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Whenever a player excels in the NBA after an unseen career with another team, the question has to be asked: What river spawned him? With John Salmons, his venture out West to Sacramento is a little different due to the nature of the pursuit to sign him. Players move all the time, but Salmons is ballin’ so damn good that another question has to be asked: Where can I find this river?
Coming out of the University of Miami in 2002, Salmons was regarded as good swingman with point guard capabilities. Some people felt he might not be able to make it because he needs the ball in his hands to be successful on the offensive end. Because of his size and ball-handling ability, he was regarded as a good player but one a team shouldn’t depend on as a starter. He was 22 when he came out and as we all know, seniors never get that ‘potential’ tag.
Drafted by San Antonio with the 26th pick, behind Nickoloz Tskitishvili, Dajuan Wagner, Juan Dixon, Qyntel Woods and Casey Jacobsen, Salmons’ rights were traded to Philadelphia for Speedy Claxton. Salmons played four unsuccessful seasons alongside Allen Iverson. The team drafted Andre Iguodala (2004), Louis Williams (2005) and Rodney Carney (2006). Through draft-day trades, they acquired small forward Kyle Korver and Willie Green (both in 2003) to try and compliment Iverson as well.
Iguodala is still considered their future shooting guard.
Green is a bullish shooting guard who can score and, at the time, was used to alleviate the scoring burden on Iverson’s shoulders.
Korver is one of the best 3-point shooters in the NBA and was constantly logging 30 minutes a game when he was with Philadelphia.
Louis Williams is considered their future point guard, although he has more of a knack for scoring as a small combo guard.
The Carney pick signified the end of the John Salmons-era in his hometown. He was thrown on the backburner, logging inconsistent minutes and producing inconsistent results behind players who were brought in to do the same things he showed during his short stints of action.
Fans and NBA-heads alike felt he was always looking for his own shot, just another player who will be out of the league when his contract is up. He would force contested jumpers with the shot clock running down. He would hold the ball for anywhere from 8-15 seconds in the shot clock, waiting for something to happen. Nothing ever did. Salmons was the head of trade rumors left and right. There were a lot of things that never went in Salmons’ favor in Philadelphia. He played for four different Head Coaches in his four-year stint. That type of inconsistency in coaching will never let a player get comfortable. That’s where Phoenix comes in.
As a free agent two seasons ago, Salmons wasn’t the biggest commodity on the free agent market. With a career-high scoring average of 7.5 heading into the season, the Suns sought Salmons as a 2/3/1 that could become a gunner from the mid-range. If he showed anything in his hometown of Philadelphia, it was that he was confident in his mid-range game. Phoenix needed an above average ball handler who could get to the free throw line and make shots inside the 3-point line to force opposing teams to adjust. They were about to complete a sign-and-trade deal with Philadelphia for an exception and a second round pick. Then Toronto stepped in.
The Raptors, led in the front office by former Suns’ Gm Bryan Colangelo, decided to get in on the Salmons’ bidding, offering him more money than Phoenix and perhaps a better situation for consistent playing time. He eventually agreed to a S&T for 5 years and $23 million, just one million more than Phoenix was offering. Salmons eventually elected to opt out of the proposed deal, which made both teams a little upset. Although details of the Sacramento contract weren’t immediately released, the public eventually found out the contract was for the full Mid-Level Exception, which was 5-years and roughly $25.5 million.
"Originally, I felt like I had to make a decision," Salmons said at the time in an interview with the Philadelphia Daily News. "But I didn't really feel [Toronto] was where God was leading me...”
Well, Sacramento fans now know whom to thank. Now that his history has been cleared up, let’s talk about how he’s playing at an All-Star level for the Kings. Last season, as a reserve, Salmons was not getting enough playing time because he was backing up Ron Artest and Kevin Martin in a contract year. It also didn’t help he was playing for his fifth coach in as many years. He showed his all-around skills against Denver, coming out of nowhere to post his first career triple-double on December.
He scored 21 points on 2-2 3-pointers, 6-13 from the floor and 7-8 from the free throw line. Salmons added a career-high 11 rebounds and 10 assists, his second and last double-digit assist game in 2006-2007. He also added a steal and a block. For those who play fantasy basketball, he came out of the woodworks and has a monster game for teams in deep leagues. For those who just like to watch basketball, it was only the beginning. Thanks to yet another coaching change and a suspension to Artest at the beginning of the season, Salmons found the playing time he needed.
