[SportsNinjaParticipant]

There have been a lot of Kings posts about what they have done in the offseason. I want to focus on the upcoming season itself. I want to make a case that, on paper, this team should be a playoff contender. 

First is thier versatility; they have several different players that can play a variety of positions. All of their bigs can play with their other bigs and Karl likes to run two pg sets. This allows them to run a ton of different types of lineups depending on competition, chemistry, and opponent. In no particular order because I think the starting 5 could change throughout the season:

5: Cousins/Koufos/WCS

4: Cousins/WCS/Gay/Casspi/Moreland

3: Gay/Casspi/Belinelli

2: McLemore/Belinelli/Collison

1: Rondo/Collison/McCallum

That’s a ton of different combos they can throw out there. That could mean a slow start, but once they begin to develop chemistry they could become a matchup nightmare. I can see a solid small guard lineup with very good bigs. I can see a lineup that can score a ton of points, as well as one that is pretty good defensively. 

This team should be able to rebound decently and play half court and transition offense depending on who is in. They have a very solid mix of shooters, bigs, speed, rim protectors, and defenders. 

I know everyone has given up on Rondo, but based on the contracts that have been given out, he’s absolutely worth the risk at 9.5M. There isn’t another PG out there I would have rather signed, if he can get back to himself, this was the guy they needed. If he struggles they still have Collison.

I like good defensive lineups with 3 scorers. If your scorers are Cousins, Gay, Mclemore, Belinelli, Casspi and Collison you can run a lot of different lineups that are solid defensively and effective offensively. You can blend this second unit to hold a lead with D or try to bring you back into the game with scoring/shooting.

I think the 76ers trade was very one-sided, but it was something that needed to be done to make the moves they did. I’m glad Wes and Monta turned them down- if that was actually the case. These signings have more value and fit needs.

Everyone says the West is so good, and I think that is because of the records and not the actual teams. I saw some great matchups in the playoffs, but I’m not sure I saw a lot of great teams. There is a huge difference. To me the Finals did not look like 2 great NBA teams fighting for the championship. I think Sacramento’s choice to try to win now is the right move. The competition isn’t as stiff as it was in previous years or may be in the future.

There isn’t another team that improved themselves more than the Kings did this offseason. I’m not sure if they will put it all together, but on paper, compare them to the other playoff teams and I don’t think this team falls short.

The actual games may show a very different story, they could implode with all of the drama. I don’t see a team of superstars, but I see a team that doesn’t really have many weaknesses. They may not be the best at anything, but they look like they can play with a lot of these other teams.

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[he_gets_bucketsParticipant]

 Kings will struggle to be one the best 8 teams in the West. They definitely won’t be better than the Spurs, Warriors, Rockets, Thunder, Grizzlies or Clippers, barring a major injury to a teams star player. Teams like the Mavs are still a bit up in the air on how good they will be, the Pelicans may make the big leap this year, and the Jazz should be much improved. The Suns did a lot of wheeling and dealing to open up room for Aldridge and I think are a weaker team than when the season ended, I don’t think they’ll make the playoffs but they are still a reasonably competent team that could push 40+ wins if things go right. The Blazers have gutted their roster, and whilst they have some intriguing young pieces in Leonard, Vonleh and McCollum, as well as a young star in Lillard, they won’t be great on defense and are very young. They’re probably going to bottom out this year, and the Kings should be better than them come the end of the year. The Nuggets are interesting as they’ve dealt with a lot of injury issues over the years so we don’t know how good their current roster can be when healthy, and we’re also not sure who will be on the roster come opening day as they are supposedly in fire sale mode despite not making any deals yet this offseason. If the rumored dealings of Lawson/Faried/Gallo/Chandler take place, they should take place alongside the Lakers and Blazers in the cellars of the West. The Lakers have some good young players in Russell, Randle and Clarkson, but their front court is going to be a sieve on defense with Boozer/Bass/Randle taking a bulk of the minutes. The Lou Williams signing is nice in a vacuum, but for a team like the Lakers which already has 3 scoring guards in Kobe/Russell/Nick Young, his talents overlap and I don’t think he will move the needle much. The Lakers should have an improved roster over last year but continue to be mediocre and I think the Kings should be better than them. Finally is the Timberwolves, who I think are a still a few years of development away from being anything more than a 35 win team. Wiggins is a legit star, and hopefully KAT develops into a All-Star for them. Rubio is a fantastic passer, albeit incredibly impotent scorer, and Lavine has boatloads of potential. I just don’t think they are going to be able to put it all together and be a great team yet, and they still have a lot of really young guys playing a bulk of their minutes, with Pek and Kevin Martin being the only vet guys getting large minutes, and one would have to imagine the addition of KAT and Gorgiu Dieng’s continued presence will spell the end of Pek’s time in Minny. Kings should be better here.

