NBA players are not just tiny humans that we watch play basketball on TV. They are real people with their individual personalities and stories. Thus, it is natural for fans to grow attached to certain players.
Unfortunately, it is rare for players to stay with the same team for the majority of their career, meaning that they will most likely move on eventually, no matter how beloved they are by the fanbase.
Even if you don’t watch other teams a lot or find the mass of NBA news out there too overwhelming, it doesn’t hurt to keep tabs on former players. So, here are two former Kings who are thriving elsewhere to start the season and one who is struggling.
Thriving: Tyrese Haliburton
The Kings selected Tyrese Haliburton with the 12th overall pick in 2020 as a part of their rebuild. The two-guard backcourt with him and De’Aaron Fox did not work out too well, however, so the Kings sent Haliburton, Buddy Hield, and Tristan Thompson to the Pacers in the deal that brought over Domantas Sabonis.
It was a rare win-win trade. The Kings finally made the playoffs, and the Pacers got a centerpiece for their rebuild. Haliburton has not disappointed.
In Sacramento, he never eclipsed 15 points. Now he is averaging 24.7 points on incredibly efficient shooting, 4.2 rebounds, 12.5 assists, and 1.1 steals. These numbers mark career-highs in points, shot attempts, shooting efficiency all across the board, and assists.
Last season, he made his first All-Star appearance and he has a solid case once again. The Pacers are off to a good start and his 12.5 assists per game currently lead the league.
Haliburton really came into his own once he arrived in Indiana and he is showing no signs of slowing down anytime soon. If the Kings and De’Aaron Fox weren’t so successful, seeing him thrive somewhere else would surely hurt.
Struggling: Richaun Holmes
Richaun Holmes spent his last four seasons in Sacramento and was a big piece of their rotation at the time. In 2020-21, he was even a full-time starter for them. With the addition of Domantas Sabonis, his minutes quickly shrank until he was only averaging 8.3 minutes per game last season.
In his first three seasons with the Kings, he averaged between 10 and 14 points as well as between 7 and 8 rebounds. He was solid for them while the team was trying to build a foundation for the future.
Unfortunately, Holmes was not a part of that future and was traded to Dallas in June as a way to free up cap space for Sabonis’ and Harrison Barnes’ extensions this summer.
After a promising stint with the Kings, he is now struggling to play at all. He has appeared in four games with the Mavericks so far this season, averaging 2.5 points, and 2.8 rebounds in 6.3 minutes.
Holmes might be better served playing for a non-contender where he doesn’t necessarily have to impact winning as much as in Dallas.
Thriving: Bogdan Bogdanovic
The Serbian shooting guard started his NBA career with the Kings in 2017-18 as a part of their youth movement. Over his three seasons in Sacramento, he averaged a solid 11 to 15 points per season and played heavy minutes.
Once his deal was up, he did not stick around, however. After a botched sign-and-trade with the Bucks, he signed with the Atlanta Hawks in 2020, where he has been ever since.
So far, Bogdanovic has been doing well in Atlanta. He has been averaging over 25 minutes a game every season, had two seasons in which he shot over 40 percent from three, and went to the playoffs the past three seasons.
This season, he is off to another good start, averaging over 14 points, and career-highs in three-point attempts and steals. He is currently the Hawks’ third-leading scorer, he averages the second-most steals, as well as a team-high three-point attempts and the third-most field goal attempts.
He has a clearly defined role in Atlanta and fills it well by putting up meaningful numbers. The Hawks as a team are off to a solid start as well with a 6-5 record, and Bogdanovic is a big part of that.