Better team this season= Utah Jazz or Sacramento Kings?

[Litany]

I'd take Cousins if I had some guarantee he'd keep his head on straight. Without that guarantee I'll stick with Favors as well.

That's a bit like somebody 25 years ago saying "I'd take Barkley if I had some guarantee he'd keep his head on straight. Without that guarantee I'll stick with Oakley."

2 things.

Cousins isn't close to Barkley and the separation between Cousins and Favors isn't by much statwise. Whatever difference there is offensively Favors makes up for and surpasses Cousins with his defense and overall mental state and approach to the game.

[Litany]

Well, the Kings showed last night that they have a major problem with spacing. That is why they got down by 15 so fast. It can be helped by moving Gay to the 4 and adding another shooter in his place, but we will see if Karl is willing to make that adjustment. If not, we are in danger.

This is why I didn't understand them taking WCS. If WCS was a game changing defensive talent, then i get them passing on Mudiay. But WCS isn't. Chalk that up to another bad pick by the Kings.

Kings need to put a lot of money together and take Jerry West away from the Warriors so they can start drafting better and getting better personnel.

[Devilzsidewalk]

Well, the Kings showed last night that they have a major problem with spacing. That is why they got down by 15 so fast. It can be helped by moving Gay to the 4 and adding another shooter in his place, but we will see if Karl is willing to make that adjustment. If not, we are in danger.

This is why I didn't understand them taking WCS. If WCS was a game changing defensive talent, then i get them passing on Mudiay. But WCS isn't. Chalk that up to another bad pick by the Kings.

respectfully disagree

[codydaze]

Well, the Kings showed last night that they have a major problem with spacing. That is why they got down by 15 so fast. It can be helped by moving Gay to the 4 and adding another shooter in his place, but we will see if Karl is willing to make that adjustment. If not, we are in danger.

This is why I didn't understand them taking WCS. If WCS was a game changing defensive talent, then i get them passing on Mudiay. But WCS isn't. Chalk that up to another bad pick by the Kings.

Kings need to put a lot of money together and take Jerry West away from the Warriors so they can start drafting better and getting better personnel.

Have you watched WCS play defense?

[Zombiesonics]

Passing on payton, then passing on mudiay the very next year and signing some over the hill pg who airballs FT's regularly is mind boggling. They draft WCS, then sign a long term (great) backup center in koufos two weeks later... This all makes me very sad because i'm a huge fan of rudy + cuz

[Jaylee209]

jazz are garbage

[jazzfan1971]

jazz are garbage

Maybe you should include a little analysis with your trolling? Just so that you add something to the discussion.

[spidythejoe]

Both teams have big obvious weaknesses. I think the Kings are going to be a little better because people are underselling their defense and I have my doubts about Utah's ability to consistently outscore their opponents.

[Litany]

Well, the Kings showed last night that they have a major problem with spacing. That is why they got down by 15 so fast. It can be helped by moving Gay to the 4 and adding another shooter in his place, but we will see if Karl is willing to make that adjustment. If not, we are in danger.

This is why I didn't understand them taking WCS. If WCS was a game changing defensive talent, then i get them passing on Mudiay. But WCS isn't. Chalk that up to another bad pick by the Kings.

respectfully disagree

And that's totally fine. He may turn out to be a good solid player, I just didn't see him the way you and some others do. As someone else just pointed out, after passing on Elf for Stauskus I figured they would have learned from their mistake and picked up Mudiay rather than a PG that can't shoot and has a major problem getting along with people.

Would have thought they would be smart about bringing in people who solidify a somewhat rocky situation rather than bring someone who could pour gas on the fire. Just my opinion obv. I think it was a mistake, especially for the spacing issues it creates and what they passed on to get WCS. We'll see as the season goes.

[Litany]

Both teams have big obvious weaknesses. I think the Kings are going to be a little better because people are underselling their defense and I have my doubts about Utah's ability to consistently outscore their opponents.

Concern for Jazz scoring is totally valid, but I think the return of Alec Burks and more time in Quin's offense will be helpful. The Jazz are going to be a great defensive team again and they play at a slow pace, so if they just get out in transition more, they will probably be fine. But yes it is an area of focus.

[Kings2013]

I'd take Cousins if I had some guarantee he'd keep his head on straight. Without that guarantee I'll stick with Favors as well.

That's a bit like somebody 25 years ago saying "I'd take Barkley if I had some guarantee he'd keep his head on straight. Without that guarantee I'll stick with Oakley."

2 things.

Cousins isn't close to Barkley and the separation between Cousins and Favors isn't by much statwise. Whatever difference there is offensively Favors makes up for and surpasses Cousins with his defense and overall mental state and approach to the game.

