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idk if its just me but i dont think the kings have a bad defensive team anymore

Tyreke Evans did a good job defensively around the perimeter last year, he took advantage of his long wingspan
Donte Greene is a good defender and is going to be better next year if he keeps on working on it
Samuel Dalembert is a defensive force in the paint
Jon Brockman looked like a good defender down low as well, he did a good job not getting bullied around by anyone.
Cisco is capable of staying in front of his man and altering shots with his long wingspan.
Jason Thompson was a good defender at times.

This one is kind of a tough question to answer at this point in the off-season. We still have not solidified our starting line-up, there is still the possibility of more trades, draft pick selections and of course we'll have to see what pans out during our summer league and training camp.

But right now as it stands, I think that on paper we're a much better defensive team then we were last year based solely on the fact that we picked up some inside defense and rebounding. Of course we still need dally to perform and we're not even sure how many minutes he will be getting - we still have to play players like JT and brockman assuming they don't get traded and of course trades/draft picks - because dally will not be our only addition down low that's for sure.

By the way if our progression from last season from the season before that is any indication of what we can expect, and add the addition of the inside defense we will pick up (dally included) I think that our defense will rank in top 15 of the league.

Last year we ranked 20th in defense, with only 104.9 points allowed.
The year before that we ranked 30th in defense, with 114.7 points allowed.

That is a huge difference - and that is with us having a huge lack of defense in the paint - and rebounds ... remember 2nd chance points affect our points allowed per game.

If we take away the 2nd chance points (by better rebounding) and inside defense, I think we'll see another huge jump in our defense rank next season...

Hmm.. That's a good question.
two seasons ago we were ranked 30th in defense efficiency..
Last season we were ranked 21st.. that's a pretty good jump.
and theirs no doubt in my mind that Dalembert makes us a better defensive team..
I think with the help we'll get in the draft/trades/FA (hopefully we snag cousins)... we'll be a much better defensive team.. we could be ranked any where from 18th-15th in defensive efficiency.. Hopefully even better!!

At best, average. But at this point, average wouldn't be so bad.

We definitely improved defensively with the trade. And you're right on point with the players you've mentioned being above average defenders who will only get better. I honestly think we're one year away from the playoffs. Durant made it his third season. I'm expecting the same for Tyreke.

Put it this way the kings have 3 of the top 25 iso defenders and now they are obtaining a fantastic help defender and weakside shot blocker. I feel like our defense is going to dramatically improve largely due to dally bailing guys out on missed assignments. If we add cousins we will be in even better shape with the ability to throw a big body at some of the bigger post players.

mitchweber wrote:At best, average. But at this point, average wouldn't be so bad.

Very true. An average (12-17 ranked) would have won 30-35 games last year, IMO.

Even without looking at the stats I thought it was pretty obvious that the Kings were already a better defensive team last year. Being that I'm always the non-committal type, I'm more inclined to say that we need to wait until at least close to the opening of training camp to even project how much better they might be next year. Sure, Dally will bring a tougher defensive presence inside. But without knowing for sure who else will be on the roster and how well that roster can mesh, it's impossible to tell what the next season will bring.