SACRAMENTO KINGS

Doug Christie has helped unlock Keon Ellis

Jan 16, 2025, 2:33 PM

One of the most significant changes since Sacramento elected to let go of Mike Brown and promote Doug Christie to interim has been the number of minutes Keon Ellis sees on a nigh-to-night basis.

The defensive guard went from averaging 19.9 minutes per game under Brown to 27.9 in the nine games since Christie took over. Some of that has to do with various injuries to the likes of De’Aaron Fox, Keegan Murray, and Malik Monk, but he’s clearly been given a longer leash.

The recently turned 25-year-old has acknowledged that difference and highlighted how his new head coach has helped instill confidence in him, enabling him to play some of the best basketball of his young career.

The Athletic‘s Jared Weiss detailed the impact that Keon Ellis has had on Sacramento during their seven-game winning streak and what it could mean for his future role in his latest article.

Ellis has a lot of work to do to become a true defensive ace, but this stretch has been a reminder of how he transforms the Kings on that end. Sabonis has shown signs of improvement guarding the pick-and-roll this season, but Ellis’ ball swarming has made his life easier.

Ellis is good at swiping for deflections at the point of attack, often deterring ballhandlers from attacking their first option as intended. While he gives up some dribble penetration as one of the league’s lightest players at 175 pounds, he can defend from behind and get a hand on the ball to disrupt the play and clean up his miscues.

“Domas and everybody is like don’t worry about things going wrong. Just play hard,” Ellis said. “It just gives you more confidence to go out there and play your game and don’t worry about mistakes.”

He also mentioned the closing moment in Boston, where Devin Carter was having a big fourth quarter and Ellis was more than okay with the rookie closing the game in his place.

Christie and Ellis have similar styles as players — Ellis often jokes that he’s a better defender than Christie was — and their partnership and growth has been mutually beneficial, helping p

More Sacramento Kings coverage on Sactown Sports

We’re less than a month away from the 2024-25 NBA trade deadline, and rumors continue to swirl. Sam Amick, NBA insider for The Athletic, joined The Carmichael Dave Show with Jason Ross on Thursday to discuss the NBA trade deadline outlook, the recent success of the Sacramento Kings, and more.

Given the Kings’ recent seven-game win streak, the guys asked Amick his opinion on what’s led to that success and the early impact of interim head coach Doug Christie.

“(Christie’s) positivity and his energy and his natural instincts to lift people were something that they found desirable,” Sam Amick said.

Does being back to .500 and in the thick of the West play-in race affect how general manager Monte McNair should approach the looming deadline?

Sam Amick on Kings recent success, trade market talk

When is the next Sacramento Kings game?

Sacramento will return home for a three-game homestand that will begin on Thursday night against the Houston Rockets in front of a national audience on TNT.

Back on December 3rd, the Kings delivered one of their best showings of the year against the Rockets, winning by a final of 120-111 behind a 14-of-30 (46%) showing from beyond the arc.

Be sure to catch all of the Kings vs. Rockets drama right here on Sactown Sports 1140 AM, with pregame coverage starting at 2:00 PM PT on The Drive Guys before action tips off at 7:00 PM PT from downtown Sacramento.

Sacramento Kings 2024-25 Schedule

  • Thursday, January 16th – vs. Houston Rockets – 7:00 PM PT
  • Sunday, January 19th – vs. Washington Wizards – 6:00 PM PT
  • Wednesday, January 22nd – vs. Golden State Warriors – 7:00 PM PT
  • Thursday, January 23rd – @ Denver Nuggets – 6:00 PM PT
  • Saturday, January 25th – @ New York Knicks – 4:30 PM PT

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Doug Christie has helped unlock Keon Ellis