The Kings were also 26th in the league in assists that season and that was after Karl took over and the assist numbers went up to end the season. The year before under Malone the Kings were 30th in assists. The Collison/McLemore/Gay/Thompson/Cousins was showing some promise under Malone to start the season based on improved team defense (especially against the three), getting to the line often and making free throws. I really wish we could have seen whether that early season success was sustainable or not.
But in any event, that season the Kings were also 28th in the league in 3's both taken and made and 28th in blocked shots.
Point being, just because the starting lineup was effective doesn't mean there weren't things to improve on.
Obviously the biggest issue with that roster (beyond Cousins getting sick and Malone getting fired) was the unbelievably awful bench play. But I don't think anyone would argue that it would have helped to add more playmaking, more shooting and more rim protection.
I think that team was (again, in a small sample size) winning despite the lack of outside shooting and playmaking.
I think you're missing the point. Nobody is saying that the team wouldn't be better if you added playmaking or that the team in whole couldn't be improved upon. You were making the argument that we wouldn't have much playmaking, and my answer was simply "who cares?" The 4th best lineup featured Collison/McLemore/Gay/Thompson/Cousins. There's nothing to suggest that our team would suffer because of a "lack of playmaking." The problem with that team was the bench. We had a top 4 starting unit but our bench continuously gave up leads.
So if you believe the statements below are true...
'16-'17 Cousins >= '14-'15 Cousins
'16-'17 Gay >= '14-'15 Gay
'16-'17 Casspi >= '14-'15 Casspi
'16-'17 McLemore >= '14-'15 McLemore
'16-'17 Collison >= '14-'15 Collison
Joerger >= Malone
...would it not make sense to produce a similar roster knowing that this type of lineup has already proven to be successful? Not only is there a very high likelihood that it will work again, but it would be very easy for the FO to replicate (rather than reconstructing the roster by moving Gay, resigning Rondo, etc.). For instance, you could do a 3 way trade sending out #8, Koufos, & Belinelli while bringing back #31 (Thon Maker), Beverley, & Amir Johnson. With the $23.5 mil in cap space, you sign C. Lee to $14 mil, Aldrich to $4 mil, R. Price to $2 mil, & Acy to $2 mil.
PG - Collison/Beverley/Price
SG - Lee/McLemore/Anderson
SF - Gay/Casspi/Butler
PF - Johnson/Acy/Maker
C - Cousins/Cauley-Stein/Aldrich
Again, if you believe that the '16-'17 version of Cousins/Gay/Collison/Joerger is >= the '14-'15 version of Cousins/Gay/Collison/Malone, you're left comparing the '16-'17 version of Lee/Johnson to the '14-'15 version of McLemore/Thompson which is no doubt heavily favored towards Lee/Johnson. On top of that, I would argue that Johnson & Lee are similar types of players to McLemore & Thompson in the way they play the game. Meaning that their style's don't differ so much that it would cause disruption in chemistry.
So what did you just do? You just improved the 4th best lineup in the league by swapping out McLemore with C. Lee & J. Thompson with A. Johnson. Now the bench...
As I mentioned before, the bench was the reason why we weren't an elite team. Our bench was putrid if you remember, and if you don't, you can find our bench below...
PG - Sessions/McCallum/A. Miller
SG - Stauskas
SF - Casspi/D. Williams
PF - Landry/R. Evans/Moreland
C - Hollins
Other than Casspi, I don't see any players who should be getting minutes on a regular basis. Now compare that to the bench we have today/after thee trade...
PG - Beverley/R. Price
SG - McLemore/J. Anderson
SF - Casspi /Butler
PF - Acy/Maker
C - Cauley-Stein/Aldrich
Is it elite? No, but it's a hell of a lot better than '14-'15. Beverely, McLemore, Casspi, Cauley-Stein is definitely an upgrade over Sessions, Stauskas, Casspi, Landry.
So what have we done here? We have hired a coach in the mold of Malone and who possibly could be better than Malone. We have upgraded the 4th best lineup in the league by improving the SG & PF spots, and our bench is stronger this year which should help maintain leads. And this was all done without adding another playmaker into the mix.