Cousins is a great defender for a Center

WCS has elite defensive potential in our eyes

You've had something to say about Cousins and the Kings for awhile now, as IMO a lot of your fanbase has..

[sdballer]

That's a bit like somebody 25 years ago saying "I'd take Barkley if I had some guarantee he'd keep his head on straight. Without that guarantee I'll stick with Oakley."

2 things.

Cousins isn't close to Barkley and the separation between Cousins and Favors isn't by much statwise. Whatever difference there is offensively Favors makes up for and surpasses Cousins with his defense and overall mental state and approach to the game.

Cousins is a great defender for a Center

WCS has elite defensive potential in our eyes

You've had something to say about Cousins and the Kings for awhile now, as IMO a lot of your fanbase has..

Pretty sure cousins slept with his sister or something. Any time cuz is discussed, he comes in swinging.

In terms of how close they were statistically last year:

Cousins- 24ppg, 12.7rpg, 3.6apg, 1.5spg, 1.7bpg (47%, 78%)

Favors- 16ppg, 8rpg, 1.5apg, 0.8spg, 1.7bpg (52%, 66%)

If you think that isn't much difference statwise, not sure what to tell you.

[Jaylee209]

it's cause when they traded for Favors we told them he sucks...they are just hating, wishing he'll be as good as cousins.

[sdballer]

it's cause when they traded for Favors we told them he sucks...they are just hating, wishing he'll be as good as cousins.

I don't think he's a jazz fan even. Just to be clear, I really like favors and think he still has potential. He's just on a different level than cuz right now

[Catchall]

If the Jazz play a line-up of Burks/Hood/Hayward/Favors/Gobert, they can score just fine. They don't have a clear go-to scorer yet, but they get mismatches and a couple of those guys can continue to emerge this year. Jazz are still experimenting with different line-ups and guys are being put in new roles. The defense still appears to be very solid.

Not sure why the Kings want to compare themselves to the Jazz specifically. How about the Suns, Mavs or Pelicans?

I guess the Jazz are getting some hype and maybe that has Kings fans a bit riled.

I still think the Jazz will take the 7th seed this year.

[Catchall]

Regarding Derrick Favors, I've always seen him as like a Brian Grant--a solid, physical 2-way contributor. If he shoots with more confidence, maybe he's more than that. His skills are improving steadily. I wouldn't compare him to Cousins in terms of talent level. Cousins has MVP-level talent. He's just lacked maturity to the point that he's actually a detriment to the culture of that team. Maybe as he gets older...

[erudite23]

Back for more!

I think the Kings have a nice team and could be a sneaky good bet in a loaded conference. David Locke, our resident Jazz nation "expert" and "insider," is a huge fan of the Kings and thinks they have a great shot at the playoffs. My concerns with them are mostly cultural/organizational. Vivek is f**king crazy. George Karl has a history of success, but also a history of dissent and contention with management/players. He's never lasted long with any single organization and that's no coincidence.

Add Boogie, Rondo and Gay into that mix and you could have a recipe for disaster. No team in the league, minus the threat of injuries, has a wider array of possibilities this season than the Kings, imo. So if you look at all the things that could go wrong, I think it quite reasonable to say that the Jazz are much more likely to come out on top here.

None of that is to take anything away from what the Kings could be on the court. Cousins the player is a great piece to start a team with. When his head is on straight and he's locked in, I think you can make a legit case for him being a top 6 player. If Gay is used properly and kept in check, he's a quality #2. Bellineli and Koufos make excellent role players, as long as they aren't asked to do too much. Collison is a great 3rd guard. McClemore could take another step this year and become a well above average 2 guard with a sweet stroke and, in theory, excellent athletic gifts.

If you add all those pieces up, you should certainly get more than 25 wins.

But....they are the Kings. It's been a long time since they've been able to make anything add up.

That's my .02

[BrotoNBA]

Kings are my darkhorse out of the West. You seen the suicide squad preview? These guys look legit.

[Daddy 801]

I didn't look up the stats. I'm just taking a guess. But, I assume Boogie gets more touches than Favs does. I'd be curious if that's accurate. And to see how close their stats would be assuming Favs did get as many as Boogie. If Favs isn't getting less touches than Boogie that means Boogie is even better than I thought. Dude just needs to learn how to be calm.

[sdballer]

George Karl has a history of success, but also a history of dissent and contention with management/players. He's never lasted long with any single organization and that's no coincidence.

Karl hasn't lasted long at any organization? 7 years in Seattle, 5 in Milwaukee, and then 9 in Denver. Not exactly short stays.