Q&A With Collison: Love for Kings Fans, New Offense and Wide-open West

SACRAMENTO -- The players cleared out quickly following practice on Tuesday afternoon. The Kings have a whirlwind next 72 hours which includes games against the Thunder and Rockets with the Thanksgiving holiday squeezed in between.

The mood was light. Sacramento is still riding high after their controversial win over the Toronto Raptors on Sunday afternoon. Their four-game losing streak is a thing of the past and they can breathe just a little bit easier. 

After a short chat with head coach Dave Joerger, Darren Collison stopped by for an exclusive one-on-one conversation with CSN California. The 29-year-old point guard has had a difficult start to the year. A league mandated suspension wiped out his first eight games and now he’s been thrust into a new system with plenty of new faces. 

Collison made his first start of the season against the Raptors and he will likely remain a mainstay with the Kings’ first team as Joerger looks to develop chemistry with his 5-9 club. 

Focused on moving forward and not looking back, here is Darren Collison on the state of the Kings, how the fans have received him since his return and the tough test ahead as Sacramento prepares for two of the best guards in the league.

James Ham: How has this transition been for you? You were away from the team, now you’re back, you just got your first start. You had to watch from the outside and now you’re jumping right in.

Darren Collison: It’s been good. I think you can always learn how to be a better player when you’re watching from the outside looking in. I think for the games I was out, I got a chance to see what we needed, where my value lies, and I think the biggest thing is pace. Our execution is fine, but I think we needed better pace to get some easy points. Not necessarily easy points in transition, but getting the offense going - flowing more easily. 

JH: You’re right, the offense has had a better flow since you returned. It’s even opened things up for a guy like Ty (Lawson), who you would think you guys would be playing opposite of each other, but you’re playing together a bunch. How has the offense morphed since you’ve been back? You guys have gone away from the two-bigs look, the lanes are a lot more open.

DC: The way the game is being played with a lot more stretch fours and going up and down, we have the ability to play the same way (as other teams). I think when you put Matt (Barnes) at the four or Rudy (Gay) at the four and me and Ty in the same lineup, you definitely get a better pace where he’s pushing the ball and I’m pushing the ball. We’re getting into the paint and we’re creating easy opportunities for our teammates.

JH: You guys have had super highs and super lows already this season. That’s kind of been the way things work in Sacramento since you’ve been here. How much would you like to see a steady improvement instead of all of these peaks and valleys?

DC: I would love for us to just see this thing get better over time. I think we deserve it. Me personally, I’ve been through a lot, the fans have been through a lot. We’ve all been through a lot and it’s time for us to make a stand and really try and make a push for the playoffs. I think this year is wide open. You look at the West, and the West has been really good, but this year, you look at the 6-8 (in the playoff picture) and it’s pretty reasonable to get those spots.

JH: You’ve been back six games from your layoff, how has the response been for you? How has the reaction been from the fans?

DC: It’s been amazing. The fans have been great ever since I came back. They gave me a little medium standing ovation when I came in the game - it was pretty good. Even after the games, when I get a chance to leave, I’ve been hearing good things from the fans. The fans know who I am. They know me as a person and I’m just glad I’m playing in front of the best fans. They obviously are the best fans.  

JH: You and your teammates have been out in the community doing good things. How important is it that you guys are out there doing these things?

DC: It’s always important to help the community out. You think about basketball, but before basketball, it’s people first. I think if we can go out in the community and continue to make an impact out there, people can really see our true colors - who we really are and how much we want to help them out and become better people. But we have to show our face.

JH: When you look at the two teams that are coming in (Oklahoma City and Houston), you have two incredible guards that are posting ridiculous stats. How difficult is it to look at this schedule, with (Russell) Westbrook, who you know very well, and then (James) Harden? Not only are these two scoring 30 points per night, but they are putting up huge assist numbers as well. 

DC: I think it’s big for the game. To be able to have players like that, to dominate the game at a high level. Russ and James are going to have the ball in their hands the majority of the game, 90-95 percent of the time, so you have to pick and choose whether you want them to pass or score that night. It depends on what the game plan is, but you can’t give them both and they do a good job of exploiting both options.

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