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2015 NBA Summer League: Willie Cauley-Stein Will Spark Excitement in Sacramento

By James Fitzgerald

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The cool thing about the NBA Summer League is that it gives the fans a glimmer of hope that things are about to turn around for their favorite franchise.

Nothing re-energizes a fan base more than watching a new young player that is either that piece that can take your team out of the doldrums, or can be the missing piece that can help your franchise take the next step in their progression.

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When Sacramento drafted Kentucky center Willie Cauley-Stein with the No.6 pick of the 2015 NBA Draft, he represented both prospects for the Kings’ fan base.

Sacramento has been down in the doldrums since Chris Webber, Mike Bibby, Peja Stojackovic and “The Bench Mob” were running up a down the Arco Arena turned Sleep Train Pavilion floor.

The team went through a transformation on the court with their personnel, as well as the possibility of being moved to Seattle.

Fortunately, Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson was able to swing a deal to keep the Kings in Sacramento. But even though that has happened, stability among “the suits” has eluded this team, and was still a problem as Sacramento went through there Las Vegas Summer League grind.

Everyone knows the stories behind the scenes for the Sacramento Kings by now. Everyone knows that George Karl has decided that he can’t coach DeMarcus Cousins without even having coached him for half a season.

An 11-19 record through 30 games was enough to convince George Karl that he can’t win with the best center in professional basketball. That is a complete joke!

The Kings front office was in flux with Chris Mullin taking the coaching job with the St. John’s Red Storm and leaving his post as Advisor to the Chairman.

Vlade Divac is now the Vice President of Basketball and Franchise Operations. Former Kings’ GM Pete D’Alesandro is now the Senior Vice President of Business with the Denver Nuggets.

Photo: Mark Zerof, USA TODAY Sports)

Through all the coach firings, front office shuffling, snake in the grass emojis, and hype surrounding a new downtown stadium, when the Kings took Willie Cauley-Stein with their draft pick, it gave the Kings fan base a sense that maybe the direction of the franchise is going in the right direction despite the chaos.

Cauley-Stein is the defensive presence in the middle that the Sacramento Kings have needed for a long time.

Cousins is solid defensively, but Cauley-Stein brings athleticism and quickness to the paint that Cousins does not have defensively.

What makes the drafting of Willie Cauley-Stein a move of genius is it is going to allow for DeMarcus Cousins to be able to focus more on the offensive end while Cauley-Stein plays as the defensive anchor.

He is going to serve as the DeAndre Jordan, Tyson Chandler type of defensive presence that Sacramento has not had.

During the draft process, people questioned if Cauley-Stein was going to be limited offensively. But the Summer League has shown that he is better offensively than people think.

He has shown the ability to finish with either hand around the basket, and as we already know, he is a finisher on the break.

Cauley-Stein shot 51.2% from the field while averaging 11.4 points , 5.4 rebounds, and 2.8 blocked shots in his five game Las Vegas Summer League stint.

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    • With Willie Cauley-Stein being added to a frontline that has Rudy Gay and DeMarcus Cousins established on it, the Sacramento Kings have one of the best frontcourts in basketball.

    Sacramento also added Kosta Koufos during free agency to the big man rotation to spell Cousins or Cauley-Stein.

    Through all the front office chaos and infighting, the Sacramento Kings still managed to find a way to give their fans hope.

    Whether if it was picking up Marco Belinelli and Rajon Rondo to add some depth to the backcourt, or grabbing Kosta Koufos to add depth to the front court rotation, the ray of hope came when the Kings drafted Willie Cauley-Stein.

    Being a Kings fan is one of the most trying things to be in sports. Loving the Kings is like loving an ugly pet like a Pug or a patchy haired cat. It brings you joy and you don’t mind smelling its boo-boo cause it is your pet.

    The Kings can stink to high heaven, and Sacramento fans will stay loyal.

    Willie Cauley-Stein is going to see the loyalty of that fan base firsthand, and he is really going to enjoy it.

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