The Sacramento Kings have maintained a .500 record in their last five games, going 3-2.
However, the usually beaming .500 rate has concluded on a sour note, with Sacramento falling to an Orlando Magic squad ravaged by injuries. Sacramento suffered some late scratches, as both De’Aaron Fox (banged knees in practice) and Marvin Bagley (calf soreness) didn’t play, and Sacramento desperately needed their leader.
We’ll commence this 5 on 5 on that note:
Five-game slate: W vs. Boston Celtics, W vs. Denver Nuggets, W vs. Los Angeles Clippers, L vs. Philadelphia 76ers, L vs. Orlando Magic
IS IT CLEAR NOW?
Anyone who has paid the slightest ounce of attention will know De’Aaron Fox is making serious noise this season. And not the noise of former Kings stars who carried a relatively weak squad. Fox is lifting a team into relevance while garnering wins against reputable opponents.
After the loss to Orlando, the Kings sit at 12-13. Just two games ago, that was 12-11. *The* Sacramento Kings were above .500 23 games into the season. Fox — who is currently averaging 23.4/3.4/6.7 on 47.7/35.7/68.4 shooting splits — couldn’t have made his All-Star case any clearer by not playing in Orlando’s loss.
I’ve been critical of Sacramento’s playmaking entering the season, and in the game where their best playmaker didn’t play, they notably struggled to create open looks despite playing a team missing everyone not named Nikola Vucevic.
Luke Walton tapped Tyrese Haliburton to start in Fox’s place, but it’s evident he needs Fox to be optimized. Cory Joseph started positively in the first half knocking down jumpers, but regressed rapidly in the second half. Kyle Guy obtained minimal playmaking opportunities, but not enough. Harrison Barnes churned downhill occasionally, but he’s hit a wall the last few games.
At one point, Nemanja Bjelica, who we’ll discuss later, was running side pick-and-rolls with Richaun Holmes. The Kings definitely lost the game on the defensive end — allowing Michael Carter-Williams, who hadn’t played since Jan. 6, to score 21 points is atrocious — but they could’ve benefited from a healthy Fox.
Whether or not he’s officially one, Fox is playing like an All-Star, and not playing in one game exemplified that.
#EYEBALLEMOJISZN
Sam Amick of The Athletic dropped a new story providing some details about where the Kings stand in terms of trades. Chief among those details: Nemanja Bjelica.
The 76ers reportedly have interest in the 32-year-old stretch big, and after not playing since Jan. 9, Walton revived Bjelica for a 28-minute run against Orlando.
In a boon-or-bane scenario, Bjelica emerged a boon — at the right time. Bjelica finished his shift with 15 points, nine rebounds and six assists, going 5-8 (1-3 3P) from the floor. He deserves credit for staying prepared in a precarious situation, displaying value as an on-and-off-ball presence on offense.
Bjelica makes plenty of sense for a 76er squad deprived of three-point attempts; he couldn’t have had a better performance in this circumstance.
WELCOME BACK, DAQUAN
Boy, the Kings bench has been a rollercoaster this season. The Kings as a whole have operated as a rollercoaster, but the bench is comprised of multiple “no, no, yes”-and-vice-versa players: Cory Joseph, Hassan Whiteside and Glenn Robinson III.
But against Orlando, Sacramento welcomed the return of their bubble breakout player. DaQuan Jeffries, who returned to Sacramento on a two-year, $3 million deal in the offseason, made his first appearance after suffering multiple injuries.
To this point, rookie Tyrese Haliburton has served as the lone consistent spark plug off the bench. Now, he has his Robin.
It took until the latter half of the third quarter, but Jeffries made his debut and brought an instant impact. He hounded Terrence Ross and forced him into tough looks, while moving the ball well on offense and scoring 3-5 from inside the arc.
The biggest aspect of Jeffries’ game that must materialize is his three-point shot. He missed both of his attempts against Orlando, and it was a struggle in the bubble too.
Still, Robinson hasn’t provided the deep threat Sacramento would’ve liked, and he’s been a colossal negative defensively. Jeffries is still developing an offensive game, but the defense is already a positive.
MARVIN BAGLEY’S INCONSISTENCY
Bagley’s 24-game playing streak concluded with a late scratch against Orlando, right off the heels of an encouraging performance against Philadelphia where he most notably played center and supplied a two-way spark.
