Another summer, another projected mid-lottery selection. Kings fans know this feeling all too well—cheering for a team that each and every year performs poorly enough to securely miss the playoffs, yet not terrible enough to receive a top-3 pick. Thankfully, however, this year things are a little different.

While the position of the pick itself figures to be about the same, the situation surrounding this year’s selection is not. The Sacramento Kings find themselves with a roster that, from top to bottom, has much more talent than those of past seasons. And while popular opinion often says to pick the best player left on the board regardless of fit, now that theory is a slippery slope.

With a promising core of players and an exciting identity under George Karl, this summer’s draft should be more about fit than ever before. If Sacramento ends up with the sixth pick in the draft as is presently projected, more emphasis should be placed on finding players that complement DeMarcus Cousins’s talents and Karl's uptempo, pass-heavy offense. Just as the San Antonio Spurs and all other title-winning teams have done, the Kings need players whose strengths play into the system they run; not necessarily those who are the most talented overall.

In other words, toe-to-toe, Player A may be better than Player B. But, if Player A isn’t as good a fit for the Sacramento Kings as Player B, the otherwise-lesser Player B is the right selection.

In this article, players are evaluated mainly by these four questions:

Can they score efficiently, ideally from beyond the arc?

Can they pass effectively?

Can they defend respectably?

As a bonus, could they play multiple positions professionally?

The following eight players are listed in order of overall talent from top to bottom—whether or not they would be a good fit for Sacramento specifically. The list currently excludes a few other collegiate prospects, and international players such as Emmanuel Mudiay, Kristaps Porzingis and Mario Hezonja.

Karl-Anthony Towns, PF-C, Kentucky, Freshman

While Towns’s elite athleticism and defensive prowess would fit nicely next to DeMarcus Cousins, his offensive game wouldn’t so much. In Kentucky’s offense Towns has been most productive as a low-post scorer, and the Kings already have that aspect of its offense covered (and then some). Could a Cousins-Towns frontcourt still function? Most likely. But there are better complements to Cousins out there—forwards who can space the floor better with their away-from-the-basket offense. Besides, Towns will be selected within the first two picks, and we know Sacramento won’t be that high after the lottery.

Jahlil Okafor, C, Duke, Freshman

As a sidekick to Cousins, Okafor is closer to the opposite of what the Kings are looking for. Where Towns at least has some game outside the painted area, Okafor cannot say the same. More of a below-the-rim big man compared to other high-profile prospects like Towns and Willie Cauley-Stein, Okafor’s relative lack of athleticism and defensive ability renders his strengths almost obsolete on the Kings. Still, you can’t deny his star talent. Like Towns, Okafor is more than likely to be selected with either the first or second pick.

D’Angelo Russell, PG, Ohio State, Freshman

Despite Sacramento’s depth at the PG position with Darren Collison, Ray McCallum and Andre Miller all currently on the roster, Russell would immediately become the ideal fit at the starting spot the moment the Kings draft him. At 6’5" he can shoot (like, really really well), he can pass and his basketball IQ is outstanding. Though questions about his athleticism plague his otherwise stellar outlook, coming onto the Kings he wouldn’t be asked to be a primary scorer; just to initiate the offense and shoot.

As for the logjam that Russell’s selection would create, there are several possible solutions. Because Andre Miller has spoken publicly about his willingness to return and because that feeling is likely mutual, that leaves Collison and McCallum as candidates to alleviate the overcrowding if the Kings want Miller back that badly. McCallum is cheap and young and has room to grow. He’s undoubtedly a viable trade asset, but the Kings may be more willing to trade Collison for those reasons. As for Darren, he has proven himself to be a solid starter and, at worse, a great backup. At roughly $5 million in a year under a salary cap that continues to ascend, plenty of other teams would be happy to have him.

Of course, in order to get Russell the Kings would need a pick within the top three or four, which is unlikely barring a trade.

Justise Winslow, SG-SF, Duke, Freshman

Considering Winslow’s 6’6" frame, his ability to attack the basket and the fact that he shoots and dominates with his left hand, the James Harden comparisons are impossible to ignore. He obviously isn’t there now, but you can see the ability. And he’s actually a much better defender than Harden was at the same age. Is Winslow big enough to play at the 3? Maybe. Would he and his team be better served with him at the 2? Yes. And therein lies the problem.

