How good are the Kings? There’s reason to doubt them, but let’s enjoy the ride

The NBA season is a third of the way done, with the Sacramento Kings having played 24 of their 72 games. The Kings sit at a surprising .500 record, just on the outside of the eighth seed in the Western Conference. After an atrocious start to the season, the Kings won 7 of their last 9 games, with the only losses a hard-fought and respectable game against the Philadelphia 76ers and a one-point loss to the Miami Heat.

But despite the Kings’ resurgence, the Western Conference remains a jumbled mess, with just a game and a half separating the fifth seed from the ninth seed, and just one game separating the ninth seed from the 13th. One small win streak or one small losing streak can send a team soaring or plummeting in the standings. All of this begs the question of just how real the Kings’ playoffs hopes are.

It’s important to remember that with the NBA’s revised playoff format this season, there will be a small play-in tournament for teams in the seventh through 10th seeds in each conference. Finishing 10th in the West doesn’t mean you’re in the playoffs, but it means a team has an opportunity to win its way into the playoff picture.

Despite this, it’s still fair to question how realistic it is for this Kings team to be chasing the playoffs. Sure, the Kings have looked much improved over their last 10 games, led by De’Aaron Fox’s magnificent play that earned him Western Conference Player Of The Week accolades. The defense has looked much better, the Kings are no longer allowing 130 points per night, and they have found a closing lineup that can match up with any opponent.

It’s understandable if Kings fans want to buy in and believe that this is sustainable, but it’s also understandable if some Kings fans are hesitant to believe that this time it’s real. We’ve seen the Kings go on a small win streak before, only to return to the bottom of the standings. There are still reasons to be concerned.

Coach Luke Walton has held the Kings to a very short rotation in most games, with very little contribution from the bench other than Tyrese Haliburton. The Kings should get some depth back soon as DaQuan Jeffries returns from an ankle injury, but they are still at a huge risk with their lack a depth. One injury, one player missing games for COVID-19 contact tracing, or even something as simple as a player being in foul trouble could have a major impact of this team’s ability to win games.

And finally, there’s the lingering question of how the Kings front office views this team. There’s been speculation at times this year that the Kings could try to trade Buddy Hield or Harrison Barnes. That talk has quieted now that the Kings are winning, but we don’t know how Monte McNair feels about this current winning spell. Is it enough to turn the Kings into buyers instead of sellers at the trade deadline?

We still have more questions than answers with these Kings. We don’t know if this is a flash in the pan or the start of something real. I’m just enjoying watching the Kings play fun, competitive basketball, and I’m happy to enjoy this ride as long as it lasts.

Greg Wissinger is the managing editor of KingsHerald.com and has been covering the Kings since 2009.