The Sacramento Kings missed out on the NBA playoffs for the 15th straight season, which is the longest active drought.
For the second consecutive year, they finished 31-41 in the tough Western Conference.
The Kings make decent strides, but it never truly leads to success.
Their fanbase wants to see winning basketball for once.
In the fans’ eyes, their failures have been because of the coaching.
Kings head coach Luke Walton has not gotten this team to improve.
However, it has been reported that his job is safe.
According to a league source, Luke Walton will continue as head coach of the Sacramento Kings next season.
— James Ham (@James_HamNBCS) May 17, 2021
The Kings did not take the leap forward that some had expected.
Some players were impressive this season and had a positive year.
Here are the three bright spots from the Kings’ season.
3. Richaun Holmes
A name not a lot of people would recognize is that of Richaun Holmes.
The sixth-year big man has worked his way up in the league.
He started off as one of those random players on the Sam Hinkie Philadelphia 76ers teams.
However, he took those opportunities and ran with them.
Fast forward a couple of seasons, and he is now a legit starting center in the NBA.
This season was a career-best for Holmes in points and rebounds.
He was able to average 14.2 points and 8.3 rebounds per game, while shooting 64 percent from the field.
He was also able to swat 1.6 shots per game.
Holmes was very good this whole season and is looking to get paid.
The Kings should definitely try their best in trying to keep Holmes on the roster.
2. Tyrese Haliburton Was The Right Pick
The Kings owned the No. 12 overall pick in last year’s NBA draft.
They decided to take a guard out of Iowa State in Tyrese Haliburton.
Haliburton was very good in college, but still was not receiving the buzz that he deserved.
He was labeled as a good prospect that can bring steadiness to a team.
There were no talks of being an All-Star caliber player.
Going to Iowa State for two years hurt his reputation just a bit.
Even though we have seen players, such as Ja Morant, thrive after two college seasons in a lesser known program.
Haliburton was the steal of the draft, as he came out looking amazing.
He was a great addition in helping fellow guard, De’Aaron Fox.
Tyrese Haliburton since De’Aaron Fox went out:
23 PTS | 10 AST | 4 3PT
13 PTS | 8 AST | 1 3PT
14 PTS | 10 AST | 2 3PT
24 PTS | 8 AST | 2 3PT pic.twitter.com/czGwqKH79q— StatMuse (@statmuse) May 1, 2021
There was a great chance he could win Rookie of the Year, until he got injured.
However, he was still able to average 13 points and 5.3 assists per game, and shoot 41 percent from three.
He can be the future for this franchise, alongside someone else.
1. Another Leap By De’Aaron Fox
The best player on the Kings is undoubtedly Fox.
Fox has improved tremendously each season.
This season was an All-Star caliber one for the speedy guard.
De’Aaron Fox is avging 32.6 PPG, 4.0 RPG and 8.0 APG over his last 5 (Season 25.2, 3.5, 7.1).
He leads the NBA in 4th Q scoring this season.
He has 17 30-point games this season so far. Had 10 such games combined in his first 2 seasons.
[per @statmuse]#SacramentoProud pic.twitter.com/Awp5MNHcHg
— Ortweets™ (@carlesortiz) April 19, 2021
His scoring went to a new level, averaging 25.2 points per game.
Fox was the leader of this team, and will be going forward.
He has emerged as an All-Star candidate for next season.
The Kings need to find a way to compete before they lose a potential franchise guy.
Fox has all the makings of a star point guard.
He just needs more help from the organization.
NEXT: Kings Are Heavy Favorites Ahead Of Today's Season Finale