Sacramento Kings rookie roundup: January 28th to February 3rd

The Sacramento Kings have pushed a youth-heavy rotation going forward for the rest of the year. How are the new guys stacking up week to week?

This season has marked a new era for the Sacramento Kings. After a change in leadership at the top, and a few years fruitlessly chasing down the eight seed in various playoff races, the Kings have decided to do the first proper rebuild in nearly two decades. They cashed in on their All-Star DeMarcus Cousins, and turned two picks into four in the 2017 Draft, trying to grab talent wherever they can find it.

With the Kings’ front office’s new focus on acquiring and developing young talent, it’d be worthwhile to check in on the Kings’ plethora of rookies. Specifically, De’Aaron Fox, Bogdan Bogdanovic, Justin Jackson and Frank Mason and compare their past week’s performance to their rookie season as a whole. It’s important to note going forward that, although players will be listed roughly by the strength of performance. That does not necessarily mean one player has been overall better than another. It is just a tool to gauge who had a better week overall.

(The week we are looking at is the period between Sunday, January 28th, and Saturday, February 3rd.)

De’Aaron Fox

Weekly Stats: 18.0 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 4.3 apg, 1.3 stls, 0.5 blks, 45.8% FG, 50.0% 3PG, 84.6% FT

Season to date: 11.2 ppg, 2.6 rpg, 4.2 apg, 1.0 stls, 41.2% FG, 33.7% 3PG, 72.9% FT

Fox is the clear winner this week, with a line of 18.0 ppg, 2.3 rpg and 4.3 apg in 4 games. Of particular note, his 6/6 performance from beyond the arc against the Spurs gave hope to many that Fox’s jumper may be turning the corner. His 46% shooting for the week doesn’t hurt, either. Although his overall stat line this year has been underwhelming, if Fox can have more weeks like this, the Kings’ rebuild just took a big leap forward.

Justin Jackson

Weekly Stats: 10.0 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 1.3 apg, 0.5 stls, 0.0 blks, 54.8% FG, 40.0% 3PG, 100.0% FT

Season to Date: 5.5 ppg, 2,2 rpg, 0.7 apg, 0.4 stls, 0.2 bpg, 41.7% FG, 31.5% 3PG, 64.7% FT

Jackson had a pretty solid shooting week, going 17/31 and 4/10 from behind the arc. His overall line of 10 ppg, four rpg, and 1.3 assists is a good sign going forward. Jackson got a couple of starts against some big-time opponents and managed to hold his own. Jackson is ultimately not likely to play a massive role in the squad, but if he can make the best of his opportunities, he can be a useful utility player going forward.

Bogdan Bogdanovic

Weekly Stats: 7.3 ppg, 1.8 rpg, 4.0 apg, 1.5 stls, 0.3 blks, 34.5% FG, 38.9 3PG, 100.0% FT

Season to date: 11.1 ppg, 2.6 prg, 3.0 apg, 1.0 stls, 0.2 blks, 47.1 FG, 39.5% 3PG, 83.3% FT

Bogdanovic had earlier been getting faint whispers of Rookie of the Year consideration, and his age and experience had shown in his higher basketball IQ than some of his younger teammates. This week wasn’t his best, though. Bogdanovic managed just 7.3 ppg on 34.5% shooting (a woeful 10/29). Still, Bogdanovic and third-year center Willie Cauley-Stein seem to enjoy a unique on-court chemistry, and he received props earlier in the week from none other than Gregg Popovich. Keep doing you, Bogi.

Frank Mason

Weekly Stats: DNP

Season to date: 7.6 ppg, 2.1 rpg, 2.9 apg, 0.5 stls, 0.1 blks, 38.5% FG, 41.9% 3PM, 76.2% FT

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Mason takes up the rear because he did not play due to injury this week. Mason is out through the All-Star Break. Hopefully, he returns healthy shortly after that and produces on the court down the stretch.

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