  I think the Kings will be hard pressed to be better than all of those second tier teams(Mavs, Jazz, Pelicans, Suns), and with the top 6 more or less set in no particular order(maybe the Clippers fall this year after losing DJ, but they should still be a playoff team and better than the Kings), it’ll be a real struggle for them to make playoffs in this first year when they have a lot of new pieces to incorporate who will be playing serious minutes(WCS, Rondo, Bellineli, Koufos) and a system they are still learning to play under with Coach Karl. 

I can say with relative certainty that the Kings will be better than the Lakers, TWolves and Blazers, with the Nuggets to be decided on whether they trade their stars or not. I think the Kings will end up in that horrible borderline playoff team limbo, not quite terrible enough to be a high lottery team, but not quite talented enough/experienced as a team enough to be a playoff team. I think it could definitely go either way though depending on how their team meshes together, how a guy like  Rondo bounces back from a pretty terrible season with the Mavs. I could see them surprising everyone and making the playoffs as an 8/7 seed if they make a run and some other teams underperform my expectations of them, but I could just as easily see them being a steaming pile of trash and being a high lotto team again if Rondo doesn’t mesh well, the Karl and Boogie beef grows large enough that they have to part ways with someone, or if some other unforeseen issue arises. Either way, should be really interesting to see how it all pans out in Sac Town

 

[he_gets_bucketsParticipant]

 Kings will struggle to be one the best 8 teams in the West. They definitely won’t be better than the Spurs, Warriors, Rockets, Thunder, Grizzlies or Clippers, barring a major injury to a teams star player. Teams like the Mavs are still a bit up in the air on how good they will be, the Pelicans may make the big leap this year, and the Jazz should be much improved. The Suns did a lot of wheeling and dealing to open up room for Aldridge and I think are a weaker team than when the season ended, I don’t think they’ll make the playoffs but they are still a reasonably competent team that could push 40+ wins if things go right. The Blazers have gutted their roster, and whilst they have some intriguing young pieces in Leonard, Vonleh and McCollum, as well as a young star in Lillard, they won’t be great on defense and are very young. They’re probably going to bottom out this year, and the Kings should be better than them come the end of the year. The Nuggets are interesting as they’ve dealt with a lot of injury issues over the years so we don’t know how good their current roster can be when healthy, and we’re also not sure who will be on the roster come opening day as they are supposedly in fire sale mode despite not making any deals yet this offseason. If the rumored dealings of Lawson/Faried/Gallo/Chandler take place, they should take place alongside the Lakers and Blazers in the cellars of the West. The Lakers have some good young players in Russell, Randle and Clarkson, but their front court is going to be a sieve on defense with Boozer/Bass/Randle taking a bulk of the minutes. The Lou Williams signing is nice in a vacuum, but for a team like the Lakers which already has 3 scoring guards in Kobe/Russell/Nick Young, his talents overlap and I don’t think he will move the needle much. The Lakers should have an improved roster over last year but continue to be mediocre and I think the Kings should be better than them. Finally is the Timberwolves, who I think are a still a few years of development away from being anything more than a 35 win team. Wiggins is a legit star, and hopefully KAT develops into a All-Star for them. Rubio is a fantastic passer, albeit incredibly impotent scorer, and Lavine has boatloads of potential. I just don’t think they are going to be able to put it all together and be a great team yet, and they still have a lot of really young guys playing a bulk of their minutes, with Pek and Kevin Martin being the only vet guys getting large minutes, and one would have to imagine the addition of KAT and Gorgiu Dieng’s continued presence will spell the end of Pek’s time in Minny. Kings should be better here.

