The Kings' NBL finals hopes are no longer under their control but, regardless of what lies ahead this season, James Harvey believes they have put in place the foundation for a successful future.
The 81-74 loss to the Hawks in Wollongong on Friday means Sydney must beat Townsville in the final round and hope Cairns or the Hawks lose so they can sneak back into the top four. Anything is possible in the extremely tight NBL but Harvey believes his team has already proved critics wrong.
''You've got to remember at the start of the year we were ranked $101 outsiders to win the championship,'' he said. ''I don't think anyone in their right mind thought we were going to be a play-off team.
''The good thing is that we're moving in the right direction. Are we going to be disappointed not to make the finals? Yes, because we wanted to not only make the finals but make some noise in the finals. If we don't get there, in our minds, we've underachieved. But at least we know we're moving in the right direction from where we were last year.''
This time last season and the previous one, Harvey says, players were already thinking about their end-of-season trips. But a change in approach has kept the Kings in the play-off mix. ''The culture of the club, the people who are involved, the ownership group, the coaching staff - it's all turning us into an organisation that's breeding success,'' he said.
''I've seen the growth of some of my teammates this year, too. Ben Madgen's taken his game to a whole new level … it's exciting.''
The Kings were in the top four for long stretches and Harvey believes that, on that basis, they deserve to feature in the play-offs. Injuries to key players, including Harvey, loaded extra pressure. But the players never gave up, including on Friday night.
''We fought hard but just didn't contain them, they got on that run in the third quarter and we couldn't stop the flow. We went into the game very aware of their three-point shooting capabilities and I thought, in the first half, we did a pretty job.
''But we gave away fouls and they were able to get some confidence from the free-throw line. The four-minute stretch at the start of the third quarter where the lead went from six or seven to 20 left us playing catch-up.
''As one of the leaders, you try to put a finger on what went wrong. It's strange because the week of training was one of our best all year. We all went into the game feeling confident. It's obviously just a mindset, getting into that stadium … I don't know.
''The key to unlocking greatness in sport - some nights … the mindset's right, some nights it's not - if you can work it out, you'd be a rich man.''
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