LAS VEGAS — Being a fan of the Sacramento Kings requires a special kind of patience – the kind that hasn’t necessarily been rewarded with time, involves immediate second-guessing of possible mistakes and doesn’t include watching that can’t-miss prospect leaving for something better because you never had him anyway.

In the past 12 years of lottery purgatory, the Kings have changed ownership, front office regimes and coaching staffs, fended off two relocation attempts and seen the lone all-star drafted in that time jettisoned in a move that was necessary for both sides to possibly function properly. And, most recently, loyalty to a franchise that has done little to earn it has required accepting that the league’s superpower is a short drive down Interstate 80 West and a rival from the only period when the team was good is relevant again with the addition of LeBron James.

The failures are plentiful, yet under the mound of disappointments hope remains that this is when the Kings will finally get it right. This summer, when Sacramento added No. 2 overall pick Marvin Bagley III to a young core that includes De’Aaron Fox, Harry Giles III, Bogdan Bogdanovic, Justin Jackson and Buddy Hield, general manager Vlade Divac added the latest comment to elicit eye rolls, face palms and laughter when he explained that the Kings could compete with the league’s best because, “My team is a super team, just young.”

By adding, “just young,” Divac put the patience of Kings fans to the test once again. But Giles has a message for those skeptically wondering how to process Divac’s statement: “Believe it,” Giles recently told Yahoo Sports.

View photos De’Aaron Fox is a big part of the foundation for the Sacramento Kings going forward. (AP) More

Foundation for success

Fox, the cocksure speed demon, and Bogdanovic, the sharpshooter who made second-team all-rookie and won MVP of the Rookie Challenge, provided some encouraging signs for the future last season. Hield, the centerpiece of the DeMarcus Cousins trade, has yet to flash superstar potential but has hit more threes in his first two seasons than any player other than Damian Lillard. Bagley and Giles offer another layer of hype to the Kings hopes of eventually ending the NBA’s longest active playoff drought (12 years and counting).

The desire from fans to return to, or possibly exceed, that Chris Webber-led period in franchise history was evident to Bagley the moment he stepped on a private jet and landed in Sacramento, where fans – some already wearing his No. 35 jersey – greeted him at the airport, seeking handshakes and autographs. “That was a good feeling to get off the plane and see all the fans who support the team there. That just made me want to work harder and do whatever I can to play hard for the fans,” Bagley told Yahoo Sports.

Bagley is a throwback to that early 2000s era, with a developing back-to-the-basket game and a penchant for getting buckets. Though his summer league play was cut short because of a pelvic contusion, Bagley had his moments when he revealed why Divac chose him over Luka Doncic – such as a monstrous dunk over Los Angeles Lakers rookie Moe Wagner in his debut. But he also needs a lot of work to become a consistent, effective low post scorer in the modern NBA.

“I always say, ‘I’m never losing, always learning.’ That’s the one thing I always go by. Whatever happens, win or lose, I’m always learning and trying to take something new from that experience,” Bagley told Yahoo Sports. “Coming into the game as rookie, that’s all you can do. Every day, I’m trying to soak something else new in. It’s the most exciting part of the game, to find different tricks. Not every game is going to be perfect. I don’t feel any pressure to go out there and be something that people want me to be. It’s just basketball. It might not be now but once I figure out the game, I’ll definitely be comfortable.”

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