The NBA offseason dominates headlines in a way that the other major leagues in America can only hope to emulate. From the moment the Finals ended, it seemed we hardly went a day without some surprising new development.
Now in the dog days of summer, we can look back on what has been a truly wild offseason. From Anthony Davis heading to Hollywood, to Kawhi Leonard and Paul George teaming up across town, this has been the summer of stars joining forces.
The restructuring of the Western Conference has dominated the headlines this summer, and while the Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers have received most of the attention, there’s another team in California that had a sneaky good summer.
No, not the Golden State Warriors. The Sacramento Kings.
The Kings didn’t acquire a Finals MVP; they didn’t even sign an All-Star. But they did quietly build upon an impressive 2018-19 season.
Last year De'Aaron Fox and Buddy Hield helped carry Sacramento to their best finish since 2006. They’ve finally found an identity, they have developed a young, promising core, and the franchise has brought in additional pieces that should help them continue their growth.
What they did this summer
Sacramento didn’t make any roster shaking moves this summer, but they did bring in several complimentary pieces. They brought back Harrison Barnes on a 4-year, $85-million deal and signed Cory Joseph and Dewayne Dedmon to three years deals for $37.2 million and $40 million, respectively. Finally, they added veteran wing Trevor Ariza on a 2-year, $25-million contract to round out their roster. Together, the four bring veteran leadership to a team that is clearly trying to win now.
In addition to beefing up their roster, Sacramento also made changes to their coaching staff. After mutually parting ways with the Los Angeles Lakers, it didn’t take Luke Walton long to find his next head coaching gig. He’s coming to Sacramento on a four-year deal and he’s bringing help with him. Igor Kokoskov, former Phoenix Suns and Slovenian national team head coach, will be joining Walton with the Kings.
Out of all the player additions, it's Dedmon that should have the greatest impact. Dedmon grew into a reliable deep threat in his time in Atlanta. He went from never shooting the long ball to connecting on 38 percent of his attempts. His ability to both protect the rim and stretch the floor is a skillset Sacramento sorely needed last year.
Dedmon can play alongside either Marvin Bagley III or Harry Giles. Both players are more comfortable in the mid to low post and both struggle protecting the rim. Dedmon will help cover their weaknesses on defense and augment their strengths on offense. He’s a great get for this young Kings team that is looking to build on the identity they found last year.
Putting the pieces together
After over a decade of struggles, the Sacramento Kings finally got on the right track last year. They’ve found their preferred style of play and brought in coaches and players who can help them continue to lean into what they’ve got going.
This young Kings team will be looking to run and gun. They finished fifth in the league in pace last year and will likely play at breakneck speed again this season. They didn’t shoot a ton of threes, but when they did they were extremely accurate, connecting on 38 percent of their attempts.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=im0Jn0bvsMI
Sacramento has a promising backcourt with Fox and Hield and an intriguing frontcourt pairing with Giles and Bagley III. The players they added this summer can play interchangeably with any of the four and the coaches know how to elevate the games of the Kings young core.
Luke Walton’s time in Golden State has given him experience coaching guard-dominant offenses. Hield and Fox aren’t Steph Curry and Klay Thompson but the lessons Walton will pass on from his time with the Warriors will help them get closer to that level.
Learning to play both on and off the ball will be key for Fox and Hield. Fox is a blur with the ball in his hands and Hield is adept at weaving through defenses until he finds his spot. But learning the opposite side of the coin will help make this duo harder to contain and is a necessary next step in their growth.
Coming into the NBA, a knock on Fox’s game was his lack of a three-point shot. He took a leap last year, increasing his three-point percentage from 30 to 37 percent. His improved three-point shooting ability, along with the addition of Ariza and Dedmon, will open up more possessions for Hield to run the offense and kick to open shooters.
Hield only operated as the ball handler in pick and roll on 16 percent of Sacramento’s possessions last year. Sacramento’s ability to play all of their best players together is tied to Hield's ability to step in as a secondary ball-handler alongside Fox.
If Sacramento does have one glaring weakness, it’s their rim protection. Outside of Dedmon, they don’t have any impressive rim protectors. That’s going to be a major issue in a conference where the Kings will regularly face off against players like Nikola Jokic, Anthony Davis, and Karl-Anthony Towns.
Sacramento’s defense as a whole was an issue last year. They gave up 115 points per game, 26th in the league. Adding a defensive-minded veteran like Ariza is sure to help, but they will need to make real improvements on that end of the floor if they have postseason aspirations.
How they can make the playoffs
The West is incredibly deep this year. There are seven teams that should be locked in the playoffs: the Denver Nuggets, Utah Jazz, Houston Rockets, Clippers, Lakers, Portland Trail Blazers, and Warriors. Add in perennial a playoff attendee in the San Antonio Spurs, as well as the intriguing Dallas Mavericks and New Orleans Pelicans, and the Kings path to the playoffs isn’t an easy one.
Sacramento will have to overachieve and hope that one of the teams in the upper tier of the conference stumbles. Health will be critical for the Lakers. LeBron James is entering his 16th season after missing significant time last year due to injury. He will be coming off of one of the most restful summers of his career, but he’s got a lot of miles on his tires.
Anthony Davis is no stranger to injury as well. If both of them miss significant time, the Lakers could be in danger of missing out on the playoffs. That could open up a spot for the Kings to sneak in.
It won’t be easy, but it’s very possible that this up and coming Sacramento Kings team could make the playoffs for the first time since 2006 in 2020. Breaking that streak would be a tremendous step forward for a team that’s finally on the rise. The Kings may have been an afterthought this summer, but when the season comes around they’ll be a team to watch in the action-packed Western Conference.
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