Looking for any way possible to torpedo an arena deal (again) he seems to have found a way, and at the same time pissed off the mayor, city council, thousands of fans, Commissioner Stern, and many who follow the NBA.

Way to go George! Because when you publicly celebrate a deal but then can’t break out the checkbook for the first check, and apparently can’t make the deal financially work, and then nuke the deal even after the NBA offers you an incredible $7 million plus a $60 million dollar loan to get the arena done (so you don’t have to pull out your thin checkbook), it means you never wanted a deal.

Emotions are raw today. A lot of people are willing to tell the Maloofs to get lost and be a 3rd rate afterthought behind the Lakers and Clippers in SoCal. We’ll see what the future holds.

As for Jimmer? He’s stuck on a team with the lowest payroll in the league. A team that can’t seem to win despite being loaded with lottery picks, and another high pick on the way. A team that is essentially a minor league farm team to the rest of the league. The Kings draft the players, then when contracts are up, since the Maloofs cannot afford to pay they dump talent to the league’s elite teams. In return they sometimes accept just cash for making a deal. It’s embarrassing.

Are the Maloofs the worst owners in professional sports? Are there any other owners that already owe their city tens of millions of dollars AND owe the NBA a reported hundred million more?

Oh yeah, the Kings lost tonight. No one cared.

Ownership matters. Bad owners have bad teams. Good owners have perpetually good teams.

Kings fans deserve better. So does Jimmer.

Sports Illustrated has noted the growing fan frustration over Jimmer's playing time. In a recent article the national publication confirms the fan desire to see Jimmer play and coach Smart's response.

This is where it gets dicey as SI questions the coach's ability to see talent:

“But as if the Fredette fallout weren’t enough to deal with for Smart, he now has the unwelcome distinction of being the coach who missed on Jeremy Lin. Before Lin, born and bred in the Bay Area, emerged in New York, the undrafted Harvard product played just 29 games as a Golden State rookie under Smart last year while making two trips to the NBA Development League. Fans would call for him to play late in games, then go wild in the rare times when he actually did. (Lin, it should be noted, struggled on many occasions.) Smart also was criticized for his handling of Warriors point guard Stephen Curry, a factor in his firing, according to owner Joe Lacob.”

Ouch.

But to be fair a lot of teams whiffed on Jeremy Lin and did not realize his potential. There is no denying, however, that Lin’s talents have exploded in productivity once released from Smart’s coaching.

Are sports fans today smarter than the coaches?

Think of the massive fan demand for the Broncos to play Tim Tebow (including a billboard) and the fantastic turnaround in Denver from the worst team in the league to a playoff winner.

Linsanity.

Jimmer Time!

As this site has previously noted, other Kings players are not regularly passing the ball to Jimmer for him to take good shots. When the ball moves to the paint and shots get tough, when was the last time you saw a kick-out to a wide open Jimmer?

- Is this a coaching instruction?
- An implied coaching instruction caused by Jimmer’s benching?
- A good playing decision since Jimmer’s shot percentage is lacking?
- Because Jimmer is not trusted?
- Designed to hurt Jimmer?

Here are a couple interesting quotes from Sports Illustrated:

“His team doesn’t trust him yet,” Smart said. “That’s a big weight for a guy to be on the floor trying to play through something, and the team doesn’t respect him yet. Now once that player is strong enough to carry himself and be on the floor and be productive, you start to see the confidence from his team now coming to his side.”

Has Isaiah Thomas been that much better to earn the team’s respect? Isaiah’s stats are better than Jimmers – but not immensely different.

Thomas does push the ball faster and has an intensity and quickness stats do not reflect.

How much is the following a factor?

Coach Smart: “Earlier in the season, they weren’t feeling that because, quote-unquote, there’s still a little jealousy in the air. Here comes a guy who’s high profile, [and] it has nothing to do with the player. But he’s coming into the team, has been marketed [by] the team, and everyone else on the outside sees that, and players hear that too. But the player may not be ready for what he’s getting ready to face.”

