As Petrie Sees It

After he announced the Kings would not pick up the head coaching option on Kenny Natt and the team relieved assistant coaches Rex Kalamian, Jason Hamm, Randy Brown and Bubby Burrage of their duties, Kings President of Basketball Operations Geoff Petrie met with members of the media to discuss the future of the Kings head coaching position and what areas the team would like to improve most before tipping off the 2009-10 season. Read more

Postgame Quotes - Kings @ Jazz

Head Coach Kenny Natt
On the game:
“Well, after a back-to-back coming in I thought our guys played hard for the most part. We were very competitive tonight and got down four points with eight minutes left but got sloppy with the basketball and had three straight turnovers and that pretty much put us in a bad way. I thought our guys worked hard. They could have caved in. This is a very good ball club and no one knows it better than me how good they are and how hard they work.”

On playing down the stretch:
“Our guys played well. I told our guys about instilling hard work and discipline with guys that dive on the floor, run after the ball and score on you. Those are the things that just crush you but we have to become a hardworking, disciplined ballclub and then we’ll have fun. When you work hard you have fun and I thought we were in the game early. We were working hard, getting steals, pushing the ball down and getting layups. You have to learn that this game doesn’t come easy and you have to work hard then you will have fun and it will become better for you. Those are the things we are working on as a young team.”

Kevin Martin
On the team’s play:
“We just had some key turnovers and they capitalized on them and you know you can’t do that in the fourth quarter. The effort was there we just have to do a little better job executing in the fourth. Guys played hard tonight.”

Bobby Jackson
On the game:
“We didn’t’ take care of the ball; eight turnovers in the third quarter. In the fourth quarter, the first couple of possessions we had three to four turnovers without shots. You can’t do that. It wasn’t like it was forced. It was us not taking care of the ball. Those things are uncalled for when you’re playing in a hostile environment like that. You can’t give teams (Jazz) like that second chances.”

On the future of the Kings:
“I think we have a lot of potential, but at the end of the day, you’re not going to beat anybody with 18 to 20 turnovers. If we get shots at the basket we’ll have a shot to win the game. Everybody’s got to be talking, everybody’s got to be on the same page.”

——

Jazz Head Coach Jerry Sloan
On Ronnie Brewer’s play:
“I thought he was playing pretty well. That’s why I left him out there. I outsmarted myself. I asked him if he was alright and he said he was ok. He’s worked for some of those opportunities. We put him on nearly one of the tougher guys every night to have to guard, and he seems to be getting better and better. That’s a huge thing for him because he has tremendous athletic ability, he can jump, he’s got to learn how to rebound more, but that comes with the territory I guess. Learning how to play, and adding all those things to what you can do.”

“I think he’s been a lot more tenacious. He’s been a lot quicker, trying to get his hands on the basketball, obviously getting a couple steals here and there. He needs to cut hard to the basket. If he does that, if he can get around the basket, he’s got a lot of stuff around the basket. He’s still young, trying to learn how to get better, and that’s one thing we like about him.”

On having everyone back and healthy:
“It’s a lot tougher to coach. You cannot make too many mistakes coming down the stretch. You’re sitting there with needles going through you, and we’re probably a small lineup, they’ve got a small lineup…that’s part of it. I didn’t have that luxury at times, and when we have it, I hope that guys don’t get an attitude about not getting to play. That’s one of the toughest things I have to do.”

Ronnie Brewer
On the game:
“I was just trying to play hard. I just knew that if I cut hard, my teammates were good enough passers that they would find me. That’s just what I tried to do.”

On playing the entire second half:
“He [Coach Sloan] kept on asking me if I was all right. It’s a tough matchup trying to guard McCants and Martin out there. I just tried to push myself, make them guard us, and I just played a lot of minutes. Whenever I got super tired, there just happened to be a timeout, or they took a timeout and it helped me. I just tried to push myself and play hard throughout the entire game.”

Carlos Boozer
On the knee:
“Doin’ good. Still trying to get my knee stronger. It’s not going to be overnight, I just got out of surgery. Every day is a little bit better. Every day I feel a little bit more comfortable, and hopefully in a few weeks, I’ll be back to normal.”

On the depth of team:
“We have got guys who come off the bench ready. We’re a very deep team, more deep than most teams give us credit for. We know what we have and we are going to be confident in what we do.”

On the seven-game win streak:
“It’s important. Every game right now is critical. I think down the stretch, we are trying to move up the ladder a little bit, but at the same time we want to get our team as right as possible, so when we get to the playoffs, we are hitting our stride, and playing the best basketball we can be playing. For us, this is huge and we’re playing great down the stretch.”

Kyle Korver
How hard was it to go from the funeral to the game today?
“It was definitely a different day. My mom always says ‘blessed are the flexible’ and so we had to be a little bit flexible today. We all know what Larry meant to this team, this city and this state. We really only saw the basketball side of Larry, but it was fun to hear all of the different things that his grandkids and his kids were talking about. It just kind of showed you what kind of man he really was. He was a whole lot more than just the owner of the Jazz.”

