NBA 2016-17 Team Preview – Sacramento Kings: Boogie Nights

May 10, 2016; Sacramento, CA, USA; Sacramento Kings head coach Dave Joerger speaks with vice president of basketball operations and general manager Vlade Divac during a press conference at the Sacramento Kings XC (Experience Center). Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

 NBA 2016-17 Team Preview – Sacramento Kings: Boogie Nights

To prepare our readers for the regular season SCS  offers a series entitled NBA 2016-17 Team Preview for each of the Houston Rockets’ 29 opponents.  Who will return to the playoffs? Which team will fall from grace and who will be the Cinderella team?

Included in each profile:

• Where the team finished 2015-16
• Key 2015-16 stats
• Future draft pick status
• Current and future salary rank
• Off Season Moves
• 2017 Free Agents
• Schedule, NBA League Pass and Win Projection Ranking
• Team Overview entering season (Starting 5, reserves and notable injuries)
• When each team will play the Houston Rockets
• Strengths, Weaknesses and Prediction

NBA 2016-17 Team Preview now looks at the team most pundits expect to have major chemistry issues The Sacramento Kings.

NBA 2016-17 Team Preview: Sacramento Kings:

2015-16 Record: 33 – 49

Playoffs:

Missed playoffs, finished 10th in NBA Western Conference

Points Per Game: 106.6 (3rd )

Oct 29, 2016; Sacramento, CA, USA; Sacramento Kings bench celebrate after a play against the Minnesota Timberwolves during the third quarter at Golden 1 Center. The Kings won 106-103. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

Opponent Points Per Game:  109.1 (30th)

Pace: 100.0 (1st )

Offensive Rank: 106.0 (15th )

Defensive Rank:  108.4 (22nd)

Three Point Rank:  35.9% (10th)

Rebounds: 44.2  (11th)

Assists: 24.5 (4th)

Steals: 89 (5th)

Blocks: 4.5 (20th)

Turnovers: 16.2 (28th)

Next: Future postioning - draft, free agents

Oct 18, 2016; Sacramento, CA, USA; Sacramento Kings forward Omri Casspi (18) during the fourth quarter against the Los Angeles Clippers at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Sergio Estrada-USA TODAY Sports

2017 Free Agents

Restricted:

• Ben McLemore

Unrestricted:

Darren Collison

Oct 18, 2016; Sacramento, CA, USA; Sacramento Kings guard Ben McLemore (23) during the fourth quarter against the Los Angeles Clippers at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Sergio Estrada-USA TODAY Sports

Ty Lawson

Future Draft Picks

See Real GM for full details:

Incoming:

• 2018 second round draft pick from Portland (swap, SAC outgoing)
• 2020 second round draft pick from Detroit

Outgoing:

• 2017 first round draft pick to Chicago Sacramento’s 1st round pick to Chicago (via Cleveland) protected for selections 1-10 in 2017; if this pick falls within its protected range and is therefore not conveyed, then Sacramento will instead convey its 2017 2nd round pick to Chicago protected for selections 56-60 (if this pick falls within its protected range and is therefore not conveyed, then Sacramento’s obligation to Chicago will be extinguished) [Cleveland-Sacramento, 6/30/2011; Chicago-Cleveland, 1/7/2014]
• 2017 first round draft pick to Philadelphia (swap, Philadelphia incoming) Philadelphia has the right to swap its 2017 1st round pick for Sacramento’s 2017 1st round pick protected for selections 11-30 (if this pick falls within its protected range, then Philadelphia’s swap right and Sacramento’s obligation to Philadelphia will be extinguished) [Philadelphia-Sacramento, 7/9/2015]
• 2017 second round draft pick to Orlando Sacramento’s 2017 2nd round pick to Orlando (via Boston to Cleveland) protected for selections 31-55 (if this pick falls within its protected range and is therefore not conveyed, then Sacramento’s obligation to Orlando will be extinguished) [Boston-Sacramento, 2/24/2011; Boston-Cleveland, 9/25/2014; Cleveland-Orlando, 1/12/2016]
• 2019 first round draft pick to Philadelphia
• 2019 second round draft pick to Philadelphia (swap, MIL incoming)

