We’re back with the legend Jerry Reynolds and part two of his interview with us.
If you missed part one, Jerry discussed the team’s progress as a whole this season and much more. Today, he breaks down the progress of some of the key players on the roster.
Any trade potentials you have considered? Who do you think should be on the trading block and who are you looking at in terms of guys who could put the team over the top?
Well, not really because honestly, it’s not my job and because there are so many things in play in terms of the salary cap and how much money you want to pay somebody. How important is Bogi [Bogdan Bogdanovic] to you? Well, I think he’s pretty darn important to what level? Or, can you use somebody under contract to get somebody else you think is better or would fit better?
I’ve got guys in mind that I would like to keep and I think Bogi is one of them. I always say about free agency one of the keys is keeping the guys you want to keep. Now, at what price do you do that? I don’t know. On this particular team, the one guy that could probably play on every team in the league is Bogdanovic. It may be different roles because of his versatility and shooting ability and competitive spirit and all of that. I’m not saying he’s better than [De’Aaron] Fox or as desirable as Fox, but you can’t name a team from the Milwaukee Bucks, to the Lakers, to the Clippers, that he wouldn’t play on. That makes him valuable to the point that would scare me.
So it sounds like you would be good with having Bogi as the long-term starting shooting guard?
To me, whether he starts or comes off the bench really doesn’t make any difference to me. I think he’s a really, really good player. The fact that if Coach Walton sees him in that role going forward that’s fine, or if he would want to go back to Bogi off the bench, to me it doesn’t make any difference. My real thought on Bogi is that he’s a keeper. Not to say if somehow Golden State wants to trade Klay Thompson for him you do it, but I’m just saying that I think he’s a keeper. ¦ Bogi is one of those guys he’s got the complete skillset. ¦ He would be valuable to a lot of teams in the league and on that basis, he ought to be very valuable to the Sacramento Kings because I really do believe he could be a 20-to-30 minute player on a bunch of 50-win teams – and I don’t believe he’d be the best player on any team in the league.
Because of injuries we don’t have a complete sample size of what Marvin Bagley is right now, or what he could become, but what is your make of what you have you have seen out of him so far and his chances of being a cornerstone of the franchise moving forward?
I would start by saying I don’t know. I mean, I’ve seen nothing to indicate for sure that he can’t be, and I’ve seen nothing for sure than he can be. I know that is an ultimate cop out, but I think it’s true. I think until a guy has played 150 games or so in the league, unless he’s one of the all-time franchise kind of guys, and I think that is one thing I can say for sure is that it’s pretty clear he’s not a franchise-changing player as the Jordans, Birds, Magics, or Kobe’s, and even Kobe took two or three years. There’s not many of those guys so you know that he’s not that. But it’s also true you see talent: ability to rebound in a crowd, rebound per minute, those are things that you can’t make up. His ability to score around the basket was true.
What you didn’t see was probably the defense you wanted to see out of a very long, athletic young player; you didn’t see the ball movement and passing that you wanted to see out of a guy that’s going to draw a lot of double teams and things of that nature. I’m not surprised by that part, that’s usually a little more of a work in progress. I think our fans sometimes forget that. I’m old enough to remember [Hakeem] Olajuwon’s early years, I mean you talk about a black hole but within four or five years he became a terrific passer out of double teams because you had to double team him.
So, there’s a little time there and patience is called for, but can he be all that Vlade [Divac] hopes for him to be? Well, he can be. Can we give him that status already? Not fairly, we can’t. I’m not one of those who wants to throw him in the trash, and I’m not one who wants to give him five-time All-Star yet either.
Buddy [Hield] had a rocky season. Why do you think he didn’t continue the upward trajectory we saw last season? Obviously, the style of play and the injuries did factor in, as did moving to the bench. What did you make of his season though?
I’m a big fan of Buddy, but I think sometimes he forgets rule No. 1 is it’s possible to have unspoken thoughts, and it didn’t serve him very well sometimes. So, he put himself in spots I thought where he was getting criticism that he had never gotten before, and much of it deserved. So maybe trying to do too much as a player to show people he was really good, which, of course, he is, he doesn’t have to go prove that.
