by Jeff Hall

SACRAMENTO–The Kings were coming off two heartbreaking games on the road that they lost. There was the one game in Dallas which they blew a 24 point lead and then the next game against the Grizzlies where they had a 26 point lead and ended up losing that game as well. It was big for the Kings to come home after losing three straight on the road after that four game road trip.

They got back to Sleep Train Arena and responded in a good way and a lot of it has to do with their bench who are playing a lot better. The Kings DeMarcus Cousins got into foul trouble and that’s what the Kings are going to need their going to need a team effort. It can’t just be a one or two guy show.

Its not only been about Cousins and Rudy Gay who are two key players for the organization and that’s where a lot of the high scoring is coming from especially early in the game before Cousins gets into foul trouble. The Kings were able to hang with such teams in their last three losses with the likes of Oklahoma City, Dallas, and Memphis.

As long as the defense plays four quarters of basketball the Kings are confident they can beat any team in the NBA that’s how Mike Malone and the Kings feel right now. The Kings confidence is starting to build, their 6-4 and after ten games nobody would have believed the Kings would be performing this well.

It is a long season and we are talking right now about only ten games in but it’s 82 games for a whole season in the NBA it can really be tough and you have to be careful about being over confident especially early in the season. Despite the three game loses this last road trip the Kings are playing much better on the road in the NBA that’s very tough to do for any team.

The Kings are playing with confidence and a lot of that is coming from Cousins whose showing leadership like he’s never shown before. Malone talked about that Saturday night after the game and said that Cousins is becoming a real leader. He’s grown a lot this season and he’s growing a lot every game. He’s really a leader that the Kings didn’t have before.

The players look up to Cousins and he’s a big part of the Kings success and he’s been helpful with tips for the younger players. A good example of that is when the Kings were in the game to the very end against Memphis and they lost to them by one point. Malone and the players have alluded to Cousins being a big influence for leadership in making these games close.

Jeff Hall covers Sacramento Kings basketball for http://www.sportsradioservice.com