Gaze declares Melbourne will be litmus test for rising Kings

The Sydney Kings face their biggest test of the Andrew Bogut era on Monday when they visit reigning champions Melbourne United – and it will be their defence that will feel the most heat.

The Kings had a slow start with back-to-back losses to Adelaide but have bounced back to win three on the trot – most recently beating the Illawarra Hawks 86-79 on Friday night.

Great minds: Andrew Bogut talks tactics with coach Andrew Gaze during the clash with Illawarra on Friday night.

Great minds: Andrew Bogut talks tactics with coach Andrew Gaze during the clash with Illawarra on Friday night.Credit:AAP

Kings coach Andrew Gaze is pleased with the improvement but warns there is much structural work to do before the star-studded line-up can be considered a play-off team.

"When you're up against really good defence – sometimes really good skill and really good defence –defence will win some of those times," Gaze said in reference to the upcoming clash with Melbourne. "Too many times we have just relied on really good skill and we haven't balanced that with what we need to get out of our system."

That's not to say Gaze isn't pleased with his team's improving cohesion after adding another one of Australia's basketball greats to the mix in Bogut, but the second-year Kings coach said the league is yet to see the full impact the NBA veteran is able to have aside from just scoring.

"He instinctively is a great distributor, a great passer and he loves to do that – and we love him doing it as well," Gaze said.

"The hands, the activity on the D… he's also coming to terms with the on balls, having to help out and come up a lot higher away from the basket."

American born Kings guard Kevin Lisch – who played his 200th game in Friday night's win – acknowledged the importance of testing the side's capabilities against a side of Melbourne's calibre.

"We're extremely excited … to go and play Melbourne where they have a great support there, it's a great set up but I'd like to think that we get excited for any game in this league and any game to win is hard to come by," Lisch said.

"Two days before the game I didn't even know it was my 200th, I guess that says a lot – but it's really rewarding and I'm thankful. I think when you get older you stop trying to count them."

Both Lisch and his coach acknowledged the importance of playing the champions, who have a similar mixed record so far but are a real defensive threat and favourites against the Kings.

"We are really really happy to get a couple of wins – [there is still] a long way to go but the ultimate test is to try and beat the champion," Gaze said. "We get an opportunity to do that – a privileged opportunity to do that, with a big crowd in a great city.

"We're really excited about it and we go into that game with a whole lot more confidence based on a win than a loss, of course.

"It's going to be a fun night."

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