Sacramento Kings: What To Expect The Last 2 Weeks

Mar 23, 2014; Sacramento, CA, USA; Sacramento Kings forward Rudy Gay (8) on a reverse against the Milwaukee Bucks during the second quarter at Sleep Train Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

The Sacramento Kings have been on a roller coaster ride since the offseason with the fight the city and its fans had to endure to keep their team in Sacramento. Even on the court with the new owners and front office, the team has already had a handful lineup changes. The NBA season is now down to its final 11 games and the Kings will once again be one of the teams out of the playoffs.

However, even though this season for the Kings has been a bit of a struggle, to say the least, there is still time for fans and the team to start showing strides of improvement and building blocks to start forming a competitive team. The main thing most people would say is that the team needs to just show they can keep up with certain teams and that although they are one of the bottom feeding teams, they can still go blow-for-blow with playoff teams.  I say they need to show more.

Showing that this team still has some fight, even with the recorded being what it is, does show a nice touch to the end of the season; but the team needs to showcase its pieces that will be a part of this franchises future.  What I mean by that does not just mean playing the team rookies, but also giving strong minutes to players like Derrick Williams, Quincy Acy, Reggie Evans, and most importantly Rudy Gay. For those who don’t know,  Rudy Gay has a player option at the end of the season; meaning he has the choice on if he would like to stay with Sacramento and get paid $19 million or if he would like to test his value on the free agent market. For these last few games Sacramento needs to make Rudy Gay feel he is on a team making strides in the right direction, while players like Williams, Acy, and Evans need to play to learn their roles on the team, and figure what each can bring to the team.

The next thing this Sacramento Kings team needs to do is improve on defense. The team does need work in almost every department; but with the team having a head coach with the mindset of defense first it, I believe it is time for the head coach and team start getting on the same page. The team since the all-star break has actually shown improvement on the defensive end of the floor but still the team is not at a level to where you can say that if the offense is not flowing , the defense can help carry that load.  The team needs to start becoming a synced unit on the floor and off the floor. For the last two weeks of the season the Sacramento Kings need to become a team that is more vocal, a better knowledge of defense rotation, and the continuance of their active hands.

Lastly, the team needs to entertain the fans. The fans of Sacramento have been tossed left and right with the fight to keep the team, and then going through another year of missing out on the playoffs. With the team knowing they are not going anywhere after this season, it would be nice for the fans of the Sacramento franchise to go into every game knowing that the team is going to fight to win as much as the city fought to keep its team. This means trying to put together a complete game through four quarters and trying to become more consistent on both ends of the floor.

Wins are not really a necessity for the Kings, for some wins could actually be a downfall for the team because it affects the draft position they could be in during this offseason. However that does not mean this team has to roll over and just let teams have a victory, and it does not mean just showing that you’re competitive. It means – like stated earlier– putting together a solid game for four straight quarters, for an entire 48 minute game. If the Kings can handle these small but yet productive steps of improvement; then not only will the Kings team have something to look forward to next season but it will also bring excitement to the fans during this disappointing season and a glimpse of what to hope for in the future.