The Kings are walking into this season with a problem the modern NBA won’t let you ignore for long: they can’t keep surviving without real 3-point volume and efficiency.
Sacramento is coming off a 22-60 season, its worst mark since 2008-09, and ESPN has already pegged the team as the league’s worst entering a new rebuilding phase. The roster was near the bottom in almost every category last season, but the clearest weakness was out on the arc.
On NBC Sports California’s “Deuce’s Deep Dives,” Deuce Mason put the numbers in plain terms.
"They made just 843 threes last year," Mason said. "To put that into context, that's the fewest made threes in an 82-game season since the 2018-19 season, and get this, 22 teams last year made over 1000.
You couple that with the fact that the Kings' defense allowed over 1,100. That's a lot of ground to make up."
The Kings also took the fewest 3-pointers per game in the 2025-26 season and hit just 34 percent from deep, which helped drag them down to the fifth-worst offensive rating and third-worst net rating in the league.
Mason’s point wasn’t just that Sacramento needs to shoot better. It’s that the whole approach has to change.
"This year's version of the Kings has to be completely different than the slow, half-court, ball-stopping group we saw last year that feasted in the mid-range," Mason said. "This group has to be able to score at all three levels, and I think they have some of the pieces to do it ...
This Kings team is going to have to play with pace and space to be successful. If they finish in the bottom 10 of three-point attempts, it's going to be a long year."
There are reasons to think the shot profile can shift. Guard Darius Acuff Jr., taken No. 7 overall in the 2026 NBA Draft, is expected to step in right away as Sacramento’s starting point guard. The Kings also get back some important shooting help if their returners stay on the floor.
Keegan Murray and Zach LaVine, both among the team’s best perimeter threats, missed 59 and 43 games, respectively, in 2025-26. Murray shot 41.1 percent on 6.3 attempts per game as a rookie in 2022-23, but that number has gone down each year and fell to 27.7 percent last season while he dealt with ankle and thumb injuries.
LaVine, a two-time All-Star, is a career 39.1-percent 3-point shooter and should be part of Sacramento’s answer from the outside along with Acuff and Malik Monk.
A one-year fix is a big ask, especially with ESPN giving the Kings a 0 percent chance to make the playoffs. But Mason’s message was clear: the process has to change now. Otherwise, Sacramento could be staring at another rough season, and the franchise’s lone playoff appearance over the past 20 years will remain just that.
In Other News...
Kings Suddenly Have A Point Guard Chance They Cant Waste
Kevin Porter Jr. is suddenly in the middle of a front-office decision that could matter for Sacramentos backcourt. After being waived by the Milwaukee Bucks, he is expected to hit unrestricted free agency, and the Kings are among the teams reportedly interested as they look for help at point guard after injuries and roster moves have thinned that spot.
Sacramentos pitch is obvious: there should be minutes available, and a real pathway to carve out a role right away. Minnesota is also in the mix, though, which gives Porter a very different kind of choice, between a team trying to piece things together and one with a clearer path to contention. For the Kings, the question is whether they can make the most of a chance that may not stay open for long. [Read more 🡒]
Kings Lose A Planned Starter And Keegan Murray Felt It Immediately
The Kings plans for their new-look lineup took a major hit before the season even got moving, with Ben Simmons going down in practice and shutting the door on what had been a fresh start in Sacramento. Simmons was brought in with the expectation that he would be part of the starting group, and his absence changes the tone of the roster conversation immediately. For a team trying to build around its pieces early, losing a veteran piece before opening night is as harsh a setback as it gets.
Keegan Murray did not hide how much the injury landed with the group, pointing to both the severity of the setback and the difficult road Simmons has already traveled. The Kings now have to recalibrate without a player they had penciled into a prominent role, while Simmons faces the reality of missing two straight NBA seasons. For Sacramento, the challenge is not just replacing minutes, but absorbing the loss of a player whose presence was supposed to help stabilize the first unit from day one. [Read more 🡒]
Mavericks Suddenly Have A Real Shot At A Guard Fans Know
Walter Clayton Jr. is suddenly back on the board after being waived by the Memphis Grizzlies ahead of the roster deadline, and the guard is already drawing attention from multiple NBA teams. Among the clubs monitoring him are the Dallas Mavericks and Sacramento Kings, two teams with very different paths but a shared interest in adding a young guard who could provide backcourt depth without much fuss.
Dallas may have the edge on paper because it has a two-way roster spot available and a pre-existing relationship with Clayton, which could make that an appealing landing spot if he clears waivers. Still, the next step may come down to something simpler than team fit alone: where he can actually get minutes, and how that lines up with the long-term direction he wants for his career. [Read more 🡒]