"The luxury that he had while in Memphis (while) playing with Zach and Marc was that they had two guys that you could play through, and it all wasn't on him," said Malone, the defensive-minded coach who lauded Gay's ability to guard multiple positions and expects him to fit in well on that end. The offense is expected to continue running from the inside out, with Gay carrying a lighter offensive load than the one that was breaking his back and battering his name in Toronto. Whereas the Raptors were a perimeter-heavy team, one in which Gay and DeMar DeRozan fired away at will on most nights and which was so entirely different than the Grizzlies squad that was so effective with the elite frontcourt of Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol, the ability for Gay to be paired with a talented big man again is seen by all involved as a better fit. As both he and Kings coach Michael Malone described in great detail, the presence of franchise centerpiece DeMarcus Cousins is seen as a major factor in their shared pursuit of happiness.
Yet on the topic of Gay and whether or not he can fix what was broken in Toronto while with the Kings (6-14), the pundits won't matter nearly as much as the personnel. I mean I'm human, and sometimes I hear stuff and it bothers me, but it just motivates me. I go off of what I know I can do, and I go out there and continue to try to prove myself. "If (the talk) is not within the organization, then I don't (listen). "No, I still don't (listen to it) I still don't," he said. Ten months later, he said that's still the case. Once you've gone into a situation, you have to find different ways for you to be effective."īut what of the outside noise, the dialogue around him that's more than loud enough to creep into any athlete's psyche? When I last chatted with Gay, he swore it didn't bother him. It should make you more confident, because obviously this is a team that wants me and wants me to be a part of the team. "Being traded shouldn't hurt your confidence. "One thing about me is that nothing is going to hurt my confidence," Gay, who is expected to debut with the Kings in Phoenix on Friday night, told USA TODAY Sports after his first practice with his new team.
And Gay, who shot at least 45.3% overall in five of his first six seasons before the disastrous downturn, made it clear that the confidence that he'll need to turn it around has certainly survived all this scrutiny.
He was the one whose production last season in Memphis and Toronto (41.6% shooting overall and 32.3% from three-point range while averaging 18.2 points, 16.7 shots, 2.7 assists, 6.1 rebounds and 2.6 turnovers) fell so far short of matching the expectations tied to his massive contract that is paying him $17.8 million this season and $19.3 million next season if he picks up his player option.īut the question about whether this is officially his new norm, and whether Rudy Gay as we once knew him is gone for good, hasn't been answered just yet. He was the one whose decision to have box scores removed from the Raptors' postgame locker room scene this season only strengthened his reputation as someone who eschewed all statistical evidence of his own shortcomings, even as he explained that it was merely a way for the team to focus on winning rather than individual numbers.