The Resurgence of the Sacramento Kings
A Complete Turnaround
The Sacramento Kings finished the 2021-2022 NBA regular season in 12th place in the Western Conference with a 30-42 record in a season that saw the Kings fire Luke Walton as head coach in the early goings and install Alvin Gentry as interim bench boss.
The Kings averaged 110.3 points per game (15th in the league) and allowed opponents to score 115.8 points per night on the other end of the floor (second-worst). Sacramento eventually moved on from Alvin Gentry after he failed to steer the Kings back to playoff contention.
Enter Mike Brown.
In his first press conference, he expressed his belief in the team’s potential. “The potential here, I truly believe the potential is off the charts”.
One year later, not only did Mike Brown lead the Kings back to the playoffs for the first time since 2006, but they did it by finishing in third place in the West with a 48-34 record.
Mike Brown won his second NBA Coach of the Year award, with De’Aaron Fox taking home the inaugural Clutch Player of the Year award.
Fox, the fifth pick in the 2012 NBA Draft, averaged 25 points, 6.1 assists, 4.2 rebounds, and 51.2% field goal shooting during the 2022-2023 season. Meanwhile, his pick and roll counterpart Domantas Sabonis finished last season with averages of 19.1 points and league-leading 12.3 rebounds per game.
In the 2023 playoffs, the Kings had their work cut out for them facing the defending champion Golden State Warriors in the first round. Sacramento won the first two games of the best-of-seven series, before dropping the next two on the road. The Warriors went up 3-2 after Game Five.
Golden State had a chance to finish the series at home in Game Six but the Kings had other ideas and pushed the defending champions to a Game Seven. If not for a 50-point performance from Steph Curry, it could very well have been the Kings against the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference semifinals.
In his first playoff run, Fox averaged 27.4 points, 7.4 assists, 5.5 rebounds, and 33.3% three-point shooting. He scored 38 points twice. For Sabonis, the Golden State contest was an up-and-down series for him. He averaged 16.4 points, 11 rebounds, while shooting 49.5% from the field.
Brighter Future in Sacramento
Despite being overwhelmed by the veteran heavy Warriors squad, Sacramento fans still have plenty to be excited about in the future.
Now that the Kings have a winning head coach in Mike Brown, and a dynamic duo in Fox and Sabonis, Sacramento has the foundation in place to continue building a contender. A belief shared by players and the coaching staff alike.
Mike Brown remarked after their Game Seven loss “I got a lot of gratitude for everybody in that locker room. I think we obviously have a chance to really, really be good in the future.”
Having a young core with an average age of 24.3 years old will benefit the Kings’ future. With a supporting cast that includes Malik Monk, Kevin Huerter, Davion Mitchell, and Keegan Murray, there’s no reason to believe that Sacramento’s season was merely a flash in the pan.
Not since the early 2000’s when the team boasted a roster that included Mike Bibby, Doug Christie, Vlade Divac, Peja Stojakovic and Chris Webber has there been so much excitement around the Kings out west. In a state dominated by Lakers fans, the 2022-23 squad gave Sacramento fans plenty to be proud of this past season.
So while the Kings didn’t light the beam in Game 7, they’ll undoubtedly be doing so more in the future. Only this time, fans won’t need to wait another 16 seasons between postseason appearances.
-Iggy Gonzales
Photo: Keith Allison. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.