A Royal Pain
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Sacramento Kings: Rudy Gay Suffered The “Jekyll and Hyde” Effect

By Rafe Wong

Mar 3, 2016; Dallas, TX, USA; Sacramento Kings forward Rudy Gay (8) dives for but cannot save a ball from going out of bounds during the first half at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 3, 2016; Dallas, TX, USA; Sacramento Kings forward Rudy Gay (8) dives for but cannot save a ball from going out of bounds during the first half at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports /
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When Rudy Gay was first acquired by the Sacramento Kings in December of 2013, the expectation for him was supposed to be a second option scorer next to DeMarcus Cousins.

So far throughout his 193 game tenure with the Sacramento franchise, he has been solid in fulfilling his role.

In his total tenure with the Kings, Gay has averaged 19.4 points, 6 rebounds, and 2.8 assists per game. He has also shot 46.5% from the court, 34.2% from the perimeter, and 83% from the free-throw line. (per Basketball Reference)

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Gay has been one of the main focal points for the Kings offense, but this year he struggled compared to previous seasons wearing purple.

For the 2016-2017 season, Gay averaged 17.2 points and 6.5 rebounds a game while shooting 46.3% from the court and 34.4% from the three-point stripe.

The overall numbers are not bad at all. His season looks pretty solid when looking at the big picture. But when looking at the game log throughout this season he showed a level inconsistency that Kings fan didn’t expect, and it played a factor for the Kings towards outcomes in games.

Jan 7, 2016; Sacramento, CA, USA; Sacramento Kings forward Rudy Gay (8) dunks the ball against the Los Angeles Lakers during the third quarter at Sleep Train Arena. The Sacramento Kings defeated the Los Angeles Lakers 118-115. Mandatory Credit: Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 7, 2016; Sacramento, CA, USA; Sacramento Kings forward Rudy Gay (8) dunks the ball against the Los Angeles Lakers during the third quarter at Sleep Train Arena. The Sacramento Kings defeated the Los Angeles Lakers 118-115. Mandatory Credit: Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports /

In the games that Gay played where the Kings won, he averaged 19.5 points off of 51.2% from the court. In the games where the Kings lost with Gay present, he averaged just 15.6 points off 42.7% shooting. (per ESPN Stats)

Gay who again is the second scoring option for the Kings also showed struggles when his counterpart Cousins was absent from games. During those 15 games, Gay only averaged 17.6 while shooting 38% (98/258) from the field and 27% (10/37) from the perimeter. Not great numbers when you are the primary scoring option in those contests.

When Rudy has his stroke going offensively it dramatically increases Sacramento’s chances of winning games, but when he is shown to be inconsistent it can hurt the team as well because they rely heavily on the former UConn Husky to bring his A-game.

Next: The Curious Case of Ben McLemore

There is some justification to the infrequency Gay experienced this season. Now former head coach George Karl, who runs a fast-paced offense, isn’t the ideal fit for Gay and could be a potential reason why his stroke could have been a little off.

But Karl is gone now and it looks like the Kings are keeping Gay going forward with their future. Hopefully, for the Kings, he is able to show the offensive production that Kings fans are accustomed to seeing from him instead of the inconsistencies he experienced in his most recent year.

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