Keon Ellis needs to keep shooting

Keon Ellis had a huge night on Monday against the Hawks, scoring a career-high 33 points, including 9-17 from three.  Despite the Kings losing, it was something both Kings fans and those within the organization themselves had been waiting for.  Coach Mike Brown had this to say after the game:

“We’ve been on him about if you’re open, let that thing go, and tonight, he let it go.  He’s a good shooter. He shot 47% from the three when he was in the G league. Last year, he was around 40%, and so we know he could shoot basketball. It was great to see him step into it and let it fly tonight.”

Coming into the season, many of us thought that Keon Ellis would be Sacramento’s starting Shooting Guard.  Ellis had stepped into that role last season following Kevin Huerter’s injury and performed admirably, averaging 8.8 points, 3.5 rebounds and 2.3 assists while shooting 46.3% from the field and 40.4% from distance in 21 games as a starter.  Most importantly, he was instantly the team’s best defensive player, and the Kings as a team went from one of the poorest defensive teams in the league to at least average after Keon started getting regular rotation minutes.  He also had a standout performance on the national stage as he tallied 15 points, 5 assists, 4 rebounds, 3 steals and 3 blocks against the Golden State Warriors in the Play-In Tournament while playing his usual stifling defense.  All signs pointed to Ellis as the future for the Kings at Shooting Guard.

The calculus changed a bit for the Kings when they retained both Kevin Huerter (who was a widely rumored trade piece) and Malik Monk, while also acquiring DeMar DeRozan and drafting Devin Carter.  There was more competition than ever at Shooting Guard for the Kings, but Ellis still made sense, especially with DeRozan moving to Small Forward and Carter sidelined until at least January with a shoulder injury.  A full preseason without Huerter also should have solidified Ellis’ position, but Ellis struggled with his shot in preseason, making just 5-17 from distance over 5 games and often passing up open looks.  By the time preseason ended, Mike Brown declared that Kevin Huerter would start in game 1 despite not playing an actual game since mid-March.  It was a surprising decision, but made sense based on how Keon had been playing.  There was no room for hesitancy in this offense with three creators in the starting lineup.  Huerter at least would not be passing up open looks.

That hesitancy by Keon has carried over throughout the season, and it became very frustrating at times.  Keon’s one of this team’s better shooters, and with guys like Fox, DeRozan, Monk and Sabonis who are all fantastic at generating open looks for others, those looks need to be taken.  It came to a head for me personally in last Friday’s loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves.  With the Kings down 2 in overtime and just under a minute left, Trey Lyles found Keon Ellis wide open from three on the wing.  Nickeil Alexander-Walker made a move towards Keon but was off balance and out of position.  Instead of shooting, Ellis faked a pass and took it down the lane only to be greeted by Rudy Gobert who easily blocked the shot.

It’s not guaranteed that Ellis would have made that shot, or even that the Kings would have ended up winning if he did.  But the decision itself was terrible, especially when Ellis is one of this team’s better shooters.

Monday night, there was no hesitation for the first time.  Sure, Ellis was absolutely on fire, making his first six threes in a row, but shooters need to shoot, and Ellis is a shooter.  He’s been steadily above 40% from distance over his entire career to date, both with the team and in the G-League.  And this Kings team desperately needs guys who can make their open looks.  Kevin Huerter leads the team in attempts but is only at 31% for the season so far.  Keegan Murray is at 5.8 attempts but only making 29.9%.   Ellis raised his percentage all the way to 42.6% almost singlehandedly because of that game against Atlanta.  Now, we probably don’t need him shooting 17 threes a game, but he certainly has to be higher than the 3.4 attempts per game he’s attempted so far this season (and that per game number was only at 2.1 before his 17 attempt night).

Keon Ellis made a name for himself with his defense, and that will always be the foundation for his game.  But if he starts to trust himself and take and make those open looks as well, the sky’s the limit for both him and the Kings.  Hopefully Monday’s explosion was less flash in the pan and more of an awakening for Keon to realize just what he can do.