The Sacramento Kings may be without their best bench player (and one of the best combo guards in basketball), Malik Monk, for the foreseeable future, but they could be in for a serious win streak after exercising some demons in their Wednesday win against the Phoenix Suns.
The Kings may have exorcised their 3-point demons against the Suns
The Suns have had a three game win streak this year, but at 7-5 (eighth in the Western Conference), the Kings have had a hard time establishing themselves as the true contender that they hoped to be.
Some of this has to do with the fact that this roster does have its fair share of flaws, with bench depth and late-game offensive process being among those. However, this team has also been off to a rocky start to the 3-point line.
Heading into their game against the Suns, the Kings were dead-last in 3-point shooting (30.1%) and third-to-last in opponent 3-point percentage (37.6%).
The latter has very little to do with the Kings, as opponent 3-point shooting is a very volatile stat that has a lot to do with luck. In fact, this is the second straight year they've had a rough go in this category.
As for their own shooting, I will concede that the Kings need some more shooting/spacing (particularly from their stars), but with guys like Keegan Murray, Kevin Huerter, Trey Lyles, and Keon Ellis, the team should not be at the bottom of the league in this area.
How do we know this? Over the last two years (with largely the same team), the Kings have finished ninth (2022-23) and 16th (2023-24) in 3-point percentage.
A breakthrough was bound to happen, and against the Suns, it finally came. As a team, the Kings shot 15 for 28 from three (53.6%). The headliners of this expedition were Murray (3-for-5 from three), Lyles (3-for-5), and Domantas Sabonis (3-for-3).
I can confirm tonight that the Sacramento Kings are no longer last in 3-point shooting. pic.twitter.com/dlPpvN01vK
— Deuce Mason (@DeuceMason) November 14, 2024
As for their opponent, the Suns, who were without Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal, mind you, shot just 30.2% from three (right around the Kings' season average before this game).
Even with some of the worst 3-point shooting luck, the Kings have managed a solid record and a better net rating than the 9-3 Suns (Kings are seventh in net rating, Suns are 15th). Now, if they can start hitting the shots they should be and teams can cool off against them, just imagine how much better they can be.
The Kings' next game (the Minnesota Timberwolves) will be a battle. But after that, the Kings will play four straight teams with records that .500 or worse. If they can survive the Timberwolves, the Kings have a real chance of stringing together a substantial win streak.