Fansided

Predicting the final records of each NBA team

By Brad Rowland

CPer Forbes, LeBron James beats out Tiger Woods for most valuable sports brand. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports
CPer Forbes, LeBron James beats out Tiger Woods for most valuable sports brand. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports /
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Sacramento Kings center DeMarcus Cousins (15) gestures during the first half against the Toronto Raptors at Rogers Arena. Mandatory Credit: Anne-Marie Sorvin-USA TODAY Sports
Sacramento Kings center DeMarcus Cousins (15) gestures during the first half against the Toronto Raptors at Rogers Arena. Mandatory Credit: Anne-Marie Sorvin-USA TODAY Sports /

Sacramento Kings

The Kings were fun at times during the 2013-2014 season, but in this age of internet appreciation for DeMarcus Cousins, it has become somewhat “cool” to project big things from Sacramento in the near future. I just don’t see it.

Sacramento certainly regressed at the point guard spot from last season to this season, as they replace Isaiah Thomas (and his 20.3 points and 6.3 assists per game) with the newly-signed Darren Collison and Ramon Sessions. I am actually higher on Collison than most, but he is simply an average point guard (at best) and the addition of Sessions as insurance does not raise that lowered upside.

As referenced in the “cool” section above, it is now fun to like Rudy Gay, and he was undoubtedly effective in Sacramento, but are we really supposed to trust him based on less than a full season out west? Gay is uniquely talented, especially for his size, but projecting 20 points per game with solid efficiency numbers may be aggressive in year two.

The Kings do have a wildly interesting rotation at the shooting guard spot, as they have invested back-to-back lottery picks in Ben McLemore and Nik Stauskas. Stauskas is immediately the best shooter on the roster, but it is no guarantee that he can surpass McLemore for minutes, and if he doesn’t, this team will have serious issues in connecting from last distance.

Lastly, DeMarcus Cousins is, in fact, very good at basketball, and I am a fan. Cousins produced a breakout season in relative anonymity last season when he averaged 22.7 points and 11.7 rebounds over 71 games, and he was very solid in his time with USA Basketball. Still, it will take a repeat of that performance (at a minimum) to keep the Kings relevant into the new year, and Cousins still has a long way to go as an anchor of a potential playoff team.

There is talent here, but the loss of Thomas is understated at this point, and after a few weeks of Darren Collison, Kings fans will yearn for the past.

Projected Record: 31-51, 12th in West

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