6 Things the Sacramento Kings Must Achieve During 2015
At the beginning of every season, each NBA franchise usually has a pretty good idea of what it can and cannot accomplish during the 82-game slate that lies ahead. Often times, though, those expectations will change due to unforeseen successes and/or failures.
Take the 2013-14 Phoenix Suns for example. Originally seen as a surefire lottery team, first-year head coach Jeff Hornacek led the Suns to a 48-win season, narrowly missing the playoffs by just a half game.
And how about this year's New York Knicks team? Bringing Phil Jackson in to spread good vibes throughout Madison Square Garden had fans of the team thinking playoffs again after falling short of a berth the year before. Look at it now. Currently last in the Eastern Conference with an atrocious 5-34 record—worse than the Philadelphia 76ers, mind you.
The Sacramento Kings are no different.
Currently third-to-last in the Western Conference standings following an atypically hot start, the Kings are essentially playing for pride now, even if they are just 35 games into their season. There's still plenty the franchise and its players can strive for, though, including individual development, overall housekeeping and so much more.
We've officially entered the 2015 portion of the newest entry in the NBA's long-standing history. Here are six things Sacramento can set its eyes on from now until April.
Ben McLemore: Continue All-Around Development
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After failing to meet expectations as a rookie in 2013-14, Ben McLemore has really come on strong in his second year as a pro.
Through 35 games, the Kansas product is averaging career-highs in points (12.1), rebounds (3.2), assists (1.4) and steals (0.7) while also converting his attempts from the field, beyond the arc and from the charity stripe at career-best clips (.476/.390/.823 slash line).
Despite improvements nearly across the board, though, McLemore still owns an unsightly 10.3 Player Efficiency Rating, placing him well below the league average of 15.0.
Most of the blame can be placed on the negative assist-to-turnover ratio he's currently touting as well as a sizable increase in his minutes.
But for the most part, the early returns have been encouraging and he's proven to be the better player between him and rookie shooting guard Nik Stauskas.
However, McLemore insists the Kings' drafting of Stauskas this past summer hasn't really factored into his motivation to get better, telling Aaron Fischman of Cowbell Kingdom, "Them drafting Stauskas wasn't like 'Aw, man. Now I gotta step my game up.' That's the type of player I am. I'm gonna step my game up regardless and get better as a player."
Whether Stasukas' presence is the reason or not, the sweet-shooting guard has vastly improved as a scorer this season and he's not even really that close to scratching the surface of his potential. But in what has become sort of a lost season for the Kings, McLemore should be focusing on sharpening his skills as a rebounder and playmaker on both sides of the ball from here on out.
Repair Relationship Between DeMarcus Cousins and Front Office
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If there's one thing we've learned about DeMarcus Cousins throughout the early stages of his career it's that he's not exactly quick to place his trust in people, which is one of the reasons why the Kings' firing of Mike Malone comes off as a bit risky.
"He believes everyone is a snake until proven otherwise," Keith Williams, Cousins' personal trainer, told Bleacher Report's Ric Bucher back in November.
Having already played under three different head coaches prior to Malone's arrival, Cousins felt he had finally found a coach he could believe in and one that could do the same in return.
"I had a staff that believed in me," Cousins told Grantland's Bill Simmons during a B.S. Report podcast this past summer. "They actually believed I could do it. They actually believed that I could carry that team."
Cousins even went as far as to liken Malone's coaching style and attitude to those of his beloved college coach at Kentucky, John Calipari, in that same interview.
It's those details that make Boogie's being on the outside looking in so poor on the front office's part, especially when you consider the fact Cousins ultimately found out his head coach was canned via Twitter.
Shortly thereafter, DMC was late to the party in finding out the Kings had decided to make Tyrone Corbin the head coach for the remainder of the 2014-15 season.
"I didn't know," Cousins told Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee. "I didn't know officially until (Monday) night, either. That's when a lot of us found out."
Although Cousins insisted he still has faith in the front office, via Sam Amick of USA Today, it would make a lot of sense for management to begin involving him in decisions as large as these. Perhaps Cousins really does still trust the team's brass. But Sacramento may want to think twice before making moves that will directly affect their franchise cornerstone. As of now, though, it seems like the marriage between Cousins and the Kings will remain afloat. It'll be up to the front office to keep it that way for the rest of the season.
DeMarcus Cousins: Make the All-Star Team
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On the bright side, Cousins is making another serious bid for an All-Star selection after being snubbed last February.
When healthy, he's been arguably the best center in the league this year, ranking in the top 5 in points (23.5), rebounds (12.3) and PER (26.0).
Unfortunately, a lengthy bout with viral meningitis forced him to miss 11 of the Kings' first 35 games, giving him a smaller sample size than the majority of the other Western Conference forwards vying for an invitation to New York City. Plus, the latest returns from the ballot box have Cousins with the eighth-most fan votes, leaving him on the outside looking in as far as a starting nod is concerned.
