Jimmy Smith: Lopez immediately becomes the team's starting center

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Originally Posted by glepurple

maybe monroe...but d cousins is poised to be the best center in the league in a couple seasons if his attitude stays solid. Also davis gives up a lot of bulk to him.

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Bulk isn't everything. Besides, every player in the league gives up bulk to Cousins. He's nearly 300lbs.

Hmmm, interesting..

ESPN has under their 'Rumours' section (slow news day) a piece about 'Who backs up Anderson at the three for New Orleans?'..

Can't post the link b/c I'm not an insider, I doubt there's much real info anyway- just interesting that they automatically envision Anderson starting at SF. I have no strong preference either way personally, I figure everyone will get their minutes somehow.

I mean I feel like either Davis or Anderson are going to get some meaningful time at the three if we are to have all three of them on the court.

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Originally Posted by Hornets78

Cousins was productive because he took a lot of shots. Guy only shots 45% from the field. He's a very inefficient scorer on that team. His offensive rating was much lower than the team's overall offensive rating especially when compared to guys like Thornton, Thompson, and Thomas.

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Dude was in his second season on a team without a direction. He will improve...anybody who thinks davis can guard cousins for a whole game is delirious. AD has been getting pushed around throughout the olympics by far less talented players than cousins. Also cousins this season alone has matched bynums best season to date in his second year. Dude's ceiling is far and beyond bynums.

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Originally Posted by BP225

Derrick Coleman has career averages of 16.5/9.3 and he put up some 20/11 seasons early in his career. Cousins will be productive, but he until he gets his head on straight he'll still just tease the league with his talent. I do think the Kings drafting TRob could be pretty big. He's a good match for Cousins both in skills and personality.

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For one people are making too huge a deal out of cousins attitude problems. What problems did he have last year. Also derrick coleman had off the court issues...cousins has never been arrested or in trouble with the law. Also the dude is 20-21 years old. A lot of guys have immaturity issues at that age...Bynum still has them and he is 25. All of cousins problems have been related to westphal who wasn't fit to coach the team. Westphal was an old school coach trying to coach new school players and it didn't work. Dude had different rotations on a nightly basis and also cousins wasn't the only player on the team to have issues with him.

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Originally Posted by glepurple

All of cousins problems have been related to westphal who wasn't fit to coach the team. Westphal was an old school coach trying to coach new school players and it didn't work. Dude had different rotations on a nightly basis and also cousins wasn't the only player on the team to have issues with him.

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The problems Cousins had at first all revolved around he and Tyreke fighting over who would be the alpha male. Westphal wasn't mishandling Cousins as much as he had 2 divas he was trying to balance. Tyreke falling off is probably the main reason Cousins is seeming to have fewer problems, not Keith Smart being a good coach or Cousins maturing. If they were still catering to Tyreke I think you'd see a much less mature Cousins.

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Originally Posted by BP225

The problems Cousins had at first all revolved around he and Tyreke fighting over who would be the alpha male. Westphal wasn't mishandling Cousins as much as he had 2 divas he was trying to balance. Tyreke falling off is probably the main reason Cousins is seeming to have fewer problems, not Keith Smart being a good coach or Cousins maturing. If they were still catering to Tyreke I think you'd see a much less mature Cousins.

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the problem with tyreke was a one game thing...and they never had any problems since. Westphal was the problem...damarcus demanded a trade because of him...it's not a coincidence that he was fired right after. Tyrekes fall was because of numerous position changes and injuries. Last year alone he played three different positions. Westphal just was a terrible coach...

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Originally Posted by glepurple

Dude was in his second season on a team without a direction. He will improve...anybody who thinks davis can guard cousins for a whole game is delirious. AD has been getting pushed around throughout the olympics by far less talented players than cousins. Also cousins this season alone has matched bynums best season to date in his second year. Dude's ceiling is far and beyond bynums.

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You're overrating Cousins. He doesn't use his bulk enough. He shoots too many jumpers for a guy his size. Plus he's often out of shape and there's no way he can keep up with Davis. Davis will wear him out. And Cousins is part of the problem in Sacramento. He was also heavily criticized by the folks at Team USA for his poor attitude. And it's ridiculous to think Cousins had the same type of season as Bynum. Ridiculous. Bynum was much more efficient on the floor offensively and defensively. He's not anywhere close to Bynum right now. Using points and rebounds to compare players is outdated. It's like using batting average and RBIs in baseball.

