Fox was fearless in driving the lane against the Rockets on Wednesday night
Kings showed great effort versus the Rockets on Wednesday night
This was a classic battle between a Tier 1 team and a Tier 3 team
Willie Cauley-Stein silenced many of his detractors
The Kentucky connection came up big for the Kings in the opener – Cauley-Stein, Labissiere and Fox made a major impact in the game
Buddy Hield was a major player for SAC in the game
George Hill showed why the front office wanted him on the roster to provide a veteran presence on the floor
The Kings play their first game on the road Friday night in Dallas – this will be a Tier 3 vs Tier 3 game. Both teams will be in the 2018 Draft Lottery
It will be a chance to see Dennis Smith who many media reporters feel has the inside track on becoming Rookie of the Year
Join us for out next Kings Press Row Podcast next Tuesday only on SportsRadioService.com.
Cauley-Stein puts in a dunk to cut the Rockets lead to three points with seven seconds to go in the game
by Charlie O. Mallonee
Kings open the 2017-18 regular season with loss to the powerful Houston Rockets
The Sacramento Kings kicked off their new season before a sellout crowd of 17,583 at the Golden 1 Center on Wednesday night. Their opponent was the very powerful and talented Houston Rockets who started their season on Tuesday night with a last second win over the defending NBA Champion Golden State Warriors in Oakland.
The Kings hoped to take advantage of catching the Rockets on the second game of a back-to-back set on the road. They also received some good news when they learned that Chris Paul would not play due to ongoing problems with a knee contusion.
Sacramento (0-1) kept the game close through all four quarters. They even won the third quarter 24-23. The lead changed eight times in the game and the contest was tied four times. Houston’s largest lead was 11 points while the Kings biggest lead was six.
James Harden struggled through the first three quarters of the game appearing to be tired from effort that expended versus the Warriors on Tuesday night. Unfortunately for the Kings, Harden caught a second wind in the final period and scored 12 of his game-high 27 points over those last 12 minutes. That performance really made the difference for the Rockets (2-0).
Despite being down by 11 points with 5:13 remaining in the game the Kings did not give up and cut the Houston lead to just three points with 26-seconds to go in the contest. It was at that point this game took a left turn that the Kings would never recover from.
The Kings George Hill sank two free throws to make it a 98-95 game with Houston in the lead with 26-seconds remaining. On the inbounds play, Hill appeared to disrupt the possession by Eric Gordon who lost control allowing the ball to go out-of-bounds. The big crowd went wild but settled as a video replay was ordered.
What the crowd, the Kings bench and the majority of the media did not understand was the replay was not to determine if Gordon was the last player to touch the ball before it went out-of-bounds. The replay was to confirm a foul call that made on Hill by the referee on the far-side of the court. The replay center in Secaucus upheld the foul call and Gordon was sent to the charity stripe to shoot two shots.
Gordon hit both shots to give Houston a five-point lead with 26-seconds to play essentially sealing the win for the Rockets. The Kings gave it their best effort but came up short.
Kings head coach Dave Joerger addresses the call in a very subdued manner in part two of his video comments.
Dave Joerger was very proud of the effort his team gave against the talented Rockets
Vince Carter directs traffic in the Kings — Lakers game in Las Vegas Photo USA Today Sports
by Charlie O. Mallonee
The third preseason game of the year for the Kings was a premiere matchup between Pacific Division rivals. The Kings and the Lakers are both very young teams that are trying reestablish themselves as legitimate playoff contenders in the NBA Western Conference.
Frankly, neither of these teams will be playing a game after the end of the regular season in April. That being said — both the Lakers and Kings are going to be much more entertaining to watch in 2017-18 than they were last season with the players they acquired in the draft and in free agency.
The game on Sunday night at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas was not a “beautiful game”, but it was an entertaining game. The Lakers established a big lead in the first quarter and then the Kings fought their way back into the game in the second period.
The Kings actually took the lead in game in third quarter behind 22-9 run but they would not be able to hold on to that lead in final quarter of the game. When the final buzzer sounded, the Lakers had held on to record their first win of the preseason 75-69 over the Kings before a decidedly pro-Laker crowd in “Sin City”.
There were really no losers on Sunday night in Las Vegas
Magic Johnson spoke to the fans in Las Vegas before the game on Sunday Photo USA Today Sports
Both the Kings and Lakers donated their proceeds from the game on Sunday night to victims and first-responders of the mass shooting that happened last Sunday in Las Vegas. The donations will go to the MGM Grand Foundation who will administer the distribution of the proceeds.
