Reasons to be optimistic about the Sacramento Kings’ stretch run

Reasons to be optimistic about the Sacramento Kings’ stretch run

The the Kings have played uh very jeel and hide basketball at times this year so for the next couple segments we’re going to play a little Jackal and hide ourselves and the The Jackal uh in this segment uh is reasons Jason to have hope for what the Sacramento Kings have been

Doing and you’ve put together some pretty cool pretty pretty cool numbers uh on uh on what they’ve done this year on the positive side versus some very very big uh big competition yeah I mean so if you’re looking at this like again as a half full and optimism optimistic

Side um the win on Friday was a great win they played in Minnesota without Deen foxes twice they now beat in Minnesota they’re two- one against uh the t-wolves and they’ve won that season serious as they’re done with matchups with them they’re two- one with OKC now

The one seed uh they still have one to play to decide whether or not they can win that season series they’re three and one against Denver I feel like there’s a little bit of an asterisk to that they’ve never never played Denver fully healthy with the exception of the one

Loss hey whatever they’re three and one that’s right but they won that season series and one and two against the Clippers still with one to play so only a losing record against one team I mean that’s eight and5 against the top four in the wests that overtime win the other

Day was 4-0 in overtime in close games decided by five points to less which is a lot what you get late in the year certainly in the playoffs they’re 11 and six so um not only that Dave the other thing I was thinking about are basically

They have the same record as last year which we’ve been saying for a long time but if we all acknowledge that this year is different uh the one thing I was looking at last year at this time I think there were four teams uh four games above 500 or better and the kings

Were the three seed at that time well I mean four games above 500 is 10th and that’s the Lakers yeah so if there were only four teams in the west above five four games above 500 and the kings were having about the same record You could argue that they’re better this year and

In in that kind of Realm if we’re all agreeing that the West is better the Pacific’s all like is all going to be either a plan or a playoff team like last year and you haveen to have all these matchups against these teams and they’re doing well against them I it’s a

Really weird year I know we’ve all felt that but if you kind of go inside some of those numbers then maybe they are doing better than last year I think you can look at that I I I think when when you look at what they’ve done versus those teams they and and especially

Being able to show that they can win in anyone’s house especially in the west um and I think the other part based on something we talked about earlier Jason is the fact it it is amazing to me that they are 4-0 in overtime and they are 11 and six in

Games decided by five or less and they are by a large margin the worst free throw shooting team in the NBA when you really think about that and how much free throws factor in to situations like that um which by the way now I’m thinking about this Jason am I wrong

Here I never want to doubt your numbers would they be four- one in overtime didn’t they lose to the Bucks noty in Milwaukee let me double check that am I remembering that correctly because I want to say didn’t Malik monk miss those four free throws in OT and

Milwaukee I could be totally wrong maybe it was late in the game uh but for some reason that’s clicking with me yeah CU now that you say that I feel like it I I thought i’ had heard 40 but let me I I want yeah yeah yeah either way 4-0 4-

One um that’s still tremendous you’re right yeah they did lose an overtime walk gotcha so you look at that and they’ve really only been burned once by shooting those bad free throws they’ve been able to overcome it and let’s be hon let’s let’s have a little bit of of negatory

Honesty um if that’s even a term about Minnesota and that win that could have bit them uh you could argue that should have bit them I I I I don’t want to take any credit away from the Kings win Friday against Minnesota Jason but you you watched every minute like I did I’m

Not going to say Minnesota handed them the game but boy Minnesota didn’t do themselves any favors late in that game either they did no favors for themselves uh I I I thought some of their some of their play calling was a little questionable maybe not as questionable

As uh the Malik monk play call at the end of regulation was just throw it to him that was their off in the fourth and it worked but it was basically give it to Malik and clear out let Malik do his thing I didn’t like that at the end of regulation but they

Won and they find ways to win and they play up to competition and I think the biggest underline we can give to this whole segment is this based on those numbers they are proving in a large sample size this year that they sure as hell play up to the compet competition

With a relative amount of success and when you’re in the playoffs there is no down competition it’s all up competition so if they’re doing that during the regular season if they continue to do that in the playoffs they could make some noise yeah for sure and that like

So again trying to compare this year to last year like we do generally in a lot of things uh yeah last year they were a three seed right now they’re back into sixth but last year at this time Dave there was one team with 40 wins or more

In the west now there’s three and the Clippers are at 39 so if we’re agreeing that the entirety of the West is that much better and the Kings have basically the same record just a different spot in the standings my point being is maybe they truly are having a better year even

With the things and we can point out and I know we’re going to do it in our next segment the hide segment but uh things that have gone wrong things they’re Ming up on things they could be better at so it’s kind of a um they’re living in a

World where the West truly is better um it doesn’t Fe and also they’re in year two of this last year everything about it was was exciting and fun and I think when we’ve had some exciting wins to watch this year for this team we’ve enjoyed it but we’ve also been as

Frustrated as we can remember I know you’ve called this the maybe the most frustrating or least likable good team they’ve ever had and I think we’re kind of living in in this dichotomy of two different uh things going on with this team and because things are always you

Know can be taken out of context I always want to I always want to follow up that I I have said that this is the most least likable team in Sacramento Kings history and of course what I mean by that is certainly not the likability of the players or the likability of the

Team I mean hell they’re in the playoffs that’s amazing but too many times it feels like the kings are the smart kid in school that does really well on tests but never wants to do the homework and they end up getting a c they pass but you you you

Look and you go you’re you’re doing the hard part you’re acing the tests if you just did the homework the the easier part for everyone else if you just did that you’d be an A+ student and the dislike ability part again it’s not a personal thing it’s stems from the

Frustration of come on guys you’re doing the hard stuff well take care of the free throws they’re they’re not ex they’re expensive throws for the team this year make them free throws make make free throws great again that’s what wait make make throws free again would

That be it no make you get what I’m saying let’s make hats

With the 2023-24 regular season in its final stretch, the Kings will play 15 of their last 23 games on their home floor, including seven of their next eight contests.

Dave and Jason break down the reasons to be optimistic about the remaining month and change for the Kings.

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