Anyway, then I thought style of play there probably was a feeling that Buddy could do more maybe than he can at a high level. I thought one of the things last year if I was going to summarize it, to me he’s certainly more like Klay Thompson than he is Steph Curry. And I thought last year he played more like Klay Thompson and this year early, he was trying to play like Steph Curry and I think the results are the results, aren’t they? That’s the downside of when you make a total coaching change. I wouldn’t blame Luke [Walton] for that, it’s sometimes you just don’t know players as well until you are around them a long time.
And then, the injury to Fox certainly did not help during that stretch where he was struggling because De’Aaron did get him much better shots for the most part. As Buddy struggled, he did what a lot of shooters do, he started taking more tough shots. Talk about a shooting slump, well, he wasn’t in a shooting slump, it was amazing he could hit the percentage of the quality of shots he was taking because he was taking a lot of bad, tough shots. It’s not nuclear physics or anything. I call that my Eddie Johnson rule. I always remember telling Eddie, one of the great shooters: He was saying, Well, I’m really struggling shooting the ball, I’m just not hitting.’ I said, Well, no with the kind of shots you are taking it’s amazing you are hitting as many as you are. Quit taking tough shots, and make sure you are getting open shots, the percentages will come up.’
So, there was a little bit of that.
I think with Buddy, like almost all players in the world, with the possible exception of Curry, [Damian] Lillard and a few of the true greats, they don’t shoot as well off the dribble. It’s tougher to do as opposed to spot shooting, or maybe one-bounce escape dribble. Buddy is great, absolutely great at that, much like Mitch Richmond was. Mitch was the same thing, if Mitch took more than four or five dribbles, mostly bad things were going to happen.
Anyway, style of play was a big part of it and Buddy’s own thinking he could make every shot, all of that played into it. And I think the benching brought it to a head and settled him down a little bit and he, for the most part, was awfully good since then.
How important is it for this team for Fox to be willing and able to take over in the fourth quarter like we saw a lot after the All-Star break?
For this team to be really good, he has to be really good and he has to be the facilitator, the leader, the driver and I think most of the last 20 or 30 games we saw a lot of that, not all the time. You certainly see the potential for him to do that and do it better. I think his playmaking still is a work in progress to be honest. He can get to places on the floor and I think his offense is getting close. I think he can be a better assist guy I think he can be a 20 and 10 guy in a reasonable timeframe. He has got to be the guy because I think he can be a top-5 point guard in the world and if he is, this team has a chance to have a lot of success.
You mentioned how Fox needs to improve in the leadership department. What have you seen from him that makes you say that?
I thought he made good strides, especially the second half of the year. He was going after the ball, demanding it, making plays for himself and others at a more regular rate. Maybe even being a little bit hungry offensively, which I think is good in today’s game. Point guards have got to score. So, he forced the action a little bit. To me, where I think he needs to get a little better, and everybody can’t be Chris Paul, but probably needs to challenge his teammates a little more, direct them a little bit more. I think that will come. I think it’s pretty clear to his teammates that he’s the guy, and that’s a big step. I think that was established this year. That will make it easier for him to kind of go down that road. ¦ He needs a little meaner streak in him. He’s such a nice kid and there’s nothing wrong with that, but the ball goes up you’ve just got to leave that behind. You can have group hugs after the game and before the game, but I think he really needs to get into guys. We’ve seen him do it against Ja Morant and different guys maybe he sees as somebody he needs to take on, he’s done that.
Walton said this week that he likes the idea of giving Barnes more minutes at the four. Do you like that idea?
I completely agree with Luke. I think you need to play him at four in today’s game. With [Kent] Bazemore or with Bogi or Buddy playing the wings, I mean if you’ve got four three-point shooters on the floor, it’s really tough to cover. And then, add in that he might be the best post-up guy the Kings have. At some point you actually do need to post up somebody and I think Harrison is pretty good in there. He’s big enough to make it tough on small forwards and then he’s quick enough and agile enough on most power forwards to be a problem, so yeah I like that idea.