Sacramento's not going anywhere with Cousins and Evans as the main guys. They're gonna be a lottery team every season.

Am I the only one who doesn't really see Davis as being all that thin/light/weak? He's about twice as thick as Camby or early KG.

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Originally Posted by Hornets78

You're overrating Cousins. He doesn't use his bulk enough. He shoots too many jumpers for a guy his size. Plus he's often out of shape and there's no way he can keep up with Davis. Davis will wear him out. And Cousins is part of the problem in Sacramento. He was also heavily criticized by the folks at Team USA for his poor attitude. And it's ridiculous to think Cousins had the same type of season as Bynum. Ridiculous. Bynum was much more efficient on the floor offensively and defensively. He's not anywhere close to Bynum right now. Using points and rebounds to compare players is outdated. It's like using batting average and RBIs in baseball.

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Where was bynum in the playoffs...dude is overrated to me. He may be the 2nd best center in the league but dude is far below d howard. You say cousins shoots too many jumpers (which he does) but he still attempts 9 ft's per game so that still shows that he is aggressive enough. Also cousins is the go to player on that team.Lets see how bynum would fair as the number one option.... his numbers could drop in that role without gasol and kobe. Also I said cousins can be the best center in a couple of years. I guarantee he will improve with practicing with the select team and having thomas robinson on his team. Cousins is a way better player than bynum was at that age...compare their numbers at that age and it is laughable. Big men take years to develop fully...the same way bynum took years. Yet cousins is already on pace to be a far better player. And as far as davis goes...are you guys watching the olympics...he is getting pushed around by bigger players....put your fan hood aside and realize what your eyes are showing you. Go into the olympic thread and see how many people are saying davis is having problems getting position on rebounds or is giving up deep post position. Cousins would eat him alive if he had to guard him the whole game. Also arguing the kings future with me is futile as i don't care about them...Im a hornets fan and it's the only teams direction i care about.

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Originally Posted by ml wave

Am I the only one who doesn't really see Davis as being all that thin/light/weak? He's about twice as thick as Camby or early KG.

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Yeah he is bigger than people give him credit for...but he can still put some more weight on.

He'll struggle like every young big coming into the league but he won't be defenseless like some are implying.

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Originally Posted by glepurple

Where was bynum in the playoffs...dude is overrated to me. He may be the 2nd best center in the league but dude is far below d howard. You say cousins shoots too many jumpers (which he does) but he still attempts 9 ft's per game so that still shows that he is aggressive enough. Also cousins is the go to player on that team.Lets see how bynum would fair as the number one option.... his numbers could drop in that role without gasol and kobe. Also I said cousins can be the best center in a couple of years. I guarantee he will improve with practicing with the select team and having thomas robinson on his team. Cousins is a way better player than bynum was at that age...compare their numbers at that age and it is laughable. Big men take years to develop fully...the same way bynum took years. Yet cousins is already on pace to be a far better player. And as far as davis goes...are you guys watching the olympics...he is getting pushed around by bigger players....put your fan hood aside and realize what your eyes are showing you. Go into the olympic thread and see how many people are saying davis is having problems getting position on rebounds or is giving up deep post position. Cousins would eat him alive if he had to guard him the whole game. Also arguing the kings future with me is futile as i don't care about them...Im a hornets fan and it's the only teams direction i care about.

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Did you see what kind of season Bynum was having at age 19 for the Lakers back in 2007-2008? This was before the Gasol trade and before his knee injury that season. He was a dominant force on that team. Comparing Points and Rebounds is retarded because those things depend on minutes played, shot attempts, etc. Bynum at age 19 before his knee injury was a much better player than Cousins this past season. The numbers back it up. Do you remember that season he put up 30 and 19 at NOLA against Tyson Chandler when the Lakers beat the Hornets by 30 points? The Lakers were the top seed before they traded for Gasol due to large part from Bynum. He was a beast in the paint that year and the Lakers had to trade for Gasol after Bynum went down. This was at age 19. Go check out Bynum's numbers that season.

You left out how the folks at Team USA blasted Cousins for his attitude.

