The Sacramento Kings were the biggest surprise team in the NBA last season and looking to continue their newfound streak. Here is their projected lineup for the 2023-24 season.
Going into last season the Sacramento Kings were expected to be one of the worst teams in the Western Conference and projected to win around 33 games. They shocked the NBA world, finishing with the third-best record in the West at 48-34.
The Kings management did a few great things to turn this franchise around. The first was trading for Domantas Sabonis at the trade deadline in 2022, drafting Keegan Murray, and getting Malik Monk and Kevin Huerter in free agency. The most important factor was hiring Mike Brown leading this team to have the highest offensive rating in NBA history and him being the first-ever unanimous Coach of the Year winner.
After having exceeded expectations the Kings made some minor adjustments to their roster so here is the 2023-24 lineup projection.
Sacramento Kings starting point guard: De'Aaron Fox
De'Aaron Fox had a career year last season averaging 25 points, 4.2 rebounds 6.1 assists and 1.1 steals on 51/32/78 splits. This would allow him to be selected to his first ever All-Star team and was selected to All-NBA 3rd team.
Fox played an important part in the success of the Kings because of his ability in the clutch. A clutch time is classified as the last five minutes of a game or overtime where the game is within five points. Fox led the league in total clutch time points with 194 shooting 53 percent from the field. This would lead him to become the first-ever winner of the Clutch Player of the Year award.
Fox is one of the most talented guards in the league because he is one of the fastest players making him deadly in transition and attacking the rim. Last season he was one of the deadliest mid-range shootings in the league and he is a very good playmaker.
It is more than likely Fox will continue to grow as a player and will repeat his success from last season. If he is able to have a respectable three-point shot, he becomes a top-tier guard in the league. He will lead the Kings to many more clutch wins this coming season.
Kings primary backup point guard: Davion Mitchell
Davion Mitchell was the Kings' backup point guard last season and will resume his role as the backup point guard. Last season he averaged 5.6 points, 1.3 rebounds and 2.1 assists on 45/32/81 splits.
Mitchell took a step back up from his rookie season but his minutes were reduced by 10 minutes per game. That was a great choice on Mike Brown's part because Mitchell can be an offensive liability. He can't shoot efficiently from outside 10 feet which you don't want from any guard in the league.
Mitchell's defense is the best part of the game which allows Coach Brown to mix and match his guard play. Mitchell's grit has allowed him to play minutes as a two-guard alongside De'Aaron Fox, and also play well with a smaller shooting guard in Malik Monk.
Others who could receive minutes: Malik Monk
Sacramento Kings starting shooting guard: Kevin Huerter
This may be a shock to some people but last season Kevin Huerter was the starting shooting guard for the Kings and he will be the starting shooting guard to start next season. Last season Huerter averaged 15.2 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.9 assists on 49/40/71 splits.
Huerter is a slightly better fit alongside De'Aaron Fox for a few reasons, the first being he is the best guard shooter on the team. Fox is a slasher and isn't the best shooter, when you have a guard like that you want the best shooters possible to surround him. Huerter is also one of the King's better perimeter defenders which you need when you have a scoring point guard.
Huerter will play just as big a role as he did last season. His three-point shooting is very important for this team because he made countless clutch three-pointers. He is at times the Kings' third option and if he takes another step the Kings will be that much better.
Kings primary backup shooting guard: Malik Monk
Last season Malik Monk played in 77 games and came off the bench for 77 games. He averaged 13.5 points, 2.6 rebounds and 3.9 assists on 45/36/89 splits and finished fifth in the Sixth Man of the Year voting.
Monk is one of the Kings' best players but his role off the bench is huge for this team. Every team needs a player who can come off the bench and give them a kick. Monk has had multiple games where he gave the Kings just that and one game had 45 points.
Monk had his most impactful season last year and he is going to continue to be that for the Kings for next season. There are times when he is inefficient at scoring the basketball but he has shown in prior years that he can be and if the Kings make the playoffs again, he should improve on his efficiency from last postseason.
Others who could receive minutes: Chris Duarte, De'Aaron Fox, Davion Mitchell
Sacramento Kings starting small forward: Harrison Barnes
Harrison Barnes is one of the longest-tenured Kings and every single game he started. Last season Barnes played in all 82 games and averaged 15 points, 4.5 rebounds and 1.6 assists on 47/37/84 splits.
Barnes is a very important piece to this team. The first being he is the oldest and most experienced player on the team. The Kings are a young team, and every young team needs an experienced veteran. Barnes was a part of the 2015 Championship Warriors and 73-9 Warriors so his experience is crucial.
Also, Barnes is an inefficient offensive player. Shooting 37 percent from three gives him a key role in the starting lineup. He provides extra floor spacing for De'Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis and is able to hit big shots in big moments. He isn't your typical role player but is still very good to be your third and fourth option.
Kings primary backup small forward: Chris Duarte
Chris Duarte was traded to the Kings for two second round picks and they got an absolute steal. Last season Duarte averaged 7.9 points, 2.5 rebounds and 1.4 assists on 37/32/85 splits. He had a down year from his rookie season but Duarte was dealing with injury and saw a reduction in his minutes.
With the Kings Duarte should have a chance to start over and revitalize. Duarte has shown that he has potential he can be a very good player in this league and playing under Mike Brown he should go back to how he played his first season in the league.
Mike Brown's coaching has allowed so many different players to have their best season of their careers and should be able to figure out a way for Chris Duarte to be an effective piece for this team. If Duarte is given the opportunity to play he will turn around and make the Kings bench all that much better and a much more dangerous team.
Others who could receive minutes: Kessler Edwards and Kegan Murray
Kessler Edwards has been in the league for two seasons and got his opportunity with the Kings when he was traded from the Nets. In the 22 games he played in for the Kings, he averaged 3.9 points, 2.1 rebounds and 1.0 assists on 44/35/77 splits. It was the best stretch of his career. The addition of Chris Duarte puts Kessler Edwards out of the rotation but because of Duarte's injury history, Edwards can get key playing time.
Sacramento Kings starting power forward: Keegan Murray
Drafting Keegan Murray was another important transaction they made over the offseason. Murray played in 80 games and averaged 12.2 points, 4.6 rebounds and 1.2 assists on 45/41/77 shooting splits. This allowed him to finish 5th in the Rookie of the Year voting and was selected to All-Rookie First Team.
He had a lot of success as a rookie and going into his sophomore year he's only going to get better. Murray is a long 6-foot-8, so his ability to shoot over 40 percent from three is huge. It allows him to be the perfect power forward alongside Domantas Sabonis.
Murray did not perform that well in his first playoffs but he still has time to overcome that. If he continues to progress throughout his career he will become more than just a three-point shooter. He will add new aspects to his game and will make the Kings an even bigger threat in the West.
Kings primary backup power forward: Trey Lyles
Last season Trey Lyles played in 74 games for the Kings and came off the bench for all 74 games. Off the bench, Lyles averaged 7.6 points, 4.1 rebounds and 0.9 assists on 46/36/82 shooting splits and is also one of the Kings' better defenders.
Lyles is practically a downgraded version of Keegan Murray. Lyles is another player who is long and his ability to shoot three is crucial for this team. With the Kings' two best players not being able to shoot, having shooters, especially tall shooters, are very important to have.
Lyles gives the Kings the ability to mix around with the lineup where he can play with Keegan Murray and Domantas Sabonis, or he can be a small ball center throughout the course of a game. He is an extremely good role player and if Keegan Murray gets hurt, he is the perfect substitute.
Others who could receive minutes: Harrison Barnes, Domantas Sabonis, Kessler Edwards
Sacramento Kings starting center: Domantas Sabonis
There should be no surprise here that Domantas Sabonis will be the Kings' starting center. In the best season of his career, he averaged 19.1 points, a league-high 12.3 rebounds and 7.3 assists on 62/37/74 splits being selected to his third All-Star team and was selected to All-NBA 3rd team.
The best way to describe Domantas Sabonis' game is Nikola Jokic but isn't as willing to shoot from outside of 10 feet. Sabonis at 7-foot is an extreme talent and the Kings' most important player. Sabonis was second in the NBA in total win shares with 12.6 and was sixth in the league in win shares per 48 minutes with .221.
Sabonis has one of the biggest responsibilities on the team being their leader in rebounds and assists. He has to finish off defensive positions and put his teammates in a position to score. His pick-n-roll offense with De'Aaron Fox was unguardable and allowed Fox to have his best season of his career.
The Kings went as Sabonis went last season which showed in the playoffs as Sabonis averaged 16.4 points, 11 rebounds and 4.7 assists on 50/20/57 splits. If Sabonis played remotely close to what he did in the regular seasons, there's no question the Kings would beat the Warriors and would go on to play the Lakers in the second round.
Kings primary backup center: Nerlens Noel
Nerles Noel is the newest acquisition for the Sacramento Kings. Noel played in 17 games last year due to bad situations and injury but he averaged 2.1 points, 2.7 rebounds and 0.9 steals on 36 percent shooting from the floor.
Despite his struggles from last season, Noel's role with the Kings won't be that big. He will only play around 15-18 minutes per game playing behind Sabonis. His role will be to set screens and a lob threat in the pick-n-roll and play great defense.
One area the Kings struggle in was defense, where they finished 25th in defensive rating. Noel is easily the Kings' best rim protector and is the backup center because of it. Noel has had 6 seasons where he averaged at least one steal and one block per game. If the Kings have him healthy for a full season, he will improve their defense drastically.
Others who could receive minutes: Alex Len
If the Kings centers stay healthy don't expect Alex Len to see much playing time. Last season he played in 26 games and averaged 1.7 points and 2.3 rebounds on 53 percent shooting from the floor. If he does play he'll be a good screen setter and solid rim protector for the Kings.
