Sacramento
Kings ROSTER
31-39 • 12th in WESTERN CONFERENCE
| NAME | POS | AGE | SALARY | HT | WT | COLLEGE | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #24 | Buddy Hield | G | 28 | N/A | 6' 4" | 220 lbs | OKLAHOMA | |
| #25 | Chimezie Metu | F-C | 24 | N/A | 6' 9" | 225 lbs | USC | |
| #15 | Damian Jones | C | 25 | N/A | 6' 11" | 245 lbs | VANDERBILT | |
| #5 | De'Aaron Fox | G | 23 | N/A | 6' 3" | 185 lbs | KENTUCKY | |
| #55 | Delon Wright | G | 29 | N/A | 6' 5" | 185 lbs | UTAH | |
| #40 | Harrison Barnes | F | 28 | N/A | 6' 8" | 225 lbs | NORTH CAROLINA | |
| #20 | Hassan Whiteside | C | 31 | N/A | 7' 0" | 265 lbs | MARSHALL | |
| #3 | Jahmi'us Ramsey | G | 19 | N/A | 6' 3" | 190 lbs | TEXAS TECH | |
| #10 | Justin James | G-F | 24 | N/A | 6' 7" | 190 lbs | WYOMING | |
| #7 | Kyle Guy | G | 23 | N/A | 6' 1" | 167 lbs | VIRGINIA | |
| #14 | Louis King | F | 22 | N/A | 6' 7" | 205 lbs | OREGON | |
| #35 | Marvin Bagley | F | 22 | N/A | 6' 11" | 235 lbs | DUKE | |
| #8 | Maurice Harkless | F-G | 28 | N/A | 6' 7" | 220 lbs | ST. JOHN'S (NY) | |
| #22 | Richaun Holmes | F | 27 | N/A | 6' 10" | 235 lbs | BOWLING GREEN | |
| #13 | Robert Woodard | F | 21 | N/A | 6' 6" | 235 lbs | MISSISSIPPI STATE | |
| #9 | Terence Davis | G | 23 | N/A | 6' 4" | 201 lbs | OLE MISS | |
| #0 | Tyrese Haliburton | G | 21 | N/A | 6' 5" | 185 lbs | IOWA STATE |
The Sacramento Kings' biggest offseason transaction came in the form of a massive extension for cornerstone superstar De'Aaron Fox. After a breakout 2019-20 campaign where he put up averages of 21.1 points (on 47.5 percent shooting), 2.9 rebounds, 5.8 assists, and 1.5 steals per game, signing the former fifth overall pick to an extension was a no-brainer. The Kings rewarded Fox with a max extension worth a whopping $163 million. The 23-year-old's new deal will keep him in Sacramento through 2026.
Sacramento was not involved in any trades during the offseason, but they did bring in a couple fresh faces via free agency. Hassan Whiteside, who had an outstanding season with the Portland Trail Blazers in 2019-20, signed on a one-year deal worth $2.3 million. Glen Robinson III, who played with the Philadelphia 76ers last year, also penned a deal with Kings.
Sacramento lost more than they gained in free agency, with Bogdan Bogdaonovic (signed with the Atlanta Hawks), Kent Bazemore (signed with the Golden State Warriors), Alex Len (signed with the Toronto Raptors), Harry Giles III (signed with the Portland Trail Blazers), Yogi Ferrell, and Corey Brewer all moving on during the offseason.
The Kings entered the NBA Draft with the 12th overall pick, and they opted to use it on 6-foot-5 point guard Tyrese Haliburton from Iowa State. The 20-year-old had a strong start to the season for Sacramento and is looking like a real steal at the moment. In his first dozen games for the Kings, Haliburton averaged 11.1 points (on 51.6 percent shooting), 2.8 rebounds, 5.3 assists, and 1.2 steals, while also connecting on 2.2 triples per game on a 51.0-percent clip. The efficiency is likely to drop as the season progresses, but there's no denying that the rookie has already shown flashes of brilliance early on.
Sacramento also added Robert Woodward II (40th) and Jahmi’us Ramsey (43rd) in the draft.
The Kings' starting lineup for 2020-21 features De'Aaron Fox, Harrison Barnes, Buddy Hield, Marvin Bagley, and Richaun Holmes. The second unit consists of Haliburton, Corey Joseph, Glen Robinson, Nemanja Bjelica, and Whiteside.
sacramento kings Team Analysis
Offensively, the Kings were pretty much a middle-of-the-road team last season. During the 2019-20 campaign, they recorded a 112.0 offensive rating, which ranked 12th in the NBA.
