A Royal Pain
Fansided

3 Reasons Why Justin James Deserves More Minutes

By Ryan Ritter

SACRAMENTO, CA - JANUARY 13: Justin James #10 of the Sacramento Kings looks on during the game against the Orlando Magic on January 13, 2020 at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California. 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 Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2020 NBAE (Photo by Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty Images)
SACRAMENTO, CA - JANUARY 13: Justin James #10 of the Sacramento Kings looks on during the game against the Orlando Magic on January 13, 2020 at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California. 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 Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2020 NBAE (Photo by Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
1 of 4
Next

Sacramento Kings rookie Justin James deserves more minutes and opportunities than he is currently receiving. Here are three reasons why.

It’s obviously been a rough season in Sacramento. Nearly every player on the Kings roster has seen a regression from last season. Worse, GM Vlade Divac‘s style of making every decision as a gut choice, as opposed to an informed decision, is starting to come home to roost. There has been little to cheer for lately, especially coming off the high expectations and excitement over the summer after the 39-win 2018-19 team. However, there are some bright spots to be found here and there. One of them is Sacramento’s second-round draft pick this summer, Justin James.

His numbers don’t exactly jump out at you; he is currently only averaging 2.6 ppg, 1.1 rpg and 0.5 apg with a 40.0/33.3/30.8 shooting split. But he has also shown a motor and a desire to his game in the limited minutes he has received (8.5 mpg average in 24 games). In the wake of the Trevor Ariza trade, which sent Ariza, Wenyen Gabriel, and Caleb Swanigan to the Portland Trail Blazers, it stood to reason that there would be some room in the rotation to start working in one of their younger shooting guards.

That hasn’t been the case just yet.  Since the trade was made official on January 21st, James has only played a total of three minutes in three games, putting up nothing on the stat sheet except a pair of free throws, going 1 for 2. This is a shame. Considering what an obscure pick James was at the time (I don’t know that there was anybody who thought the Kings were going to select him with the 40th pick this summer), he has earned the right for more playing time.

Here are three reasons why Justin James should be playing more going forward.

Home/Kings News