No Bandwagon Here

Recently someone made the statement that, "All Kings fans are bandwagon fans!" I about jumped out of my skin to argue against this statement.

While it is true that some Kings fans are bandwagon fans, there are far more that are not than those that are. I cannot think of a single professional or collegiate team that does not have bandwagon fans. People will always ride on the coattails of a successful team no matter what the circumstance.

The Kings currently are the not so proud owners of the worst record in the NBA--Again! Sitting at just 5-23, the hopes of a 30 plus win season is looking more unreachable by the game. However, Kings fans continue to flock to ARCO to watch their team play as attendance is up this season. This obviously cannot be attributed to the play of the Kings, but more than likely the new flexible, market demand price structure that the Kings are offering.

In a season that has very few positives thus far, there are some positive things coming out of these losses. Take last night's game against the Clippers; we finally saw the Tyreke Evans of old as he tallied a season-high 32 points. However, in what seems to be a give and take with the news Kings fans receive, Evans stated after the game that he is considering a season ending surgery to take care of the plantar fasciitis he has been suffering in his left foot all season long. After last night's performance fans are hoping that the surgery can wait until after the season. Evans is a key piece of the puzzle that needs to be put together in order to turn this struggling season around. If and when Evans would have the surgery is speculation at this moment, but the main thing is that he gets healthy and he makes the choice that is best for him.

Although there have been moments this season when the Kings young rookie, DeMarcus Cousins, have proven those that passed him up right in doing so, his play is still more positive than not. He has made some juvenile choices from getting kicked out of practice to the most recent choke sign made during the Warriors game. However, he is learning. You cannot expect a 20-year old to automatically understand how to behave in a situation that very few are ever in. It is clear that he has passion. Sometimes that passion comes out in childish ways. He picks up quick fouls and the frustrations that come with that show and his game suffers. But even in all the commotion, DeMarcus has landed himself smack dab in the middle of the Rookie of the Year talks. While it is my opinion that Blake Griffin will probably take the ROY honors this year, it is nice to see the Kings getting recognition for the play of their young players for the second year in a row.

Another bright spot is the play of the Kings other rookie Pooh Jeter. Where DeMarcus lacks the professional experience, Pooh has it from his time spent overseas. While he stands at just 5'11" his heart makes him 10 feet tall on the court. I have seen him stand in the paint and take charges from the biggest, strongest players in the league. He is playing his heart out every night and has become the spark off the bench when he enters the game. He has fans chanting, "We Love Pooh!"

So while these late 4th quarter collapses and even miscues in the second half in general are beyond frustrating, as a fan I choose to look at the glass as half full. I see this team as one that is battling to earn the respect from their teammates, coaches, fellow NBA teams, and their fans. When the fans stop coming, stop cheering, and stop caring, that is when you know there are only bandwagon fans in Sacramento. I don't know any bandwagon fans and I for one am not one. Real fans stick with their team no matter how good or how bad the team is performing, and Sacramento is full of REAL fans who are behind their team 100 percent even if we are frustrated beyond belief right now!