Three Things to Watch Tonight in the Sacramento Kings’ Preseason Debut

by Matt George – Sports 1140 KHTK Reporter

April 11th; the last time the Sacramento Kings (main roster) played an NBA game. Tonight, the Kings wrap up a roller coaster offseason and open up preseason play in Phoenix against the Suns. There are a lot of question marks surrounding this 2018-19 season, many of which have nothing to do with the team on the floor. While preseason games are, overall, meaningless, here are some key things to keep an eye on tonight.

 Run Kings Run

One of the youngest rosters in the league. A starting point-guard with incredible speed. A plethora of athletic big men. Will the Sacramento Kings finally read the writing on the wall and push the tempo? The fact that this team was at the bottom of the league in pace last season is a complete failure. Head coach Dave Joerger and his players have been saying the right things, claiming they want to run and have emphasized transition offense in training camp, but it’s time they show it.

"We want to be a running team. We want to get up and down the floor. We want to play with a lot of energy."

Coach Joerger describes Day 2️⃣ 🎥 pic.twitter.com/CbE4R8RuDA

— Sacramento Kings (@SacramentoKings) September 26, 2018

48 minutes of tempo. There isn’t an excuse in the book this team can get away with tonight. Even if it means sloppy play and a lot of turnovers, Kings fans should notice an improved effort in the fast break.

Dynamic Duos

Trying to figure out and predict Dave Joerger’s rotations and substitution patterns is a lost cause. But it makes for fun speculation. Tonight, we finally get our first glimpse of which player partnerships and units Joerger is trying to form. The Sacramento Bee’s Jason Anderson had an interesting observation of potential pairings during a Kings scrimmage at training camp.

The #Kings were running a 5-on-5 scrimmage when reporters were allowed in for the last 10 minutes of practice today. One unit paired Marvin Bagley III with Willie Cauley-Stein. The other paired Skal Labissiere with Harry Giles III.

— Jason Anderson (@JandersonSacBee) September 28, 2018

Marvin Bagley and Willie Cauley-Stein the starting four and five? Skal Labissiere and Harry Giles off the bench? How do Justin Jackson, Kosta Koufos, Zach Randolph and Nemanja Bjelica fit into things? While we shouldn’t expect for final drafts in just one preseason game, understanding which players play well together is the beginning of a consistent rotation, which the Kings have lacked for quite a while.

Star Fox

De’Aaron Fox looked like a man among boys in his single summer league game against the Los Angeles Lakers in July. Following a 23 points performance with eight rebounds, six assists, and three steals in 30 minutes, Fox gave fans hope that he is ready to emerge as the star and leader for the franchise going forward.

The Phoenix Suns roster, significantly more talented than the Lakers summer league team, is missing Devin Booker to injury and is in search of a starting point guard, leaving the door wide open for another Fox showcase. While his emphasis may be on running the offense effectively and pushing the break, watch out for those flashes of De’Aaron’s ability to take over.

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