NBA Sacramento Kings

Judgment On Sacramento Kings Should Be Withheld For Now

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By @courtzierk

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Getty Images

A year ago, the Phoenix Suns were almost unanimously viewed by NBA experts as a subpar team entering the 2013-14 season. They were generally picked to finish anywhere between 13th and 15th in the Western Conference and really weren’t given much of a chance by anyone. As we all know, they went on to win 48 games, and although they missed the playoffs by the slightest of margins, they have now set the standard for the underdog team exceeding expectations.

Over the course of the first week of the 2014-15 NBA season, I have heard multiple teams be referred to as “this year’s Suns”. It feels like any time a bottom-feeding team wins a game they aren’t expected to, we are going to have to endure this misguided comparison. The poster-child for this reference recently has become the Sacramento Kings who, after disposing of the Portland Trail Blazers and Los Angeles Clippers in back-to-back games, have pundits buzzing around the league.

I am here to tell you to slow your roll about this year’s Kings. Don’t get me wrong, I am a huge fan of DeMarcus Cousins. I think he has the makings of a franchise-changing player, and Rudy Gay has been playing out of his mind. But beyond those two players, this year’s Kings squad just isn’t very good.

I have seen what happens to teams that are completely dependent on two players to carry the load for their respective teams and it isn’t pretty. At some point, it simply becomes too much of a burden for these players, and once opposing teams begin to figure them out, they will gear their gameplans entirely towards stopping them. What will happen then?

I don’t think you can count on Darren Collison or Ben McLemore to pick up the slack. Jason Thompson and Carl Landry certainly aren’t the answer either. This is the NBA. Injuries happen. Players go through cold streaks. Opposing teams get better at implementing game plans.

I am not saying the Kings can’t be a surprise team in the West. Having two upper-echelon players goes a long way in the star-dependent landscape of the NBA, but to compare them to the Suns is simply a bad comparison. The Suns are, and were, much deeper and have significantly better talent and depth. They aren’t completely dependent on Goran Dragic and Eric Bledsoe to carry them. The Morris twins and Miles Plumlee proved to be highly effective players. Gerald Green was one of the better scorers at his position in the league. The comparison simply doesn’t hold up.

I will be rooting for the Kings to do well this year. I love it when teams come out of nowhere to shock the league. I am just not ready to anoint them this year’s biggest surprise team. Let’s withhold judgment until at least a quarter of the way through the season, shall we?

Court Zierk is a Columnist for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter@CourtZierk, “Like”him on Facebook or add him on Google

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