Average Age of Team: 27.1 years

Next: Off Season Moves

Oct 26, 2016; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Sacramento Kings head coach David Joerger talks with guard Ben McLemore (23), guard Ty Lawson (10), center Willie Cauley-Stein (00) and forward Matt Barnes (22) during the second half of the game against the Phoenix Suns at Talking Stick Resort Arena. The Kings defeated the Suns 113-94. Mandatory Credit: Jennifer Stewart-USA TODAY Sports

Draft Picks

Round 1: Georgios Papagiannis (13), Malachi Richardson (22) via trade of Marco Belinelli to Hornets, Skal Labissiere (28)

Round 2: Isaiah Cousins (59)

Hornets traded the rights to freshman guard Malachi Richardson, the 22nd pick, to Kings for Marco Belinelli

2016 Free Agents prior to July 1, 2016:

Restricted:

• Seth Curry
• Eric Moreland

Unrestricted:

• Rajon Rondo
• Caron Butler
• James Anderson
• Quincy Acy

Moves made following July 1, 2016:

Incoming:

• Matt Barnes 2-years, $12M, leaves Memphis
• Anthony Tolliver 2-years, $16M exits Detroit
• Garrett Temple 3-years, $24M exits Wizards
• Arron Afflalo 2-years, $25M exits Knicks

Exiting: 

• Rajon Rondo 2-years $30M to Bulls
• Marco Belinelli  (trade)
• Seth Curry leaves for Dallas
• Quincy Acy has agreed to a 2-year minimum deal with Dallas
• James Anderson signed overseas

Re-upping:

• Butler has since been waived

Waived:

• Caron Butler Exorcised Option
• Duje Dukan

Next: Schedule, League Pass, Win Projection Rankings

Oct 29, 2016; Sacramento, CA, USA; A general view of Golden 1 Center prior to the game between the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Sacramento Kings. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

Vegas over-under for wins: 32.5

Schedule strength:

As ranked by ESPN: 6th with 3.10 extra losses

The Kings’ 18 back-to-backs are tied for the most in the league, but five of those finish in Sacramento. Somehow the Kings project to spend about 10,000 fewer miles in the air than the Warriors, their geographic neighbor.

Games versus Rockets:

• Friday, November 25th at Golden 1 Center, Sacramento, CA at 10:30 PM EST
• Tuesday, December 14th at Toyota Center in Houston TX,  at 8 PM EST
• Tuesday, January 31st at Toyota Center in Houston TX,  at 8 PM EST
• Sunday April 9th at Golden 1 Center, Sacramento, CA at 6 PM EST

Zach Lowe NBA League Pass Rank: 12th

When DeMarcus Cousins is rolling, there is nothing in the NBA like his rampaging drives that end in implausibly soft layups. When he’s tantruming, he makes for mesmerizing reality TV — even if you tire of the sulking, sniping at teammates who have done nothing wrong, and lazy transition defense. It will be fun watching Cousins and Rudy Gay pretend to tolerate each other before the Kings inevitably trade Gay. (You almost have to admire how openly Gay disdains his current employer.)

Next: Team Overview

Feb 25, 2015; Sacramento, CA, USA; Sacramento Kings forward Rudy Gay (8) and center DeMarcus Cousins (15) argue a call with the referee during the second quarter of the game against the Memphis Grizzlies at Sleep Train Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports

2016 Committed Salary

2016: $95,312,648 – 18th ranked

2017: $83,093,542 – 12th ranked

Team Salary Ranking as per Hoops Hype, and team salary overview also via Hoops Hype

Starting 5:

Point Guard:  Darren Collison – 14.0 points, 4.3  assists, 2.3 rebounds (note Lawson will start until Collison serves his 8 game suspension)

