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Sacramento Kings: Frank Mason III deserves more playing time

By Jonathan Roberts

NEW ORLEANS, LA - OCTOBER 19: Frank Mason III #10 of the Sacramento Kings drives against E'Twaun Moore #55 of the New Orleans Pelicans during the second half at the Smoothie King Center on October 19, 2018 in New Orleans, Louisiana. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images)
NEW ORLEANS, LA - OCTOBER 19: Frank Mason III #10 of the Sacramento Kings drives against E'Twaun Moore #55 of the New Orleans Pelicans during the second half at the Smoothie King Center on October 19, 2018 in New Orleans, Louisiana. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images) /
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Through five games, Frank Mason III has play 66 total minutes. The Sacramento Kings coaching staff needs to get him more involved.

The Sacramento Kings are currently 2-3, good enough for 10th in the Western Conference. Coincidentally, both Kings wins came in games where Frank Mason III played less than 13 minutes, regardless, Mason is deserving of more minutes and a more consistent role.

After five games, Mason III has only seen 20-plus minutes twice. Three times, he’s played 13 minutes or less. In two of those games, he didn’t break five minutes in either. One those,  was against the Utah Jazz on opening night where he played five minutes; with the other being a DNP-Coaches Decision against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

It’s an incredibly uneven role, but it could be argued almost everyone on the Kings not named De’Aaron Fox, Buddy Hield and *checks notes* Justin Jackson (?) has an unsettled role every night. That alone, doesn’t excuse Sacramento keeping one of their more productive players on the bench for 60 percent of their games.

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As we all know, it’s #SmallSampleSizeSZN and Frank Mason is blazing a trail for small sample size heroes, take his per-36 numbers for example.

Through four games, Mason is posting per-36 numbers of 21.8 points, 4.4 rebounds, 8.2 assists (!) and 1.1 steals on a .571/.625/.750 shooting split. That’s, uh, pretty dang good. The advanced stats paint a similar picture as well.

FM3 is currently sporting a 24.5 PER, .672 TS%, 31.9 AST% and a 3.5 BPM. He’s been a liability on defense, as evidenced by his -3.1 DBPM,  but defense hasn’t exactly been a point of emphasis for this Sacramento Kings team.

His two games where he played 21-plus minutes indicate those might not be fluke numbers inflated from limited playing time.

Mason posted 18 points, one rebound, six assists and a steal on 7-13 shooting (1-2 3PT) in 21 minutes against the Pelicans on Oct. 19. He followed that up with a DNP-CD against the Thunder, before rebounding to put up 14 points, five rebounds and seven assists on 6-10 shooting (2-4 3PT). Even in a limited run against the Memphis Grizzlies, Mason was able to go 2-3 from the field (1-1 3PT) for five points, two rebounds, two assists and a block in 13 minutes.

For comparisons sake, his per-36 scoring numbers are comparable to those of Iman Shumpert, despite Mason providing more in the way of assists and rebounds. Yogi Ferrell — who was essentially signed to take Mason’s role —has been vastly outperformed by Mason thus far, despite not playing less than 11 minutes in any game and averaging over four more minutes per game than FM3.

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Through five games, Ferrell is averaging just 7.8 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.8 assists on a .419/.333/1.000 shooting split in 20.4 minutes. Per-36, Ferrell is posting just 13.8 points, 3.2 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.1 steals. Ferrell has also posted an 11.2 PER, .558 TS% and a BPM of -1.3 while providing a 0.0 VORP.

If you’re not a fan of PER, VORP or BPM, Frank Mason currently owns a -0.03 Offensive-Player Impact Plus Minus and a cumulative -0.46 PIPM. Mason III is a net-negative, yes, but Ferrell’s struggles have pushed him to a -0.75 PIPM with an O-PIPM and D-PIPM lower than that of Mason.

What’s Player Impact Plus Minus you ask? Allow Jacob Goldstein of the Nylon Calculus to explain.

Mason is also ahead of Justin Jackson (-0.94), Buddy Hield (-1.24), Harry Giles (-1.27) and Marvin Bagley III (-1.39). For comparison, De’Aaron Fox leads the Sacramento Kings with a 0.97 PIPM, which is good for 41st in the league.

Now this isn’t to say that Hield, Giles, Bagley and Ferrell should be relegated to the bench in favor of Mason, but is it inconceivable for Head Coach Dave Joerger to find Mason some extra minutes? Justin Jackson has not performed well this season and he’s soaking up a staggering 28.6 minutes per game and not doing much with them. Hield is garnering 29.4 mpg, but at least he’s one of Sacramento’s leading scorers.

Cutting Jackson’s minutes down 10-15 would open up a world of playing time for Mason, while also preserving what little playing time Kings rookies Bagley and Giles are getting while saving Hield from any reduction as well.

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At the very least, Mason needs some extended run to see what he can become as a player. If he gets a bigger role and can’t take advantage, then fine, keep him in that niche for until he either pans out or flames out. If he shows out and becomes a reliable 6th man for the Kings or something even better? Well then that makes the Kings 2017 draft class look that much better. The Kings aren’t in a playoff push and currently lack a 2019 first-round pick, so what’s there to lose?

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