This was a very nice gesture on the part of both teams.
The Ball vs Fox matchup did not happen again
The summer league rematch between Lonzo Ball and De’Aaron Fox did happen due to an injury reported by Ball. That brought out many comments about Ball not wanting to be embarrassed by Fox the way he was in the UCLA — Kentucky matchup.
On Sunday, it was announced that Ball would not be available due to an ankle problem. Fox would not have been able to play in the second-half due to a lower back bruise suffered in the first-half of the game.
Do not worry. The big face off is going to happen during the regular season and it will be worth the wait.
Neither team had impressive stats in the game
Kings
Sacramento shot 25-for-80 (31.2-percent) from the floor. They connected on just 7-of-25 (28.0-percent) for 3-point attempts. Those are not the kind of shooting numbers that will win games in the regular season. Sacramento went 12-for-16 (75.0-percent) from the free throw line. The percentage was fine but the number of attempts was too low.
Sacramento grabbed 37 rebounds (5 offensive). They recorded 15 assists and 12 turnovers which is not an acceptable ratio. The Lakers scored 10 points off the Kings 12 turnovers.
Lakers
Los Angeles shot 41.4-percent (29-for-70) from the field. The Lakers hit just 6-of-24 (25.0-percent) from beyond the 3-point line. They were 11-for-15 (73.3-percent) from the charity stripe.
The Lakers hauled in 49 rebounds (2 offensive). They recorded 21 assists and 20 turnovers which is not acceptable to any coach. The Kings scored 18 points off the Lakers 20 turnovers.
Team Leaders
Sacramento
Zach Randolph was a team leader for the Kings on Sunday night Photo USA Today Sports
Zach Randolph led the Kings scoring attack with 16 points. Z-Bo was 7-for-15 shooting. Garrett Temple put up 12 points while Vince Carter added nine. Bogdan Bogdanovic, George Hill and Buddy Hield each added seven points in the game.
George Hill was the Kings top rebounder with eight. Kosta Koufos grabbed seven.
The Kings used just 11 players in the rotation on Sunday night.
LAK
Rookie Kuzma was a star for the Lakers on Sunday Photo USA Today Sports
Julius Randle posted a double-double by putting up 17 points and pulling down 10 rebounds. Rookie Kyle Kuzma dropped in 15 points. Many observers feel that Kuzma could be a bigger story than Ball this season but remember this is just the preseason. Brook Lopez scored 12 while Jordan Clarkson added 10 points.
Kuzma also pulled down eight rebounds.
Alex Caruso led the Lakers in assists with four and Kuzma had three.
Interesting stat of the game
When you look at the stats, you know this was not a great field goal shooting game. It really became an “old style” NBA battle in the paint contest. Sacramento scored 24 points in the paint (12-for-28) while the Lakers scored 40 points in the key (20-for-34).
Up next
The Kings (1-2) will be back in action on Monday night in Sacramento when they will host the Portland Trail Blazers (2-1). Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.
The Sacramento Kings learned the very tough lesson on Friday night that all NBA teams must learn – it is very tough to win on the road in “the Association”. After beating the Spurs in their preseason opener in Sacramento, the Kings suffered their first loss of the preseason on Friday night in “the Alamo City” losing to the Spurs 113-93.
Sacramento came out of the gate fast
The Kings outscored the Spurs 24-15 in the first quarter of the game on Friday night. Buddy Hield led the Kings scoring barrage putting up eight points in the first 12-minutes of the game. Willie Cauley-Stein and Frank Mason added four points each in what would be a 24-point first quarter for Sacramento.
Unlike Monday, it was the young the Kings who were chosen to start on Friday night on the road. Malachi Richardson, Skal Labissiere, Willie Cauley-Stein, Buddy Hield and De’Aaron Fox were the starting five in San Antonio.
The Spurs outscored the Kings in the 2nd, 3rd and 4th quarters
The Spurs outscored the Kings by 12 points in the second quarter, six points in the third quarter and by 11 points in the fourth quarter.
Danny Green led the way with 20 points for the Spurs. LaMarcus Aldridge shot 5-for-10 from the field to score 10 points for San Antonio. Brandon Paul, Bryn Forbes and Davis Bertrans scored nine points each against the Kings.
The Spurs shot 55.4-percent from the field and 48.4-percent (15-for-31) from 3-point range. San Antonio had 28 assists and 17 turnovers. That is not the ratio a team wants to have but is was good enough to post a win on Friday night.
