1. Have You Met The Sacramento Kings?

It’s been another week in the NBA, and we really, really need to talk about the Sacramento Kings. Why? Because no one else will, and did you know the Kings are above .500? It’s true. With Wednesday night’s win over the Pacers, the Kings moved to 9-8, and officially became the quietest kinda-decent team in the whole league.

Will they make the playoffs? Of course not. They’re not an actual “good” team, but hey, they’re kind of decent. Snicker if you want, but the Kings have beaten the teams they’re supposed to beat. Wins against Memphis, Golden State, New Jersey, New Orleans, Indiana, and most impressively, Oklahoma City and at Utah. Sure, beating the Jazz was Sacramento’s only road win, but that’s okay.

For now, it’s just heartening to see a team full of young players get the most out of their talent. Because that’s what’s happening here. Paul Westphal, in his first year at head coach, has a team that’ll compete every night. even though they have every excuse to mail it in. The Kings weren’t expected to make the playoffs, they’ve got a roster full of young players, they’re lone superstar (Kevin Martin) is injured, and they play in a fiercely competitive conference. Like I said, every excuse.

And yet, here they are at 9-8, winning the games in which they’re competitive, and quietly putting together a highly respectable resume. In the NBA, with teams like the Warriors and Knicks loafing around on the way to sixty losses, the Sacramento Kings are pretty damn refreshing.

On that bright note, let’s get into the rest of this week’s talking points… Some of this is re-printed from earlier week—with updates!— and other stuff is shiny and new.