Al Jefferson

[hrdboild]

Since everyone seems to be throwing out ideas... this isn't the best idea of I've ever had but if we strike out on Al Horford, what about Al Jefferson as a target in free agency? His production is down the last 2 seasons and he's dealt with some injuries but he's only 31 years old so he should have 3 or 4 solid years left in him, especially considering his game was never built around athleticism anyway.

Here's why it could be a good idea:

(1) Relatively inexpensive. Al Horford is going to cost somebody 26 million a year. Coming off a bad year, Al Jefferson may sign for half that.

(2) He's the post guru in the league. If you think Cousins could stand to diversify his post offense, learning from the master in practice every day is a good way to make sure that happens.

(3) Spacing? My god what about the spacing? Okay I see this one coming but remember that Cousins made 70 three pointers this season. Cousins can already space the floor like a good PF which allows us to play him at either front court position. Also Al Jefferson is a feared scorer in his own right capable of demanding a double-team on the low block. Defenders will cheat off of him at their peril.

(4) Since arriving in Charlotte Al Jefferson has consistently been one of the two or three best defenders on a very good defensive team. Utah was not a good defensive team while he was there, but he was one of the best defenders on that team every year too. He's not a high-flying shot blocker but he gets the job done.

(5) For the volume of shots he's putting up, Al Jefferson has one of the lowest turnover rates in the league. For his career, his assist rate has continued to trend up while his turnover rate trends down. This is a very good quality to have when your other (all world) big man exhibits a frustrating tendency to throw the ball all over the gym.

Alright, that's all I've got. It surprises me how little I've heard about Al Jefferson since he was voted 3rd team All-NBA over DeMarcus in 2014. I suppose they already start digging out your grave once you reach 30 years old in the NBA. That or Draymond Green's ascendance to the Golden Pedestal of hype has killed the market value of every back-to-the-basket big in the league. He may never be a 20 and 10 player again, but I think he's got a lot to offer a team as a third option at the right price. He's at least the right type of player we should be targeting with our free agency money.

 

[Sac.1989]

He is a top player but surely is priority for Charlotte out of all their free agents.

We could chase gasol for less if we wanted and get similar

Given we have loaded up on bigs in the draft I think our focus has moved to our backcourt but i do agree big Al and cousins with WCS would be an immaculate trio

 

[Gilles]

Boogie can shoot, doesn't mean you should make him a shooter. Great weapon, when the other team puts a wall under the basket, so you force them to come up with a guy, who doesn't feel completely out of place on the perimeter, but go out and pick a guy, who puts limits on Boogie is not a good strategy.

 

[KingsFanGER]

How many minutes can Boogie and Al coexist on the court? On D it's the same thing like playing Drummond and Monroe together.
Don't want to get snarky at all, but sometimes reading KingsFans.com feels like a time travel.

 

[hrdboild]

How many minutes can Boogie and Al coexist on the court? On D it's the same thing like playing Drummond and Monroe together.
Don't want to get snarky at all, but sometimes reading KingsFans.com feels like a time travel.

Andre Drummond is a catch and finish player while Al Jefferson has the best post game in the NBA. These are totally different players. Greg Monroe can't shoot the ball like Cousins can. Miami was winning with Whiteside and Bosh. Memphis continues to win with Randolph and Gasol. The Clippers start DeAndre Jordan and Blake Griffin. The Spurs had the second best record in the league with LaMarcus Aldridge and Tim Duncan. The Jazz start Rudy Gobert and Derrick Favors. Two big guys who play inside the arc was actually the norm for the first 65 years of NBA history. Your problem is that it's not going to work defensively? Did you watch the Finals? The greatest shooting team in history just lost because they went cold in games 5 and 7. I'm done listening to people preach about how 3pt shooting has changed the game. It's the same old crap. Jump shooting teams are always going to be streaky. I'd love to see the Warriors try to play their "death lineup" against Cousins and Big Al.

 

[Luweegee]

Honestly, I'd rather go after Ryan Anderson then al jefferson.