The Kings young players were featured on Friday
Willie Cauley-Stein was the Kings leading scorer in game with 14-points. He also grabbed nine rebounds and turned the ball over just two times.
Skal Labissiere had a 13-point game for the Kings on Friday night. He went 6-for-10 from the field, hauled in two rebounds and did not turn the ball over in 25-plus minutes of playing time.
Buddy Hield and De’Aaron Fox each added 12-points in their time on the floor.Georgios Papagiannis played 29-minutes and recorded 10-points and three rebounds. Marcus Williams who is fighting for a spot at the end of the bench put up nine points in 13-minutes of playing time.
The Kings shot 45.2-percent from the field and 26.7-percent from 3-point land. Sacramento had 32 rebounds and 13 turnovers.
The bottom line lesson
Winning on the road in NBA is very hard. Unfortunately for the young Kings, that is a lesson that will be a lesson that will be learned many times in 2017-18.
Up next for SacramentoÂ
The Kings will return to preseason action on Sunday night in Las Vegas when they will face the Los Angeles Lakers. Proceeds from the game will be donated to victims of the tragic shooting of the Route 91 Harvest music festival.
Harry Giles update
The Kings have revealed that Harry Giles will not be available to play until January 2018 as he continues to rehab from his surgery for an injury to his ACL. Giles who was originally projected to be the number one pick in the 2017 NBA Draft Lottery has suffered setbacks due to knee troubles.
Giles is just 19-years old so the Kings can afford to patient. He has been most often compared to Chris Webber. If he can be close to Webber, waiting until he his fully healthy will be worth the wait.
San Antonio Spurs guard Patty Mills, left, dribbles away after being double-teamed by Sacramento Kings guard Bogdan Bogdanovic, center, of Serbia, and De’Aaron Fox, right, during the second half of an NBA preseason basketball game Monday, Oct. 2, 2017, in Sacramento, Calif. The Kings won 106-100. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)
By Morris Phillips
SACRAMENTO–What’s better than one speedy, playmaking, rookie guard? Two.
Especially if their unis have the same purple and gray hue.
Jay-Z and Roc Nation weren’t on hand for the Kings’ pre-season opener, but the rapper/sports agent’s phrasings had a place in the proceedings on Monday every time rookies De’Aaron Fox and Frank Mason had the ball and went into attack mode.
The 19-year old Fox and Mason combined for 33 points and a whole bunch of offensive aggressiveness in the Kings 106-100 victory over the Spurs. Coach Dave Joerger promised a team that plays fast, and Fox and Mason delivered by being dribble and drive nightmares.
Typical of pre-season, the game featured few, defensive stops, and Coach Greg Popovich and the Spurs weren’t necessarily on board with the race horse pace, but the Kings’ rookies had a lot to do with that. Spurs point guard Patty Mills especially appeared strained attempting to keep Fox out of the lane.
Mason finished with a team-high 17 points in 22 minutes, and Fox added 16 points in 17 minutes on 7 of 8 shooting.
Joerger opted to start all five of his veterans, including off-season acquisitions George Hill, Zach Randolph and Vince Carter. Those three were joined by Kosta Koufos and Garrett Temple. But when the veterans departed near the end of the first quarter, the youngsters took it from there, playing exclusively in the final three quarters.
The Kings didn’t just run, they shot it as well, shooting 52 percent for the game, including 45 percent from three. In all, seven different Kings hit at least one three, Temple and Mason each hit two.
The Spurs were led by LaMarcus Aldridge with 17 points, and Mills with 11. San Antonio opted not to play Tony Parker and off-season, free agent acquisition Rudy Gay. Last season’s MVP contender Kawhi Leonard was not with the team, and is expected to miss the entire exhibition schedule to rehab his thigh and ankle.
Just as everything appeared to be on the way to stability for the Sacramento Kings — BAM! — big changes have been announced in the front office operations for the team. Executive vice-president for basketball operations Scott Perry has been hired by the New York Knicks to be their new general manager. Reports have Perry receiving a five-year contract.
Perry joined the Kings front office on April 21. The Kings could have told Perry no because he was under contract and told the Knicks to go look elsewhere for a new GM. The fact the team did not block Perry from interviewing for the NYK job says a great deal about the organization’s respect for him as a person and as an executive.
There are some that are questioning the Kings decision to let Perry walk away from the team including two NBA executives that were quoted in the New York Post on Friday:
“It’s a little strange, getting fired in Orlando, then going to Sacramento and they’re willing to let him go so soon after a few months,’’ an NBA executive said.
