Surprise playoff run this year

#1
cue Jim Mora.. Is there anyone here that thinks the Kings can make a surprise run at the 8th spot this season?

There is a lot of depth in the West, and not a lot of non competitive teams with the exception of maybe Lakers and Phoenix. By the same token, I think some playoff teams from last year took a hit like the Jazz and Clippers. I think if everything goes right this team might be able to be more competitive than the pundits are predicting.

George Hill maturing into a good second stage of his career like many other quality PGs have done to begin their 30s.. Fox stepping up in his first season?

Hield becoming "Harden-lyte ;)" or Bogdan being the truth?

Jackson continuing his SL play and not getting his teeth completely kicked in on D?

Skal ready to show that upside this season despite the rocky SL?

WCS, becoming that anchor a lot think he possibly can?

The bench, with Hill/Fox, Bogdan/Hield, Temple/Jackson/Carter, Randolph/Koufos etc being a positive?

Hopefully we see some good things starting in training camp
 
#2
cue Jim Mora.. Is there anyone here that thinks the Kings can make a surprise run at the 8th spot this season?

There is a lot of depth in the West, and not a lot of non competitive teams with the exception of maybe Lakers and Phoenix. By the same token, I think some playoff teams from last year took a hit like the Jazz and Clippers. I think if everything goes right this team might be able to be more competitive than the pundits are predicting.

George Hill maturing into a good second stage of his career like many other quality PGs have done to begin their 30s.. Fox stepping up in his first season?

Hield becoming "Harden-lyte ;)" or Bogdan being the truth?

Jackson continuing his SL play and not getting his teeth completely kicked in on D?

Skal ready to show that upside this season despite the rocky SL?

WCS, becoming that anchor a lot think he possibly can?

The bench, with Hill/Fox, Bogdan/Hield, Temple/Jackson/Carter, Randolph/Koufos etc being a positive?

Hopefully we see some good things starting in training camp
I would be VERY surprised by that. Despite the players you listed having a lot of potential, the general rule in the NBA is that young players dont help you win. Maybe 2-3 years down the road. But even if you play the vets to win this season, this team still is one of the worst in the league. Imagine you play Hill-Temple-Carter-Zbo-Koufos for 32 min a night. Thats got to be one of the worst defensive and offensive lineups in the league among starters.
I think it is FAR more likely that the Kings end up with a bottom three record than get in the playoffs.
 
#7
Most predictions for Kings this season I've seen project around 29 wins or so. Obviously, that kind of record won't get you anywhere near 8th seed in the west. But hope springs eternal.
 
#8
I don't see it this year and I'm ok with that. I am still hoping next year is the year we take the big leap. I'll be a lot more concerned if we aren't poised to do so.
 
#9
I would be extremely happy if we pushed 30 wins this season.

Typically, youth and winning in the NBA don't go together.

I expect the Kings to be competitive almost every night, but probably won't win too many games.

My prediction is 30 wins and the 5th or 6th spot pre-draft Lottery, with the Kings jumping into top 3 after the Lottery. :D
 
#10
Common sense tells me we will see very few wins.

My heart tells me anything is possible.

" You may say, I'm a dreamer..."
But I'm not the only one. I hope someday you'll join us and the world will 'love' as one.

I have a high opinion of Hill. And think he can possibly have a good chapter here. If Buddy AND Justin/Bogdan are ready at the 3, the wings are locked and loaded. I think Skal can be passable as soon as this season, and Koufos is a rock if one of the young bigs aren't ready.

But we will see.. not expecting it, but I can't go into the season with nothing to hope for
 

bajaden

Hall of Famer
#11
I appreciate your optimism, but, there are a lot of "If's" in your scenario. Not that all of them couldn't come true, just that the likelyhood of that is about a million to one, maybe more. For one thing, the idea of Hield becoming Harden lite, is so far removed from reality I don't know how to process it. I saw the smiley face there. Harden is a terrific ballhandler and so much better at getting to the basket than Buddy. Buddy's main weaknesses are his ballhandling, and his passing, or lack of interest in passing the ball. OK to dream though.

From the small sampling I've seen, I'd say that Bogdanovic has a better chance of being Harden lite. On the other hand, I think Jackson will surprise some people on the defensive side. No doubt he needs to get stronger, but I watched him guard Dennis Smith at summer league, and I was totally focused on that matchup. He did a much better job than I expected. Smith got Jackson on his hip only once, but he stayed with him, causing Smith to take a difficult shot. Yeah, he still made the shot. He made one other shot on Jackson which was a very contested step back fall away. It's to Smith's credit that he was able to make those shots, than it is an indictment of Jackson's defense.

In short, I seriously doubt that the Kings will contest for the playoff's, but then, there was that Warrior team in the 70's that had Rick Barry and a bunch of, then, nobody's that went on to win the world championship. I guess you never say never. Naw! Not going to happen...
 
#15
Plenty of reasons for optimism.

If we get out of the Randolph contract we are sitting well with the cap, lots of options there.

Got plenty of good prospects.

Should be lots of fun.

The worst thing to be is stuck & stink.
 
#16
It's almost time for my annual 50-win prediction, so yes, of course, 8th seed is not only possible but would be a bit of a disappointment.

Most predictions for Kings this season I've seen project around 29 wins or so. Obviously, that kind of record won't get you anywhere near 8th seed in the west. But hope springs eternal.

I call those predictions pure cowardice.
 
