Kings season preview: Defense improvements or bust!

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The practice facility was filled with the sound of squeaking sneakers and the thumping of a bouncing ball. Players raced from one end of the court at a feverish pace. The ball kept going into the hoop, which in one respect, is a good thing.

Head coach Mike Brown called his players in and his group, including coaches, training staff and the medical team surrounded the 2022-23 NBA Coach of the Year.

What happened next was unexpected. Or maybe it wasn’t.

With cameras rolling and the regular season a little over 24 hours away, Brown unleashed a profanity-laced torrent of anger at his team. It wasn’t PG-13. It was a full-blown rated R tirade that left the room quiet.

This isn’t the first time the media has heard Brown come down hard on his team, but it may have been the first time he filled up a swear jar in one sitting while cameras were rolling.

The issue Brown was addressing following practice was the ease in which the offense scored baskets in a two minute situational scrimmage to end practice. The Kings’ offense, which set an NBA record for highest rating in league history, is really good. But the defense was also not up to par and Brown wasn’t having it.

“We have to be better, especially if we’re going to be in those types of situations down the stretch,” De’Aaron Fox said. “You have to be able to get a stop. We can’t just go in and outscore people.”

Fox admitted that the players see this side of Brown quite often, but this was a special performance from the Kings’ front man. He is demanding that the team turn over a new leaf on the defensive end this season. He will not accept the team finishing 24th in defensive rating this season like they did last year.

Year two of Brown is intense, but also what this group needs. Taking a jump from 30 wins to 48 in one season is an incredible accomplishment, but Brown and his players understand that the next jump is a lot more difficult.

Here is a look at the Kings as they head into an extremely important 2023-24 campaign.