 

[KingsFanGER]

Andre Drummond is a catch and finish player while Al Jefferson has the best post game in the NBA. These are totally different players. Greg Monroe can't shoot the ball like Cousins can. Miami was winning with Whiteside and Bosh. Memphis continues to win with Randolph and Gasol. The Clippers start DeAndre Jordan and Blake Griffin. The Spurs had the second best record in the league with LaMarcus Aldridge and Tim Duncan. The Jazz start Rudy Gobert and Derrick Favors. Two big guys who play inside the arc was actually the norm for the first 65 years of NBA history. Your problem is that it's not going to work defensively? Did you watch the Finals? The greatest shooting team in history just lost because they went cold in games 5 and 7. I'm done listening to people preach about how 3pt shooting has changed the game. It's the same old poopoo. Jump shooting teams are always going to be streaky. I'd love to see the Warriors try to play their "death lineup" against Cousins and Big Al.

That's why I wrote "it's the same thing on the defensive end". Yes Big Al and Cousins could coexist on offense, although this would make Cousins more perimeter oriented. But actually this would be two highly skilled big guys, that are somewhat interchangeable, because Big Al can hit mid range shots.
But Cousins and Al are both centers with a heavy built. On D this would cause countless problems. Did you watch the finals, because the finals were two small, athletic teams going head to head. Tristan Thompson is barely 6'8 and gave Curry hell when switched onto him. Love was benched during the finals, but came back strong in the final game.
You want to go against those teams with lumbering bigs like Big Al and Cousins? Good luck, because Big Al makes Zbo look quick.
This has nothing to do with 3pt shooting.

 

[hrdboild]

That's why I wrote "it's the same thing on the defensive end". Yes Big Al and Cousins could coexist on offense, although this would make Cousins more perimeter oriented. But actually this would be two highly skilled big guys, that are somewhat interchangeable, because Big Al can hit mid range shots.
But Cousins and Al are both centers with a heavy built. On D this would cause countless problems. Did you watch the finals, because the finals were two small, athletic teams going head to head. Tristan Thompson is barely 6'8 and gave Curry hell when switched onto him. Love was benched during the finals, but came back strong in the final game.
You want to go against those teams with lumbering bigs like Big Al and Cousins? Good luck, because Big Al makes Zbo look quick.
This has nothing to do with 3pt shooting.

Lumbering? K Love and Tristan Thompson are athletic but Cousins is lumbering? I think you've been reading too many Ailene Voisin articles if you think Cousins is a lumbering big. I didn't say we had to start Al Jefferson either. He came off the bench in Charlotte this year and we still have Willie Cauley-Stein who paired up with Cousins to produce our best defensive lineup this season. How many post feeds did Koufos blow this season? I didn't keep track, but I know it was a lot. Don't you think we need a second big on the team who can score consistently in the post? Does the possibility of Al Jefferson tutoring Cousins in the art of post play not intrigue you at least a little bit? I said up front it wasn't an idea I'm in love with, but I like it a heck of a lot more than Ryan Anderson. Where's the argument for how Ryan Anderson makes us a better team defensively?

Honestly, I'd rather go after Ryan Anderson then al jefferson.

The math that people always overlook when they talk about how 3 pts is better than 2 pts is that a good 3pt shooter makes 40% of their threes while a good post player makes 60% of their shots near the basket. 3 x 0.4 = 1.2 and 2 x 0.6 = 1.2. As long as you have a post big who can shoot 60% on their attempts near the basket, you're not losing anything on points per possession by feeding the post. Maybe the reason teams are going to 3pt shooting more and more isn't because it took 35 years for them to realize that 3pts is better than 2pts, maybe it's because young players today are firing up more threes in the open gym than ever and nobody is teaching them how to score in the post because of it. If you don't have anybody who can score down low (I'm looking at you Golden State and Houston) than it does make a lot of sense to maximize your scoring potential by putting shooters on the floor instead. Al Jefferson is one of those players that consistently shoots 60% or better inside of 5ft. Ryan Anderson shot 36% from three last year. 3 x .36 = 1.08 and 2 x 0.6 =1.2 Actually, speaking of shooters -- Omri Casspi shot 41% from three last year and 40% the year before that. Why would I want to take shots away from Omri and give them to Ryan Anderson?

 

[kingsboi]

I like Al and his post game and all but do we really need him here? He is kind of redundant IMO. We just drafted two bigs and have three more on the roster...not really sure where all the playing time would come from, obviously trades would need to be made but I think moving forward, the Kings are okay at big men.