#17
Hate to be the pessimist but Im already looking at the 2018 draft class. There is some reason to get excited about the prospects but Ill leave it for another day.
 

kingsboi

Hall of Famer
#18
I mean sure, if you are a optimist and you dream big, then by all means. Who am I to tell one otherwise? The Kings should not be shooting for the 8th seed and realistically, I don't see them doing so. You also don't want to bring that losing mentality so you definitely want your core players to win you games and if they do so, the better. How soon that happens remains to be seen. At this point in the rebuild, the team is stacked with youth and unfilled potential. Until that gets unlocked, the team won't be doing much of any winning.
 

bajaden

Hall of Famer
#20
Listened to Jason Ross's podcast today and he had Sean Cunningham on. Sean interviewed Coach Joerger on sunday and apparently Joerger said he was planning on a 10 man rotation and that his definition of success this coming season would be to get all the young players enough burn (minutes) for them to improve. At the same time he said that they would have to earn their minutes, and that he thought competition brought out the best. I agreed with Sean that the Kings should pick up the 4th year option on Joerger's contract as a show of good faith.

Although it's his second year, it's as though he's starting over with no Cousins. They need to look at his contract situation accordingly.
 

gunks

Hall of Famer
#21
Naaaah. Our best player is Hill.

We're easily a bottom 5 team next season.

Not that that's a bad thing. As impatient as we all are for the post season, Vlade has been low key running a masterful rebuild. One more shot at a top prospect couldn't hurt.

I'm gonna tune in for the kids, not the Ws. We probably won't even hit 30 this coming season.
 
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#22
I don't think trying for 8th seed would be the right plan here. We will be without a 2019 1st round pick, meaning 2018 will be our final chance to add a franchise player onto this team. The only way to get franchise players in the NBA is through the draft.
I know I keep saying this around here, but there's no one on this team who has shown the ability to carry an entire offense on their back. The only 2 players who I'd bet on becoming franchise players on this squad is either Fox or Skal. Even with that, if you tell me right now that our franchise player is DeAaron Fox or Skal Labissiere, I'm going to be very worried about the future of this team.

Buddy will need to do a complete 180 on his ball handling to resemble anything Harden is. If Buddy should model his game after anyone, I'd point to Devin Booker. Booker is a much much better ball handler, but he has similar limitations in athleticism and quickness. However, he finds other ways to make up for it. 23 yearold taking a page out of a 20yearold, but it would be the only way I could see Buddy turning into anything remotely close to a franchise player.
 
#23
The problem is, once you set a goal that's unattainable, you create expectations that lead to frustration - for the team and the fans. So I'd rather just say, hey, if we sneak into the playoffs, that means everything went right for us and now let's make the best of the experience. But our goal this year should be to be competitive, to develop our young talent, and to prepare for a big leap the following season. Expect the Kings to lose a lot of games this year, but to surprise some teams as well with our talent and determination.
 
#25
Naaaah. Our best player is Hill.

We're easily a bottom 5 team next season.

Not that that's a bad thing. As impatient as we all are for the post season, Vlade has been low key running a masterful rebuild. One more shot at a top prospect couldn't hurt.

I'm gonna tune in for the kids, not the Ws. We probably won't even hit 30 this coming season.
How dare you bring logic, a fair assessment of Vlade, and a sensible outlook to the season to bear on my top notch ability to delude myself into thinking we have a chance at the playoffs. You'll pay for this.
 
#26
I agree with VF21, the goal is to have a coaching staff , coach and team all on the same page and to look like a legit team around the country. I think the most optimistic i could be would be 35 wins but my guess is it will be around 21 wins. Either way i hope for a fun brand of basketball
 
#27
22-32 wins is the spread for this team. Its not that the team is that bad just that the overall level of the league is very good atm. The only team in no mans land right now is Atlanta. Even Brooklyn should be competitive. I think this team will be competitive and exciting to watch but will generally come up short due to inexperience. I would expect maybe post all star break we start seeing the young guys getting bulk minutes and the vets start to play less and less.
 
#28
Listened to Jason Ross's podcast today and he had Sean Cunningham on. Sean interviewed Coach Joerger on sunday and apparently Joerger said he was planning on a 10 man rotation and that his definition of success this coming season would be to get all the young players enough burn (minutes) for them to improve. At the same time he said that they would have to earn their minutes, and that he thought competition brought out the best. I agreed with Sean that the Kings should pick up the 4th year option on Joerger's contract as a show of good faith.

Although it's his second year, it's as though he's starting over with no Cousins. They need to look at his contract situation accordingly.
I heard that. Wonder who gets the squeeze at the wings between Temple/Carter, assuming Hield/Bogdan/Jackson get some time

As for Joerger, I understand the argument that it's starting over from ground zero, but shouldn't he be held accountable for the failed Cousins experiment (not that it was his fault, but still it's work on his resume')?
 
#29
I heard that. Wonder who gets the squeeze at the wings between Temple/Carter, assuming Hield/Bogdan/Jackson get some time

As for Joerger, I understand the argument that it's starting over from ground zero, but shouldn't he be held accountable for the failed Cousins experiment (not that it was his fault, but still it's work on his resume')?
Why hold Joerger accountable for "the failed Cousins experiment"?
 

dude12

Hall of Famer
#30
I heard that. Wonder who gets the squeeze at the wings between Temple/Carter, assuming Hield/Bogdan/Jackson get some time

As for Joerger, I understand the argument that it's starting over from ground zero, but shouldn't he be held accountable for the failed Cousins experiment (not that it was his fault, but still it's work on his resume')?
The failed Cousins experiment? He didn't even have him for,a full year.