3 Keys To Recent Success For The Sacramento Kings

2. The New Guys: Alex Len & Kent Bazemore

They arrived in Sacramento in different deadline transactions, but both Kent Bazemore and Alex Len have been instrumental in the Kings recent burst of success. While Bazemore’s contributions might be more flashy and fill up the scoring section of the stat sheet, Len’s interior presence is equally as important.

Bazemore came over from Portland in the Trevor Ariza trade and has been a contributor since the day he arrived. He backs up Harrison Barnes as the small forward of the second unit, and averages over 22 minutes per game. He is a solid athlete and shooter who is going to give you maximum effort on both ends, and is not afraid to get his hands dirty on defense. Baze has enjoyed scoring efforts of 23, 18, and 15 (x3) points as well as a four steal effort in last week’s game against the Warriors.

Len was nursing an injury when he was involved in the Dewayne Dedmon swap, causing him to be a spectator for his first five games in Sacramento. Since slowly being integrated in to the lineup, Len has begun to show his worth to the Kings. His enormous seven foot one frame clogs the paint for opponents, and while he might not get the statistics, he alters shots when he’s not blocking them.

He had his most impressive game as a King on Sunday afternoon against the Pistons. He scored 8 points and pulled down 13 rebounds, his most in a Sacramento uniform. But it was the five blocks to go along with the six offensive rebounds that truly set his performance apart. Many of his hustle plays came when the Kings were either mounting a 21-point comeback, or nursing their small, late-game lead. Aside from De’Aaron Fox, there might not have been a more important player on the court for the Kings on Sunday than Alex Len.