Doug Christie’s rotation choices are becoming a storyline of their own in Sacramento, and the latest evidence came during a three-game losing streak that left Nique Clifford and Alex Karaban on the outside looking in.
Clifford was held out in last Friday’s loss to the Portland Trail Blazers, with Christie turning to second-round pick Emanuel Sharp instead. That DNP snapped a run of 78 games without one for Clifford.
It’s a sharp turn for the 2025 first-round pick, who logged 75 games last season and made 28 starts after season-ending injuries to Zach LaVine and Domantas Sabonis opened the door to more minutes. In that stretch, Clifford put up 12.8 points, 4.8 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.4 steals per game in 33.4 minutes, giving Sacramento the kind of two-way help it needed to shore up shooting and defense.
The concern now is that his game hasn’t carried over cleanly into year two. His summer league and preseason work pointed in the wrong direction, with Clifford averaging 7.4 points in five preseason games.
That number was boosted by a 23-point opener against the Los Angeles Lakers. He also shot 20% from three, which loomed large when Christie opted for Sharp, who is hitting 50% from long range and stands 6-foot-3.
Karaban’s DNPs are harder to square on paper, especially with the Kings thin at forward. Ben Simmons tore his Achilles before last Wednesday’s road opener, and Maxime Raynaud is still sidelined with a right patellar subluxation. Karaban played five minutes against the Los Angeles Clippers, then didn’t get off the bench in the next two games.
Sacramento traded up from the second round to take the UConn legend with the 29th pick, and there were obvious reasons for the move. He spent five years in college, shot 37.4% from three over his career and looked like the kind of ready-made option front offices covet.
His preseason line backed that up. Karaban shot 44.4% from beyond the arc and had five steals, even if he didn’t post one huge outing. What he did show was steadiness as a spacer and a player who could force turnovers.
Taken together, the two benchings point to a roster that still doesn’t fit neatly. Christie appears stuck trying to win with veterans while also figuring out how to develop the younger pieces, and those goals are pulling in opposite directions right now. At the moment, the win-now approach is costing Clifford and Karaban minutes, even as the losses keep piling up.
The broader issue is direction. Sacramento needs one, and given where things stand, development of the young core feels like the more logical path. Christie, though, has had trouble stitching the talent together, and LaVine said the team hasn’t built strong chemistry and that it will take a long time for the players to learn each other’s strengths.
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