Through the first nine games of their season, the Sacramento Kings (yes, really) are off to a 6-3 start. The Kings started 0-2 but have won six of seven since, including five in a row. They’ve got wins over three playoff teams from last season and won’t stop denting scoreboards with crooked numbers.
The key to their offense is that they attack as early as possible. The Kings rank second in the NBA in pace, playing at an average of 107.8 possessions per game. More than just the sheer number of possessions they rack up, though, is the speed with which they push the ball up the floor after made shots, which truly stands out.
During their Thursday night destruction of the Atlanta Hawks, the Kings repeatedly grabbed the ball out of the net and pushed it up the floor as quickly as possible in order to generate easy looks before the defense was set. De’Aaron Fox, Buddy Hield, and Iman Shumpert do a great job of catching the ball on the move and getting into the teeth of the defense early in the shot clock, creating openings for quick-strike baskets.
In this week’s edition of Last Night, In Basketball, we take a look at exactly how this played out during Sacramento’s win.
Last Night, In Basketball is a video breakdown series from the basketball mind of Jared Dubin. You can see the videos for free on Twitter and YouTube, but if you enjoy the work and want to see more, you can pledge your support on Patreon.