Shooting Guard:  Arron Afflalo – 12.8 points, 3.7 rpg, 2.0 assists, 3.7 rebounds

Small Forward:  Rudy Gay – 17.2 points, 1.7 assists, 6.5  rebounds

Power Forward: DeMarcus Cousins – 26.9 points, , 3.3 assists,  11.5  rebounds

Center: Kosta Koufos –  4.7 points, 1.3 assists, 6.3  rebounds

Reserves:

Guards: Ty Lawson, Malachi Richardson,

Wings: Matt Barnes, Ben McLemore, Omri Caspi, Garrett Temple

Bigs: Anthony Tolliver, Willie Cauley Stein,  Skal Labissiere, Georgios Papagiannis

Injury News:

• Matt Barnes – ribs, day to day
• Arron Afflalo – strained glute, expects to play
• Darren Collison will serve his 8-game  suspension stemming from a domestic violence incident  to start the season

All injury news as per rotoworld

Next: Strengths, Weaknesses, Prediction

Oct 29, 2016; Sacramento, CA, USA; Sacramento Kings center DeMarcus Cousins (15) reacts after being called for a foul against Minnesota Timberwolves center Gorgui Dieng (5) during the fourth quarter at Golden 1 Center. The Kings won 106-103. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

Strengths:

DeMarcus Cousins: Whether you see him as a victim of circumstance or the master of his own demise there is no denying his talent. Cousins is equally adept in the paint or hitting from range. He gives teams fits trying to game plan for him. Most pundits peg him as the top center in the NBA, but ultimately his success will be based on committing to defense and not being the leading  deterrent to team chemistry.

Dave Joerger: New head coach Dave Joerger sure has his work cut out for him given the roster of misfit toys. Channeling the positive Boogie Cousins could well determine whether he and the Kings can contend. Previous head coach Mike Malone was arguably the only HC to ever have success with Cousins out of the myriad of coaches the talented big man has gone through.

New Arena:  The fact I’m citing a new building sure does point to the fact this team has issues. That said the new Golden 1 Center is said to be a beautiful structure and is the result of years of work by former player Kevin Johnson to keep the franchise in Sacramento. The only question remaining is whether there will be a return of the cowbells. In the past few seasons the PA announcer has pumped in canned applause, so let’s hope it’s a more organic crowd experience n the new building.

Weaknesses:

Backcourt:  As Houston Rockets are are too familiar, the Ty Lawson experiment can be an exercise in futility. The much maligned and troubled point guard regressed so much last season he was a shadow of his former self. Couple that with Darren Collison who will miss the first 8 games of the season due to his domestic abuse charges and you’ve got the most caustic backcourt in the NBA.

Chemistry:  Was there ever a bigger set of personalities on one roster? Cousins, Matt Barnes, Ty Lawson, Rudy Gay, Darren Collison etc. Sure feels like it’s only a matter of time before this team self implodes.

Rudy Gay Drama:  Gay has made no bones about telling everyone he will opt out this summer and has no desire to return to Sacramento. Further he’s made it clear he’s not a fan of Cousins. With the Kings have a dearth of talent on the wing this is a real issue. Moreover the drama caused the longer he stays with the team could cause irreparable damage over the course of the season.  As much as Gay is a talent though many GMs are probably asking if they want a player on their roster who clearly puts his own needs first.

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• Houston Rockets: Ranking the top-five 2021 NBA draft prospects 

Prediction:

Best Case: If Cousins can play defense consistently and take some of the leadership skills he learned while with the US Team in Rio the Kings do have the capacity to be in the mix for a lower tier seed.

Worst Case: Conversely knowing Cousins it’s an easy presumption he’ll be a detriment, it’s just a matter of when. Expect to hear trade rumors all season surrounding Gay, Cousins and McLemore. It’s hard to imagine this group being able to pull it together especially with the ever unpredictable Boogie. For that reason, I expect to see the Kings lottery bound yet again.

FanSided Affiliate Site: A Royal Pain

Next: Phoenix Suns Team Preview

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