Despite criticisms of Coach Smart, this is breathtakingly honest and an insight from a good coach. Jimmer has to do more because more is expected due to fan pressure. That is not always fair to Jimmer.

But the quote also begs the question of whether ‘jealousy’ means other players wouldn’t mind seeing Jimmermania being taken down a notch. Even though no player would admit or acknowledge this issue, their play may be subconsciously affected. Why let Jimmer score if it will just feed the jealousy?

And is there also a bit of immaturity that Jimmer has to overcome? Maybe immaturity is not the most precise word, but perhaps it takes time getting used to a change from a sheltered life at BYU to the rough and tumble atmosphere of an NBA team where a young rookie is expected to perform against grizzled veterans.

For sure, nothing is given to you in the NBA. Accomplishments are earned.

As Jimmer himself notes, his playing time at BYU started the same. Almost the same playing time and points as he is having now with the Kings. And then a few years later …

Coincidentally, there is an article in the Bee comparing Jimmer’s stunning success this time last year during March Madness with his recent decreased playing time. Coach Smart is quoted: “Jimmer is a point guard …. He sees things, he sees the floor, and we need that. We’re asking him to be more aggressive, and when he has open shots, to take the open shots. But he will help us – there is no doubt in my mind.”

What is curious about this is that Jimmer has not been playing point guard. When was the last time Jimmer played point guard? A few possessions here and there. Generally, Jimmer is posting up as a small forward.

The Bee articles notes “an increasingly subdued presence” for Jimmer in the locker room. Forget the locker room, that has been evident from anyone attending the games or watching on TV. It’s tough for anyone to keep smiling when they’re on the bench.

Here is an interesting stat from the NBA: Over the last 10 games Jimmer has the 3rd best plus/minus points total on the team. On the other hand, over the last 10 games Jimmer is only shooting at a .377 clip and has zero free throw attempts.

Jimmer needs to be more aggressive, get to the line, and to make more shots.

Although the Kings look like another lottery pick in this shortened season, there are numerous reasons why the Kings should explode next year.

It would not be surprising to see the Kings win 60 and compete for the championship next year, so 50 wins seems safe.

Here’s why:

1. The Kings will be loaded with top draft picks and have depth.

Tyreke Evans #4
DeMarcus Cousins #5
Jimmer Fredette #10
Jason Thompson #12

Plus the upcoming lottery pick.

Plus the great play of other picks:

Isaiah Thomas – last player drafted last year
Marcus Thornton – middle second round pick

Although being drafted high is not a guarantee of great play, the Kings are showing they can play with anyone.

Plus the Kings are looking at a former #11 pick Terrence Williams.

2. The Kings are the youngest team in the league. They are getting better and overall clearly on the upside of their careers.

3. The team is hungry for wins. With the distractions of changing coaches, a new arena, whether the team will stay in Sacramento, etc., gone, the team will be focused on winning.

4. Core players are staying together. The GM Petrie made a statement this year by not making any trades before the trade deadline.

In prior years the Kings were desperate for money and sold off their best players for essentially cash. With the merry-go-round over the players are more used to each other and so their team play will improve.

5. The Kings have the lowest salary in the league, meaning they can keep their players and add a top free agent.

6. The Kings are having fun again. Running and gunning. This team will be like the the Kings from a decade ago that was at the top of their conference.

7. The Kings are tough to defend. This team can spread the court and play inside as well as bomb it from outside. A real nightmare for defenses.

On the other hand, point production has virtually disappeared.

Last 5 games: Minutes Played, Shots Made – Attempted, and Points:

One of the issues is that other players are not passing the ball to Jimmer for shots. When he gets the ball Jimmer has been working harder to make his own plays and scoring, or more inclined to pass or look to create an assist. Opposing teams have also been playing him closer, farther from the basket to deny open look 3-pointers.

You can just see Fredette getting more confidence and playing well.

- Lots of ball movement.

