A Royal Pain
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The lone bright spot to the Kings recent injury woes

ByMat Issa|
Mar 10, 2025; Sacramento, California, USA; Sacramento Kings guard Devin Carter (22) dribbles the ball up the court against the New York Knicks during the fourth quarter at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images
Mar 10, 2025; Sacramento, California, USA; Sacramento Kings guard Devin Carter (22) dribbles the ball up the court against the New York Knicks during the fourth quarter at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images | Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images

As far as injuries go, the Sacramento Kings can't do much complaining. According to Spotrac, the Kings have lost the second-least amount of cash due to injuries on the season.

However, recently, they have had to deal with some absences from key players during the most important part of their season (as they are currently battling for their playoff/play-in lives).

Over the last couple of weeks, the Kings have had Domantas Sabonis (five games), Malik Monk (three), and Jake LaRavia (one) all miss some time due to injuries. Given how integral all these players are to the team, you never want them to miss any time.

However, there is a bright spot in all of this, and it is that the Kings have had the chance to use the extra minutes on one of their most promising young players.

Injuries have put Devin Carter back in the rotation

Ever since the Kings made that slew of trades to add LaRavia, Zach LaVine, and Jonas Valanciunas, the team's overall rotation has changed, and it made rookie Devin Carter the odd man out.

In the ten games the Kings played from February 8 to March 5, Carter has played less than ten total minutes. However, in the last three games, Carter is playing 13.1 minutes per game, and in that span, he is averaging 6.3 PPG, 3.0 RPG, and 1.3 APG on 63.6% field goal percentage and 40% shooting from three. He's also showing off his impressive athleticism relative to his position with thunderous putbacks like this:

This has been a great opportunity for Carter, who hasn't really gotten as much experience at the NBA level as he should be during his rookie year because he missed the first few months recovering from offseason shoulder surgery.

Besides, Carter was looking dominant in the G-League. In his time with the Stockton Kings, Carter has averaged 26.6 PPG, 9.6 RPG, and 5.4 APG. Obviously, playing well in the G-League doesn't necessarily mean that you will play well in the NBA.

But given his youth and status as a lottery pick, Carter's performance shows that he's at least ready for some consistent run, and this recent stretch of injuries has allowed head coach Doug Christie to provide Carter with just that.

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