3 Kings players who have to step up in De’Aaron Fox’s absence

1. Kevin Huerter

Struggling to find his shot and to have a positive impact defensively, Kevin Huerter did not start the season well. A known sharp-shooter, Huerter is only shooting 26.9 percent from the field and 23.5 percent from three, and it understandably seems to be hurting his confidence.

Sunday night against the Lakers, he showed signs of life, though. He finished the game with double-digit points for the first time this season, grabbed 7 big rebounds, had 2 blocks, and knocked down a three to seal the overtime win.

Last season, Huerter was one of the Kings’ top scorers and incredibly important to their historic offense. He stretched the floor, his big shots, got to the rim, and made plays for others. The Kings need him to do that again.

If they want to make noise in the West, Huerter needs to find his groove for good, and there is no better time to do that than tonight. With Fox out and the Warriors hungry for another win, the Kings have to make up for around 25 points that are sitting on the bench with their All-Star guard.

Huerter could be the key to that. Points come together quickly when you hit a couple of threes, and that is Huerter’s biggest skill as well as what makes the two-man game between him and Sabonis so lethal.

At the same time, this is a chance for him to prove that he still belongs in the starting lineup. Ever since Mike Brown decided to send a message by replacing Huerter with Chris Duarte in a preseason game, all eyes have been on Huerter and his performance.

The noise will only quiet down when Huerter clearly shows that he can still do everything he did last season and outplay the newcomers. So, he should be one of the guys to step up in Fox’s absence and separate himself from Chris Duarte and Colby Jones.