Well, this is a new problem for the Sacramento Kings to have. I really have no idea how all of the Kings’ talented guards are going to find enough minutes this coming season. This whole depth thing can be tough to navigate, but it’s definitely the right kind of problem for George Karl and the Kings.
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There was already a lack of minutes to go between the talented youngster Ben McLemore and the veteran point guards Darren Collison and Rajon Rondo, not to mention that sharpshooter Marco Belinelli is going to have to find some time at guard too.
But let’s not forget that Sacramento is also home to two young guards who both seem to have a ton of potential in David Stockton and Seth Curry. Both of these guys have shown enough in the D-League to deserve a shot in the NBA, and Vlade Divac has given them both roster spots. But will they get any playing time?
It’s hard to fit them into the rotation, but equally hard to say no to either of them. Let’s start with Stockton, who’s D-League stats are pretty eye-opening.
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Generated 7/31/2015.
Stockton’s numbers with Reno are phenomenal. 20 points, 9.4 assists, 4.2 rebounds and 2.5 steals per game? That kind of contribution all over the place is impressive for a point guard, and it’s clear David takes after his father in the passing department, considering he averaged nearly a double-double through 38 starts (43 total games) with the Bighorns.
His shooting percentages were also eye-opening–46 percent from the field and just under 40 percent from long-range are great numbers for a scoring specialist, not to mention a guy who also created over nine buckets a game for his teammates.
Aside from his defense still being a little shaky and his small stature (Stockton stands just 5’11”), Stockton doesn’t seem to have many holes in his game. His offense seems to be fine-tuned, he just needs to find his legs more defensively. But still, the potential of having even a John Stockton-lite is pretty tantalizing for Kings fans.
Of course, so is having a Steph Curry-lite. Younger brother Seth Curry put up some gaudy numbers in his most recent D-League season as well, showing the world he’s more than ready for NBA action.
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Generated 7/31/2015.
It’s clear right away that Curry doesn’t have the same padded numbers (aside from points per game) that Stockton does. Averaging 4.2 assists, 3.9 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game isn’t bad by any means, but it’s a far cry from 9.4/4.2/2.5. Curry also doesn’t score too much more than Stockton, although his 23.8 points per game is certainly nothing to sneeze at.
Then you move to the part of the stat sheet that really shows the family resemblance between Steph and Seth–three-point, field goal and free throw percentages. Seth averaged a literally almost unbelievable 46.7 percent from deep in his 43 D-League games last season, along with a nice 48.4 percent from the entire floor and a nearly automatic 92.6 percent from the charity stripe.
Look, sometimes scoring and other numbers can be embellished in the Developmental League. It’s a faster paced game where guys are trying to prove themselves. Shooting nearly 47 percent from deep is damn impressive no matter the league, and it shows Seth is a guy who can make a whole lot of his shots from anywhere on the floor–as our Zack Zolmer pointed out, shooting is important for this Kings team.
I almost wish that the Kings didn’t have Collison, Rondo and McLemore, because watching a Stockton-Curry backcourt play together would be a whole lot of fun. Considering they’re both knock-down shooters from all over and that Stockton is an ace at distributing the ball, there would be a whole lot of room for Boogie and Willie Cauley-Stein to work down low.
Of course it’s probably good that Sacramento has those three, because that might be the most porous defensive backcourt of all time. These two guys still need work–neither of them are polished yet, and they both lack significant NBA experience.
But luckily for Kings fans, they’ll be getting that experience right here in Sacramento. If either of them lives up to their insane D-League potential the Kings will be the ones truly winning, considering how cheap the contracts of both Stockton and Curry are. Vlade Divac built a solid rotation of veterans, but smartly left room to take chances on young guys like Curry, Stockton and Duje Dukan.
Those are the kind of moves that can end up paying dividends in the long run. Let’s see if David Stockton or Seth Curry can prove Divac right and make themselves into good NBA players.
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