After returning much of the same roster from last season’s 46-36 campaign and making a splash in free agency by signing DeMar DeRozan, the Sacramento Kings entered 2024-25 with championship aspirations.
However, just a quarter into the year, those hopes are fading fast. Despite facing the league’s ninth-easiest schedule and avoiding major injuries to their key rotation players, the Kings have stumbled to a disappointing 10-13 record, capped by a 110-105 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies on Thursday night.
As winter sets in, the Kings look far from a championship contender. What’s gone wrong in Sacramento?
Three-point shooting
The modern NBA is a make-or-miss league, and thus far the Kings have been missing from beyond the arc. Three starters — Keegan Murray (28.7%), DeMar DeRozan (27.0%) and Kevin Huerter (28.7%) — are all shooting below 30%, leaving Sacramento ranked 25th in the association in three-point percentage.
In an effort to address this, head coach Mike Brown recently replaced Huerter in the starting lineup with Malik Monk. While Monk’s long-range accuracy and playmaking should improve the team’s efficiency from deep, the move comes at a cost. It weakens its already struggling second unit and creates greater defensive vulnerabilities in the starting five.
DeRozan’s arrival has also brought an unintended shift to Sacramento’s offense. Known for his isolation-heavy mid-range game, DeRozan has reduced the team’s rim attacks. The Kings are now averaging just 46.5 drives per contest, a steep decline from last season.
With De’Aaron Fox and Monk finding fewer openings to collapse defenses off the dribble, Sacramento’s perimeter shooters are left with less open looks from drive-and-kick opportunities.
Defense
Under head coach Mike Brown, the Kings employ a switch-heavy defensive scheme that has exposed significant weaknesses. Smaller players like Monk and Fox are often tasked with guarding larger wings on the perimeter or at the elbows — mismatches they lack the size to handle effectively. This frequently forces the Kings to send a second defender to help, leaving shooters wide space.
As a result, Sacramento allows 18.9 wide-open three-point attempts per game (defined as no defender within six feet), contributing to the second-worst opponent three-point percentage in the league at 38.1%.
Comparing Sacramento to a squad like the Oklahoma City Thunder highlight its defensive shortcomings. Despite being without centers Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein for much of the season and fielding an even smaller lineup than the Kings, the Thunder have mitigated their size issues with relentless defensive intensity. They employ a swarming, high-pressure perimeter attack that leads the league in forcing 19.2 opponent turnovers per game.
The Kings, by contrast, haven’t matched that level of effort or execution on defense. They often appear a step slow, struggling to close out on shooters or disrupt offensive sets. Sacramento forces just 14.9 turnovers per contest, a middling mark that underscores its lack of motor.
DeMar DeRozan vs. Harrison Barnes
Harrison Barnes has long been one of the league’s most underappreciated players — a steady, top tier 3-and-D wing with championship pedigree from his Golden State days. Now a member of the San Antonio Spurs, Barnes is delivering exactly what the Kings sorely miss this season.
He’s shooting an elite 44.1% from three (17th in the league) and providing upper middle-class Herb Jones perimeter defense. Tasked with guarding the opposing team’s best wing scorer, Barnes consistently makes life difficult on his assignments while staying within the flow of the offense.
The sting for Sacramento is even sharper, knowing it traded Barnes to the Spurs to clear cap space for DeRozan. While the former Bull is a six-time All-Star with top-30 scoring chops, his fit with the Kings was always questionable.
His poor three-point shooting has tanked the team’s spacing, while his mid-range-heavy, ball-stopping style has disrupted Sacramento’s once fluid, pass-first offense.
In hindsight, Barnes’ understated skill set and seamless fit were far more valuable to Sacramento’s system. The Kings are learning the hard way that sometimes, less is more.