The SacKings front office was the target of criticism
Divac and Stojakovic
In 2016, the Kings could not get top lottery picks to come to Sacramento for tryouts and interviews. Agents viewed the organization as being in disarray and it was almost like if they avoided Sacramento their clients would not be drafted by the Kings.
There were also rumors that NBA executives were frustrated because they could not get call through or calls back from Kings executives in the front office. The lack of a traditional front office structure appeared to hurting the Kings ability to get things done operationally.
Sacramento had also been criticized for having the smallest scouting staff in the NBA. Experts felt the Kings needed to see more college talent to be successful in the draft.
Perry received much of the credit for the Kings draft and free agent signing success
Analyst have given the Kings very positive reviews for the job they did in the 2017 draft. Virtually everyone loves the selection of point guard De’Aaron Fox out of Kentucky with the number five overall pick. Most experts approve of the team taking SF Justin Jackson (North Carolina), PF Harry Giles (Duke) and PG Frank Mason III (Kansas) in the draft with their other picks. Some have said Mason might be one of the “value picks of the draft”.
“One of the top evaluators of talent in the NBA,” said one NBA executive who has worked with Perry. “The evidence is Sacramento’s free agency this year.” New York Post July 14, 2017
Sacramento then went to work signing three veteran free agents to play for a team stacked with young players. George Hill gives the Kings a veteran at point guard while Fox and Mason develop their skills at the NBA level. Zach Randolph and Vince Carter who played for Dave Joerger in Memphis were signed to play and mentor.
Scott’s leadership was credited as being a major factor in why the Kings were able to pull things together so well in the all-important player acquisition period. The addition of analytics expert Luke Bornn along with the added experience of another year of working together for Vlade Divac and his staff also added to the success of draft and free agent signing period.
Perry is going to be trying to revive a franchise that is in shambles
One the major problems the New York Knicks have to overcome is their owner. James Dolan who has a history of making questionable decisions when it comes to his NBA team. On draft night in June, he was in Manhattan playing with his blues-rock band while Phil Jackson and his staff made the choices on who the future players for the Knicks would be.
James Dolan NBA owner or rock star?
Of course just days later, Dolan and Jackson parted ways in a very public break up. If Dolan was planning on replacing Jackson, why did he wait until after the draft? The bottom line is that it is just another in a long line of bad decisions made by Dolan when it comes to his NBA franchise.
Knick, Cavalier, Rocket?
The other major problem that Perry faces in his first days with the Knicks is what to do with Carmelo. Anthony has been making noises about being willing to accept a trade to another team like Houston or Cleveland. His salary and what the Knicks will want in return pose a real problem for the team to actually move Carmelo out and really begin a true rebuilding process.
Perry will work for the Knicks former general manager Steve Mills who will now be the team’s president.
Kings get cash and a future second-round draft pick but what about “Hamilton” tickets?
The Kings will receive an undisclosed amount of cash and a future second-round draft pick as compensation for releasing Perry to sign with the Knicks. Cash? Overrated. Second-drafts picks can be helpful in closing trades.
But Vivek and Vlade, what everyone wants is tickets to “Hamilton” on Broadway. Think about the promotion your marketing team could have put together with a block of “Hamilton” tickets for the week the Kings play the Knicks and Nets in New York. Broadway and Basketball: it would have been a spectacular promotion.
If you do anymore deals with the Knicks or Nets, they must include tickets to “Hamilton”.
The Las Vegas Summer League is about player development and not about wins and losses. Yes, the players and coaches like to win. The fans love wins, but again the goal is the development of young players.
Teams this season are also looking for players to fill roster slots 16 and 17. These are also known as the “two-way” roster players. These players will make one rate when playing in the G-League (officially the NBA Gatorade League) and the NBA minimum rate when playing for their NBA team.
As of today, the number 16 and 17 roster spots for the Kings are empty.
Players are also looking for roster spots on G-League teams. The Kings G-League franchise is the Reno Bighorns. The NBA is in the process of turning the G-League into a true minor league system to feed players to “the association”.
The bottom line is there are many story lines to watch in Las Vegas over the next 11 days.
The Game
The game itself was entertaining. It was a close contest that featured some very talented basketball plays and some very ugly, “we are still learning” plays. There were a few “dust ups” and even some technical fouls.
The were 17 lead changes and the game was tied 14 times. Sacramento’s biggest lead was 6-points while Phoenix held an 8-point advantage at one point. The Suns out-rebounded the Kings 41-39.