  I think the Kings will be hard pressed to be better than all of those second tier teams(Mavs, Jazz, Pelicans, Suns), and with the top 6 more or less set in no particular order(maybe the Clippers fall this year after losing DJ, but they should still be a playoff team and better than the Kings), it’ll be a real struggle for them to make playoffs in this first year when they have a lot of new pieces to incorporate who will be playing serious minutes(WCS, Rondo, Bellineli, Koufos) and a system they are still learning to play under with Coach Karl. 

I can say with relative certainty that the Kings will be better than the Lakers, TWolves and Blazers, with the Nuggets to be decided on whether they trade their stars or not. I think the Kings will end up in that horrible borderline playoff team limbo, not quite terrible enough to be a high lottery team, but not quite talented enough/experienced as a team enough to be a playoff team. I think it could definitely go either way though depending on how their team meshes together, how a guy like  Rondo bounces back from a pretty terrible season with the Mavs. I could see them surprising everyone and making the playoffs as an 8/7 seed if they make a run and some other teams underperform my expectations of them, but I could just as easily see them being a steaming pile of trash and being a high lotto team again if Rondo doesn’t mesh well, the Karl and Boogie beef grows large enough that they have to part ways with someone, or if some other unforeseen issue arises. Either way, should be really interesting to see how it all pans out in Sac Town

 

[jaycee24Participant]

 The thing that worries me is that 2 guard slot. McLemore is going to have to take it upon himself to contribute on both ends with all the veterans on this team who will want to win. Bellinelli is going to be depended on to hit perimeter shots which may be tough this year (sharpshooters struggle in new sceneries) and his defense is obviously a minus. I like that they are trying to win but I think they’re a longshot for the playoffs. Spurs are better, HOU, DAL, OKC, GS, NO, PHX, probably LAC, MEM and Utah are all in the west and all better teams. Best case scenario for the Kings is a 1st round exit so idk if that’s a reason to even support this offseason when you look at it in those terms. Not sure if they want to get J Smoove still but they really might as well because it couldn’t hurt anymore than the current locker room already has.  

[jaycee24Participant]

 The thing that worries me is that 2 guard slot. McLemore is going to have to take it upon himself to contribute on both ends with all the veterans on this team who will want to win. Bellinelli is going to be depended on to hit perimeter shots which may be tough this year (sharpshooters struggle in new sceneries) and his defense is obviously a minus. I like that they are trying to win but I think they’re a longshot for the playoffs. Spurs are better, HOU, DAL, OKC, GS, NO, PHX, probably LAC, MEM and Utah are all in the west and all better teams. Best case scenario for the Kings is a 1st round exit so idk if that’s a reason to even support this offseason when you look at it in those terms. Not sure if they want to get J Smoove still but they really might as well because it couldn’t hurt anymore than the current locker room already has.  

[SinaParticipant]

C: Hibbert, Black, Sacre, Upshaw

PF: Randle, Bass, Nance, Kelly

SF: Kobe, Young, Brown

SG: Clarkson, Brown

PG: Russell, Williams, Buycks

Hibbert and Black have good size, are tall and strong to protect the rim.

Randle and Bass both are strong and legit scorers with nice mid range.

Kobe, Williams, Russell and Clarkson all are legit scorers. Can cut, can hit jumper and 3 and can dish. 

Not that bad if they are healthy.

[LionsLiferParticipant]

LOL @ the Lakers.  Come on, brah. 

[LionsLiferParticipant]

LOL @ the Lakers.  Come on, brah. 

