After last season’s magical run, this Kings’ season has been quite a disappointment. Bad losses against bad teams and an inability to beat the New Orleans Pelicans cost the Kings another playoff run, and now we are entering the offseason with lots of issues waiting to be solved.
Malik Monk’s free agency decision will have a huge impact on the team’s future, they now have a first-round pick to select a prospect with, and the front office’s options to upgrade the supporting cast are extremely limited.
The latter is a big issue because the Kings cannot afford to bring back essentially the same roster for a third straight season while the rest of the league continues to get better. Sacramento’s supporting cast was not very good this season and that was a big part of their struggles, especially early in the season.
So, let’s look at three Sacramento Kings who failed to meet expectations this season.
3. Sasha Vezenkov
The fact that Sasha Vezenkov failed to meet expectations might not be entirely on him. Transitioning from the EuroLeague to the NBA is not an easy change. You have to get used to a new playing style, a different set of rules, and a new team while also living in a new country where no one speaks your language and your family is far away.
And yet, most of us had huge expectations for Vezenkov. The Kings didn’t really make any meaningful moves over the summer, so it was easy to get excited about a big sharpshooter with plenty of experience as a pro.
On paper, Vezenkov fit the Kings’ needs well. He added some size and rebounding to a small team while offering good shooting and nice off-ball movement. In reality, the fit was not quite as smooth.
Vezenkov struggled to keep up with the speed of other NBA forwards defensively, and his threes weren’t falling consistently early in the season. Just like any rookie on a team with playoff aspirations, Vezenkov had to battle for minutes and did not always get them.
Spending most of the season in and out of the rotation, the 28-year-old struggled to find his role or make a meaningful impact and then missed significant time with two ankle injuries.
Overall, he did not have the immediate impact most fans envisioned him to have, but maybe our expectations were just too high. Vezenkov is certainly a capable player, and hopefully, he can help the Kings more next season.