In that game, Bagley ended with 17 points (6-11 FG, 2-5 3P, 3-5 FT), 6 rebounds, one assist and one steal. He had a pivotal third quarter that led to rare fourth-quarter minutes. It was his best game in this stretch, as the other three were enmeshed in inconsistency.
Against Boston, Denver and Los Angeles, Bagley shot 9-22 (40.9%) from the field and 3-6 from deep. He failed to hit double-digit point totals in any contest and averaged just six rebounds per game. And in those matches, he never once eclipsed 21 minutes.
Bagley’s had multiple instances this season where he showcases his potential and how good the Kings could be when he’s at his current best. However, he’s failed to generate any sort of consistency to follow those games up.
The health, for now, has been auspicious. The same goes for his potential when he’s knocking down threes, scoring near the rim and showing optimistic flashes on defense. Now it’s about maintaining that level of play.
BUDDY ASSISTS AND REBOUNDS
In the last 5 on 5 article, I wrote about Hield’s resurgence from deep, as he went 25-54 (46.2%) in the last five games. But in this stretch, buckets are evading Buddy.
Hield is currently 17-56 (30.3%) from deep in this five-game slate. He fared much better against Orlando, but going 0-9 against Denver will leave a blemish.
Fortunately, Hield’s been playable. When his shot isn’t effective, he’s usually a negative in many other facets of the game: individual and team defense, attacking the basket, creating for others on isolation or coming off pin pindowns, running pick-and-rolls and more.
That surprisingly hasn’t been the case. He’s always been a sneakily good rebounder, averaging 7.0 a game during this stretch. And in the last four games, he’s averaging 4.25 assists a game. His season average is only 3.0.
Hield’s had a rosy two-man game with Holmes and his patented push shot, he lifts his head on drives to the rim to find shooters roaming the perimeter, and, in general, he’s been someone you want out there, even when his best asset isn’t functioning. That’s not something we’ve said about Buddy before.
The next five-game slate will include: vs. Memphis, vs. Brooklyn, vs. Miami, at Chicago, at Milwaukee.
More than anything, this last game shows me why Fox is now a superstar. He leaves a black hole with his absence.
Let him become an All Star before we start proclaiming him a Super Star.
There’s very few Super Stars in the league; albeit I suppose it depends on one’s definition of it. To me Super Star is LBJ, Harden, KD etc., of which Fox certainly is not.
Even if you dont think he is an superstar, the disparity in talent is there. Fox’s play has been so good that it is masking the team difficiencies.
I am still in the line of blow it up because the surrounding talent isnt really good. Would love to have a shot at Kuminga in the draft.
I definitely think we should blow it up. Now is the time to sell high, especially with Barnes.
When you take Fox away, as well as Bagley. You move a bunch of guys up. Up to the starters, up to the rotation. So it is obvious that the team isn’t deep in that way, however this team isn’t built for a run/playoffs, it is assembled to have a few vets hold down spots, so they are manned by actual pro’s. Those pro’s aren’t going to step up and win games on their own, just like the budding core can’t win games without the pro’s filling space. you want to tell D’Aaron that we aren’t going to improve this year?
Yes, we are 12-13 and I have enjoyed the season. Has the team improved enough to not consider being sellers? I dont think so. To me, we are inconsistent, top heavy (as you mentioned), and average.
I would bring De’Aaron in and say, “Hey, i want you to know my goal is to build around you. In order for me to do it, I need to reassess the talent on this team.”
(I dont think McNair should trade more assets to gain talent right now because how far Vlade set back the franchise.)
Draft wise, we havent recieved much progress from 2018 and in 2019, we didnt have the pick. To add, we have overpaid players not producing at all.
Cojo, Parker, Bjelica, and Buddy (to an extent.) Two dont play and one shouldnt be LOL.
If I were a GM and had average to above average assets, I would move them for additional assets to keep building.
I have no issue with trading the players you mentioned, also for value, whatever that may be. What I don’t think is a good idea is to clear out Barnes and Whiteside. These 2 guys aren’t going to win a Chip as starters (although..). Those guys manage their spots well enough and with enough experience to make their own corrections. Without a functional front court the back court cannot grow. If that leads to wins so be it. Move those other guys as possible, and practical.
