Expert predictions: Sacramento Kings

Originally Published: October 22, 2010

ESPN.com

Predicted Finish For Sacramento Kings: 2010-11

ANALYST	COMMENT	PREDICTIONS
	J.A. Adande, ESPN.com \| Adande's picks While their youth will overshadow their talent at times, the Kings have a good shot at their first winning season since '05-06. DeMarcus Cousins' bid for rookie of the year will negate a possible sophomore slump by Tyreke Evans.	Pacific: 4 West: 13
	Chris Broussard, ESPN The Mag \| Broussard's picks The early returns show that the Kings hit the jackpot with DeMarcus Cousins, meaning they have the building blocks -- stars in the backcourt (Tyreke Evans) and frontcourt (Cousins) -- for a top-flight squad in the future. The key phrase is "in the future.'' For now, this young group will continue to struggle.	Pacific: 5 West: 13
	Chad Ford, ESPN.com \| Ford's picks The combo of Tyreke Evans and DeMarcus Cousins gives them two very formidable building blocks. I'm also a fan of Carl Landry. But after those three, there aren't a lot of other players on the Kings that wow you. Building blocks are there, but it's going to be a few years before they're a playoff team.	Pacific: 5 West: 14
	Zach Harper, Daily Dime Live \| Harper's picks The Kings have two of most exciting young players in the league. However, they still struggle shooting from the outside and they will struggle to close out games with such terrible free throw shooting. Those have to be corrected to make the Thunder Leap.	Pacific: 4 West: 13
	John Hollinger, ESPN.com \| Hollinger's picks I worry I've undersold the Kings, because the Tyreke Evans-DeMarcus Cousins combo is potentially devastating. However, whether that potential is realized this year -- or ever -- remains an open question, while the help both on the floor and upstairs appears wanting.	Pacific: 4 West: 13
	Tim Legler, ESPN \| Legler's picks Refreshing to see Tyreke Evans come in and play the complete game. Now, how does he take a team that's down to a whole new level? DeMarcus Cousins can be a monster, and can back up the menace he brings to the paint.	Pacific: 5 West: 14
	Chris Sheridan, ESPN.com \| Sheridan's picks They get our vote as the team most likely to apply for relocation. Also, as the worst team that will still manage to go 4-0 against Minnesota. The bright side: Cousins will be a beast, and he and Tyreke Evans are a couple of very solid building blocks at the two most important positions.	Pacific: 5 West: 14
	Marc Stein, ESPN.com \| Stein's picks Kings fans have some hope again with a young duo as talented as the combo of Tyreke Evans and DeMarcus Cousins. But there will be headaches, too, until this very young franchise duo can answer some questions about how their respective games will actually click.	Pacific: 5 West: 14
	Michael Wallace, ESPN.com \| Wallace's picks Even with the offseason acquisition of "Sluggish" Sammy Dalembert, there's plenty to like about the Kings. Tyreke Evans can drive this team to better days if he stays out of his own fast lane off the court. DeMarcus Cousins may be best big man drafted since Dwight Howard.	Pacific: 3 West: 12
	Brian Windhorst, ESPN.com \| Windhorst's picks Could be a fascinating season to follow the Kings because of the unknown impact by DeMarcus Cousins. He promises to be a polarizing player who will have plenty of ups and downs. Tyreke Evans is a wonder but he needs to show improvement in his weaknesses for the Kings to stay on track.	Pacific: 4 West: 13
AVERAGE RANKING Pacific: 4.4 \| Standings West: 13.3 \| Standings