Kembali
The Sacramento Kings are off to a 0-5 start, and even that doesn't really show how bad things are in California's capital. The Kings are getting blown out on a regular basis and just lost to the New Orleans Pelicans last night, who came into the game 0-4 before getting their first win of the year against Sacramento.
Injuries have hit the Kings hard to start the season, as Ben Simmons is out for the year and Keegan Murray, Maxime Raynaud, and Dylan Cardwell are all out for an extended amount of time, but depth was supposed to be one of Sacramento's strong suits coming into the year. Instead, we've seen them struggle to get anything going with the second unit, and they are have one of, if not the worst, benches in the NBA.
The Kings are averaging 19.4 bench points per game, good for second-fewest in the league, only to the Philadelphia 76ers. It makes sense for the 76ers, with their super starting lineup able to carry the scoring every night, but to put it in perspective, the third-fewest bench points are the San Antonio Spurs at 29.0.
As a direct result of the bench's inability to contribute so far, the Kings are relying heavily on their starters, with one stat telling a huge story for Sacramento this season.
The trio of Domantas Sabonis, Zach LaVine, and Darius Acuff Jr. are averaging 36.8, 36.6, and 36.4 minutes per game, respectively. That puts them at the fourth, fifth, and sixth most minutes per game in the league, behind Jamal Murray (38.5), Tyrese Maxey (37.3), and Nikola Jokic (37.3).
That type of minutes distribution for the Kings is a problem. In more ways than one. First, it's not sustainable, especially for Acuff in his rookie season. No rookie has played more than 36.4 minutes per game (minimum 40 games) since Damian Lillard did so in 2012-13, when he played 38.6 minutes per contest. It's ironic, as the two have been compared to each other early in Acuff's career.
The heavy minutes aren't as worrisome for LaVine and Sabonis, as they are veterans who know how to navigate a long season, but the Kings can't afford to put heavy miles on Acuff's career this early in a season that doesn't matter.
The other hard part about the trio spending so much time on the floor is that it clearly isn't working. Generally, playing starters heavy minutes is what teams do to try and squeak out wins in close games. Again, the Kings are getting blown out constantly.
In the 133 minutes the three have spent on the court together, according to PBPStats, the Kings have a -22.32 net rating. That's not exactly what you want to see from the three best players on the team. But it's not like things have been any better in the time any of the three have sat, either. Players getting back from injuries should help, but it really feels like there's no end in sight for the Kings.