I agree. I like how HB has played this year. I just want McNair to have $$ so we can get actual players to help out. If that means moving Buddy, I would trade him.
Someone I would like to see NEXT to HB is Oubre. I think his value is really low right now and as an upcoming FA, hopefully we can speak with him.
Harrison Barnes has already won a chip as a starter and he’s better now
I am not sure what your point is? I left that out as he also lost a championship as a “starter”. I don’t think he will miss a wide open three that will land us the best scorer in the league. Both Iggy and Livingston were more important to that team.
I think his value is overlooked because he’s just solid at a bunch of things. I think he can still be a starter on a championship level team.
Nobody you mentioned in that list can guard Fox.
Odd argument. Whether specific players can guard specific players has nothing to do with anything.
I hope Fox becomes a super star and he is on track to, but he isn’t yet. A ten game or so sample size is all we have of him playing at this level. All I said was let him become an all star and then we’ll see if he makes the leap to super star. Simply put, if he was a super star right now, we’d have a much better record.
Fox can’t guard anyone on that list either.
Sure, they’re all superstars. Put another way–who can guard any of them?
Yeah, he’s had a very good past month, but he needs to get to star first. Or at least top 5 at his position. Then we can start the superstar watch.
Fox isn’t an all-star (not yet at least), much less a superstar. No knock on him, he’s played terrific and is playing at an all-star level. But you can’t call someone an all-star unless he gets named to an All-Star team. I feel the same way about Jamal Murray and some others. I’ll give them that designation when they get selected.
He’s not a superstar yet. But he’s getting close to Caruso-level.
That’s funny (but perhaps not funny enough for a thumbs up)!!!
Enrico or David?
Per the SacBee, Miami has shown interest in trading for Nemanja.
looking at their roster, they really don’t have an appealing player of the players they’d actually be willing to put in a trade for Nemanja. I don’t know there draft pick situation moving forward.
Seems like interest is drumming up for some of our vets, should be an interesting month leading up to the trade deadline.
I’m still hoping we semi tank and land a high pick to pair with Fox and Hali. I could care less about the 8th seed.
I think it was written here in another article, but we have time on our side in the sense that until the trade deadline, we can choose which direction we go based on how we play. Whether we trade Barnes and Buddy ultimately will depend on this, as well as what we are offered in return. I’m generally in the blow it up for the future camp, but if we catch fire again, I’m all for making the playoffs. We can still trade our vets next year or in the offseason too
Two risks with waiting: (1) Barnes, Buddy, Nemanja might not play so well over the next weeks; (2) buyers might fill their needs elsewhere. I am not advocating trade now at all costs, just saying “waiting” may also backfire.
Those guys have an off season value. Waiting for a team willing to overpay does not reduce the off season value of those guys.
Nemanja is worth a future 2nd, and that is about it. Miami only has a few future seconds they can offer.
They have a TPE then can fit him into but may not want his salary by itself, plus they need to free up a roster space. My spitballed trade: Nemanja for Chris Silva and their 2022 second round pick via Philly or Denver (less favorable). That is gonna be a 2nd rounder around the 50th pick, IMO.
You are probably correct in NB’s value. I wouldn’t trade him for less than two 2nds (or equal), more than one day before the deadline Dynamic pricing.
Kings aren’t getting 2 second rounders for Nemanja.
I think you might. He fills a particular need, and contender 2nds are not all that valuable. I would assume you are going to get one of those picks in the form a player/salary return for NB’s salary.
I would take Strus over Silva.
I would trade with Miami Yesterday. They have 2 nice expiring contracts in Iggy and Olynck. Also, the have some nice young pieces. Max Strus looks fantastic, Kendrick Nunn, Precious looks like real potential. In addition they also have Herro and Robinson.
You are talking about trading Nemanja right?
Sorry, but Nemanja isn’t worth anyone you just mentioned there. Not by a mile.
My bad. I was thinking of having Barnes and Buddy heading to South Beach, as well.
Kings get younger. 2 players with real potential and money to spend next offseason.
SKJ just listed the guys that Detroit is mulling / dreaming of for Blake and a pick/ young player. I would like to see us get in on helping that along.
The only team he is worth a legit future piece to is likely Philly as they are legit title contenders.
