Bogut's future, Kings' new look are works in progress

	With Jamaal Magloire at his side, the Bucks' Andrew Bogut may develop into the center Milwaukee envisioned when it drafted him. Garrett W. Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images
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To understand why the Bucks' preseason trade for center Jamaal Magloire will help bring out the best in No. 1 draft pick Andrew Bogut, just look back a decade to the arrival of Tim Duncan in San Antonio. When the Spurs made Duncan the No. 1 pick in 1997, he had the good luck of playing alongside center David Robinson.

This isn't to compare Magloire to Robinson or Bogut to Duncan, but the dynamic is similar. Magloire is a former All-Star with the size and experience to handle the inside work that Bogut would need years to learn. In the meantime Bogut can focus on complementing Magloire with his ready-made skills as a passer and face-up shooter.

The experiment is off to a good start. Through Thursday the Bucks were 3-1, and Bogut was averaging a respectable 9.5 points, 9.3 rebounds and 2.5 assists in 32.8 minutes. "It gives him a little more freedom to just figure the game out in his first couple of years with Jamaal here," Bucks GM Larry Harris said of Bogut, who will improve his center skills even while sharing duties with Magloire. "In five years I still think he [Bogut] will be the best center in the Eastern Conference, and hopefully he'll be an All-Star by the second or third year."

While Magloire has eased the load for Bogut, the rookie notes that other responsibilities have emerged -- such as having to guard the premier power forwards in the league. "Some of the centers are less experienced and most teams don't have a center they go to every possession, besides the Spurs [with Duncan] or the Heat [with Shaquille O' Neal], Bogut said. "So guarding the 'fours' (power forwards) is a little bit different: You're facing a guy like Jermaine O'Neal every night. You've got to do a lot more work."

That may not be such a bad beat. In two or three years he should be a better defender than he would have been otherwise.

Adelman considers the future

The Sacramento Kings are trying to rebuild while remaining a playoff team for the ninth straight season. It's one of the hardest quinellas to pull off in the NBA. A brutal opening schedule combined with a major overhaul of the roster won't make the task any easier for coach Rick Adelman, who is in the final year of his contract.

In this week's issue of SI, Adelman makes it clear that the era of the Kings' motion offense is gone with the departures of passing big men Chris Webber and Vlade Divac. Adelman went into further detail in this extended interview, which he gave the day after Sacramento lost its opener 93-67 at Oklahoma City. A week later his comments remain relevant to the now 1-4 Kings.

SI: Is this likely to be your last year in Sacramento?

Rick Adelman: I've got one year [left] on my contract. I just look at it like the best thing for all concerned is to try to have a good year, myself included. It's different than in the past, that if I decided that's it, then that's it, and if they (management) decide that's it, that's it. It's a two-way street now, but I still think I owe it to the fans and owe it to the team to do the best job I can and win as many games as I can. I have no preconceived notion that I want a new deal. I'm just going to coach this team and see what happens.