FERRELL HOPES TO HAVE IMPACT ON KINGS
Yogi Ferrell is a fan of the Sacramento Kings’ style of play.
It’s a major reason the point guard chose to play for Sacramento after reportedly changing his mind on an agreement with the Dallas Mavericks, the team he played for the last two seasons.
Ferrell, who signed with the Kings on Monday, appeared on “The Jime Rome Show” to talk about his decision.
“What was it about the opportunity in Sacramento that appealed to you the most?” Rome said.
“I think the main thing is I like their youth. I like their style of play,” Ferrell said. “It’s faster, they get up and down, and I feel like that’s the same game I’ve played my entire life, so I feel like I can go in there and mold the identity of the Kings and just give them another spark that they need.”
The Jim Rome Show: Yogi Ferrell on signing with Sacramento instead of Dallas from The Jim Rome Show on Vimeo.
Ferrell was asked what he meant about wanting to “mold that team’s identity,” which Rome called a “veteran comment.”
He said he can do that by making everyone more gritty. That starts in practice.
“I’m just going to go at dudes’ heads ... and just make sure we have that fire under us every time we step on the court,” Ferrell said. “When we’re all playing with that same fire on the court and we’re together, that’s going to give us a better chance of being successful.”
One dude’s head he’s expected to go at is Frank Mason III. The two point guards will likely battle for playing time behind projected starter De’Aaron Fox.
Ferrell, who reached an agreement with the Kings on Friday, wasn’t drafted in 2016 after playing four years at Indiana. After 10 games with the Brooklyn Nets, he caught on with the Mavericks. He was the NBA Rookie of the Month in February 2017 and averaged 11.3 points and 4.3 assists in 36 games with Dallas.
Last season, Ferrell averaged 10.2 points, 3.0 rebounds and 2.5 assists with the Mavericks and was one of 26 NBA players to appear in every regular-season game last season.
Not bad for a player whose name wasn’t called at the draft.
“I just wanted to show and prove everybody wrong and make sure to tell everybody that I belong in this league,” Ferrell said.
Ferrell also said there are no hard feelings toward the Mavericks or vice versa.
“I decided that I needed a change in my career and ... my style of play, I feel like it fits better with the Kings than the Mavericks.”