What The Sacramento Kings Must Do To Gain NBA Relevance

Jan 30, 2015; Cleveland, OH, USA; Sacramento Kings guard Ben McLemore (23) and center DeMarcus Cousins (15) watch from the bench during the second half against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Quicken Loans Arena. The Cavs beat the Kings 101-90. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports

The Sacramento Kings won the NBA title in 1951 when they were still known as the Rochester Royals. But they haven’t made the playoffs since 2006, where they lost in the first round. Over the past seven years, the Kings have drafted within the top 12 every single year. And in the last five years of that span, they’ve selected within the top seven.

Suffice it to say, they have not been a very good team, or a team considered to be a threat within the Western Conference, let alone the entire NBA.

Unfortunately for Kings’ fans, the 2014-15 has been no different. The Kings are currently sitting at 26-50, which puts them at 13th in the Western Conference and 24th in the entire NBA. They are once again bound for another lottery pick, and are currently projected to have the 6th pick overall.

Sacramento Kings

The Kings may not be dominant today, but they do have a core group of players that the team could build around going into the future. They have two solid shooting guards in former top ten selections, Ben McLemore and Nik Stauskas.

Neither of them have lived up to their potential as of yet, but they are still both under the age of 23, so they will have time to improve. They also have former Team USA player Rudy Gay on the roster. Gay is still a superstar in the NBA, is arguably a top ten small forward, and is an unrestricted free agent after the 2015 season. If the Kings were able to lock him into a contract for several more years to come though, he could provide another core piece for the Kings to build around.

The most important player for the Sacramento Kings is All-Star DeMarcus Cousins. Cousins is the face of the franchise and the team would be wise to build around him. He has solidified himself as a top five center in the NBA, and is still just 24 years old, so he can be the cornerstone of the Kings for years to come.

Even with the pieces the Kings have in place, they must make more moves to help themselves climb out of the NBA cellar. The Kings must make these moves to help get the franchise moving toward relevance in the NBA again.

Sacramento has been an afterthought for almost a decade, but with a revamping of their roster, they can become a contender in the NBA sooner than many think possible.

Next: Need Some Young Guns