For many years, the Sacramento Kings have been bereft of high-level NBA talent.
They possessed an outstanding team in the early 2000s with Chris Webber, Peja Stojakovic, and Mike Bibby that nearly won the world championship in 2002, but ever since that team broke apart, they have been a laughingstock.
But that all ended this season when they finished third in the Western Conference and made the playoffs for the first time since 2006.
The Kings got that done thanks to All-Star seasons from guard De’Aaron Fox and big man Domantas Sabonis, and both were rewarded on Wednesday with spots on the All-NBA Third Team.
The 2022-23 Kia All-NBA Third Team:
▪️ De’Aaron Fox, Sacramento Kings
▪️ LeBron James, Los Angeles Lakers
▪️ Damian Lillard, Portland Trail Blazers
▪️ Julius Randle, New York Knicks
▪️ Domantas Sabonis, Sacramento Kings pic.twitter.com/HLhSlCzszN— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) May 10, 2023
Fox has been a rising stud for several seasons, but this has been his best year yet, as he averaged 25.0 points a game and shot a career-high 51.2 percent from the field in the regular season.
He was also named the recipient of the NBA’s inaugural Clutch Player of the Year award, and although the Kings lost in the first round of the playoffs to the Golden State Warriors, he showed off his clutch abilities a few times in that series.
Sabonis was acquired in a big trade last season that sent out guards Buddy Hield and Tyrese Haliburton, and it was ultimately the trade that turned Sacramento around.
By averaging 19.1 points, 12.3 rebounds, and 7.3 assists a game while hitting 61.5 percent of his shots in the regular season, he earned his third trip to the All-Star game.
For the first time in a long time, the Kings actually have a bright future and are a team that deserves legitimate respect.