I could see them giving us korkmaz for him as they likely cannot resign him and they could easily believe belly gives them a better shot this year than korkmaz does.
Do we resign kork? Should be a solid playmaking/scoring backup 2/3
He doesn’t move the needle for me at all. I’d rather give 2/3 minutes to guys already under contract like Jeffries or Woodard.
Speaking of Woodard, I was just messing around on the ESPN trade machine and they don’t even have Woodard on there. Hell, ESPN doesn’t have Woodard on the Kings roster on any of their pages.
Woodward hasnt shown the inclination to play the 3, let alone the 2. If he can he could be a special player, bc he can be a physically dominant and punishing player.
He can be a version of Ron Artest and PJ Tucker. In fact, the latter player is maybe who the GM had in mind when he picked him.
Bobby’s play in the G League is encouraging, but the test for him is can he keep wings in front of him on the perimeter? This is most important and secondarily does he have confidence in his shot and more generally his offense game.
If he cannot guard on the perimeter or shoot he is a PF, more PJ less World Peace. . He may still find a niche in this limited role, but he can be SO much more if he can play away from the basket.
My sense however is that he lacks the agility to keep up with agile wings but I hope to be disproven!
If we don’t decide to tank this season I’m in favor of bringing Robert Woodard II in to get some run. He has torn it up in the G League with hustle and a flair for timely plays (SSS caveat). He could replace GRIII in the rotation
I may be wrong but I believe the recent wins have mostly come against teams missing important players from their rotations. And we have been quite healthy until the Orlando game.
I want to see us consistently win against good teams who are at more or less full strength before I can say that we are really getting there. And before we proclaim Fox as a superstar.
we have good runs almost every season. Hasn’t translated into playoffs yet.
Same as it ever was…
This season is beginning to feel a bit too much like 2018-19. And even worse, this year a 9th or 10th seed is a “playoff team”. Monte, don’t be dumb enough to go for that. We need more talent!
Does Marvin hit the 100 games played mark today, or is he out after a whopping 24 game streak? Best ability, is availability, second jump be damned
I have no evidence to back this up but I think that Fox and Bagley could have played against Magic. The coaching staff thought they could win w/o them, and they got burned. Their injuries were likely nothing they could not play through but saw a 4-day stretch to rest them while getting the win vs ORL. The plan backfired, like a lot of what this coach tries to do!
One last point about ORL game Sanjesh touches upon that reflects poorly on the coach:
Buddy Yield 54% TS% on season (15 FGAs in 33 minutes v ORL)
HB 63% TS% on season (9 FGAs in 33 minutes v ORL)
There is an onus on the player to get assertive and aggressive, but why doesnt this coach look to create more shots for our second highest effecient scorer after Holmes?
HB needs more than 9 shots in the absence of Fox in particular, he is deserving of equal to more usage than Bricklayer Buddy, yet this coach does nothing to get him going?
The high pick and roll with Barnes is effective with Fox or Haliburton, and yet we see this too infrequently.
HB can drive against the PG on a switch, or he can pop to the 3 point line for a clean look.
The only time this coaching staff deems it prudent to use HB in high pick and roll is when they have identified a clear mismatch. But that is too narrow of parameter to go to this playset, when it is clear HB is weapon to drain from deep drive and kick, drive and finish, drive and get fouled.
Instead we have Buddy Yield running around like a chicken with his head cut off taking 2X the FGAs! Now still I say the player needs to look to get his game going, but this coach is more negligent by not making the most of the weapons at his disposal.
Buddy Yield
Perfect nickname ð
First and foremost, we need a better head coach.