All hope is not lost, though. Boogie could still be selected by the coaches to fill out one of the reserve spots on the West's roster. If he can maintain his current level of production while powering the Kings to a good amount of wins between now and the February break, the 24-year-old's chances might be a lot better than you think.
At the very least, Cousins' desire to represent the Kings in the midseason classic should keep him focused as the franchise goes through this rocky period it currently finds itself in.
Trade Jason Thompson
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The Kings signed Jason Thompson to a 5-year, $30 million extension back in July 2012 to presumably be both the present and future at the power forward position.
Thompson has yet to live up to the expectations that come with that kind of money through the first two-and-a-half years of the deal. His points and rebounds per game—as well as his PER—have decreased in each year since he put pen to paper, while the amount of personal fouls he commits on a nightly basis have risen. That isn't exactly what one would consider to be a promising trend and it seems as though it might be best for the Kings to ship him elsewhere while they still can.
A big body at 6'11" and 250 pounds, Thompson isn't completely useless. He's got the size and serviceable scoring touch near the basket to be anywhere from a decent-to-solid center for a club in need of an extra big.
The Kings just don't have room for him to thrive, sharing the floor with Cousins more often than not. Ideally, Sacramento would be thrilled to get a stretch-4 in return for him, but with shooting big men being held at such a premium these days, the Kings would probably need to add a draft pick or two as a sweetener.
It's a shame Sacramento wasn't able to pawn him off on Toronto in the Rudy Gay deal. Patrick Patterson's ability to space the floor with his jump shot would have been a much nicer complement next to Cousins in the starting lineup.
However, packaging Thompson with another player or two in a deal for, say, David Lee could be an option. Lee is a career 42 percent shooter from 10-16 feet and, while that isn't stellar, it serves as a huge upgrade over Thompson's 23-percent clip.
Derrick Williams: Go Hard or Go Home
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Derrick Williams has been a bit of a surprise in 2014-15.
Although his per game averages don't really jump off the page, he's had his moments, going off for 18 points once, 17 twice and 16 once so far this season. His field-goal percentage is at an all-time high (44.9 percent) and he's also proven to be a solid option as a spot-up corner three-point shooter (50 percent).
The rest of his game leaves a lot to be desired, however. He isn't going to grab many rebounds (career-high 5.5 in 2012-13), make plays as a passer (0.6 assists per game for his career) and isn't going to play game-changing defense (career 107 defensive rating).
But what most people forget is Williams is still only 23 years old despite having already played almost four NBA seasons. This year is the last on his rookie contract and it isn't hard to imagine the Kings being able to re-sign him for cheap. Williams has to prove he's worth an extension, though, and so far it seems like Sacramento could go either way.
There's still a chance another team takes a flyer on him if the Kings ultimately decide to let him walk. But there's also a small chance the league gives up on him entirely.
Bryant West of Sactown Royalty believes Williams still has some room for optimism when it comes to sticking in California's capital.
"He (Williams) may be entering his fourth NBA season, but he's still got plenty of time to develop. He may end up serving the Kings best as a young trading piece with a $6.6 million dollar expiring contract, but it isn't too late for him to develop, figure out his role on the squad, and earn a long-term position in the franchise.
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This year is a big one for Williams. Whether he starts living up to the potential he was tagged with before being drafted second overall in 2011 could make or break his career.
Improve on Last Year's Record
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The Kings finished the 2013-14 season with a 28-54 record and are currently on pace to win somewhere around 35 games in 2014-15.
To be sure, a seven-win increase would be a huge step in the right direction for Sacramento. But even slightly surpassing the mark it set last year would be cause for celebration.
After all, this season is predominantly about wins and losses in the eyes of majority team owner Vivek Ranadive, via The Sacramento Bee.
"Last year, when the season started, I said it wasn’t going to be about wins and losses. When I came here and we bought the team, there was dysfunction in the locker room, there wasn’t mutual respect, the arena was literally falling apart, the roof was falling down.
So we brought in a new team, we restored stability, restored respect, we put in a strong culture. But this year, let’s be clear, it is about wins and losses.
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While a lot of fans and analysts might question Ranadive's recent logic, there really isn't much to argue about here. The Kings are at the point where they are competitive enough to be focused on winning ball games. Cousins is a superstar, Rudy Gay seems to be more comfortable as a secondary scorer, Darren Collison is player well above preseason expectations and McLemore is coming along nicely. Factor in solid, veteran bench pieces like Carl Landry and Ramon Sessions and you've got a decent foundation.
Maybe that's not enough to secure a postseason berth in the brutally competitive West, but it's a start.
Ranadive is absolutely correct in this instance. The Kings need to be targeting at least 30 wins this season.
All stats are courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com unless otherwise noted.
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