In terms of scoring, Sacramento averaged 110.1 points per game last season, 22nd in the NBA. They attempted 88.4 shots per game (19th), making them on a 46.2-clip. Their shooting percentage ranked 15th in the league, which isn't all that bad; they just need to get more second-chance opportunities.
Eight players averaged double-digit points for the Kings last season, with De'Aaron Fox leading the way with 21.1 points per contest. The well-balanced scoring is definitely something Sacramento should build on for the 2020-21 campaign. They may have lost a couple guys over the offseason, but their core group remains intact.
The Kings also took an average of 34.9 three-pointers per game (12th), making 36.4 percent of them (12th).
One glaring weakness for Sacramento in 2019-20 was their ability to get to the line. They averaged just 20.3 free throws per game, which ranked all the way down at 28th in the NBA. They made 77.0 percent of their attempts from the stripe (18th).
The Kings will also want to improve their ball movement this season, as their 23.8 assists per game ranked just 19th in the league last year. All things considered, though, they did fare relatively well in terms of keeping their turnovers in check, averaging 14.5 per game (12th).
The Kings were not a very good squad on the defensive end during the 2019-20 season. Their 111.4 defensive rating ranked just 19th in the entire NBA.
In terms of scoring, Sacramento allowed opposing teams to drop an average of 112.1 points against them, ranking 16th.
Something the Kings can build on for the 2020-21 campaign was their ability to limit their opponents' field goal attempts. This came out to 85.5 attempts per game, which ranked a very impressive second in the NBA.
The downside: a huge chunk of those attempts came close to the bucket. Opposing teams logged 50.7 two-point field goal attempts against Sacramento per game (28th) while making 54.9 percent of these shots (26th). Needless to say, their interior defense needs a lot of work.
This is probably why they brought in Hassan Whiteside, one of the best shot-blockers in the league, during the offseason. He hasn’t made a significant impact for Sacramento in the early going though. The 7-foot big man has been limited to less than 15 minutes of action per game as he sits behind starting center Richaun Holmes.
Opposing teams attempted 34.8 triples per game against Sacramento (15th) in 2020-21, converting on a 35.7-percent clip (15th). While this is something they could improve on, these numbers aren't too bad. Certainly not as bad as their interior defense.
On the bright side, the Kings were able to keep their fouls in check last season, averaging just 22.2 per game (fourth). This resulted in 24.3 free throw attempts for their opponents per contest (13th).
Sacramento also struggled to rebound the ball a year ago. They averaged just 42.6 boards per game (27th), with 32.6 of them coming on the defensive end (26th).
The Kings averaged just 4.1 blocks as a unit last term (26th), but they managed to swipe a more respectable 7.7 steals per game (14th). This resulted in 15.2 turnovers from opposing teams per contest, which ranked 10th in the NBA.
Luke Walton currently serves as Sacramento's head coach. The 40-year-old is currently in his second year with the Kings after taking over the position at the start of the 2019-20 season. Walton guided the Kings to 31 wins last season, which included a 3-5 record inside the Disney World bubble.
Prior to joining the Kings, Walton spent three years with the Los Angeles Lakers as the team's head coach. Before that, Walton served as an assistant to head coach Steve Kerr with the Golden State Warriors. Walton was part of Kerr's staff during their 2015 title run, and the former also served as an interim head coach during Golden States' 72-9 campaign in 2015-16.
Walton has a number of assistant coaches working under him, with none more prominent than former New Orleans Pelicans head coach Alvin Gentry. Gentry agreed to join Walton's staff prior to the start of the 2020-21 season.
Other assistants include Roy Hana (Chief of Staff), Rico Hines (Director of Player Development), and the trio of Bobby Jackson, Stacey Augmon, and Lindsey Harding, who all also serve as Player Development coaches.
Aside from Gentry, Rex Kalamian and Jesse Murmuys are also listed as assistant coaches under Walton.
Top sacramento kings Roster Questions
Sacramento's last signing came in the form of 6-foot-9 big man Chimezie Metu, who the team signed on a two-way deal on December 24, 2020.
Incidentally, Metu actually signed a long-term deal with the Kings one month before putting pen to paper on the two-way contract. On November 27, 2020, Sacramento signed Metu on a three-year contract worth $3.5 million. The team then decided to waive him on December 21, before bringing him back on a two-way deal a few days later.
Since being drafted as the 49th overall pick in the 2018 draft, Metu has played all three seasons of his NBA career with the Kings. Over that span, the former USC standout has put up averages of 3.3 points and 2.3 rebounds in 6.4 minutes per contest.
