From Young Stars to Seasoned Vets, Kings Shine at Vegas Summer League
By James Hofmann
Those searching for stars in early July, however, would have missed out if they stayed on the strip, because the famous folks of note were at the Cox Pavilion at UNLV for the Toshiba Vegas Summer League. NBA notables such as Mark Aguirre, Kevin McHale and Rudy Tomjanovich were in the crowd, not to mention nearly every NBA Head Coach, Scout and General Manager.
But the Vegas Summer League isn’t about who’s who. It’s about skill development, learning a system and making a team.
Kings Come Loaded
A bit of an anomaly for summer league rosters, the Kings had four current players under contract at this summer’s tournament, including Ron Artest, Francisco Garcia, Kevin Martin and Ronnie Price. In addition, Kings first round draft pick Quincy Douby and rookie free agent Louis Amundson were also on the team. Amundson recently signed a free agent contract with the Kings.
The other players on the Kings summer league roster were hoping to land a spot on an NBA team.
Most of the players invited to Vegas Summer League are undrafted collegians, while a few others have a dash of experience professionally in the NBA or overseas. Together, they form a talented lot of hopefuls looking to trade their cheese and cracker lifestyle for one of caviar and crepes.
“Summer league is for guys who are still developing,” said Kings head coach Eric Musselman. “In Kevin’s case, in Cisco’s case, in Price’s case, and obviously in Quincy’s case, it’s important that they can get in as much work as they can.”
Ron Artest
One summer league surprise was the fact that Artest decided to join the team in Vegas. These days, seasoned veterans like Artest use the off-season to rest and recover from the previous season. Although NBA players workout year-round to stay in shape, many veterans refrain from the excessive pounding and the risk of injury found in five-on-five play.
Not so for Artest.
“I wanted to get back to work, and get back in that mode,” said Artest. “We have a lot at stake next year,” and it’s real important that we win. Summer league re-energizes me.”
Musselman also thought it was great for Artest to be there, and noted that more than just one NBA legend has worked the summer league schedule.
“I think it’s great for Ron,” Musselman said. “A lot of people forget that it wasn’t too long ago that Magic Johnson and Byron Scott used to play in the L.A. Summer League all the time. That’s how they stayed in shape. They played ball all summer.”
Coaching Staff First Look
For the new coaching staff, summer league provided the perfect classroom for implementing a new system. Although most of the coaches have known each other from working in and around basketball, either at the NBA, CBA or collegiate levels, summer league provided the first opportunity for them to work together as a group. “Not only is summer league important for our young players, but it’s important for our coaching staff as well,” said Musselman. “We have some new people, so it’s a great way for us to get to know each other, and build some cohesiveness. It’s also been important for our players, because they get to know us better as a group, as well as learn our system.”
If one word could describe this group, it would be “energy.” Headed up by assistants Scott Brooks and T.R. Dunn during the games, a play didn’t go by where the summer leaguers weren’t getting some sort of feedback.
During practice, which was run by Musselman, the team was in a constant state of movement. Even during the necessary water breaks the head coach was busy clapping his hands, keeping things going, and reminding players to “hustle.”
Players would even run from one station to the other during practice. For example, when players moved from scrimmaging with Musselman to conditioning with strength coach Daniel Shapiro, they’d run from one station to the other.
The only walking that took place was between the gym and the team bus—after practice.
“Coach Mus’ is a great coach, and he’s going to bring a lot of intensity to the Kings,” said a winded Louis Amundson, the rookie from UNLV after a Kings practice. “Just by his practices, you can tell how hard he works on his preparation.”
Just like the saying, “What happens in Vegas, Stays in Vegas, a team’s winning and loosing record is only valid while in Vegas. Still though, after the Kings second game against Minnesota, a 92-71 win, Musselman was quick to cite the teams undefeated record in practice. “We’re 2-0 guys, and we really need to build off that. We facing the No. 1 pick in the draft tomorrow (Toronto’s Adrea Bargnani), so we need to be ready, and remember why we came down here.” The Kings went on to post a 4-1 summer league record, loosing a nail-biter to New York, 79-78.
Rising Stars
Although most of the players in summer league have yet to cut their teeth in an NBA arena, there was no shortage on talented young up-and-coming hoop stars. This summer’s league featured a record 16 first round draft picks, and the first and second overall picks, respectively. Plus, five of the top 10 draft picks (#1 Andrea Bargnani-Raptors, #2 LaMarcus Aldridge-Blazers, #6 Brandon Roy-Blazers, #7 Randy Foye-Timberwolves, #9 Patrick O’Bryant-Warriors) were in uniform for their respective teams.
The Kings first rounder, Douby, was impressed with the talent and felt good about his performance. “I knew it was going to be tough, and it is tough. It doesn’t surprise me. It’s just making me hungrier,” he said. “After all of this, I’ll know what I need to work on, and what to expect.” Douby had a strong summer outing, averaging 13.3 points per game. For the second year in a row, Martin had a great summer league as well, and was named to the First Team All Vegas Summer squad after averaging 22.8 points per game. Ronnie Price also shined this year, making Second Team All Vegas Summer League, and averaging 15.2 points per game.
“I’m just trying to get better and continue to grow,” said Price after a 14-point performance against Toronto. “And the only way you can do that is to play.”
And at the end of the day, that’s what the Vegas Summer League is all about. Playing, and getting better.
Catch the sights and sounds inside Power Balance Pavilion as Kings.com gives Kings fans a behind-the-scenes look at Black Thursday. 