Basically your evaluation on Cousins is pretty much a fail. He only averages 5 FTs a game. You also left out his 30% usage which is one of the highest in the league meaning he dominates the ball on most positions. Once he gets the ball, it stays with him. He averages more turnovers than assists and is a very inefficient scorer and he hasn't come close to leading his team to the playoffs.

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Originally Posted by Attila The Hun

Hmmm, interesting..

ESPN has under their 'Rumours' section (slow news day) a piece about 'Who backs up Anderson at the three for New Orleans?'..

Can't post the link b/c I'm not an insider, I doubt there's much real info anyway- just interesting that they automatically envision Anderson starting at SF. I have no strong preference either way personally, I figure everyone will get their minutes somehow.

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Anderson at the 3 is a nightmare. If Anderson plays the 3 and i was coaching the other team, i would put him in a pick and role with a big and probably score every time down the court. If you switch, that'll put another one of our bigs on the perimeter playing d on a wingman. If you don't switch, Anderson is slower than most 3's in the league which will create a mismatch. Anderson needs to be a 4 or 5 to be most effective.

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Originally Posted by UptownFuz504

Anderson at the 3 is a nightmare. If Anderson plays the 3 and i was coaching the other team, i would put him in a pick and role with a big and probably score every time down the court. If you switch, that'll put another one of our bigs on the perimeter playing d on a wingman. If you don't switch, Anderson is slower than most 3's in the league which will create a mismatch. Anderson needs to be a 4 or 5 to be most effective.

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So what you're saying is that grand plan to exploit his lack of ability would hamper him at the 3, but he won't be put in any exploitable situations if he's at the 4 or 5?

There's 5 people on the court. There's no way to hide anyone. If he's on the court, any good coach can force that supposed mismatch regardless of what position Anderson is playing.

That said, pick and roll D is a team defense thing more than some thing you can overcome just by being super fast or agile. And Anderson, apparently, has solid team D skills.

If Peja can make a career playing the 3, Anderson can at the very least do spot duty.

Wouldn't surprise me to see Davis, Anderson, and Lopez starting.

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Originally Posted by Hornets78

Did you see what kind of season Bynum was having at age 19 for the Lakers back in 2007-2008? This was before the Gasol trade and before his knee injury that season. He was a dominant force on that team. Comparing Points and Rebounds is retarded because those things depend on minutes played, shot attempts, etc. Bynum at age 19 before his knee injury was a much better player than Cousins this past season. The numbers back it up. Do you remember that season he put up 30 and 19 at NOLA against Tyson Chandler when the Lakers beat the Hornets by 30 points? The Lakers were the top seed before they traded for Gasol due to large part from Bynum. He was a beast in the paint that year and the Lakers had to trade for Gasol after Bynum went down. This was at age 19. Go check out Bynum's numbers that season.

You left out how the folks at Team USA blasted Cousins for his attitude.

Basically your evaluation on Cousins is pretty much a fail. He only averages 5 FTs a game. You also left out his 30% usage which is one of the highest in the league meaning he dominates the ball on most positions. Once he gets the ball, it stays with him. He averages more turnovers than assists and is a very inefficient scorer and he hasn't come close to leading his team to the playoffs.

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He averages 9 per 48...how the hell was bynum a better player at that age...dude played in spurts and was barely given any minutes. Also i addressed cousins usa performance and nobody blasted him for his attitude. He was called out for fouling...that's not an attitude problem. He talked to the coach and he said he was just playing hard and there was an understanding. Also picking one game and making that the highlight of your argument is a fail. I could point out cousins 41 and 12 against phoenix at the same age it's pointless. Bynum was not as complete of an offensive player as cousins at that age. Cousins at 19 could shoot the jumper and score a variety of ways in the post. Also cousins led the league in offensive rebounds in his second season. He is a superior rebounder in his second season.

From this point forward he will most likely continue to improve and will surpass bynum sooner than later. Also bynum was nowhere near as productive in the post season as he was in the regular season. He struggled against denver heavily as he made javele mcgee and faried look big time. He also struggled against the uptempo thunder. Bynum is six years older yet cousins is already on pace to be a more complete player. Also bynum plays with the best sg in the league and another 7 footer who is an all-star candidate year in and out which makes it easier for him. He also had odom before gasol came in to play with. So of course cousins fg% is lower as it should be.