***
Thanks again to Jerry for joining us. And make sure you check out his podcast, The Jerry Reynolds Show.
Holy crap, there’s a part two to this Jerry interview??
?itemid=13267290
https://images.app.goo.gl/EiuT3L6SwPjwNd1b7
K, so I don’t have images on a phone figured out.
When you search the image in Google, try right clicking the image and “open image in new tab” and then copy that link.
?itemid=12819152
It worked! Bless you Klam!
Oh oops, I didn’t see you were using your phone. I guess we can’t post images via phone.
Hell, I haven’t been able to use the new site at all w/my phone.
We made some updates on day 1 that helped mobile out, unfortunately you have to clear your internet cache out for them to work.
Thanks!
Is it safe to say that Jerry Reynolds jumped off the STR ship and came aboard The Kings Herald? That other place has only seen the tip of the iceberg that is in their path.
Safe
Jerry makes a great point that Bogi is probably the only player on our roster that every single team in the league would love to have.
I just love Jerry Reynolds so much. I almost never disagree with him on anything and he is just such a delight and a treasure.
We’ve been so lucky to have him and G-Man for so long.
Not to be contradictory but Jerry’s point wasn’t that he was the “only” player, but that he was a player on the Kings that every team could use. You could easily add Fox, Barnes and Holmes to that list I have no doubt.
Agree about Jerry, very glad to have him on board with the Herald, definitely part of the carry-over content I was hoping for, tip of the hat to the site, keep up the stellar work!
No, Jerry said literally “the ONE” guy on this team that every other team would want, AND could find minutes for, is Bogi. Teams who already have a great point guard wouldn’t really want Fox (at least at his soon to be price) or couldn’t find him minutes, similar with Barnes and Holmes at their positions. Every team would want them sure, and most but not necessarily all could find them minutes.
I think every team could find minutes for Fox as at least a backup PG. However, not every team would necessarily give him the # of minutes a player of his talent level should get.
Maybe not intended to be literal.
I think the point is really that Bogdan is the guy with the most well-rounded game. So he can fit into any scheme and system. He works just was well next to a Fox type PG as a Trae Young type PG as a Ben Simmons type PG. He works in a slower half-court system and an uptempo system. The other guys are a bit more system/personnel dependent to get the most out of for the team. Fox wouldn’t work next to, say, a Ben Simmons. Or in a slow system. Holmes doesn’t really work with a non-floor stretching Big for a partner. Barnes and Holmes (like most players) are heavily dependent on having other playmakers on the floor. Playing Bogdan doesn’t force your hand at other positions so much.
Jerry = GOAT.
Man, he nailed the issue’s with Buddy to a Tee IMO. And I agree about what he said about Swipa. So yeah, GOAT.
Just hit the “Z” button to go to comments! Oops. Great article. Love me some Jerry
Happy to be here! Congrats on the new website! You’re free!!!
“he forgets rule No. 1 is it’s possible to have unspoken thoughts”
God, Jerry is so good.
He is full of so much wisdom. Jerry is one of a kind and a Sacramento legend.
Makes me wonder which things were not said in the interview…
I wonder if Jer has ever given similar advice to The Grant Napear Experience (I’ve decided this is what I’m calling Grant’s radio alter ego moving forward)?
That other place has hit rock bottom. They have an article up about Animal crossing ffs. I am so so so thankful for everyone that has made this place a reality.
Edit – they have also started removing negative posts and posts that reference the herald.
Yeah, I saw that there was a comment earlier in the morning saying how crappy the place has become. That comment is no longer there! Another sign of how lame that company is run.
The Kings Herald has writers who are fans of The Sacramento Kings, and they are passionate and knowledgeable. You cannot fool Kings fans who live and breathe all things Kings with the lazy articles they put out over there. The Kings Herald also has the smartest commenters. There are no other places on the internet where you will find the great conversations about The Sacramento Kings that these commenters have. And honestly, these commenters are just plain funnier, too….and generous, as we’ve seen multiple times in charity and fundraising efforts on the former blog address.
