The Sacramento Kings have a plethora of young talented players and the second half of the season is time to step up and improve their games.
The Sacramento Kings roster has promising young talent around every corner. Despite those signs of promise and flashes of potential, it’s inevitable that a young team like the Kings will go through its lumps and growing pains. Adjusting to the NBA and learning to play at a high-level on a nightly basis is no easy task.
The Kings have an abundance of young talent to start their rebuild. As it stands, the Kings’ roster features a total of 11 players who are 25 or younger. Integral pieces such as Bogdan Bogdanovic and Willie Cauley-Stein are only 25 and 24 years old, respectively. De’Aaron Fox, Frank Mason, Justin Jackson, Skal Labissierre, and Harry Giles are all 23 years old or younger, with Giles being the youngest at 19. All of these players comprise the team’s exciting young core and figure to be in the organization’s long-term plans.
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Growing Pains
The Kings, who currently sit at the bottom of the Western Conference standings, have had their share of difficulties this season. Issues on defense, offense, and a lack of communication have all taken their toll in this tumultuous season. Veteran guard Garrett Temple highlighted a lack of communication amongst the younger players in a statement he made in an article by James Ham of NBC Sports.
"“The biggest thing is the communication issue, and I think a lot of the time, it’s the young guys that aren’t communicating, because they’re young,” Temple said."
Temple went on to elaborate that the learning curve is a process that will take time with the younger players. You can read his full remarks here.
Learning From Mistakes
One can presume that a player is growing and maturing when they start adding to their arsenal and expanding their skill set. You see their maturation come full circle and observe them settle into who they are as a player. As a result, the player feels more comfortable on the court, and their increased confidence will likely yield encouraging results on game day.
Another telltale sign that a player is coming into their own is when players start bridging the gaps between their strengths and weaknesses and start learning from their mistakes. Garrett Temple stated in a direct quote to NBC Sports James Ham,
"“These are the growing pains you have to go through, but you can’t make the same mistake 2-3-4-5 times,” Temple said. “That’s when it becomes being a professional-understanding what you’re supposed to do now after you made a mistake a couple of times and then fixing it.”"
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Like Temple elucidated in the previous quote, the Kings young players must identify and fix their mistakes. The sobering reality is that future of the team’s success depends on it. The playoffs might be out of reach-but the Kings young core must show positive signs of growth and development. Otherwise, it’s going to be a long, long season for the Kings.