Sacramento Kings Season Preview: 5 Challenges for 2011-12

Kobe Bryant is getting divorced. Other than that factor in a tough Pacific Division, though, the Kings have the cards stacked against them this year. (Oh come on, SOMEONE has to benefit from this divorce.) 

Here we are, just 10 days away from opening day. Ten days away from finally putting to rest the conspiracy that NBA Commissioner David Stern is going to pull out his Jafar-like sceptre and make the season vanish right in front of us. Ten days away from all the madness and the screaming and the "Beat LA" signs and the purple and the chills that we as sports fans get from the first game of the season.

Of course, basketball isn't the only place where we flip out when the big day finally comes. Whether it's football, for which we wait nearly eight months in between seasons, or baseball, which barely feels like a heartbeat's wait before it's April 1 again—nothing feels better than an opener.

The pessimist in me says the Kings are going to win 24 games again this season. The optimist in me also says the Kings will win 24 games in 2011-2012.

Hell, if they win 24 games in a 66-game season, I'll be happy! It probably won't be the kind of early 2000s happy where you sit on the floor in your friend's living room with everyone glued to the TV, completely oblivious to just how revolutionary it would be if your small-market team could beat the Lakers. Right now, Kobe's head is in another galaxy. (Although you could argue that his ego has inflated so greatly that it's now constantly floating in outer space).

With Kobe dealing with a Tiger-like divorce and visibly infuriated over the Chris Paul debacle, the Kings have a shot at giving the Lakers a run for their money on Santa's only day off. 

On the other hand, they're still the Kings, and we shan't get ahead of ourselves. Aside from the Kobes coming to town on Dec. 26, here are five major challenges that the Sacramento Kings will face this season.

Sharing the Ball

In case you hadn't heard, everyone's favorite ball hog John Salmons is back in the Sacramento Valley.  I want to stop for a minute though.  I've criticized Salmons quite a bit in the past few months and it's mostly because he simply didn't share the ball when he was on the Kings the first time around.  

However, at the time, the Kings really didn't have anyone else that could score aside from Kevin Martin, who was busy having a breakout season on his own.  Salmons ended up averaging 18.3 points per game in his last season with Sacramento, which marks his best season ever. 

This time around, Salmons enters the lineup with a much more well-rounded scoring attack in Tyreke Evans, DeMarcus Cousins, Marcus Thornton, and an unproven but seething-with-potential Jimmer Fredette.  The athletic duo of Jason Thompson and fresh-face J.J. Hickson will contribute, as well as Chuck Hayes, who had his best offensive season to date last year in Houston.  

I expect a lot more out of Salmons this time around and I don't mean averaging 20 points per game or hitting game winners when he wasn't expected to take the last shot.  He needs to show poise, leadership, unselfishness, and a willingness to let the talent around him evolve properly.  He's the most tenured player on the team and I can't stress how vital it will be for him to prove that to his teammates, the coaching staff, and the city of Sacramento.  Unlike the previous three seasons, the Kings have a sincerely balanced offensive attack and they need to learn how to use the strengths that exist in their dynamic arsenal.  

Challenge No. 1: John Salmons and Tyreke Evans need to learn how to give up the ball to create shots.  

Keeping the Burden off Tyreke and DMC

I don't know if I'm the only one but every time I look at a picture of Tyreke and DMC laughing together and proudly sporting their purple garb, I get the chills.  It's pretty obvious to me that both of them have an insane amount of potential in this league.  Yes, DMC more so than Tyreke—although I maintain that Evans' foot injury is unfairly clouding everyone's judgment of his performance last year (and probably will continue to do so through the lockout-shortened season).  STILL, he led the team in points, assists and steals, and consistently guarded the opponent's best player.  

DeMarcus is going to be an All-Star someday (and don't be surprised if that day is in February of 2013).  As an individual, Cousins' biggest challenge this year will be staying on the floor.  He did a tremendous job of doing so last year, playing in 80 games and representing one of only two legitimate offensive threats for the Kings.

Obviously, DMC needs to learn how to play defense and step up to take charges and fearlessly defend every big man in the game.  His first test comes against Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum on opening day.  Cousins has his hands full and if Chuck Hayes is on the floor, he'll be able to pitch in, even at a minuscule 6'6".   

