Zach LaVine Explains Key to Success for Kings Final Stretch

The Sacramento Kings are coming off two disappointing losses, for very different reasons. The first was a heartbreaker to the Los Angeles Clippers, and the second was a drudging at the hands of the New York Knicks.

While they looked great against the Clippers, the same can't be said for the Knicks game, albeit it was on the second night of a back-to-back against a more-rested New York team, as Sacramento got blown out early.

It's been 15 games since Zach LaVine made his debut, and while it took some time, the new roster looks like they have found their identity. A team that is going to fight, play hard, and compete on a nightly basis.

When Sactown1140's Brenden Nunes asked LaVine about Sacramento's identity for the final stretch of the season, the Kings star reiterated everything we've been hearing since Doug Christie took over as interim head coach.

"We just have to be the harder playing team every night. I think that's going to be the main thing for us going forward," LaVine stated. "Defensively, we've been really good...pretty much since the All-Star break. But just being the harder playing team. I think defense will help us get easier shots offensively."

Since the All-Star break, the Kings have a defensive rating of 113.1, slightly better than their season rating of 114.1. What stands out in that nine game stretch is the two blowout losses on the bookends, with the 24 point loss to the Golden State Warriors and the 29 point loss to the Knicks.

In the seven games in between though, the Kings looked great on both ends of the court, especially on defense. In that 5-2 stretch, the Kings had a defensive rating of 106.9. For reference, the Oklahoma City Thunder lead the league with a 106.1 defensive rating.

The numbers show exactly what LaVine stated after practice. When they are the harder working team and playing defense, they're going to put themselves in a position to win every single night. The two examples since the All-Star break show the opposite result. When the Kings came out flat, they got blown out big time.

Defense has been a talking point in Sacramento for years, but the results have been up and down as the team continued to search for their defensive identity. Time will tell, but it sounds like everyone from the head coach down understands the importance of these final 18 games, and is ready to come out and outwork their opponents on a nightly basis.

Going against the Golden State Warriors tomorrow, the team that ran them out of the gym the first game back from the break, should be a great test as the postseason looms.

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