The Kings posted 11 assists and turned the ball over 14 times. The Suns turned it over 17 times and had 12 assists. Each team had eight steal.
The Kings had one glaring advantage and it was in blocked shots. Sacramento blocked 9 Phoenix shots while the Suns blocked 4 Kings field goal attempts.
Kings
De’Aaron Fox — It was the “D-Fox” show a number of times in the game, but he is the number one draft pick and isn’t that what you want to see? There was a beautiful Kentucky to Kentucky assist to Labbissiere that led to a nice layup. A cross-court pass to Hield let him glide in for an easy two. Fox finished with 4 assists, 5 steals and let’s not forget his 18 points (7-16 shooting). He also demonstrated his breakaway speed multiple times.
Justin Jackson — The number 15 overall draft selection did not start the game but he made the most of his 26 minutes coming off the bench. He shot 7-for-11 from the floor (2-4 from 3PT range) for a total of 18 points. Jackson does not demand the ball but puts himself in the right spots to score if the ball comes his way.
Buddy Hield — The second-year guard is joining his new teammates in Vegas to tune up for the new season. Hield scored 16 points in 24 minutes of playing time. He shot 6-for-16 but was 0-for-6 from long range. Hield did have two very impressive drives to the bucket which could be a very nice addition to his game.
Skal Labissiere — The big forward appears ready to pick up where he left off in April for the Kings. He scored 10 points in 28 minutes. Labissiere was 4-for-9 shooting while adding two blocked shots and one steal.
Malachi Richardson — The shooting guard who missed the last part of the season due to injury started the game. He was able to play 24 minutes. Richardson posted 8 points shooting 2-for-7 including a 3-point basket. He looked a little rusty but it will not take him long to get back up to speed.
Georgios Papagiannis — The big center got the start and played 28 minutes. His stats speak to the dichotomy that is “Papa G”. He scored no points (0-3 shooting). It is so frustrating watching him not being able to put-back close shots off rebounds. He led all rebounders with 11 and had 2 blocked shots. Papagiannis uses his size so well in those areas. He also added 2 assists and 1 steal. The key is to remember he is still young and under development.
Suns
Marquese Chriss — The Sacramento area native made it hard to watch him because it is obvious that he is developing into the player his was projected to be when he was drafted by and then traded by the Kings. With a bulked up body, he scored 19 points and grabbed 9 rebounds in 33 minutes on the floor. Chriss was 5-for-17 shooting but he made his way to the free throw line 13 times where converted 9 shots. He just bulls his way to the basket. When you watch him, keep saying Labissiere, Richardson, Papagiannis, Bogdanovic over and over again because that is who the Kings received in that trade.
Josh Jackson — The number 4-overall draft pick had a very nice first game for the Suns as he scored 18 points. The forward from Kansas shot 6-for-17 (0-2 3PT) grabbed 8 rebounds and had 2 assists in 34 minutes of playing time. He even showed that he can make the midrange jumper that the experts say he needs to add to his game.
Up next
The Kings will be back in action on Sunday night when they will play the Memphis Grizzlies. Game time is 7:00 p.m. PDT and can be seen on NBA TV. Memphis is 1-0 after beating the Wizards in their first game.
— Sports Radio Service (@SportsRadioSrvc) June 25, 2017
Justin Jackson has won a National Championship with North Carolina
Apologies to Justin for the bad lighting but I wanted fans to hear his comments
Justin Jackson has a ring winning a Nat. Championship with Tar Heels. Brings winning attitude to #SacKings. Fills need for SF for #Kings. pic.twitter.com/iDp4xzO65Z
— Sports Radio Service (@SportsRadioSrvc) June 25, 2017
Harry Giles tells the media  and fans he is healthy and ready to play
The 2017 NBA Draft is history and now it is time to evaluate how well each team did in the draft. The Kings turned three picks into four selections by trading the 10th pick to Portland in exchange for the number 15 and 20 selections. Was that a good move by the Kings?
NBA Draft expert Ben Stram of FANRAG Sports  breaks down the Kings selections and gives the team an overall grade for their choices.
Did he like the selection of De’Aaron Fox at number five?
Point guard De’Aaron Fox is now a Sacramento King
What did Ben think of trading away Zach Collins for the 15th and 20th picks?
Is Harry Giles worth the risk of dealing with his injury riddled past?
Will Justin Jackson be an impact player?
Justin Jackson the Kings #15 overall draft pick
How will Frank Mason III fit into the Kings youth movement?