Random note from my friend Cam, a lifelong Kings fan: "I'm telling you right now, Hassan Whiteside is the Kings' wildcard this year.  He's the tallest guy on the team and is bursting with potential."  That'll either look insanely smart or like the bold prediction that it truly is. 

Challenge No. 2:  Trusting DMC and Evans enough to put the weight of the city on their shoulders...but not the weight of the world. 

Playing Legit Defense

With a bulkier choice of weapons on the offensive front, playing defense will be (slightly) less important than it has been in the past few years.  The fact is, the Kings need to guard the heart, box out, and follow their shots (in order to pound the offensive glass more consistently). 

College hoops is really the only place you see guys following their shots anymore and I suspect it has something to do with the laziness of the NBA, coupled with how superstar-driven the league has become.  I digress.

Bringing in Chuck Hayes on defense gives them a little more presence and hopefully he’ll lead by example and give DMC more motivation to move his feet and get in front of his man instead of going for blocks half the time.  Dalembert is an accomplished shot-blocker, which bodes well for defense at the rim. 

On the perimeter, I’d like to see the guards trying to shoot more gaps, get steals, and jump to the ball when their man passes the ball.  There’s no reason why more help on defense shouldn’t happen, particularly when their glaring weakness is inside the key.  Umm, also: how is Jimmer going to guard ANYONE in this league?  He may become more of a liability than Steve Nash on defense. 

Challenge No. 3:  Keep Kings fans from grumbling “Play some freakin' defense!” every other time down the floor.  Hayes will be an integral part of this philosophy change, if it indeed happens. Look for Salmons to mature considerably on the defensive end. 

Beating Worthless Teams

Last year, Sacramento started off the season strong at 3-1 by beating Toronto, Cleveland, and Minnesota and losing a close game to New Jersey.  Think about those squads for a minute.  Those are all non-playoff teams that have no more than two game-changing players per team.  

In a sense, they're worthless franchises that most of the league could do without.  Yes, the Nets are in a giant market and are moving to Brooklyn soon...but still.  I'll say it because nobody else is willing to: the Kings, new arena or not, are a franchise that most of the league doesn't care about.  It's hard to swallow but it's a large part of why Challenge No. 5 is so pivotal.  

After a 3-1 start, the Kings went deep-sea diving into the depths of the Western Conference standings.  After a three-point win over the Raptors on Nov. 1, Sacramento went 2-22 over a nearly two-month-long stretch.  We'll call that Indianapolis Colts-caliber losing.  Really, it's professional losing at it's finest.  The really difficult thing to deal with is how many of those games over a 24-game period were against poor teams.  They lost to Minnesota, Phoenix, Detroit, New Jersey, LA Clippers twice, Golden State and Milwaukee on their historic losing streak.  

Numbers aside, the point is this: the Kings are trying to make a playoff run and because the Western Conference is so stacked, it's tough to get there.  On the other hand, all they have to do is start beating teams like the T-Wolves and the Warriors on a consistent basis and they'll be half way there.  

Challenge No. 4: Beating every sub-.500 team.  If they can do that, they might be a .500 team themselves.  

Building a New Home and Saying Cheerio to Power Balance

The identity of a sports franchise is typically comprised of two things: winning and attitude. 

Winning breeds interest, which breeds fans, which breeds money, which usually leads to a new home and a coming-out party of sorts. 

Arco Arena (now Power Balance, a somewhat ironic name given how badly the Kings need a better ownership balance of power) isn’t Madison Square Garden, but it’s served Sacramento well. If you compare it to Candlestick Park in San Francisco, a similarly out-of-the-way venue, you’ll see that the Niners continued to sell out games even when they were losing.

I realize it’s a bit of an unfair comparison given there are only eight home games a year in football, but hear me out. The bottom line is there’s a direct correlation between winning percentage and fan interest. When you add on the fact that nobody wants to drive all the way out to a subpar venue, you’ve lost all interest. 

Given that this could easily be the Kings’ final season in Sacramento, a gigantic challenge this season will be convincing the people that they deserve a new arena in a downtown location.  Sure, Mayor Kevin Johnson and the City Council will play a role in this happening.  (And don’t think I forgot the owners but let’s be honest: the Maloofs care much more about Vegas than they do about Sacramento or Slamson). 

Challenge No. 5: Make the people believe that the market deserves a professional franchise and PROVE IT TO THEM BY WINNING.  That is, by winning more than 24 games.