This season, Salmons is averaging career-highs in minutes (36.4), points (17.1), FG% (51.5), 3-point % (41.3), free throw % (82.8), rebounds (4.8), steals (1.4) and blocks (.4). That’s a career year. He is averaging career-highs in every single category. Looking at his numbers, there are a few evident pieces of information that can be taken into account.
When he’s playing over 40 minutes a game, the Kings are 8-9. When he doesn’t, they are 7-12. Those could be attributed to injuries to Artest, Martin and Mike Bibby, but when given the chance, the Kings can beat anyone in the NBA.
When he scores 20+ points, the Kings are 8-7.
When he has more than five assists, Sacramento is 5-4. Again, they can beat anyone when he gets everyone involved.
When he has more than 5 rebounds, the Kings are 7-11. Not a great record, but they split their four games when he gets ten or more boards.
When he gets at least one steal and one block (the great goodies) in a game, they are 3-5.
In their 15 wins, he averaged just over 2 turnovers a game and has 31 total. In their 22 losses, he commits 68 turnovers, a little over three a game.
When he shoots a minimum of 5 free throw attempts, the Kings are 9-6.
When averaging the records out, the Sacramento Kings are 6.2-7.4 when Salmons puts numbers across the board, or roughly 6-7.
What do these numbers mean? Consistent burn provides Sacramento fans with consistent results. By consistent, I mean starting and playing 30+ minutes night in and night out. These stats may show a few things about Salmons, and it is a losing record, but it’s a record that is slowly on the rise. Now that Sacramento is fully healthy, Salmons will have to prove he should get more minutes over most of the Kings’ personnel.
By looking at the numbers, it’s clear how versatile John Salmons is. He can rebound. He can pass. He can get to the free throw line. He has consistent 3-point range on his jump shot. He can play passing lanes for steals or just get them by playing one-on-one/man-to-man D. His ability to never rely on just one part of his game has come into fruition with Sacramento. Numbers are just numbers, and not everything can be seen in numbers, so one has to watch him in order to understand his impact in Sacto games.
Salmons is a midrange hawk. He is a strong isolation player and has shown a great knack at finishing at the rim. A lot of players try to go for the big dunk when it’s the worst possible shot since a rotating big man can just jump 8 inches off the ground and meet the ball at the rim. He has shown a propensity to finish off the glass on both sides of the half court.
When attacking the basket, his long limbs enable him to nail the soft spots in the defense with ease. He protects the ball as he drives. If he needs to, he can take a step-back jumper without losing his ability to square up for his shot. In games, it looks like he drills and practices the ability to get his shot off from everywhere inside the 3-point line. He’s not a pure shooter like JJ Redick or Ray Allen, but anyone shooting over 50% from the floor is doing something right. Against Dallas on Monday, January 14, in the last two minutes, Salmons showed he knows how to attack the basket and attack the open spaces by using his hips and footwork to quickly change direction. Near the end of this highlight reel, Salmons crosses over Desagana Diop and finishes on the left. Then there is the game winner:
When he drives to the hoop, he has shown a great knack for finding spot-up shooters as well as cutters. Head Coach Reggie Theus still uses basic principles of the Princeton offense, but he has done an even better job at getting his players to play within themselves while playing within his system. Salmons is the prototypical example of what the swingman can do in their half-court sets. His size creates problems for opposing teams because going small is the way to ball these days. Salmons can post-up on smaller guards, draws in the double team and uses his size and eye for finding the open man.
Defense is where he shines. Salmons is usually matched up with the opposing team’s best perimeter player. Just like on offense, he uses his size to his advantage and plays angles as good as almost any defensive-minded player in the NBA. He has lock-down capabilities, with their home game against Michael Redd being a prime example. Defense can take a toll on a player because it takes twice the amount of energy to shut someone down. A defender has to know every little detail about his opponent. Where he likes to drive. What he does when he posts up. Salmons has shown an innate ability to play defense. It is one of the main reasons he is being heavily relied on.
As the Kings prepare for the looming trade deadline, how will they approach it? Will they deal Artest and Bibby to get more young pieces for their future? Will Salmons be dealt to the highest bidder because of his play? Both New Orleans and Orlando could use his services in the playoffs. Or will he stick with the Kings and ride out his contract? All signs point to him being part of the winning future Sacramento envisions.
John Salmons needs Sacramento. The Kings need John Salmons. The NBA needs him to play at this high, All-Star level. This Most Improved Player level. Players like Salmons are the reason die-hard NBA fans love the NBA, because they get to see players like Salmons excel when given the opportunity.
Now, here comes the real question: When can I watch him on national TV? Never? Well, good thing there’s always NBA League Pass. And this must be the river he was spawned in:
