Sacramento Kings
The 2022-23 Sacramento Kings can be defined by not only making the playoffs for the first time in 17 years but also by being the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference.
What did we learn?
THIS WAS THE YEAR.
This was the year that the Kings finally broke through.
This was the year that the Kings were THE Young Surprise Team that was promised.
With a preseason Vegas Over/Under win total of 34 games, the Kings were supposed to spend another year in the cellar of the Pacific Division.
Instead, the Kings blew preseason expectations out of the water, blowing past opponents with the best offense in the entire league. The Kings weren’t in the cellar, they were at the top.
Not the defending champion Warriors. Not the Lakers. Not the Suns. Not the Clippers.
It was the Sacramento Kings who won the Pacific Division for the first time since 2002-03, making the playoffs for the first time in 17 long years.
Golden 1 Center was a party all season long. That’s where the Kings ran up the points and lit the beam.
The Fox and the Ox two-man game was stout and potent. Fox and Sabonis were both All-Stars and third-team All-NBA, two of the best 15 players in the league this year. For as gut-wrenching as the Haliburton trade was last year for Kings fans, the results so far speak for themselves.
De’Aaron Fox's mid-range game was absolute butter. He was smooth as can be in the clutch, leading the NBA in crunch time points en route to being crowned the Clutch Player of the Year. Time and time again Fox came up big when the Kings needed him most.
Sabonis finished the season with 14 triple-doubles, second-most in the NBA. He was a rebounding machine, leading the league in total rebounds with 70 more than second place and 156 more than third (!!).
Keegan Murray was a rookie who was wise beyond his years. Kayte Christensen said it best: “He has big shots in his blood.” Keegan shot 41 percent from 3 on 6.3 attempts per game, making the most three-pointers by a rookie ever at 206.
Headband Huerter was right behind Keegan with 205 made 3s of his own. Huerter was an offseason steal and the perfect compliment for this offense on the wing.
Malik Monk was the sixth-man gunner, always ready to explode off the bench. In the 22 games that Monk scored 17+ points, the Kings went 17-5.
Iron Man Harrison Barnes played all 82 games and led the team in free throws made.
Davion Mitchell brought energy and perimeter defense on a nightly basis. Even Trey Lyles was a reliable and helpful role player, playing 74 games and providing lineup flexibility for Mike Brown.
Speaking of coach, Mike Brown was the 2022-23 NBA Coach of the Year, instilling confidence and trust in this group. It took just two games for Mike Brown to put Keegan Murray into the starting lineup. It would have taken Luke Walton two months just like it did with Haliburton.
The first round of the playoffs against the Warriors was a battle. The Kings won the first two games of the series at home and you’ve never seen a fan base so elated. The Kings deserve a lot of credit for winning Game 6 on the road at the Chase Center.
However, they were not able to get the job done in Game 7 as the championship-DNA Warriors experience ultimately staved them off.
But for the first time in forever, at least the Kings were there.
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Additional Notes
In some playoff games, Terence Davis was trusted as the 8th man, and he hit some big 3s. In other playoff games, he didn’t make it off the pine.
Two years ago, friend of the blog Richaun Holmes was the Kings’ main big man, leading the team in rebounds per game and starting in all 61 games he played. This season, Holmes played the fewest minutes per game of his career at just 8 a night.
It is wild that the Kings not only have a Chimezie Metu but they also have a player named Chima Moneke. Chimezie and Chima!
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Did our preseason Over/Under prediction hit?
Like the Magic, hammering this Over and taking the Kings to make the play-in. Over 34 wins.
Kings 2022-23 record: (48-34)
Yes INDEED. Fuck the play-in, the Kings were the THREE-SEED.
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What’s Next?
The No. 24 pick in tonight’s draft. KOC’s latest mock has Jett Howard from Michigan. A “slick offensive threat who could shine next to a lead playmaker” sounds fantastic per usual.
The list of free agents here includes Harrison Barnes, Trey Lyles, Terence Davis, Chimezie Metu and Alex Len. It feels like this group would want to stick together as much as possible.
Adding some defense around the edges wouldn’t be the worst idea.
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Favorite Kings Highlight of the 2022-23 Season:
That roar was something fierce.