[SinaParticipant]

C: Hibbert, Black, Sacre, Upshaw

PF: Randle, Bass, Nance, Kelly

SF: Kobe, Young, Brown

SG: Clarkson, Brown

PG: Russell, Williams, Buycks

Hibbert and Black have good size, are tall and strong to protect the rim.

Randle and Bass both are strong and legit scorers with nice mid range.

Kobe, Williams, Russell and Clarkson all are legit scorers. Can cut, can hit jumper and 3 and can dish. 

Not that bad if they are healthy.

[KayjayParticipant]

For the Clippers and Mavericks. The Kings have a hall of fame coach and now a decent roster. Last year with a ton of injuries and three different coaches they managed to squirt out 29 wins. They had to start a third rate point guard and were missing their starting scorers for a better portion of basketball season. And with giving heavy minutes to Reggie Evans, and Ryan Hollins you still managed to get 29 wins? Now their roster on paper is better already by leaps and bounds than what it was last year. Clippers just lost a guy who shot 71% and altered more shots than he took.

The Mavericks have a player coming off one of the worse injuries an nba player could have. And have no guarantee he could play on opening night. Deandre Jordan is one hell of a pick up. Can any of you name their starting point guard? I can’t either, JJ Barea is gonna win you that many games at the helm? So if were going to mention the teams that Sacramento couldn’t be better than, find 6 top teams. But those last two spots are definently up for grabs. Utah could get in, Pelicans could go back, Phoenix could make it in as well. But to act like the Clippers and Mavericks will be as good as they were last year is insane. Both teams were gutted, not as bad as the Blazers (OKC replaces their spot easily) but pretty bad.

 

[KayjayParticipant]

For the Clippers and Mavericks. The Kings have a hall of fame coach and now a decent roster. Last year with a ton of injuries and three different coaches they managed to squirt out 29 wins. They had to start a third rate point guard and were missing their starting scorers for a better portion of basketball season. And with giving heavy minutes to Reggie Evans, and Ryan Hollins you still managed to get 29 wins? Now their roster on paper is better already by leaps and bounds than what it was last year. Clippers just lost a guy who shot 71% and altered more shots than he took.

The Mavericks have a player coming off one of the worse injuries an nba player could have. And have no guarantee he could play on opening night. Deandre Jordan is one hell of a pick up. Can any of you name their starting point guard? I can’t either, JJ Barea is gonna win you that many games at the helm? So if were going to mention the teams that Sacramento couldn’t be better than, find 6 top teams. But those last two spots are definently up for grabs. Utah could get in, Pelicans could go back, Phoenix could make it in as well. But to act like the Clippers and Mavericks will be as good as they were last year is insane. Both teams were gutted, not as bad as the Blazers (OKC replaces their spot easily) but pretty bad.

 

[he_gets_bucketsParticipant]

Don’t really know how the Mavs were "gutted". They added an All-star center, while losing Rondo who was getting outplayed by Devin Harris anyway. They lost Aminu to the Blazers, which isn’t great as he played well down the stretch last season, but I’m optimistic that Justin Anderson will be serviceable year 1 at least as a defender to fill that void, and even if his shot isn’t great year 1, Aminu was never an outside threat anyway so anysort of perimeter shooting even if its only 33% would be an upgrade in that regard. They added Jeremy Lin who is a solid guard in this league, and Rick Carlisle is a guard whisperer always gets the best out of them so I’m anticipating at least a decent year out of him. Carlisle is just as good of coach as George Karl and is also going to the Hall of Fame. Dirk is still Dirk and will only have more space to work with now DJ is there dedtroying the rim, Chandler Parsons will continue to be a savant out of the pick and roll finding Dirk and DJ for open looks and feasting on the open looks DJs rim dives create for him. Wes may not play a whole lot but guys like Devin Harris and Richard Jefferson both played well in 20min roles last year and continue to hold down the fort there as both are plus defenders who hit open 3s. Mavs will be fine.