The Kings are set at shooting guard, currently. Drafting Winslow would likely result in a subsequent trade involving one of Ben McLemore and Nik Stauskas. Could Sacramento draft Winslow and flip one of their shooting guards for the right value? Or, going back to the Player A / Player B example, should they instead reach for Stanley Johnson over Winslow? Bottom line: would I take Winslow over Stauskas? Sure. Over McLemore? Nah. Well… nah. Well…

Stanley Johnson, SF, Arizona, Freshman

Of all the prospects in this upcoming draft, Johnson may be the best team-fit the Kings could select. He’ll be capable of guarding (and possibly playing) the 1-4 positions sooner rather than later, he plays to his strengths, he doesn’t take bad shots, he’s sharp, he’s focused, he has a good basketball IQ and, most importantly, those intangibles play right into the theory of "position-less basketball."

If George Karl and company elect to move forward with Rudy Gay at the 4, the 6’7" Johnson would slide perfectly into the starting lineup as a SF. If the front office finds a better fit at PF than Gay while Rudy moves back to the 3, Johnson could come off the bench and become the heir-apparent to Gay, while still playing alongside Rudy in smaller lineups. Johnson is currently forecasted to be selected somewhere within the 5-10 range, and if he’s there when the Kings are on the clock with the sixth, seventh or eighth pick, you take him with a smile on your face.

Trey Lyles, PF, Kentucky, Freshman

While he’s not the rim-protector his two fellow Kentucky Wildcats are, Lyles’s offensive game looks much better on the Kings than those of Towns and Cauley-Stein. A good rebounder and passer, at 6’10" Lyles is athletic enough to play above-the-rim on dribble drives and lobs from teammates, and he’s polished enough to step out and hit the mid-range jumper. Though he’s made only four of 29 three-point attempts in his first collegiate season, his solid shooting form and young age lends nicely to his future scoring potential from beyond the arc. If Sacramento decides to shift Gay back to the 3 next season, there may not be a better prospect to fill the vacant forward position than Lyles.

Willie Cauley-Stein, PF-C, Kentucky, Junior

From reading the comments on this and other sites (in addition to the Kings subreddit), it’s hard to ignore most Kings fans’ fondness for Cauley-Stein. I’m more with Chris Webber on this one. While Cauley-Stein is an elite athlete and superb collegiate shot-blocker, offensively he’s only scoring via dunks and lobs—which is ok in the sense that he wouldn’t be asked to account for many points individually, but how do these limitations affect overall spacing? Myles Turner, a shot-blocking big who can hit jumpers and Trey Lyles, a 6’10" PF from Kentucky with a proficient mid-range jump shot, are better fits.

Also, the Kings already have a roster spot allocated to a guy who does a lot of the same things Cauley-Stein does, and that guy’s name is Eric Moreland. In each of their last collegiate seasons (assuming this is Cauley-Stein’s last, though he has one more year of eligibility), Moreland averaged more blocks per game than the Kentucky Wildcat (2.0 to 1.7) and almost as many points per game (8.9 to Willie’s 9.1). Next year Moreland figures to be paid significantly less than the lottery-projected Cauley-Stein, and the former showed impressive flashes in limited time with the Reno Bighorns despite playing with a shoulder that popped out just as much as it didn’t.

Myles Turner, PF-C, Texas, Freshman

Even though he’s a better team-fit than any of the other big men previously mentioned, Turner is still far from the perfect prospect. While his ability to stretch the floor at 6’11" looks good on paper, his current ailments damage his potential. Turner’s lack of strength hurts his finishing ability on offense, in addition to his 1-on-1 talents on defense despite his shot-blocking ability. He struggles to react quickly and effectively to pressure, and his passing leaves much to be desired. For these reasons and some others, Turner is comparable to last year’s ninth-overall pick in the NBA Draft, Noah Vonleh. You’re interested by both players’ potential to protect the rim and hit jump shots, but ultimately their lackluster instincts and basketball IQ turns you off.

Like Vonleh, Turner is still only 19 years old with room to grow. However, with the Kings in win-now mode, it’s hard to see Pete D'Alessandro and company take on a project such as Turner. For the Kings to draft him something drastic would have to take place, as he is projected by many to be taken in the early teens.