This is good
It’s eerie the similarities between this present Kings team and the John Wall Wizards. Fox and Wall are near carbon copies of each other, though Wall was a better stopper on defense. However, I have seen the Wizards play in person many times and the most striking thing was always how the offense entirely collapsed in the minutes Wall was on the bench. The Kings’ loss to the Magic felt a lot like that. I think we should look at the 2015-16 Wizards and the decisions they’ve made the last five years to end up where they have and take a lesson from them. One lesson that jumps out is that ball-dominant, attacking PGs who can’t space the floor well themselves pose challenges in filling out the lineup around them. It helps that we have our own personal Bradley Beal in Tyrese (I understand their games are different and Rese still has a long way to go to ascend to that level, but having the long-term backcourt sorted out is a real relief). But it seems that even an elite backcourt isn’t much if you don’t have a dynamic, scoring forward to help lighten the load on Fox and Hali. The Wizards tried with Otto Porter, Oubre Jr, and Rui Hachimura and it never panned out. To me, the Kings shouldn’t be satisfied until they have one of those guys. How to get one, however, is easier said then done. But I think we start by selling high on Barnes and Buddy for some long-term pieces (ex: Turner, Zo, Collins, Thybulle) and start polishing the Tank for one of the EXCELLENT wing players in this year’s Top 10. However, I understand the idea of demonstrating to Fox you want to win now. It’s a tough decision to make, but the Kings long-term prospects to me seem a lot better with a core of Fox-Hali-Jalen Johnson-Thybulle-Turner and maybe Bagley if we can hang on to him while adding the other pieces.
Zo is not a long term piece, he’s trash. You cannot be an elite passer if you are not a scoring threat. That is why a guy like Rubio has bounced around and teams cannot wait to move on from him, and reach new heights when they do (see Jazz and Suns).
And I get the comparison between Fox and Wall, speedsters from the same school, but Fox has way slicker moves and the way better shot. Wall has a career TS% of 52%. Fox is going to have the more successful career bc he is the much more talented scorer who frankly has a better head on his shoulders.
Collins? The guy on the Blazers? He’s good but he cannot stay healthy. The ultimate ability is durability. Turner I would be okay with, but his contract is hefty.
Here is the problem with those who want to move on from Buddy Yield, and I have been as critical of him as anyone. Conceptually an elite shooter with two set-up men like Ty and Fox is a match made in heaven. When in the history of Kings basketball have we ever had a secondary playmaker like Ty?
Now you may envision him as the primary playmaker now or in the future, but then the question simiply becomes when have we ever had a secondary playmaker like De’Aaron Fox?!?
So with these two guys how can you argue against a player like Buddy being an optimal complementary player ? Yet he is shooting 37% FGs? WTF is the problem? Is the problem that their skills are incompatible? I would like hear that argument.
The problem that I have outlined is Buddy is not who we was in 2018-2019, he’s carrying extra weight and hes not getting to his spots as well, he’s not changing ends as well and his numbers have plummetted. Another problem was the emphasis on quantity over quality of 3s, instigated by the coach. But we have to move on from that as a valid excuse.
So having identified the most likely problem, what is the solution? Get rid of him. Get rid of Buddy when his trade value is in the toilet and conceptually he is a match made in heaven with our two cornerstones?
Buddy needs to lean out, rediscover his game, and improve his chemistry with Fox and Haliburton. That is the most prudent path forward.
At least if you are going to entertain offers for Barnes you are going to maybe get some decent proposals because of the season he is having. There is NO incentive to trade Buddy when conceptually he is an optimal fit and his trade value has never been lower.
Their an argument to make for going “all in” for the future. Harrison Barnes’s trade value is at an all time high. Look at the Kelly Oubre situation, the Thunder got a first and a 2nd round pick for him and now he’s been awful for the Warriors. Barnes’s value is probably higher than Oubre’s (at beginning of season) right now and their is no guarantee he will keep this up (his percentages are already falling). Fox, Haliburton, Hield, Holmes (who is a unrestricted free agent), Barnes and Bagley are all playing at or above expectations… We just had an amazing hot stretch winning 7 of 8, with everything going right the kings are currently in 10th… instead of trying to “go all” in for a playoff push on a mediocre team, I think we need to explore all trades that improve us in the long haul. Rather than finish 10th and watching Holmes leave for more $$ or a better squad, Buddy’s value dropping because he becomes disgruntled, and Barnes value dropping because he reverts to his old self… I’d like to see the team trade these guys for future assets and increase the current roles of Haliburton & Bagley. Plus by being worse this year we will get a better pick next year… TANK MODE
The first-round pick that the Warriors sent the Thunder is heavily protected. If the Warriors get pick No. 1 through 20 in the 2021 NBA Draft, they will hold on to the pick. If the Warriors finished with pick No. 21 through No. 30, Oklahoma City will get the pick. In the scenario the Warriors keep their pick, they would sent the Thunder two future second-round picks.
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