IIt’s easy to see why head coach Mike Brown has worked so well after explosive games where the Kings fail to make a basket and pull a three on the other side of the court. The twist was brutal in itself, leading to 19 points and emphasizing the critical situation of the athletes in the third quarter of the second quarter. He felt that Colby Jones, who rushed to the play after stealing the ball from a lazy pass by the Nets’ Ben Simmons, was fouled by the latter and should have been awarded a double. Instead, the no-call led to a five-point conversion that has provided a snapshot of their 2024-25 campaign so far.
Bottom line, Brown knew he had to do something — anything, really — to rouse the Kings from their slumber. They had lost twice heading into the home stretch, and felt meeting the equally struggling Nets gave them a great opportunity to snap their slide. Unfortunately, his charges seem to be doing nothing of what they had talked about so much before the competition. And so he thought of making a spectacle to get out of them and, hopefully, entice them to compete.
In retrospect, perhaps Brown overdid things. He charged referee Scott Twarodski in a way that might have warranted an ejection instead of just a technical foul. Either way, he got what he wanted: The Kings responded to his taunts, netting 11 over the remainder of the period. That means, they are still holding losses audibly; apparently, whatever has been holding them needs more than just a gig. As he noted in his post-match presser, they struggled to theorize for one reason or another.
Granted, the Kings have time on their hands. They may be an offensive 8-9, but 80% of their schedule is ahead of them. In addition, they are more gifted than they are. Which means their fate is in their hands. The flipside, of course, is that they should want to get better. In the highly competitive West, having a stacked roster is not enough; using it very well is necessary. And Brown knows it’s on his shoulders to make them meet his expectations. Whether he really can remains to be seen.
Anthony L. Cuaycong was writing The court since BusinessWorld launched the Sports category in 1994. He is a consultant in strategic planning, operations and human resources management, business communication, and business development.
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