I’m not going over there, but to be fair I don’t necessarily blame them at this point for removing or comments about how much better their competition is. 100% agree with everything else!
You’re right, Carl. It’s understandable that they wouldn’t want that kind of criticism just sitting out there. I guess I just got used to our editors/moderators, who would let criticism like that stay. I’ll try not to comment on them anymore, as it doesn’t seem helpful/productive.
No worries, Kosta! Totally agree on how good the mods are over here, and Vox is absolutely terrible, as far as I’m concerned.
I treat them like most players after they get traded; I wish them good luck in China.
Klam has that gif posting thing down.
Idk most of the new StR writers (& I don’t want to know most of the new StR writers based on what I’ve read on TKH), but I see that the Animal Crossing article was written by the woman who’s run SBN’s Sharks site for awhile. She definitely isn’t lazy (though my impression is that she’s not much of a basketball fan, so I’m surprised that SBN would have her write a StR article).
It’s quite likely/possible she wrote an Animal Crossing gear post for a bunch of team’s sites.
It’s also quite likely/possible that she heard about the thread and thought it would make sense in a Kings Links article. Kinda like any other sports blogger might.
As always, it’s quite likely/possible that I have no idea what I’m talking about when it comes to media. Was prognosticating due to the nature of the new SBNation positions.
She hasn’t done an Animal Crossing post for the Sharks site (though I wouldn’t really be into such a post), though she did do a fun article on a Sharks fan drawing Sharks players (& other NHL players) as Bob’s Burgers characters. https://www.fearthefin.com/2020/4/20/21226870/san-jose-sharks-fan-art-logan-couture-joe-thornton-may-cortez-photography
It’s a KingsLinks, Animal Crossing is just one part of it. Not much different from what the Herald guys would do, either.
Oh, it has links to Kings-related stuff (an Animal Crossing article didn’t really pique my interest)? She’s posted articles w/links to Sharks-related articles to the Sharks site before (& that seems like a standard post that wouldn’t be out of place on a sports blog).
I’ve stopped worrying about what’s going on at StR, but I’m just going to put this out there: speaking as a guy who designed my own Giants hat for Animal Crossing, I’m very much interested in where I can get Kings designs, and wouldn’t find that at all out of place on a Kings blog in a time when there is no basketball happening.
For what that’s worth.
Awesome interview with JR. Sorry to change the subject, but I just read an article by James Ham about Bazemore. He feels that he will get a contract in the 3yr/$21-27 million range. That’s a chunk of change. What do you guys think about that? Think the Kings should sign Bazemore to a contract like that?
Absolutely not.
No.
My guess is that the cap is going to take an unexpected turn downward next season, and that most non-elite FAs are going to be playing on one year deals at a fraction of their usual value.
I wouldn’t.
Was it just my imagination? When I first came across this Kingsguru comment on my iPad earlier today, it had a light yellow background that disappeared when I touched it on my screen. I haven’t had that happen with any other comment I’ve come across since then.
I had a RORDOG comment pop up on my screen a few minutes ago w/a yellow background (though the yellow background quickly disappeared).
Hopefully we’re getting close to having a way to distinguish between read and unread comments!
And now I’m seeing a few comments in other threads that show up with a light green background!
Lay off the booze, Jman.
Baze did just get paid on his last contract, so he might be willing to take a discount for the right situation. Perhaps this is that situation.
I’d do 2 years at that annual rate, or 3 years with the last year non-guaranteed — or whatever would be equivalent under the new cap.
That seems like a major overpay.
I’m sorry but I don’t understand giving Baze much more than Holmes’ deal. I loved watching him play this/last season, and he provided a lot of unique value the team desperately needed, but I can’t imagine there’s huge demand for his services. There’s always the random Langston Galloway type deal one could use as a comp, but this team can’t really afford to continue to overpay for middling talent; even if the overpay can be rationalized.
