What Sacramento Kings Can Learn from NBA's Top Teams

Last night, the Sacramento Kings faced off at home against the top-seeded San Antonio Spurs. While the Kings stuck with the Spurs in the first two quarters and were down just a point at halftime, San Antonio blasted Sacramento in the second half and won 127-102.

The Kings are just 20-42 on the year and hold the fourth worst record in the league. They're a team searching for many things, but most importantly, they're missing an identity. So Keith Smart's club should take their demolition by San Antonio to heart, and learn from the Spurs. They should be learning everything they can from the NBA's top teams.

What can the Kings learn from the leagues' top teams? Let's take a look.

San Antonio Spurs: Efficiency

San Antonio dismantled Sacramento even without the legendary Tim Duncan thanks to their incredible efficiency with the basketball. The Spurs made 58.8 percent of their baskets, and 26 of their 47 field goals were assisted. 

Sacramento's offense has improved in the later half of the season, but they're still anything but efficient. While Keith Smart stresses ball movement, the team struggles to continuously put it into play. Nearly every King has a tendency to force bad shots, especially DeMarcus Cousins, who needs to learn that every offensive rebound does not mean he has to force it back up to the rim.

San Antonio is an aging squad, but they sit at the top of the West because they're incredibly smart. If the Kings could just take half of the Spurs' collective basketball IQ, they'd be a playoff team. 

Oklahoma City Thunder: Fitting in Together

One of the loudest narratives of the Thunder continues to be the relationship between Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant, and many believe that Westbrook doesn't defer enough to Durant. We'll see how true that is come May.

Needless to say, the Thunder are a well-oiled machine compared to Sacramento. The Kings, like the Thunder, are young and extremely talented. The difference is that Oklahoma City has a collective identity. Yes, that identity may be challenged at times, but it's obvious that both Westbrook and Durant are working hard to fit in with each other. Heck, James Harden would be a star scorer on any other team, and he's alright coming off the bench for Oklahoma City. Now that's taking one for the team.

The Kings needs to follow the Thunders' lead and start working hard to fit in with each other. With Tyreke Evans, DeMarcus Cousins, Marcus Thornton and Isaiah Thomas, the Kings have a ton of talent. Hopefully with time and practice, they can begin forming a collective identity and team chemistry. 

Chicago Bulls: Defense

Do we really need to do into this one? Sacramento gave up 127 points to the Spurs, who were without Tim Duncan. Keith Smart and the boys really need to work on their defense.

Play after play after play, the Spurs continually found the open man, inside or outside. Sacramento at times looked loss against San Antonio's incredibly efficient offense. The Bulls' defensive awareness and intensity are both off the charts, and even with an average offense, Chicago has a solid chance to win the NBA title.

It's unfortunate that the Kings missed on their chance to sign Tom Thibodeau in 2009. Unfortunate for them that is, as Thibodeau would eventually be hired as the head coach for the Chicago Bulls.

Dallas Mavericks: Staying Composed

Dallas has fallen off the contender map a bit this season, but their run to the championship last year should offer a young Kings team many lessons. The primary one is staying composed, especially when the road gets tough.

Facing off against a more talented Miami Heat squad, the Mavericks rallied as a team and didn't back down against LeBron James and company. When James had his legendary Finals' collapse, Dirk Nowitzki took advantage. But they never lost their cool, even when experts everywhere said they were outmatched.

Sacramento lacks that emotional maturity and composure. DeMarcus Cousins wears his emotions on his sleeve, and while that gives him a fiery passion that is necessary for any great player, he also gets far too emotional at times and gets called for silly fouls. Tyreke Evans and Marcus Thornton both have a tendency to force bad shots when things are going well, rather than stay composed and run the offense.

The Kings are young, and hopefully in time they can gain more maturity. They'll certainly need it to win a championship like Dallas did.