How Bad Were the Sacramento Kings Defensively Last Season?

Who’s to blame, and what can be done to correct this?

First and foremost, I believe that a large portion of responsibility lies on Kings head coach Luke Walton and his coaching staff. A lot of these errors on film can be attributed to a lack of effort, no communication, and not paying attention to detail. It’s his responsibility to motivate his ballclub to embrace a defensive identity and to enjoy getting stops as much as they do getting buckets.

Using the Los Angeles Lakers as an example, coach Frank Vogel has managed to build top defensive teams with rosters that most people predicted would suffer on that end and largely consist of role players (along with two superstars, of course).

Having Anthony Davis on your squad is a huge boon defensively for sure, but the point is that Walton has thus far failed to exhibit the teaching and tactics necessary to form a cohesive defensive unit. It could also be a flaw in Walton’s coaching identity; in his five seasons as an NBA head coach with the Kings and Lakers, his teams have ranged from slightly below average to abysmal defensively.

There are severe defensive flaws within the Kings’ core of players as well. Bagley is not a good defender at all as he looks uncomfortable on the perimeter, is constantly out-muscled in the paint, and presents poor footwork and mobility that offers his matchups sizable advantages.

Fox is still incredibly raw in his positioning, and his motor tends to get stuck, falling asleep on backdoor cuts. Hield doesn’t seem much more than a running turnstile at this point in his career and is a frequent target for opposing guards and wings. Having two of their top defensive players in Delon Wright and Hassan Whiteside depart in trades and free agency doesn’t help either, but there is some optimism within a pair of youngsters that could help change this course.

Haliburton largely struggled on the perimeter, getting around screens, and was a non-factor in the paint, but just about all NBA rookies struggle defensively in their freshman season. He presents an intriguing combination of smarts, size, and defensive versatility, so I wouldn’t be worried about him in that front.

And, of course, adding Davion Mitchell with the ninth pick gives the Kings a shot of tenacity and vocal leadership that they may have sensed from him heading to the draft. If Haliburton can take notable strides and Mitchell continues to be a role model defensively for other Kings players, Sacramento could stand to improve considerably.

But putting this sort of responsibility on a pair of players entering their second and first seasons respectively is a lot to ask for and is frankly an organizational failing from top to bottom. If Walton can’t coach his team up defensively and the players on the roster are largely indifferent in response, it’s unfair to expect Haliburton or Mitchell to thrive in that environment. Expect, instead, another trying season for the Sacramento Kings.