Also bynum was not the go to player in 07-08 so your argument is flawed. Who knows what his numbers would of been had he been drafted by the kings and played for that garbage organization. Also bynum is now in his prime so i would hope that he plays better than a 19 year old who matched his best point production and rebounds in his second year playing with far less talented players. And also bynum averaged 5 more minutes per game than cousins did so throw that minutes stuff out the window. Last what 19 year old leads his team to the playoffs...he isn't lbj.

If anyone has insider can they copy and paste that article?

It's really nothing. It just says that Anderson plays the 3 and talks about who backs him up. I think we need to stop posting the insider articles b/c its basically giving paid information for free... kinda goes against the premise, doesn't it? (I'm aware I've been guilty of this once)

Says that it's an experiment and obviously Aminu has the fast track at backing up if not starting (which he is apparently not since Ryno is the 3 and Lopez the 5) since he came on last year and has had a good summer in the Olympics. Then mentions Miller the rookie needing to come along and still the presence of X who can play the 3 as well.

Regardless, Anderson at the 3 is going to work. Even on D b/c now we've got a bailout option at the 4, named Davis. You might have heard of him. And then Anderson can slide to the 4 or 5 whenever Davis goes out and Smith comes in. Regardless... I think our wealth of riches with the flexibility that is Davis and Anderson is nothing to be complaining about.

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Originally Posted by glepurple

He averages 9 per 48...how the hell was bynum a better player at that age...dude played in spurts and was barely given any minutes. Also i addressed cousins usa performance and nobody blasted him for his attitude. He was called out for fouling...that's not an attitude problem. He talked to the coach and he said he was just playing hard and there was an understanding. Also picking one game and making that the highlight of your argument is a fail. I could point out cousins 41 and 12 against phoenix at the same age it's pointless. Bynum was not as complete of an offensive player as cousins at that age. Cousins at 19 could shoot the jumper and score a variety of ways in the post. Also cousins led the league in offensive rebounds in his second season. He is a superior rebounder in his second season.

From this point forward he will most likely continue to improve and will surpass bynum sooner than later. Also bynum was nowhere near as productive in the post season as he was in the regular season. He struggled against denver heavily as he made javele mcgee and faried look big time. He also struggled against the uptempo thunder. Bynum is six years older yet cousins is already on pace to be a more complete player. Also bynum plays with the best sg in the league and another 7 footer who is an all-star candidate year in and out which makes it easier for him. He also had odom before gasol came in to play with. So of course cousins fg% is lower as it should be.

Also bynum was not the go to player in 07-08 so your argument is flawed. Who knows what his numbers would of been had he been drafted by the kings and played for that garbage organization. Also bynum is now in his prime so i would hope that he plays better than a 19 year old who matched his best point production and rebounds in his second year playing with far less talented players. And also bynum averaged 5 more minutes per game than cousins did so throw that minutes stuff out the window. Last what 19 year old leads his team to the playoffs...he isn't lbj.

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9 FTs per 48 minutes is not impressive for a guy who dominates the ball as much as Cousins. He has an extremely usage rate. He should get to the line a lot. But he settles for a ton of jumpers which is why he only shoots 45% from the field which is pathetic for a center. Also Cousins is 21, not 19. Quit making up stuff. Besides, anyone who watches the Kings know that Thornton is their most efficient scorer. Cousins shoots up bricks for a guy who's a center.

Bynum's post game at age 20 during the 2007-2008 was ahead of Cousins right now. He had worked with Kareem for a couple of seasons by the point, the best offensive center in NBA history. Bynum was the 2nd best player on that Lakers team which was first in the West when he injured his knee. This was before the Gasol trade that year. He was a beast that year in the paint. His only issues were staying healthy. But when he was on the floor at age 20 and 21, he was dominating on the floor.

It's a joke how you're criticizing Bynum's postseason. He was easily the Lakers best player in the post season. He averaged 17 and 11. It's not his fault Kobe took twice as more shots and Gasol disappeared.

Bynum didn't shoot as well as Cousins at the age of 20 and 21, but he controlled the paint much better with his post game and defense. No debate on that.

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Originally Posted by HornetsFan1

If anyone has insider can they copy and paste that article?

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That violates the terms of the board.

