By Cardell Dudley
On paper, the Sacramento Kings roster has top notch talent. You have franchise big man DeMarcus Cousins, steady point guard Darren Collison, explosive guard Ben McLemore and rookie sharpshooter Nik Stauskas. The Kings have pieces. The key to the Kings returning to playoff basketball I believe is all on the play of Rudy Gay. There are very few players in the league who can match his combination of size, athleticism, versatility and skill. When Gay is consistent, he is deadly, when he isn't he struggles and ultimately so do the Kings. Last night against the Portland Trailblazers, Gay put it all together, going off for 40 points (13/19 FG) and 8 rebounds in a 103-94 Kings win. If Gay continues with this level of consistency expect the Kings to be looking at playing basketball in late April and beyond.