Are the Kings ready for a playoff run?

[SacTownKings4Life]

Now wait just a minute here. Lets take a closer look at last year's playoff standings and consider the changes over the summer.

1. Lakers - check
2. Mavericks - check
3. Phoenix - Amare's gone. They're probably done.
4. Nuggets - If Melo is dealt, they're gone.
5. Jazz - They WOULD have been gone, but it appears they've plugged in Jefferson to replace Boozer, so they probably won't miss a beat.
6. Blazers - check
7. Spurs - Aging and BARELY squeaked into the 7th spot thanks to a tiebreaker. I except them to be back again just because they're the Spurs, but it'll probably be close again.
8. Thunder - check

So 6 out of 8 playoff teams will most likely not make it back next season (and the Spurs are on the fence as well), leaving 2 spots available. Who will fill those empty spots??? Looking further down the standings, we have:

Houston - They're be hanging around come April. If Yao's healthy, they're scary. If not, they'll barely get in.
Memphis - Haven't really watched them, so I'm not sure what to think.
New Orleans - They're to busy pinching pennies to be bothered with competing.
Clippers - They have talent, but... they're still the Clippers apparently...
Golden State - Golden State is Golden State...
Sacramento - Tyreke's 2nd Year, Bringing in DMC, and a host of big men. Should be improved in defense & rebounding.

I think if we play up to our potential, there's a real possibility we can leapfrog the Warriors, Hornets, and the Grizzlies, leaving us in a possible 3-way fight with the Rockets and Clippers for 7th & 8th.
The Rockets can be can be dangerous with Brookes & Martin, but ultimately their success hinges on Yao's health. And the Clippers, despite their abundance of talent, can't ever seem to put it all together.

Lets not forget that regardless of experience, this team is supposed to be a SIGNIFICANTLY superior rebounding and defensive team than in years past, given our new found size. With all the overtime games and game lost by less than 5 points, I think that should translate to AT LEAST a 10, maybe even 15 game differential from last year to next year.

And hell, why is everybody so damn afraid to shoot for the playoffs anyway? What better way to get the most out of your young team than to give them a goal to shoot for? Something to motivate them? Otherwise, what exactly are they playing FOR? Anybody remember what Artest did for this team? It's not IMPOSSIBLE ya know, given the changing circumstances.

[SacKingZZZ]

I wouldn't underrate the Suns. If Nash is still able to go, they probably have one of the better teams for his style than ever before. Look what he did the year Amare was out! Hedo is like a rich mans version of Diaw so I think he's going to absolutely be awesome for them. They added a lot of pieces specifically for Nash, they'll be alright.

Jazz probably upgraded so yeah, probably not missing a beat.

Yeah, the big question mark is Denver. Depends on what they do after Melo, if they move him of course. They'd still be left with a veteran team so they might challenge for the playoffs at the very least.

The Clippers are still, seemingly as always, the biggest question mark. Do they finally break through? A team so talented, interspersed with legit vets can't possibly be that bad...can it?

Spurs are the Spurs, they ain't done yet.

[KF10]

I think we are going to do surprising well early into the season due to the scheduling but we are going to get beat up in the latter half of the season though.

I wouldn't be surprised that the Kings are hovering above .500 most of the way but eventually lose a considerable amount of games due to youth, mistakes, inexperience and etc. So, everything will get normalized at the end.

The Kings should be at least in the mid-30s win mark at the end of the season (preferably: 36 and above). Not enough for the playoffs but showing flashes of great promise.

[SacTown Kings]

Looks like the rebuilding era in denver is underway. I think we pass them this year. Houston said they wont play yao more than 20 minutes a game so even if he is completely healthy which is a big if he wont be as dominate as he was in the past. I'm not too worried about New Orleans. With Paul they will be in the mix but they are on a mediocracy treadmill. I think LAL, Dal, Utah, SA, Por, and OKC are locks for the playoffs. The last two spots will be close IMO between Pho, Hou, Mem, LAC and us.

Losing Amare is going to really hurt Pho. They have shooters but now they lack that dominate guy in the paint to draw double teams to open up shots for the shooters. The pick and roll with Nash and Amare was deadly, they can't replace tht with Hedo. Houston all depends on Yao and even then so if they only play him 20 minutes then I can't see them being that great. LAC and Memphis definetly have the talent but geez it's hard to believe these two teams will ever pull it all together based on their history. I am starting to think we have a legit shot at the 8th seed. And who cares if we get swept by the Lakers there is nothing more I would like than to get our young guys some playoff experience to build upon.

[dookieguy]

I really like Tyreke and the direction that SAC is going in. Even if Cousins plays well and Tyreke becomes a team-leading star, I don't see SAC making the playoffs.

At best, they'll have an outside shot but not make it ala the Grizzlies last year IMO

[SacKingZZZ]

I think what kind of moves, if any, this team makes during the season will inherently effect their status in the playoff race as well. I still wouldn't be surprised to see the Kings consolidate some of the depth they have in the young talent department and turn it into some veterans that can help produce wins sooner than later.

[longfellow44]

If a melo trade occurs that is just one step closer to the playoffs for the kings.

The east has gotten stronger. The west has taken a step back, but has a lot of young talented teams that are looking at the playoffs from the outside in or are expecting to be there for the 1st time in a while.

If the melo trade happens I see Denver tearing it down and starting over. That leaves a new vacancy in the playoffs likely filled by someone like the Rockets but there is always the chance that the kings could sneak up on everyone.

[OGSactownballer]

If you're talking playoffs, you're most likely talking 50 win territory and that's just too much to ask of a team this young. This team has tons of potential but I wouldn't put down money on any super duper initial returns on this investment. Talents there so it's possible but experience is just way too important in the NBA.

Last year was a fluke, though. Instead of the usual spread-out 2-8 of 56 to 44 wins, there was an entire battlefield of very evenly matched teams hovering just above 50 wins. With those playoff teams apparently going in very different directions, I don't think we will see the huge 8-game divide that separated the playoff teams from Houston at 42 wins. It will be more like 6 or 7 teams will be clearly in the playoffs, followed by a divide and a battlefield of many decent teams battling for the last 1 or 2 playoff spots.

45 wins may very well get you in this season, but then +20 wins is probably too much to ask. I mean, you wouldn't ask for more than +15 wins from Yao Ming, let alone Samuel Dalembert. From the summer league, I don't see Cousins being anywhere near an impact player in his rookie season. He's way too raw. Persoanlly, I think next season will be better than the season after the next when Dalembert and Landry walk in FA. Adding players of the departing Dalembert and Landry's quality will be difficult to say the least.

I think that this is really a key point.

Last season was not only a fluke on top but also a fluke on the bottom. Almost all of the worst teams came out of the west as well. therefore the records of the West playoff teams would have to be considered to be artificially padded - especially those that were on the marginal 50-win level like the Thunder, Spurs and Suns. if the bottom teams in the west had been even 3-5 wins better, those teams then drop down to the normal 42-44 win level that fills out the 6-8 spots.

[OGSactownballer]

One last thing to keep in mind as well.

We have about 13 million in raw cap space available RIGHT NOW and through the season.

At some point before the deadline, a team is going to realize that their high-priced star is not getting them there and they will look to move him.

IF - and i do say if - we are performing at a .500 or better level at that point, does it not then behoove us to go ahead and accelerate the timetable by making a move for a guy that would make the difference AND make us competetive NOW in the playoffs so that we can go in and get GOOD experience as the real deal (and re-earn the respect of the pundits and the league)?