Basketball - Will The Sacramento Kings Sneak Into The

As of March 4, the Kings are 28-30 for the 2006 season. It's not impossible that they can make it into the playoffs this year, but is it likely? Currently fourth in the Pacific Division, the Kings are hoping to improve their positioning on their current road trip.

Coach Rick Adelman has had his work cut out for him this season. The mid-season trade last year of Peja Stojakovic.

For Ron Artest, following right on the heels of swapping point guard Bobby Jackson to the Grizzlies for Bonzi Wells , and signing up free agent Shareef Abdur-Rahim, makes for a 'young' team that is inexperienced in working together. With only Mike Bibby remaining from that flamboyant 2002 line-up, it will take a little time.

Away games have not been kind to the Kings thus far this season; they're 8 – 20 so far. However, if they can continue the trend they began against Cleveland on Tuesday night, things may be looking up. Their defence seems to be improving. They held LeBron James to just 19 points during that game, thanks in large part to Ron Artest, and their teamwork is becoming more evident. They've won eight of their last eleven games.

Whether or not this is enough to lead them to the playoffs, remains to be seen. Adelman seems confident that this five-game trip can break their frustrating string of road losses, and Brad Miller's and Mike Bibby's shooting and Ron Artest's phenomenal defence are capable of rocketing the Kings to the top. Still, Artest's famous volatility and Bonzi Wells' bad-boy history have fans doubting Adelman's ability to make his team coalesce in time to make 2006 their year.

The Kings players are extraordinary athletes who rise individually to occasional flashes of brilliance. If they can pool this talent and if they can play as a team, avoiding prima Donna performances, then they may still have a shot at this season's playoffs.