 

[KingsFanGER]

Lumbering? K Love and Tristan Thompson are athletic but Cousins is lumbering? I think you've been reading too many Ailene Voisin articles if you think Cousins is a lumbering big. I didn't say we had to start Al Jefferson either. He came off the bench in Charlotte this year and we still have Willie Cauley-Stein who paired up with Cousins to produce our best defensive lineup this season. How many post feeds did Koufos blow this season? I didn't keep track, but I know it was a lot. Don't you think we need a second big on the team who can score consistently in the post? Does the possibility of Al Jefferson tutoring Cousins in the art of post play not intrigue you at least a little bit? I said up front it wasn't an idea I'm in love with, but I like it a heck of a lot more than Ryan Anderson. Where's the argument for how Ryan Anderson makes us a better team defensively?

Kevin Love isn't athletic. That's why the Cavs had trouble keeping Love and Thompson on the floor at the same time. But Love is a lot more mobile than Cousins or let alone Big Al. Cousins has very nimble feet when he is at full speed, but keeping his body in front of quicker players on D or closing out to the perimeter is not a strength of him (this is just the way it is with such a bulldog like, heavy body and it has nothing to do with Voisins nonsense of too much body fat ). But this would be required, when you want to play Cuz and Big Al at the same time. It was already a problem with KK and Cuz and Big Al is slower and less energetic than Kosta.
Of course the thought of Big Al teaching Cousins his upfakes and quick hooks intrigues me, but Big Al is a known commodity in this league and his price tag will not be cheap.
This team should spend every dollar to improve the guard and wing positions. There is nothing left for just another slow big like Al OR Anderson, who will have trouble staying on the floor alongside Cousins.
At least that's the way I see it. And Vlade's recent comments, that the Bigs are set and he will go after the Smalls now, gives me hope I'm not the only one thinking like that.

I'm fine with our bigs. We have a star, a veteran backup center, who will give you a solid double double as a starter in case of injuries, a great defensive prospect, who moves more like a wing, a young, raw stretch big and another center.
Get a strong wing, who can play small ball PF and goes after it on D and we are golden. And even if we don't get this player Casspi can play some mobile stretch 4.

 

[hrdboild]

Kevin Love isn't athletic. That's why the Cavs had trouble keeping Love and Thompson on the floor at the same time. But Love is a lot more mobile than Cousins or let alone Big Al. Cousins has very nimble feet when he is at full speed, but keeping his body in front of quicker players on D or closing out to the perimeter is not a strength of him (this is just the way it is with such a bulldog like, heavy body and it has nothing to do with Voisins nonsense of too much body fat ). But this would be required, when you want to play Cuz and Big Al at the same time. It was already a problem with KK and Cuz and Big Al is slower and less energetic than Kosta.
Of course the thought of Big Al teaching Cousins his upfakes and quick hooks intrigues me, but Big Al is a known commodity in this league and his price tag will not be cheap.
This team should spend every dollar to improve the guard and wing positions. There is nothing left for just another slow big like Al OR Anderson, who will have trouble staying on the floor alongside Cousins.
At least that's the way I see it. And Vlade's recent comments, that the Bigs are set and he will go after the Smalls now, gives me hope I'm not the only one thinking like that.

I'm fine with our bigs. We have a star, a veteran backup center, who will give you a solid double double as a starter in case of injuries, a great defensive prospect, who moves more like a wing, a young, raw stretch big and another center.
Get a strong wing, who can play small ball PF and goes after it on D and we are golden. And even if we don't get this player Casspi can play some mobile stretch 4.

We won 33 games and we're talking about making the playoffs next season-- we've got to make significant upgrades somewhere. One of our biggest problems is that Cousins is so good and his backups so bad that we're immediately terrible as soon as he comes off the floor. He's not playing 48 minutes per game. We have 30+ million in cap space. Theoretically, if we can trade Koufos (who was a poor fit this season and has hands of stone) and either Collison or McLemore (or both) for an upgrade on the wing, would you then be okay with spending $13 million or so on Al Jefferson? Cauley-Stein, Papagiannis, and Labissiere is a nice collection of young bigs with potential but they're not pushing us into the playoffs next year. Jefferson isn't going to get a max contract. He's a known commodity but even Charlotte seems like they're making re-signing Batum and Lin a bigger priority. Teams with cap space are going after Drummond, Whiteside, and Horford. Personally I don't think Cousins, Cauley-Stein and 2 rookies is getting it done. And the report is we do have significant interest in Ryan Anderson which I think is nuts. He's going to cost more than Al Jefferson and I don't think he's as big of an upgrade.

