The Washington Wizards are off to Sacramento for some Sunday night hoops against the Kings. I’ve got you covered with all the storylines, stats, and notes you should consider before tipoff.
The Wizards are coming off of nine straight losses — they've also had a 16-game losing stream in just 40 games played so far this season. The 6-34 Wizards are the only NBA team south of 10 wins, and they’re in the thick of a six-game West Coast road trip during which a single win would constitute a massive success.
The Kings, meanwhile, are virtually unstoppable right now. If they hadn’t stumbled out of the gates they may legitimatelty have sent all three of De’Aaron Fox, Domantas Sabonis, and DeMar DeRozan to the upcoming All-Star Game an hour and a half away in the Bay.
Sacramento’s tale of two seasons
The Kings were gagging on a 13-19 record in late December when they made what looked like an impulse decision to fire head coach Mike Brown.
Brown was the NBA’s Coach of the Year in 2023 when he helped guide the Kings back to the playoffs for the first time since 2006, so his firing less than a season and a half later appeared at first to be a sign of an impending Sacramento roster implosion.
Former Kings player Doug Christie — an enforcer during his Sacramento playing days who once hit Rick Fox with a nasty uppercut during a preseason game — took over as the interim head coach after Brown’s firing. Sacramento lost their first game under Christie before rattling off seven straight wins.
Here’s a video of that uppercut, by the way:
Christie was known as a defensive hound as a player in Sacramento, so the Kings’ turnaround has fittingly been characterized by the same dogged intensity that made Christie a vital starter for one of the greatest NBA teams to never win a championship.
This is a brand new team; Sacramento was actually a decent outfit hiding in plain sight in a crowded Western Conference, but now they’ve picked up statement wins against the Memphis Grizzlies and Boston Celtics and look more like a proper top-6 team out West.
The Kings still have some gaps to fill
Consider this: the Kings’ trio of De’Aaron Fox, DeMar DeRozan, and Domantas Sabonis are averaging a combined 68.4 points per game.
Those three are each brilliant offensive players. Fox is a downhill demon and one of the best high-pressure players in the NBA, DeRozan is an effortless tough shot maker, and Sabonis is an offensive hub molded in the vein of Nikola Jokic — or Arvydas Sabonis, actually.
The problem isn’t the defense, either. Sacramento actually has a league-average unit on that end of the floor. The Kings’ key weakness is that they have nobody outside of their three stars, Keon Ellis, and Malik Monk. The Kings’ top eight players in minutes per game, in order, are Fox, Sabonis, DeRozan, Keegan Murray, Monk, Kevin Huerter, Ellis, and Trey Lyles.
Frankly, the Kings’ “shooters” actually shoot them out of games. Neither Huerter nor Murray is known for anything beyond their shooting ability, and both are floundering around in extended slumps. Murray is at 32.4% from three on the year, while Huerter sinks just 30.9% of his threes this season.
The league average in 3-point percentage this season is 36.0%, and neither of Sacramento’s so-called “sharpshooters” are even within three percentage points of that replacement-level rate.
On that note, here’s a fun fact. Sabonis leads the NBA in two important statistical categories: You may know he’s the league leader in rebounds per game (14.1), but did you know he also leads the league in 3-point percentage (47.8%)? Sabonis is 43-for-90 on the season, and that is certainly not nothing.
It’ll force opponents to respect him from the outside, clearing space for Fox to slice-and-dice his way to the cup.
Fan analysis
I have a personal connection to the Sacramento Kings — the dad of one of my best friends is a lifelong Kings fan from Sacramento and has been since the day they moved from Kansas City in 1985. Her dad and I text about the state of the Kings about four times per week, so I decided to include our conversation from Saturday to capture the buzz of this Sacramento turnaround.
MARCO: Kings are 8-1 in their last 9 with a game against the Wizards coming up. This could actually be a real playoff team after all that
PATRICK: I want to see advanced stats on Malik Monk. After Sabonis, I think he is the Kings’ best player. And maximize Keon Ellis’ playing time please
MARCO: Better than Fox and DeMar?? And hahaha people were begging Mike Brown to play Keon Ellis more
PATRICK: I just wanted to see the numbers. The win streak was mostly accomplished while Fox was injured. DeMar definitely has been rejuvenated since Christie took over. But the way Monk unlocks Sabonis is under appreciated
MARCO: Do you think they’re a real playoff team now? Numbers were always better than their record reflected
PATRICK: Yes. I think with current roster the 6 seed should be there for the taking. To be super competitive, though, I think they need to make a move.
MARCO: Any targets in mind? I know we’d talked about Cam Johnson when I saw you last week
PATRICK: If there is any chance that the Kings can actually land John Collins, and there is reporting that they have had some initial conversations, my god. Would be a dream. We need front court depth. Hard no to Jimmy Butler and Kyle Kuzma, thank you
…On that note…
Patrick explicitly voiced his lack of desire for the definitely-about-to-be-traded Kuzma, but there is a Wizard I think would be a solid trade candidate for the Kings: Jonas Valanciunas.
Valanciunas would be a massive roster upgrade considering the Kings do not have a proper center on the roster to back up Sabonis (other than Alex Len, who plays seven minutes a game). Sure, Valanciunas is not a great defender (just like Sabonis), but there are few better options out there for the Kings in terms of holding the fort offensively when Sabonis sits.
For a player who could back up Sabonis or play alongside him, might I suggest the former Wizard Daniel Gafford? Gafford (who has recently surprisingly found himself in trade rumors) would give Sacramento a needed injection of athleticism and defense.
Conclusions
I would frankly be stunned if the new and improved Kings lose to this Wizards team. I think these will be two of the most active teams at the upcoming trade deadline, so I’m excited to see what sorts of deals manifest.
Warriors at Kings tips off at 9 p.m. EST Sunday night at the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California.