Sacramento Kings: 3 takeaways from 2017-18 season opener

The Sacramento Kings opened their 2017-18 season at home against the Houston Rockets with a 105-100 loss, but showed encouraging signs despite their defeat.

The Sacramento Kings enter the 2017-18 NBA season with a new outlook and a ton of fresh faces. The DeMarcus Cousins era is no more after his trade to the New Orleans Pelicans last season.

In his place are a plethora of young players, as Sacramento has nine players on rookie contracts, plus Bogdan Bogdanovic. The team also added some experienced veterans in George Hill, Vince Carter and Zach Randolph.

With a revamped roster, it seemed as though it might take coach Dave Joerger some time to get the team to jell. However, the Kings impressed in a close 105-100 loss to a Houston Rockets squad fresh off an opening night victory over the defending champions.

While drawing major conclusions from one game can be an exercise in futility, the Kings were in the game from start to finish against one of the best teams in the league. Here are three takeaways from their opening night loss.