What Does the Rest Of the Season Hold For the Sacramento Kings?
By Kareem Gantt
It is finally here Sacramento Kings fans. The day that we all have been waiting for – the beginning of the George Karl era in Sacramento.
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Granted, we shouldn’t even be in this situation in the first place, as the coach who began the season, Michael Malone, was doing a pretty good job molding this team together before he got unnecessarily canned in a panic move by the Kings’ front office. But that’s in the past, and the present and future is now here.
So with the present now here, I think we should take a look inside the crystal ball and see what the rest of the season holds, because judging from the first half of the season, Sacramento has nowhere to go but up.
The Odd Couple?
Much has been made ado of how DeMarcus Cousins feels about Karl becoming his new head coach. Granted, some of that frustration comes from the fact that the Kings now have their third head coach in the same season, but some of the early animosity of the Karl hiring also stems from the fact that he was still missing Malone.
But Karl is his head coach now, and as NBA legend Gary Payton stated in one of the most epic rants of the season, Karl’s system can make Cousins even more of a force, but will Cousins be reciprocal of Karl’s teachings? This will be critical for the Kings going forward, because if Cousins buy’s into Karl’s system, the Kings will be in for a bright future. If not, it is not entirely out of the question that the Kings’ front office could be looking for a new home for the talented big man.
B-More Watch
I wrote a King’s Swag column a week ago that wondered if it is the right time to trade Ben McLemore for talent that can help the Kings now. I got a lot of hate on social media for my piece. A sample of what Twitter thought of my McLemore piece:
Yea, it wasn’t popular.
But just because it’s not a popular idea, doesn’t mean that it can’t be a reality. The Kings’ have to upgrade their roster in the offseason, and unless they can convince a mid-tier free agent to take a chance on Sacramento, the Kings are going to have to upgrade by trade. We already know Jason Thompson is most certainly gone at the end of the year, but will the Kings throw McLemore in a trade to make it more enticing for other suitors?
McLemore has improved in almost every offensive category (11/3/44/36), and under Karl, he should be even better. So what does that mean for the Kings? It can go either two ways; he can be one of the building blocks for the future, or he will be view as an attractive trade piece to get immediate help to Sacramento.
Either way, it is going to be interesting to watch McLemore in the second-half of the season.
The Road Weary Finish
The worst part about the Kings sudden swoon to end the season was the fact that it came at a time where the Kings were beginning a home heavy schedule.
The second half will see the Kings on the road, a lot, which may make it a little tough for the team to gel quickly under Karl. But the Kings can play the role of spoiler in the second half of the season, as the team will still have games against the New Orleans Pelicans, San Antonio Spurs, and the Houston Rockets, among others.
Karl will very much encourage his team to play like they are chasing after a playoff spot, which would give the Kings momentum heading into next season.