There was a point earlier this season when it seemed like the Sacramento Kings actually had a chance to sneak into the playoffs in the Western Conference. That was the expectation coming in, given all of their talent, but they are now 25-38, 6.5 games out of the eighth spot out West and have almost no hope of getting in.
To add on to that, it seems as though many of their players are unhappy. DeMarcus Cousins was recently suspended for what the team called conduct detrimental to the team, and while that is nothing new for "Boogie," he is not the only one that is unhappy. After Wednesday's loss to the Cavaliers, the Kings' seventh in their last eight, rookie Willie Cauley-Stein also expressed his frustration.
Cauley-Stein was the Kings' first round draft pick in the 2015 draft (sixth overall), and the Kings hoped that he would be a great complement to Cousins in their frontcourt. That still may become the case down the road, but so far this season, that has not been the case. The rookies' minutes have recently fallen off a cliff, and he is none too happy about it. He played just 12 minutes Wednesday night, and George Karl's explanation for that was because of matchups. Unsurprisingly, that did not sit well with Cauley-Stein.
"That's funny, that's funny, kind of flimsy, cus' I can guard five positions, so that's redundant otherwise I wouldn't be here," Cauley-Stein said. "There should be no matchup problems ever. So that's just an excuse I think. However, I'm not the coach."
The 22-year-old does have a point, as he was one of the best defenders in last year's draft, and he proved in his years at Kentucky that he can defend both inside and outside. Over the last four games, Cauley-Stein has averaged just nine minutes, but Karl says not to read into it because he will be getting his minutes moving forward.
Kings fans likely hope that Karl sticks to his word on this one because Cauley-Stein is a young player whom they are very high on, so developing him should be at the top of the to-do list now that they are all but eliminated from playoff contention. Cauley-Stein isn't a high maintenance player, as he does the little things and doesn't need the ball, so there is no reason for him to not be on the court. On the season, the rookie is averaging 6.1 points, five rebounds and 1.1 blocks in just 19.3 minutes per game.