Bogi’s deal is probably gonna come in at like >/= $15 million AAV. I would hope they don’t think the idea of spending >$50 million on three players who’s best position is SG is sustainable through Fox/Bagley’s prime years.
I guess what I’m saying is this team will need to start making some hard choices as the bill for Bogi, Fox and Bagley comes due. If they were poised to make a deep run in the playoffs, then the context would be clearer for these types of ancillary deals.
As of now, we can’t even be sure if their ceiling is higher than the 8th seed. One would hope they wait until they can reasonably project the young core’s ceiling before doing deals that have luxury tax implications.
There’s always demand for a 3 and d guy. I mean, would you rather have Danny green at 14 million a year or baze at a quarter to a third of the price?
Except, he’s a below average 3pt shooter. Being a 3-and-D guy implies he’s good at both of those things. Bazemore only gives you one side of that equation. Green, on the other hand, is a better and more versatile defender and hits 40% of his 3s.
Is 35% career below average? Small sample size, but he shot 39% from 3 for the kings. I’m not advocating that the kings keep him at any cost, but if we’re looking at filling the bench, I’d rather have him over yogi or len.
Average for the NBA this year is 35.7. Bazemore is at 34.2 this year and, as you note, 35 for his career.
I’m note sure why you’d be choosing between he Len, and Yogi since they all fill significantly different roles. But if we’re talking about a back-up SG/SF to play behind Bogi, Buddy, and Barnes on the wing, then there are plenty of options that are better and/or cheaper than Bazemore at $7mm per for multiple years. I don’t see any reason to give him any more than $3MM per.
I don’t see any reason to give Bazemore anywhere near that much when there are plenty of comparable guys available for the minimum. I mean, for example, David Nwaba was released in January and he’s basically the bigger, younger, more athletic, more versatile version of Bazemore. They could have Nwaba for less than $2MM per and they’d have a Bazemore that can guard 1-(stretch)4s.
I’d have no problems paying baze 5 to 7 a year for 2+1. If parker opts out, kings have the money.
I really like what I’ve seen from Baze so far, but… oof.
I liked what I saw from Bazemore as well, but I don’t think 3yr/$27 million is a good idea. I don’t expect his 3 pt % to hold up, but 35% isn’t terrible. Other aspects of his game seem sustainable. I would love to see a sub $5million/yr deal, but I don’t know how realistic that is. And it is true that there are other players that will be available for less ,but they may or may not have the impact on the team Bazemore has. I feel there is value to knowing the player is a good fit. Here’s hoping for $5-$6 million per year on a 1+1 or 2+1 (team options of course).
I think that would be crazy but then again I also think that’s exactly what the Kings might do because they do dumb things like that pretty regularly.
Was thinking the same thing. I totally wouldn’t be surprised to see Vlade overpay a guy based on a month of good basketball during a contract year.
Great interview!!! To me it is a little bit of a concern Buddy status with the team. Joerger was in part fired because his relation with him towards the end of the season. This year it is not that clear that walton forced him to playmake. Maybe he was trying to prove he is more than a 3 point shooter and we all know this resulted in constant turnovers and bench.
Jack please don’t do this to me. I need to believe there are still pure things in the world!
This might not make any sense if the image doesn’t load from my phone, but whatever.
Oh no! I can’t believe my eyes. Please Jack, take that quote and apply it to more recent comments about a “cure”.
This treatment is on advice from the highest authority, I presume?
Ah, Jack….

Great to be back and enjoying the articles i’ve read so far! Liking the new digs, will require some time to get used to. Now with that being said….could someone point me to the little lurker’s room?
“Z” workaround: Okay, it’s not ideal (especially when the thread comments will be in the hundreds) but for now I’m scanning the right-hand side and checking the time stamps to see which comments I have not read yet, based on what time I last checked in.
Jerry is a treasure. Great interview, both parts.
On a side note: Need to have a reply box at the bottom of the comment thread.
Good feedback
unrelatedly related: if I visit the site once an hour, I can us control-f “minutes” to get new comments from the last hour. It’s the disinfectant cure to hitting ‘z’!
Badge Legend