I know it's only eight games into the season, but I have to eat some crow on the Kings. I was really not impressed with their opening night loss. Thankfully they have proven to be a very competitive team and that is all I ever wanted from this young squad.
I give major props to Coach Westphal. He appears to be the right man for the job. His lineup has been in flux and even with the injuries and roster changes he is finding pieces that work. He is not static in his playing time, rewarding players who perform, and penalizing those who don't. Contracts and draft numbers don't seem to dictate playing time under Westphal. It's the way coaches are supposed to operate. His game management is the best I've seen of a Kings coach since, well, ever.
As much as I know it pains some Kings fans, Petrie deserves some credit too. He did hire Westphal, even though I am positive the Maloofs wanted Rambis. After a couple off-seasons of bad contracts, the signings of Sean May, Desmond Mason and Ime Udoka to bargin contracts, were very good moves. Kenny Thomas is performing and Petrie, should he want to, can move him for significant value at the trade deadline. I thought for sure Donte Greene was packed for Reno, but an attitude change appears to have given him new life.
Look, I am not signing up for playoff tickets or anything, but the Kings are a quarter of a way to their win total from last year after only an tenth of the season. For you math wizards, that puts them on pace for forty wins. All this without two of their arguably best players. Do I think they'll get to forty? Probably not, but I don't think thirty is out of the question, and seventeen is a distant memory.
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