Category: Sacramento Kings Blog

A diagnostic ultrasound test performed on Sacramento Kings guard Marcus Thronton today at the UC Davis Medical Center revealed a significant hematoma in his left thigh. He is expected to miss approximately one to two weeks of action.

Thornton, the Kings’ leading scorer (16.4 ppg), has missed four games due to the injury.

The Sacramento Kings have recalled rookie forward Tyler Honeycutt from the Reno Bighorns of the NBA Development League, President of Basketball Operations Geoff Petrie announced today.

On January 1, Honeycutt and center Hassan Whiteside were assigned to the Bighorns. Honeycutt averaged 5.9 points (.418 FG%, .375 3pt%, .438 FT%), 2.9 rebounds, 0.9 assists, and 12.7 minutes per game in 10 games of which one he started. He scored in double-figures in two games and recorded 23 points (9-14 FG, 2-3 3pt, 3-4 FT), seven rebounds, one assist, three steals, and one block in 29 minutes versus the Austin Toros (1/15). Honeycutt recorded two points (2-2 FT) and one rebound in four minutes off the bench versus New York (12/31). He became the third Kings player to be assigned to the D-League (Donté Greene in 2008-09, Hassan Whiteside last season).

Honeycutt, a 6-8, 188-pound forward, was selected by the Kings as a sophomore out of UCLA in the second round (35th overall) of the 2011 NBA Draft. He averaged 10.3 points (.431 FG%, .359 3pt%, .684 FT%), 6.9 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.2 steals, 1.7 blocks, and 31.7 minutes per game in 59 career outings for the Bruins.

Sacramento Kings President of Basketball Operations Geoff Petrie announced today the hiring of Alex English as an assistant coach, joining current assistants Jim Eyen, Jim Todd and Bobby Jackson on Head Coach Keith Smart’s staff.

“Adding Alex to our basketball program is good for all and especially good for our players,” explained Smart. “He was an elite player in this league for a long time and is a very good coach. When he talks, they’ll listen. His game prep and film study aspects are some of his many strong points, and that’s only going to help our staff. We’re trying to surround ourselves with the right people that fit our basketball team who have the ability to teach our guys and also have a firm hand to get them walking in the right direction as young men.”

A member of the Basketball Hall-of-Fame and the NBA’s 13th all-time leading scorer (25,613 points), English arrives in Sacramento after spending seven seasons as an assistant coach and director of player development with the Toronto Raptors (2004-11). Prior to his stint north of the border, English served in a similar capacity with the Philadelphia 76ers (2003-04) and Atlanta Hawks (2002-03). He began his professional basketball management career in 2001-02 as the head coach of the NBA Development League’s North Charleston (S.C.) Lowgaters, where he guided his team to a 36-20 record and a berth in the finals of the first NBDL Championship.

The 6-foot-7, 190-pound English was an eight-time NBA All-Star and selected to the all-league second team three times (1982, 1983 and 1986), as well as presented with the league’s J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award for his dedication to community service in 1988. English averaged 21.5 points, 5.5 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game in 1,193 regular season games, shooting an impressive .507 from the field and .832 from the foul line. He appeared in 68 postseason contests, averaging 24.4 points and 5.5 rebounds per contest. A second-round selection by the Milwaukee Bucks in 1976 (23rd overall), English played two seasons in Milwaukee (1976-78), two with the Indiana Pacers (1978-80), and 11 in Denver (1980-90) before finishing his career in 1990-91 with the Dallas Mavericks. He was elected to the Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility in 1997.

English was dealt by Indiana to the Nuggets on February 1, 1980 and would go on to become the Nuggets’ career leader in scoring (21,645) and assists (3,679) as a teammate of the Kings’ current Director of Player Development Fat Lever. In 10 of his 11 seasons in Denver, he averaged better than 21 points, and in eight of those seasons scored more than 25 per contest. He led the Nuggets to nine straight playoff appearances from 1982-90, including a berth in the 1985 Western Conference Finals, and averaged 24.4 points during 10 playoff seasons. On March 2, 1993, English was honored by the Nuggets with the retirement of his uniform No. 2.

The message has been consistent from everyone to DeMarcus Cousins when it comes to fouls.

“Stop reaching,” Cousins said. “Every time I see them hold the ball out I’ve just got to go for it. That’s something I’ve got to continue to work on and stop picking up the cheap fouls.”

Foul trouble kept Cousins out for a significant part of the fourth quarter in Sunday’s 104-97 loss to the Orlando Magic.

Cousins picked up his fifth foul with 6:53 left in the third quarter. He didn’t go back into the game until there was 4:48 left in the game.

— Reported by Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee Blog

The Sacramento Kings today named Keith Smart as the team’s 24th Head Coach, according to President of Basketball Operations Geoff Petrie. Per team policy, terms of the contract were not disclosed. It may be  a two-year deal, but we’ll confirm this later tonight here on this page.

“Keith will bring a new perspective to the team as we try to move forward with the season,” said Petrie. “He’s very well prepared and will assume the job with some new ideas and new approaches of his own. We’re all excited and looking forward to working with him.”

Smart, who spent last season as head coach of the Golden State Warriors where he compiled a 36-46 record, brings over 22 years of professional basketball experience as either a coach or player. Prior to his appointment as head coach for Golden State, Smart served seven seasons as an assistant coach for the Warriors, giving him the longest tenure of any assistant coach in Golden State history.

“I had a chance to work for Paul Westphal in the brief time that I’ve been here and really enjoyed it,” explained Smart. “He was very supportive every step of the way. I want to thank Geoff Petrie and the Maloof family for giving me this opportunity. I’m looking forward to implementing a few new things with what we want to try to do with our basketball team. Hopefully, they’ll respond to what I want them to do, and I believe they will. I think our players will be excited with some of the ideas that I have for our team moving forward.”