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Originally Posted by Hornets78

9 FTs per 48 minutes is not impressive for a guy who dominates the ball as much as Cousins. He has an extremely usage rate. He should get to the line a lot. But he settles for a ton of jumpers which is why he only shoots 45% from the field which is pathetic for a center. Also Cousins is 21, not 19. Quit making up stuff. Besides, anyone who watches the Kings know that Thornton is their most efficient scorer. Cousins shoots up bricks for a guy who's a center.

Bynum's post game at age 20 during the 2007-2008 was ahead of Cousins right now. He had worked with Kareem for a couple of seasons by the point, the best offensive center in NBA history. Bynum was the 2nd best player on that Lakers team which was first in the West when he injured his knee. This was before the Gasol trade that year. He was a beast that year in the paint. His only issues were staying healthy. But when he was on the floor at age 20 and 21, he was dominating on the floor.

It's a joke how you're criticizing Bynum's postseason. He was easily the Lakers best player in the post season. He averaged 17 and 11. It's not his fault Kobe took twice as more shots and Gasol disappeared.

Bynum didn't shoot as well as Cousins at the age of 20 and 21, but he controlled the paint much better with his post game and defense. No debate on that.

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Bynums defense was a problem against the nuggets and thunder. How in the hell did varied and mcgee give the lakers trouble? Because bynum struggled in the pick and roll. Also he let mcgee take advantage of him. I give you defense as i never made a case for that. I think bynum will always be a superior defensive player. But at that age compared to bynum at that age cousins is better. Also bynum didn't shoot well against the thunder. Also bynum during that year only played good in stretches. he had like a 10-13 game run where he played really well. The rest of his time during that season was not as good.

Also cousins played better than any big man the last month of the season averaging close to 30 points and 12 rebounds shooting over 50 % which shows he is improving. And there isn't a move cousins can't do in the post. Yeah bynum might be more effective right now...but that won't be the case as he improves throughout his career. But is funny how you ignored he played with kobe his entire career. That has helped bynum a lot. But now that the kings seem to have a better sense of direction and cousins has settled into his role. He will improve. Also i never said he was better than bynum...which it seems that you took it that way. But cousins was a better player his second year than bynum was and it's not a debate. Also i see no reason why he won't be a better offensive player than bynum going forward. But I'll let his play support my argument.

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Originally Posted by The JNR

That violates the terms of the board.

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Oh really? My bad then. Can yall summarize? Someone already did but im just wondering if thats against it also.

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Originally Posted by glepurple

Bynums defense was a problem against the nuggets and thunder. How in the hell did varied and mcgee give the lakers trouble? Because bynum struggled in the pick and roll. Also he let mcgee take advantage of him. I give you defense as i never made a case for that. I think bynum will always be a superior defensive player. But at that age compared to bynum at that age cousins is better. Also bynum didn't shoot well against the thunder. Also bynum during that year only played good in stretches. he had like a 10-13 game run where he played really well. The rest of his time during that season was not as good.

Also cousins played better than any big man the last month of the season averaging close to 30 points and 12 rebounds shooting over 50 % which shows he is improving. And there isn't a move cousins can't do in the post. Yeah bynum might be more effective right now...but that won't be the case as he improves throughout his career. But is funny how you ignored he played with kobe his entire career. That has helped bynum a lot. But now that the kings seem to have a better sense of direction and cousins has settled into his role. He will improve. Also i never said he was better than bynum...which it seems that you took it that way. But cousins was a better player his second year than bynum was and it's not a debate. Also i see no reason why he won't be a better offensive player than bynum going forward. But I'll let his play support my argument.

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Bynum at age 20 and 21 was better than Cousins at the same age. There's no debate. More efficiently offensively, much better defensively. Bynum was the Lakers best player this past season and he was their best player in the playoffs. He was the 2nd best player on the Lakers before the Gasol trade. The Lakers struggled this post season because Kobe was coming up lame in the 4th quarter. His shooting percentage was awful. Also Gasol disappeared.

Bynum's post game at 20 and 21 was very good. He had hook shots with both hands, superior first, and played much stronger. People forget how good he was because of the injuries.

In what universe did Cousins average 30 and 12 in April? He averaged 19 and 10 and he almost took 20 shots per game during that month.