He's not the most important player on the roster, but he does provide some quality minutes.
Sacramento brought in just two new faces to the team during the offseason via free agency. First was 7-foot big man Hassan Whiteside, who had a breakout year with the Portland Trail Blazers in 2019-20. The 31-year-old signed a one-year deal with the Kings worth $2.3 million.
Whiteside, however, has been relegated to a bench role behind Richaun Holmes, who is having a career year with Sacramento. Averaging less than 15 minutes per game off the bench, Whiteside hasn't made the impact many were hoping for.
The Kings' other free agent signing was Glenn Robinson III, who finished the 2019-20 campaign with the Philadelphia 76ers. Robinson took his talents to Sac-Town on a one-year deal worth $2.0 million.
Most of Sacramento's attention during the offseason was focused on re-signing cornerstone star De'Aaron Fox to a new, long-term deal. The front office did just that, securing the 23-year-old for the future with a $163 million five-year max extension that will keep the prized guard in Sacramento through at least 2026.
Quite notably, the Kings were unable to keep Bogdan Bogdanovic in Sacramento, with the sharpshooting two-guard opting to sign with the Atlanta Hawks as a free agent.
A couple of other guys who were linked to an offseason move to the Kings include Torrey Craig and Michael Carter-Williams.
The Kings weren't very active in the offseason in terms of bringing in new players via trade. As a matter of fact, they only made a couple of minor moves, including trading away Kenyon Martin Jr. to the Houston Rockets in late November.
Martin, a 6-foot-6 small forward, is the son of retired All-Star big man Kenyon Martin. The younger Kenyon was drafted by the Kings in 2020 late in the second round. He did not play a single game for Sacramento last season.
In exchange for Martin, the Rockets sent a 2021 second-round pick to Sacramento as well as $1 million in cash.
The Sacramento Kings of the late-1990s/early-2000s were a memorable bunch, with stars like Chris Webber, Peja Stojakovic, Vlade Divac, and Mike Bibby, leading the charge. Unfortunately, they never went beyond the Western Conference Finals.
The Kings franchise has won one championship throughout its history, coming during the 1950-51 season. This fact makes that particular team the most memorable lineup in franchise history by default.
Then the Rochester Royals, the team was just three seasons into its existence when it won the first and only championship in franchise history. That unforgettable squad was led by the great Arnie Risen. The likes of Bob Davies, Jack Coleman, and Bobby Wanzer played their respective roles during the title-winning campaign.
Other guys on the roster that season include Bill Calhoun, Red Holzman, Ed Mikan, and Pep Saul.
In spite of a relatively quiet offseason for the Kings, this team still enters the 2020-21 campaign above the salary cap. Sacramento did sign De'Aaron Fox to a massive five-year extension worth $163 million, but since this new deal won't kick in until the 2021-22 season (Fox is set to earn just $8.1 million this term), this transaction did not have an effect on the Kings' salary cap in 2020-21.
Per spotrac, Sacramento currently has a total cap of $121.3 million, which is $12.2 million above the league-mandated cap.
Buddy Hield is currently the team's highest earner with a salary of $24.7 million for the 2020-21 season. Harrison Barnes comes in second at $22.2 million, with Cory Joseph rounding out the top three with $12.6 million.
After being selected as the 12th overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, 6-foot-5 point guard Tyrese Haliburton has emerged as a key player for the Kings so far this season. The 20-year-old has taken over the role as the team's sixth man off the bench.
Haliburton has proven to be quite a steal for the Kings, and coach Luke Walton has not hesitated to provide the rookie with heavy minutes as part of the team's second unit.
In his first 20 games as a King, Haliburton produced averages of 11.8 points (on 48.4 percent shooting), 3.8 rebounds, 5.4 assists, and 1.2 steals, while also connecting on 2.3 triples per game on a 43.3-percent clip.
Haliburton has been so impressive in his debut season that he's earned the right to be in the Rookie of the Year conversation, albeit as a distant second to the Charlotte Hornets' LaMelo Ball.
Coach Luke Walton is a creature of habit, and he's been pretty consistent with his starting five this season. The fact that the Kings have been relatively healthy so far in 2020-21 has also played a significant role in Sacramento fielding the same set of starters night in and night out.
De'Aaron Fox still owns the reins of the Kings' offense, with the 23-year-old rising star serving as the team's starting point guard. Buddy Hield joins Fox in the backcourt, while the trio of Harrison Barnes, Marvin Bagley, and Richaun Holmes make up the team's frontcourt.