Jerry’s Take: All-Star Break ‘09

Kings Director of Player Personnel Jerry Reynolds analyzes the state of the team at the All-Star Break.

Watch the video!

One Last Stand in ‘08

Before he returns to the ARCO Arena hardwood for the first time in weeks, Kevin Martin has a message for Kings fans: “I just want to wish a Happy Holidays to Kings fans and a very, very, very healthy 2009!”

Fortunately, Martin’s health has improved and he will play in just his 10th game of the season tonight, after missing extended time due to a left ankle injury. Coach Kenny Natt said Martin will be going “full boar,” while Martin said he won’t limit his minutes in his return.

Asked how he’s feeling, Martin replied, “I’m fine.”

“It’s been tough, very tough,” Martin continued on the difficulty of missing time. “It doesn’t matter if you’re winning or losing. Anytime you have an injury, you’re not really with the team 100 percent.”

So, a game after the team shot less than 28 percent from the field, it will gladly welcome its leading scorer back to the mix. Whether he’s staring or not is a game time decision, Natt said.

Martin’s return is the best news the team could receive to end 2008. And with 2009 just hours away, we asked Natt, Martin, Bobby Jackson and Donté Greene what their resolutions for the New Year entail.

“It already happened. We got an early gift. We got Kevin back which is great. It’s a big plus for us. Obviously, we want everyone to play with more energy and we want to get our team back so that we can have everyone on the floor. That’s my New Year’s resolution, to be full boar and have all the guys with a different attitude in ‘09. So Coach is already working on his!” - Natt.

“To play better basketball.” - Martin.

“You’re never too old to learn. You’re never too old to get better and strive to be the best person you can be. And I think as men in this locker room that’s what we all try to do and be. Family-wise, try to be a better husband and father. We play so much and we’re always on the road. I’m not the most sensitive guy, so I know that’s something I definitely need to work on.” - Jackson.

“My New Years resolution is to try to work as hard as possible. I definitely come here to work, but just to work extremely hard — almost passing out type of work — and to finish off the season strong and to have a successful Summer League.” - Greene.

As for what he’ll remember most about 2008, Greene reflected, “Getting drafted, all the trades, Coach Theus being let go and my half a season at Syracuse in ‘08. It’s been a fun year.”

Though the team has yet to determine the outcome of its final game in ‘08, with optimism and hard work on the horizon, there is much to anticipate in 2009.

Change

We had a big statement win against the longtime rival Lakers last Tuesday. I feel like once we change the team around and get more wins, the Lakers will be a real rival, especially with the history the two teams have had in the past. That game drew a big crowd at ARCO — the best crowd I’ve seen. And we didn’t disappoint with our 12-point win that gave them their third loss of the season. It was a real good win for us. Everybody played with a lot of energy right from the jump and that’s the most important thing. Guys were playing defense like their lives depended on it and it showed.

After that we had a couple practice days and then we went to L.A. and played the Lakers in another tough game with a high-intensity atmosphere like at ARCO. It pretty much went down to the wire. In the last minute-and-a-half they had a couple more things go their way and they came out with the victory. But it wasn’t one of those losses where you’re like, ‘Man, what happened?’ We felt real confident and knew we should have won the game.

We came back to ARCO to face the Knicks with a lot of confidence but we didn’t start the game like we wanted to, like we started against L.A. I feel like we played to the level of the competition, which I was afraid of. But we did, and now we know what we got to do in the future.

Today Coach Theus got let go and Coach Natt has replaced him. I guess the big word is change. I don’t think our record speaks for the team that we have but that’s what happens when you’re a head coach in this league. That’s business. When you have success and when you have downfall the credit goes to you, first, and then it goes to the star players and then it goes to the guys like me who are learning.

Now, tonight we play the Timberwolves — a team we beat at ARCO and lost a close one to at their place in the first game of the year. Then we have a long road trip. We’ll be on the road for about a week and we’ll really see how we are. It’s going to be a real big test for us.

On my off day, yesterday, I got to help out my boy Donté Greene once again as a special guest on his show. We went to Raley’s. We rode around in some motorized shopping carts singing some songs and making the show a success, just like the last episode was. The question was, ‘Should JT come back?’ And I guess you guys — Kings fans — chimed in and said, ‘Bring him back!’

So, Happy Holidays everybody! Keep supporting us. Keep trying to pack ARCO. The most important thing is once we have you guys supporting us in ARCO it’s hard for us not to play well. Once you guys have it packed and start making it lively, we thrive off that energy. So just keep doing what you’re doing, bring your friends and family to our games, be safe and once again, Happy Holidays!

Oh, and we’ll see if JT has some type of show in the future!