The 47-year-old Smart originally joined the Warriors prior to the 2003-04 campaign after spending the previous three seasons as an assistant coach for the Cleveland Cavaliers. He was named the Cavaliers interim head coach in the middle of the 2002-03 season upon taking over for John Lucas. At the time, he was the second-youngest head coach in the NBA.

“When I asked Geoff to add Keith Smart to our staff, I knew that he would be a tremendous asset going forward,” said Westphal. “Keith has my respect and blessing as he assumes the position he is exceptionally qualified to fill.”

Before joining the Cavaliers, Smart spent three seasons as the head coach of the CBA’s Fort Wayne Fury, compiling a record of 85-83 (.506) and guiding the team to its first back-to-back winning seasons in franchise history in 1997-98 and 1998-99. In his first campaign as a head coach at any level in 1997-98, he guided the Fury to a franchise-record 31-win season and a trip to the playoffs. The club made the playoffs again in 1998-99, despite having a single-season franchise record nine players signed to NBA contracts. He was awarded the American Conference Coach of the Month Award five times during his tenure with Fort Wayne and had a CBA-high 21 players signed to NBA contracts.

During his professional basketball playing career, Smart spent six seasons in the CBA, two seasons in France and one in Venezuela. He also played briefly with the San Antonio Spurs during the 1988-89 season.

Smart was originally drafted by the Warriors in the second round (41st overall) of the 1988 NBA Draft out of Indiana University. He is widely remembered for his Final Four heroics in 1987, in which he was named the Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four after leading Indiana to a National Championship with his game-winning shot versus Syracuse in the title game.

The Sacramento Kings today relieved Paul Westphal of his head coaching duties, according to President of Basketball Operations Geoff Petrie. Current Kings’ assistant coach Keith Smart will serve as head coach in tonight’s game versus the Milwaukee Bucks.

“I want to thank Paul for all of his effort on behalf of the Kings,” said Petrie. “Unfortunately, the overall performance level of the team has not approached what we felt was reasonable to expect. I wish him the best in his future endeavors.”

In two-plus seasons as head coach of the Kings, Westphal amassed a record of 51-120.

“I would like to thank the Maloof family for the incredible opportunity they gave me to participate in the attempt to bring the Sacramento Kings back to prominence,” said Westphal. “While the job is far from finished, I am proud of the strides we were able to make.

“Geoff Petrie and his staff have been nothing but honest and supportive throughout my time here. They are first class in every way and I wish them nothing but success. My hope is to see the fans of the Kings and the city of Sacramento rewarded with many years of great basketball.

“Finally, I want to thank my loyal staff and players for their efforts in attempting to climb out of the hole we shared. Nothing comes easy in the NBA and I know they will not rest in their efforts to rebuild this team.”

The Sacramento Kings have assigned center Hassan Whiteside and rookie forward Tyler Honeycutt to the Reno Bighorns of the NBA Development League, President of Basketball Operations Geoff Petrie announced today.

Whiteside has not appeared in a game this season. Honeycutt recorded two points (2-2 FT) and one rebound in four minutes off the bench versus New York (12/31). Honeycutt becomes the third Kings player to be assigned to the D-League (Donté Greene in 2008-09, Hassan Whiteside last season).

Whiteside, a 7-0, 235-pound center, appeared in one game last season, playing two minutes against the Timberwolves on October 27, 2010. He was assigned to the Bighorns on November 29, 2010 and was recalled on January 9, 2011. While with the Bighorns, Whiteside averaged 4.4 points (.509 FG%, .412 FT%), 2.7 rebounds, 2.14 blocks, and 10.5 minutes per game in 14 games (started 3). Whiteside was selected by Sacramento as a freshman out of Marshall in the second round (33rd overall) of the 2010 NBA Draft.

Honeycutt, a 6-8, 188-pound forward, was selected by the Kings as a sophomore out of UCLA in the second round (35th overall) of the 2011 NBA Draft. He averaged 10.3 points (.431 FG%, .359 3pt%, .684 FT%), 6.9 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.2 steals, 1.7 blocks, and 31.7 minutes per game in 59 career games for the Bruins.

STATEMENT FROM KINGS HEAD COACH PAUL WESTPHAL

“Whenever a new season begins, in any sport, there is great hope that everything will progress in only a steady, upward direction. As we all know, it seldom happens like that in this life!

As coaches, we can only ask that our players do everything they can to improve themselves as individuals and teammates. If they do this with all their hearts, we live with the results.

Everything that happens on a team does not become known to the public. This is how it should be. However, when a player continually, aggressively, lets it be known that he is unwilling/unable to embrace traveling in the same direction as his team, it cannot be ignored indefinitely.

DeMarcus Cousins has demanded to be traded. In the best interest of our team as we go forward, he has been directed by me, with the support of management, to stay home from the New Orleans game tonight.”

The Kings, who began the season amid good vibes, an improved roster and reasonable expectations, are immersed in a massive funk. They didn’t need any champagne Saturday night to wake up this morning with a splitting headache. Barring an emotional turnaround before tonight’s 6 p.m. game against New Orleans, the Hornets will catch the Kings still hung over, still searching for answers and still openly questioning the club’s direction.

Respected veteran Chuck Hayes sat with his head in his hands, visibly disturbed by a lack of cohesiveness. DeMarcus Cousins and Tyreke Evans, two critical elements of this ongoing rebuilding process, leaned back in their seats, quietly commiserating before sharing their thoughts.

“What offense?” Cousins replied when asked about the Kings’ most obvious weakness. “I really don’t want to say anything.”

He shrugged. He shook his head. He exhaled. He ducked under a towel. His body said plenty.

— By Ailene Voisin of the Sacramento Bee