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Kings' biggest roster concern deep into 2023 NBA free agency – ClutchPoints
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After years and years and years of mediocrity, the Sacramento Kings are finally on the march. Having not made the playoffs since 2006, they returned to the postseason in 2023 – and as the third seed no less – after a 48-win season which saw coach Mike Brown win the Coach of the Year award and both Domantas Sabonis and De'Aaron Fox earn All-NBA Third Team honors.
Unfortunately, they were knocked out in the first round, but a seven-game loss to a very good seven-seed in the Golden State Warriors, while disappointing, certainly didn't lose them any respect from the NBA public.
Heading into next season they're well placed to continue improving, with their star duo of Domantas Sabonis and De'Aaron Fox still just 27 and 25 years of age respectively and plenty of other young talent on their roster. But as with all rosters, they're not perfect. The Kings are sorted at the five, they're sorted at the one, and they've got plenty of help in the backcourt for Fox with the likes of Kevin Huerter, Malik Monk and Davion Mitchell floating around. But this is the one area where the Kings' roster is looking the most concerning deep into 2023 NBA free agency.
As mentioned, the Kings' roster is constructed around a very capable point guard/center combination, with the big man every bit as capable a passer as the small one. Sound familiar? The Nuggets recently showed just how powerful that combination can be when combined with a suitable supporting cast, and the Kings certainly have the makings of that, but their wings are the clearest potential hole in their roster.
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It's not as though they are completely deficient in this area. Harrison Barnes has proven a solid and experienced piece for them while Keegan Murray is dripping in potential, and the recent signings of Chris Duarte and Sasha Vezenkov will also go a long way to adding some much-needed depth to this part of their roster. Compared to their backcourt and center position, however, it's a clear weakness.
Barnes is a valuable player for them, particularly given their lack of experience, and he's been an important outside shooting threat and trustworthy 15-point-per-game scorer in his five seasons in Sacramento. He is, however, somewhat limited off the bounce and late in games can be a little bit invisible in the corner.
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Murray, meanwhile, looks set to be a pivotal part of what the Kings are doing moving forward after a really promising first year in which he shot 41.1% from three-point range. Throughout the course of the year he gradually developed more confidence doing, well, anything aside from just shooting off the catch, but for the time being that's still by and large his modus operandi. In his second season some improvement can be expected, but placing too much expectation on him at this stage in his career is fraught with danger.
The two guys they've signed are no certainty to be particularly impactful either. Duarte was a high draft pick just a couple of years ago but he fell out of favor in his second season in the league with the Indiana Pacers, playing just 19.5 minutes per game last season and averaging a little under eight points per game on very bad shooting. Vezenkov, meanwhile, has been a solid player in the EuroLeague for a number of years, but he's never set foot on an NBA court.
The situation on the wings isn't too dire for the Kings, and in Barnes and Murray they've got a potentially reliable duo there which is more than good enough to complement their existing stars. But it's a testament to the quality of their roster and their potential moving forward that this is the area of the most concern. They could head into next season with those two running the show at the three and four and still continue to progress after their year of rapid growth last season, but if there's anywhere on the floor where they should be most looking to bolster their roster, it's at the small and power forward positions.
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