There haven't been many bright spots for the Sacramento Kings this year. Mike Bibby missed the first 36 games while Ron Artest and Kevin Martin have each sat out 17. But even without last year's top three scorers for much of the year, the Kings are surprisingly closer to the playoffs than the league's basement. How have they pulled it off?

One of the biggest reasons has been the surprising play of John Salmons. "John has made the best of this situation," head coach Reggie Theus said before Friday's game in Detroit. "He's raised his profile, he's upped his value and really has made people take notice that he can get it done. He's played starter minutes most of the year and has gotten upper-echelon league numbers in terms of scoring efficiency."

In his first 38 games, Salmons has averaged career-high marks across the board, averaging 16.6 points on 51.3% shooting, including 40.6% from beyond the arc. In 29 starts at both small forward and shooting guard, he's averaged 38.4 minutes a night.

Salmons said the improvement is not the result of preparing differently but simply the opportunity to play extended minutes. "It helps to get into a rhythm," he said. "The better rhythm, the more confidence you have."

Salmons' emergence as a reliable scoring threat has been impressive, but Theus also praised his defensive performance. "When Ron's out, he covers the best offensive player on the other team," said Theus. "He's been a two-way player for us. And it's been tremendous."

Despite his outstanding start to the season, Salmons isn't long for the starting lineup. Theus re-inserted Martin into the starting lineup on Saturday after bringing him off the bench in his first four games back, and Artest should follow soon.

Even while starting the last three games, Salmons has felt their presence. Before Artest returned last Wednesday, Salmons had played at least 41 minutes in nine of the previous 10 games while averaging 21.1 points. In the three games since, he's averaged just 24.6 minutes and 4.3 points (46.1% shooting).
 
Theus has spoken with Salmons about returning to the bench. "I told him, 'eventually, the lineups are going to change, John. That does not mean that your performance changes. It just means that your rhythm changes, in terms of when you're out of the game, when you're in the game. … Your minutes might change a little, but your performance I expect the same.' And he understands that."

Salmons seemed to have taken the message to heart. "I think we're all going to have to sacrifice some things," he said on Friday. "That's part of being a good team. Detroit is a perfect example of it. Their whole starting five sacrifices for each other and they win games because of it."

Winning is something the Kings have actually done a lot of lately, taking five of their last seven, including games against division leaders like the Orlando Magic, Dallas Mavericks and Detroit Pistons. They're still six and a half games out of the final playoff spot in the West, but if Salmons can remain productive on the bench and this team's injury problems are truly behind them, they should significantly narrow the gap, if not close it, the rest of the way.