NBA: 30 Storylines Driving The 2015-16 Season
April 5, 2015; Sacramento, CA, USA; Sacramento Kings center DeMarcus Cousins (15) reacts during the third quarter against the Utah Jazz at Sleep Train Arena. The Jazz defeated the Kings 101-95. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
Sacramento Kings – Boogie. That’s it.
The image above essentially sums up the past few seasons of Sacramento Kings basketball. It’s been a whole lot of Demarcus Cousins running rampant (in a good way mostly) and the rest of the team looking like Jason Thompson looks in this picture: Confused.
The search has been on since Boogie came into the league, via the 2010 NBA Draft, to find him a suitable frontcourt mate. It hasn’t worked out too well as no combination has seemed to stick all that well down low. Now they’ll try their luck with Kentucky standout, Willie Cauley-Stein, who specializes in rebounds and defense. Offensively, there’s the chance that he’ll create a log jam of sorts, but Cousins is a fairly versatile scorer who should be able to adapt.
In recent years, the Kings have tried bringing in a variety of pieces to help with what is undoubtably Cousins’ team. The most notable additions to the Kings in the past few seasons have been Rudy Gay, who has provided additional offense, and George Karl, a former Coach of the Year who has reportedly already butted heads with the franchise’s centerpiece.
This year they add Marco Belinelli, Caron Butler, Seth Curry, and Rajon Rondo. They all certainly add offensive firepower to the team, which is no surprise seeing as Karl’s Denver Nuggets teams believed in just outscoring their opponent on a nightly basis.
The headlines in the off-season were dominated in Boogie trade rumors, most notably the proposed move to the Los Angeles Lakers. This did not come to fruition and the Kings are adamant that it was never even a possibility. Regardless of whether it was real or not, the important thing is that they didn’t end up parting ways with the big man.
Now the Kings are in the NBA’s awkward middle ground. With a lot of hard work and luck, perhaps they can sneak their way into the playoffs, otherwise they’re looking at an early offseason and another early first round pick.
Next: Knicks: Up?