- Feeding teammates for baskets, even where an assist is not directly credited.

- Vastly improved defense.

- Scoring key points.

- Continuous hustle.

Even on plays where he is out Jimmer is always first off the bench to congratulate his teammates and give them encouragement. And Jimmer is always in the huddle during timeouts to see what the play is going to be. A few other players not involved in the upcoming play are nowhere to be found

Update:

According to NBA stats, during the last week Jimmer has been shooting at a .471 clip which is vastly improved over his prior .385 average. From 3-point rage Jimmer has been even better making 7 of 14 long range bombs.

Keep in mind a couple of those 3-point misses were very low percentage, end of game or end of quarter misses.

During the Lakers game you could hear the “oohs” from the crowd as Jimmer made shots from 5-feet behind the 3-point line.

Despite the additional time, his turnovers are also down.

On the other hand, Jimmer is not getting to the free throw line. Jimmer is easily leading the team in free throw percentage and thus could be adding more points to the score if he got to the line.

Video highlights from YouTube as Jimmer bombs away against the Lakers:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Oddly, the Kings game announcers played it straight suggesting maybe in a couple decades when Jimmer is old enough.

What the announcers failed to realize (or their game cards did not have written for them) is Jimmer’s fiancee Whitney Wonnacott is from Denver and Jimmer was getting a big family reception – in addition to the regular Jimmer fans appearing in arenas around the country.

Lighten up guys! Jimmer for President in 2030!

“can we please get rid of this interim coach who should be an assistant at best and bring in a real head coach”

TJ Fredette is Jimmer’s older brother.

Later, TJ and Jimmer apologized for the comment.

Jimmer was quoted in the Sacramento Bee:

“When I got aware of it, I definitely talked to him about it.”

…

“He obviously regrets it. He’s sorry and I’m sorry on behalf of him as well. It’s something that will never happen again. It will be controlled, and he realizes that. We just apologize to everybody, coaches, teammates and everybody.”

Obviously, no one wants to say bad things about their coach. But that doesn’t mean that isn’t what other people are thinking.

If you’re a Jimmer fan and want to see Jimmer playing more you have probably already thought this anyway.

As soon as Keith Smart became the interim coach Jimmer’s playing time immediately decreased. Although Isaiah Thomas has played exceptionally well as a starter the past few games, Jimmer also put up good numbers in a short stretch of games where he was the primary guard.

The fact is the Kings go from game to game where even opposing fans are chanting to see Jimmer play.

In Washington D.C., during the Kings’ last game, just a couple rows behind the Kings’ bench a lady was wearing a purple shirt saying: “It’s JimmerTime!”

It is similar to what happened in Denver this past season where an open fan rebellion, across the nation, almost broke out with demands that Coach Fox play Tim Tebow. Finally he did. Although there is much debate about Tebow’s performance, the Broncos won and there is no doubt Tebow will be a better player next year due to the experience.

That’s what the fans in Sacramento and Jimmer fans everywhere also want. Sometimes that frustration about not seeing a player will boil over into negative comments about the coach responsible for the playing team.

As Keith Smart knows, there are a dozens players on the team each wanting to play. Handling the situation internally and externally is part of the job of being a head coach.

The team went with an 8-man rotation that did not include Jimmer. After the game coach Keith Smart said “I like the rotation that we have” and said that is where the team is at. Smart also said he could not go deeper, to a 10-man rotation that presumably would have included Jimmer, since no team had “control” of the game until late in the fourth quarter.

Coach Smart added this dagger: “I wanted to keep this game in close range.”

In other words – don’t expect to see Jimmer unless it is garbage time. If then.

At one point in the fourth quarter the Kings were down by 18. Still no Jimmer. This was close?

Throughout the game some in the Miami crowd chanted to see Jimmer.

It seems to be undeniable that coach Smart is not a Jimmer fan. Ever since Smart became coach in an early season coaching change Jimmer’s playing time has decreased and he has now been benched three full games.