Biggest Early-Season Storylines for the Sacramento Kings
This year's Sacramento Kings are a different team than the one we've become accustomed to over the past eight years. Sitting at 11-11, the Kings are no longer one of the NBA's worst teams. That's probably the biggest takeaway from the early part of the season.
However, a lot more than that has gone down in Sacramento. Some players have made strides, while others have decided to stay with the Kings for the long haul. Plus, there are answers as to how some of the team's offseason additions have panned out.
Those are only some of the storylines. Here's the rest of what's gone down with the Sacramento Kings during the first quarter of the season.
Darren Collison Is an Upgrade over Isaiah Thomas
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In the offseason, the Kings swapped out point guards. They brought in Darren Collison and shipped out Isaiah Thomas.
Based on their 2013-14 seasons, it looked like a perplexing move. Collison averaged 15.9 points, 5.2 assists and 2.3 turnovers per 36 minutes, along with a 16.2 player efficiency rating. Thomas, on the other hand, was coming off a campaign of 21.1 points, 6.5 assists and 3.1 turnovers per 36, to go with a 20.5 PER.
Thomas was a better scorer, a more efficient player and seemingly even a better passer, so how could the move work to the Kings' benefit?
Well, it has, largely because of Collison's ability to get everyone else involved. Too often with Thomas, the offense was geared around a lot of isolation sets. With Collison, the ball moves better, and the Kings are getting better shots as a result.
This is also evident in the stats. With Thomas on the court, the Kings had an offensive rating of 104.9. While he was on the bench, the team's offensive rating was 99.3. However, when Collison plays for the Kings, their offensive rating is 108.7. That number drops all the way to 96.9 while he sits.
So while Thomas may be a better individual player, he's not a better fit with the Kings. Since a point guard's job is to facilitate the offense, all that matters is team performance, and Sacramento plays better with Collison.
Ben McLemore Has Taken a Step Forward
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Ben McLemore has taken a step forward from his rookie season to his sophomore year.
A big part of that has to do with his confidence. The 21-year-old looks so much more comfortable on the court. He's moving better without the ball, understands his strengths and doesn't hesitate to shoot when shots are there.
And remember that silky-smooth stroke we saw from McLemore last season that was aesthetically pleasing but often didn't find its target? It's still silky-smooth and aesthetically pleasing, but the shots are dropping this time around.
After making only 37.6 percent of his field goals and 32 percent of his three-pointers as a rookie, McLemore is knocking down 46.6 percent of his shots as a sophomore and 40 percent from three-point range.
He's still not a finished product. McLemore could be more aggressive—only 1.8 free-throw attempts per 36—and do a better job of finding open teammates, but the shooting guard has rebounded nicely from one of the more disappointing rookie campaigns.
Rudy Gay Is Here to Stay
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Rudy Gay is here to stay. It's a terrible rhyme, but it's also true.
The Kings signed Gay to a three-year, $40 million extension that could keep him in Sacramento through the 2017-18 season.
It's a good move for the Kings. Gay is enjoying the best season of his career so far, boasting career highs in points (21.6) and assists (4.4) per game, offensive rating (113) and win shares per 48 minutes (.160). Plus, having him on the team gives Sacramento two of the league's top players.
Here's what Bleacher Report's Adam Fromal wrote about Gay, whom he included as an Honorable Mention in his article detailing the league's top 25 players: "Now that he's eschewing perimeter jumpers and sticking to his bread and butter, Rudy Gay has been a fantastically valuable piece for the surprisingly competitive Sacramento Kings, justifying his gaudy salary all the while."
The gaudy salary Fromal is referring to is the $19.1 million in the last year of his old deal. The one the Kings signed him to will average a little over $13 million. If Gay can justify that deal, imagine the value Sacramento will be getting on him once his new contract kicks in.
The Starting Lineup Is Very Good, but the Kings Are Short on Depth
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A huge part of Sacramento's early-season success can be attributed to the play of the starting lineup, most specifically the Kings' three-headed monster of Gay, Collison and DeMarcus Cousins.
When those three are healthy and in the lineup together, the Kings have been very good. Cousins has been an anchor on defense, Collison does a nice job facilitating the offense and Gay has been playing with efficiency and is passing more effectively than ever before.
When the Kings' preferred starting lineup is on the court—the one they use when everybody is healthy—they have an offensive rating of 105.9 and a defensive rating of 86.8. It's translating to wins, too. As Akis Yerocostas of Sactown Royalty points out on Twitter, Sacramento is 8-1 when Cousins, Gay and Collison all play.
They're 3-10 when one of them is missing.
That can largely be attributed to a lack of depth. Things stagnate on offense without the starters in the game, and the rotations aren't as crisp on defense.
In fact, none of the Kings' reserves has a positive net rating when on the court. The closest one is Reggie Evans, who is minus-4.4.
DeMarcus Cousins Is an MVP-Caliber Player
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Anybody who watched DeMarcus Cousins during the early years of his career knew this was a possibility. The question was whether Cousins could stay focused enough to reach his potential. Now that he has, the center has become a legitimate MVP-caliber player.
Watching the Kings without Cousins is a chore, and that's not solely because he's entertaining to watch as an individual player. It's because they're a completely different team without him on the court.
Despite Cousins having a high usage percentage and commanding a lot of possessions, the ball movement actually stagnates when he's off the court. The team turns to Rudy Gay to do the heavy lifting, with mixed results.
This shows up on the stat sheet too, as the Kings have an offensive rating of 109.4 with him on the court and 100.0 with him off it.
Perhaps the biggest issue is how much the Kings struggle on defense without their center. That may sound funny, since the perception surrounding Cousins is that he's not a good defender. But in a lot of ways that's a misconception—both about Cousins' individual defensive ability and about how much he helps the overall team.
Don't just take my word for it, though.
With Cousins on the court, Sacramento's defensive rating is 98.3. Over a full season, that would be the fourth-best in the NBA. When he sits, that number skyrockets to 109.4, which would be better than only three teams.
Of course, these numbers just show how valuable Cousins is to the Kings. They don't necessarily show he's one of the most valuable players, period.
Well, consider this: Cousins is third in the NBA in real plus-minus rating. It's a number that measures all factors of team performance when a player is on or off the court.
Of course, none of this is to say Cousins is the best player in the league or that he'll win the award. But his value to the Kings can't be overstated.
DeMarcus Cousins Is Out Indefinitely with Viral Meningitis
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Cousins has been out while dealing with viral meningitis.
His absence has taken a real toll on the Kings. He hasn't played since Nov. 26. At that time, the team was 9-6 overall. In the nine games since, Sacramento is 2-7.
With Cousins being out for an indefinite period of time, the Kings need to find ways to win without their best player. As coach Michael Malone told reporters, others will need to elevate their play in his absence.
“I know our big guys have no problem being physical in the paint, posting up, and our most physical player is (out),” Malone said. “In his absence, we need everyone else to take on that same mentality and not shy away from contact. We’re at our best when we attack, we get to the foul line, we set our defense.”
The coach is right. The Kings are at their best when they do those things. The trouble is they don't do them consistently without Cousins.
| Offensive Rating (league rank) | Defensive Rating (league rank) | Total Rebound Percentage (league rank) | |
| Oct. 29 through Nov. 26 | 104.7 (15) | 103.6 (15) | 54.9 (1) |
| Nov. 27 through Dec. 10 | 103.3 (16) | 106.2 (21) | 52.9 (7) |
Stats courtesy of NBA.com
Unless noted otherwise, all stats courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com and NBA.com.
What have you thought of the Kings so far? Let me know on Twitter @SimRisso
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