Sunday Musings: Did Kings 3-point shooting go from weakness to strength?

This is the first article in a series breaking down the potential strengths of the 2022-23 Sacramento Kings roster. 

Heading into the 2021-22 season, the Kings had plenty of shooters. By the end of the season, the team’s ability to space the floor was severely hampered. 

How do you improve a team that ranked 24th in the NBA in 3-point shooting at 34.4 percent and 21st in attempts at 33.2 per game? You bring in high level shooters at positions of need. 

Clearly a priority heading into the offseason, general manager Monte McNair added major marksmen all over the court in an attempt to space the floor for the big two of De’Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis.  

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The biggest changeover from both the squad that started and the one that finished last season is at the shooting guard spot. Gone are Tyrese Haliburton (41.3 3-pt percent), Buddy Hield (36.8 3-pt percent), Donte DiVincenzo (36.8 3-pt percent) and Justin Holliday (34.3 3-pt percent). In are Kevin Huerter (38.9 3-pt percent) and Malik Monk (39.1 3-pt percent). 

Huerter and Monk (combined 11.4 attempts) didn’t shoot at the volume of Hield and Haliburton (combined 13.9 attempts) last season. They are more in line with the pairing of Holliday and DiVincenzo, who combined for 11.6 attempts in the final 25 or so games.

There is plenty of room for growth in this area from both Huerter and Monk. Both are expected to have a green light from the opening tip, and the combo can easily match and even surpass the volume of last year’s options.

Huerter is a perfect off-ball option for both Fox and Sabonis to search out on the perimeter. He shot an impressive 41.9 percent in catch-and-shoot opportunities last season in Atlanta and he should get plenty of open looks this season in Sacramento. 

Monk shot an identical 41.9 percent on catch-and-shoot three's last season for the Lakers and he also has the ability to create long range opportunities off the bounce. Both of these players understand their role and how they can make the game easier for their teammates. 

In addition to bolstering the two, McNair made a major addition on the frontline in rookie Keegan Murray. The Iowa star shot 39.8 percent from deep last season at the NCAA level and during summer league between Sacramento and Las Vegas, Murray dropped in 41.2 percent on 7.3 attempts per game. 

Murray is the Kings’ prized young player and he will have every opportunity to hoist as many shots as he can this season. If he plays the type of minutes that are currently projected, there is a tremendous amount of potential for an increase in not only volume from the power forward position, but accuracy as well. 

Last season the four was manned by players like Moe Harkless (30.7 3-pt percent), Chimezie Metu (30.6 3-pt percent) and Marvin Bagley (24.2 3-pt percent). If everything goes as planned with Murray, he instantly provides a better option as a floor spacer at a crucial position.

Harrison Barnes (39.6 3-pt percent) saw plenty of time at the power spot and will likely see more minutes there this season. Trey Lyles, a late addition to the roster at the trade deadline, also shot the ball well (36.5 3-pt percent) from deep and is back for a second season in Sacramento. Having three options that project as 36 percent shooters or better from deep is a nice luxury for new head coach Mike Brown.

Huerter, Monk, Barnes and Murray will make up roughly half of the eight or nine man rotation, and there is a chance for Lyles to earn a spot with that group as well. 

The plan is clearly to put players around Sabonis and Fox who can space the floor and provide room for the pair to work, but the duo can help themselves by improving as shooters as well. 

Sabonis has been working with renowned shot doctor, Chris Matthews, aka Lethal Shooter, all offseason to work the kinks out in his long distance shooting. He’s a career 31.4 percent shooter from distance, but he struggled from behind the arc last season after coming over from the Pacers via trade.

If Sabonis can add even a small amount of floor spacing, it would open everything for the Kings’ offense. He’s an excellent passer and is a major hub in the post, but if he can hit consistently from deep or even improve his shooting from the 18-foot range, it would create even more space for the offense to work.

Fox hasn’t posted videos of himself working with a specialist on his shot, like Sabonis, but he has spent a good portion of the summer on the court with new assistant coach Luke Loucks.  The 24-year-old point guard is currently getting married and even brought Loucks with him on the trip. 

The on-court relationship between Fox and Sabonis was just starting to take shape when the Kings’ guard injured his hand late last season. After struggling with his 3-point shot through the first four months of the season, Fox finished strong, hitting 38 percent from long range over his final 16 games. 

Overall, Fox knocked down just 29.7 percent from deep, although his catch-and-shoot percentage of 35.2 percent was solid and even jumped to 36.7 percent after Sabonis’ arrival. If he is focused on his perimeter shot and can get it anywhere near the 34-36 percent range, Fox has a chance to take another tremendous leap in production.

The Kings will count on second-year guard Davion Mitchell to provide depth behind Fox and a major presence on the defensive end. Mitchell shot an impressive 44.7 percent during his final year at Baylor, but saw that number dip to just 31.6 percent in his first season with the Kings. 

Mitchell is a tireless worker, which may have hurt him when it came to hitting from the perimeter, especially late in the season. With a summer to assess his game day preparation and to refine his shot, there is hope that Mitchell can improve greatly from three and provide one more shooter for the Kings’ arsenal.

Sacramento has additional players who could find themselves in a position to step on the floor and impact the outcome of games. Terence Davis is a career 36.6 percent shooter from long range and he brings energy to the court. He might be lost in the shuffle with so many other additions, but if the injury bug hits, he'll be ready to hoist.

Alex Len can stretch the floor on occasion, but he's likely buried on the depth chart behind Sabonis and Richaun Holmes. Matthew Dellavedova was added as a third point guard and is a career 36.4 percent shooter from 3-point range and according to a league source, veteran Kent Bazemore joined the squad on Sunday, bringing his career 35.6 percent 3-point shooting percentage to the table. 

There is potential for the Kings to have elite 3-point shooting at the shooting guard, small forward and power forward positions and we aren’t just concentrating on the starters. They also have room for improvement at the point guard and center position. 

If the Kings want to take a leap in the win column this season, they need to be better in every aspect of the game, but a good, solid, efficient offense with high level 3-point accuracy would make life much easier. 

The work was done to improve some of the flaws with the roster. On paper, this squad should be better, but we won’t really know until they hit the floor and build chemistry.