Kings second round selection Frank Mason
We also asked Ben who lives in the Chicago area about the impact of the Jimmy Butler trade to the T-Wolves?
Ben also gives a grade to the 2017 NBA Draft as a whole.
If you are a Kings fan, this will be 18-minutes and 30-seconds well spent. Enjoy.
— Sports Radio Service (@SportsRadioSrvc) June 23, 2017
by Charlie O. Mallonee
Point guard De’Aaron Fox is now a Sacramento King
The Sacramento Kings entered the 2017 NBA Draft on Thursday night hoping that Kentucky point guard De’Aaron Fox would still be available when they had the opportunity to make their selection with the number five pick. “Lady Luck” smiled upon the Kings and Fox was still on the board when they went on the clock. There was never a doubt that the Kentucky connection with Sacramento was going to continue as the Kings made Fox the newest member of  the “Sacramento Royalty”.
There had been many rumors that the Lakers were considering Fox over Lonzo Ball at number two. Many analyst feel that Fox is a more well rounded player than Ball. Ball is seen as a “true” point guard but Fox is more “well rounded” player who can create his own offense when necessary. The Lakers went with Ball despite the baggage that comes in form of his father.
There had also been rumors that Phoenix would take Fox and then move Eric Bledsoe – with whom they have been less than thrilled with over the past two seasons – on to another team. In the end, Phoenix drafted to their need – which was a shooting guard – and selected Josh Jackson out of Kansas.
The Kings were able to draft their point guard of the future which they have wanted for sometime. Fox has the elite size and wingspan that NBA teams are looking for in a point guard today. He is not only a play-maker but Fox can be a force on offense. He averaged 16.7 points per game for the Wildcats.
Fox is a strong mid-range shooter who suffered from behind the 3-point line for much of the season. With a great deal of hard work, Fox greatly improved his 3-point shooting production late in the season and in the NCAA Tournament.
Fox is also known for his rebounding. He is considered to be an outstanding rebounder for a guard.
Had the Kings not moved up from number eight to number five in draft lottery, De’Aaron Fox would have not been available to Sacramento. A little luck is always a good thing.
Turning three draft picks into four
The Kings held the number ten pick in the draft. They had that selection as part of the DeMarcus Cousins trade so getting a player of value was of great importance to the Kings.
The Kings did not have a burning desire for any player who was projected to go at number ten. Instead of wasting the selection, Sacramento made a deal with Portland to get the 15 and 20 selections in the draft in exchange for the 10 pick.
Number 15 pick
Justin Jackson the Kings #15 overall draft pick
The Kings went to the ACC for their pick at number 15. Small Forward Justin Jackson from North Carolina was the Kings choice with their second selection in the first round.
Jackson- a junior – Â was the ACC player of the year while helping lead the Tar Heels to a National Championship. He also was a consensus First Team All-American and ACC Player of the Year.
Jackson is known for having a diversified game on offense and a high basketball IQ.
And with the number 20 selection …
Harry Giles – is he the next Chris Webber?
The Kings went “high risk – high reward” with the number 20 pick. They chose 6-foot-10 forward/center Harry Giles out of Duke.
Prior to enrolling at Duke, Giles was predicted to be the number one draft pick this season. An ACL surgery (his third knee surgery) and missing the first 11 games of his freshman season lowered Giles stock in the draft.
Scouts compare a healthy Giles to Chris Webber. How could the Kings not take a chance on him?
This is a roll of the dice that has the potential to have a huge payoff.
The second round selection
Kings second round selection Frank Mason
Sacramento had the fourth (34th overall) selection in the second round. The Kings went with experience by selecting senior combo guard Frank Mason out of Kansas. He was a consensus Player of the Year and a First Team All-American.
The four-year Jayhawk player posted 20.9 points, 5.2 assists and 4.2 rebounds during his senior year at Kansas. He led the Big 12 in 3-point shooting percentage at 49-percent.
How did the Kings do in the draft?
Most analyst are giving Sacramento high marks for their moves in this year’s draft. The experts seem to really like the Kings move to trade the number 10 pick to add two first round picks at number 15 and 20.
All of the experts love the Kings selection of Fox. Virtually every draft analyst believes Fox will be a star in “the association”. They also believe that if Giles can get healthy he could be the steal of the draft.
Grading the Kings draft
Ben Stram of FANRAG Sports will join me on our Sacramento Kings podcast to grade the Kings 2017 draft. That podcast will be available beginning on Saturday June 24 at 8:00 a.m. on SportsRadioService.com.
by Charlie O. Mallonee
Sports Radio Service 