Losing DJ is a big loss for the Clips and I do expect some slippage from them, they still added two solid pieces in Lance and Pierce. Will they make up for DJs presence? God no. Do the Clippers still have two guys at the toop 3 of their respective positions and a bunch of good role players? Yes. Clippers are far from gutted and will still easily be as good or better than the Kings. 

 

[he_gets_bucketsParticipant]

Don’t really know how the Mavs were "gutted". They added an All-star center, while losing Rondo who was getting outplayed by Devin Harris anyway. They lost Aminu to the Blazers, which isn’t great as he played well down the stretch last season, but I’m optimistic that Justin Anderson will be serviceable year 1 at least as a defender to fill that void, and even if his shot isn’t great year 1, Aminu was never an outside threat anyway so anysort of perimeter shooting even if its only 33% would be an upgrade in that regard. They added Jeremy Lin who is a solid guard in this league, and Rick Carlisle is a guard whisperer always gets the best out of them so I’m anticipating at least a decent year out of him. Carlisle is just as good of coach as George Karl and is also going to the Hall of Fame. Dirk is still Dirk and will only have more space to work with now DJ is there dedtroying the rim, Chandler Parsons will continue to be a savant out of the pick and roll finding Dirk and DJ for open looks and feasting on the open looks DJs rim dives create for him. Wes may not play a whole lot but guys like Devin Harris and Richard Jefferson both played well in 20min roles last year and continue to hold down the fort there as both are plus defenders who hit open 3s. Mavs will be fine.

Losing DJ is a big loss for the Clips and I do expect some slippage from them, they still added two solid pieces in Lance and Pierce. Will they make up for DJs presence? God no. Do the Clippers still have two guys at the toop 3 of their respective positions and a bunch of good role players? Yes. Clippers are far from gutted and will still easily be as good or better than the Kings. 

 

[KayjayParticipant]

 If you are giving Devin Harris extended minutes you are gonna have a bad time. Mavs strength was always in their depth. Their depth is basically a no show for the most part now. Their bet hinges if Matthews is even his former self. DJ is a hell of a pick up, but he’s not scoring 20 points a game on average. Contrary to Rondo giving up on that team he actually played decently for a team that didn’t match his strength. Along with that Monta Ellis averaged 18 points for that franchise, he is now also gone. Chandler Parsons (who is one of my favorites) is the only reliable scoring option they have besides Dirk who is now 37 I might add. Dirk could easily play until 40, but he’s not exactly a spring chicken.

Dallas lost so much and all they have to show for it is Deandre Jordan? To make matters worse, last season they were good enough for only the 7th seed in the first place. I know this is hard for people to hear, but contrary to popular belief teams do fall off and you can book Dallas will be one of them. Your point about the Clippers is valid, but I think people around here just refuse to accept that teams are lacking in the overall sheer power they had before. The West is now top heavy, its not as bad as the East. But those last two spots are completely up for grabs. And Lance Stephenson is a joke to me, let him play before I can put faith in him.

[KayjayParticipant]

 If you are giving Devin Harris extended minutes you are gonna have a bad time. Mavs strength was always in their depth. Their depth is basically a no show for the most part now. Their bet hinges if Matthews is even his former self. DJ is a hell of a pick up, but he’s not scoring 20 points a game on average. Contrary to Rondo giving up on that team he actually played decently for a team that didn’t match his strength. Along with that Monta Ellis averaged 18 points for that franchise, he is now also gone. Chandler Parsons (who is one of my favorites) is the only reliable scoring option they have besides Dirk who is now 37 I might add. Dirk could easily play until 40, but he’s not exactly a spring chicken.

Dallas lost so much and all they have to show for it is Deandre Jordan? To make matters worse, last season they were good enough for only the 7th seed in the first place. I know this is hard for people to hear, but contrary to popular belief teams do fall off and you can book Dallas will be one of them. Your point about the Clippers is valid, but I think people around here just refuse to accept that teams are lacking in the overall sheer power they had before. The West is now top heavy, its not as bad as the East. But those last two spots are completely up for grabs. And Lance Stephenson is a joke to me, let him play before I can put faith in him.

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