We also have to think about minutes here. If Rudy is staying, he's getting starter minutes. We obviously want Omri and Cauley-Stein in the rotation. How are we going to fit in a small ball PF except as a bit player? If you want a defensive wing they probably need to replace Rudy or something. We already had Quincy Acy here this season and he barely played, isn't he basically the player you're describing? We do know that the third big is guaranteed to get significant minutes and I think that needs to be a player who can back up Cousins and give you points in the post not a combo forward who has to fight with Rudy, Omri, and Willie for minutes.

 

[Mike]

I am not sure about Cousins and Jefferson in a starting line up together, but if Jefferson is ready to take a role off the bench, then that could be a good option for us. Jefferson has shown he is still a capable scorer and player, even though he has struggled with niggling injuries since his first year with that injury which took him out of the play offs. But to be honest, I think he will stay in Charlotte if he's moving to the bench because he apparently likes Charlotte and is a good team player for them.

If Jefferson was signed to be Cousins' back up, that would be a good move and would let us include Koufos in a package to find an upgrade at PG or SG. Though I guess having Jefferson and Koufos off the bench, with Cousins and WCS starting, could have its benefits as well in not losing us much when we bring the rotation on. But problem with that route is our lacklustre PG and SG options...

 

[KingsFanGER]

We won 33 games and we're talking about making the playoffs next season-- we've got to make significant upgrades somewhere. One of our biggest problems is that Cousins is so good and his backups so bad that we're immediately terrible as soon as he comes off the floor. He's not playing 48 minutes per game. We have 30+ million in cap space. Theoretically, if we can trade Koufos (who was a poor fit this season and has hands of stone) and either Collison or McLemore (or both) for an upgrade on the wing, would you then be okay with spending $13 million or so on Al Jefferson? Cauley-Stein, Papagiannis, and Labissiere is a nice collection of young bigs with potential but they're not pushing us into the playoffs next year. Jefferson isn't going to get a max contract. He's a known commodity but even Charlotte seems like they're making re-signing Batum and Lin a bigger priority. Teams with cap space are going after Drummond, Whiteside, and Horford. Personally I don't think Cousins, Cauley-Stein and 2 rookies is getting it done. And the report is we do have significant interest in Ryan Anderson which I think is nuts. He's going to cost more than Al Jefferson and I don't think he's as big of an upgrade.

We also have to think about minutes here. If Rudy is staying, he's getting starter minutes. We obviously want Omri and Cauley-Stein in the rotation. How are we going to fit in a small ball PF except as a bit player? If you want a defensive wing they probably need to replace Rudy or something. We already had Quincy Acy here this season and he barely played, isn't he basically the player you're describing? We do know that the third big is guaranteed to get significant minutes and I think that needs to be a player who can back up Cousins and give you points in the post not a combo forward who has to fight with Rudy, Omri, and Willie for minutes.

Those are difficult questions.
First of all: I like Koufos. He is a good defender, plays hard, can rebound and roll to the rim. The Curry+Koufos two man game looked promising late in the season. Yes he misses more of those push shots than he should, but unlike a guy like JT he at least gets his shot off before he is locked down by the D.
I think on offense Big Al would be an upgrade over him, but I would be reluctant to spend more.money on the backup center position.
And because I don't know anything about our rookies othr than youtube videos, I have to wait until summerleague to make up an opinion about their potential to help us next season.

The player I'm looking for is a guy like Solomon Hill. Quincy is kinda similar, but just not the defender Solo is.
But I think we not only need one player like this. We better sign two, especially when we want to resign Rondo. This would instantly put us in the position to switch a lot of screens and would give us great length and D on the perimeter.

Yes I'm in favour of moving Gay.

Let's say we finish FA with signing Solomon Hill and Courtney Lee.
Now we are free to move Gay for a PG, preferably a good defender over 6'3, or a two way scoring option.

I'm not against an upgrade of our backup center or Pf. I just want the Kings to improve the defense first. Joerger won't magically turn bad defenders into hustling ball hounders.

 

[ParniValjak]

I am a fan of big Al but I cannot see how he fits with the current roster. You can't play him with Cousins and at that point he becomes a back up, a rather expensive one too. And from a backup, you would rather have defense or 3pt shooting.

If we cannot get Anderson, then I would rather stick with Kosta for the time being.