Sacramento Kings: 3 big questions heading into 2018-19 NBA season

1. Is there a franchise talent on the 2018-19 Kings?

The NBA is simple: Teams with great players win at the highest levels; teams without them don’t. This year, the Kings must develop some idea of whether that player is already in-house.

That’s not to say Bagley, Fox, Buddy Hield, Harry Giles or Bogdan Bogdanovic must emerge as a star in 2018-19, but the Kings need to know if there’s a realistic chance one of them will get there eventually.

Otherwise, what is Sacramento doing? If none of those players appears to be on a star’s track, then the Kings have to restart the rebuild again. If they refuse to do so and commit to this core, they will begin to lock themselves into another talent-needy bottom-dweller destined for mid-lottery picks and eternal disappointment.

The Kings need direction; this whole apocalyptic run since 2008 has been marked by a lack of it. Answering this question should give the Kings direction. If a future star is on the 2018-19 Kings, great; the team has someone to build around. If not, the Kings must dedicate themselves to rebuilding wholeheartedly. No more trades to clear cap space for mediocre veterans. No more large contracts for aging players who will hurt their lottery odds and nothing more.

For the 2018-19 Kings, the game-by-game results could not matter less. Instead, the upcoming campaign will be a year for learning, answering questions, and hopefully, building toward a better Sacramento team in the future.