Sacramento Kings Mid-Season Report Card: How team is performing under Doug Christie

What is going on in Sacramento?

To some people's surprise, fired former head coach Mike Brown on December 27th following an embarrassing loss to the Detroit Pistons. Brown's record as Kings coach was 107-88, which many Kings fans will use in their argument to defend him, rightfully so. In 2022-2023, Brown led the Kings to their first playoff appearance since 2006 with a 48-34 record. Last season, the Kings once again finished with a solid record of 46-36, but with a loaded Western Conference, the "Beam Team" fell one game short of the playoffs.

The offseason brought a lot of excitement for Kings fans, as general manager Monte McNair was able to offload Harrison Barnes' contract and bring in DeMar DeRozan as a replacement in the lineup, along with first-round pick Devin Carter from Providence. However, the tweak in the lineup seemed to have caused some chemistry issues leading to a slow start from Sac-Town. The Kings started off 13-18, and the front office decided to let Mike Brown go. Following the departure of Brown, Sacramento called upon someone in house, Doug Christie, which was not a surprise to anyone given his big role with the team dating back to his days as a broadcaster for the Kings. Christie, since being hired has been on a role. The Kings are now in the top eight in the West following winning 9 out of their last 11 under Christie. The Kings are now 22-20 and have a breath of life to save their season hopes.

Let's hand out some grades for the Kings at the midseason mark.

Monte McNair First Half Grade: D+

Given the trade deadline is right around the corner, this is certainly subject to change at any moment if the Kings do in fact make a move on someone. There are some rumors surrounding McNair having interest in John Collins and/or Cameron Johnson to help out their weaknesses at the wings. McNair was under a ton of scrutiny from the fanbase for firing Brown, and still may be going forward. But so far the decision has seemed to spark the team. Doug Christie has sparked a fire in this Kings team who is tied for the best streak in the NBA in their last 11 games (9-2). If the Kings struggles were to have continued, McNair's grade may be even lower. This team is too loaded and has shown too much promise in recent years to perform the way they did before Brown's firing. We will keep an eye on what McNair does going forward.

Doug Christie's Early Grade: A

This is a no-brainer. Christie wasted no time to help catapult this Kings team back into the playoff talks. Sacramento was one of the worst teams in the West at 13-18 when Christie took over and are now 22-20, tied for the hottest team in the NBA in their last 11 games, and hold the eighth seed. Christie has had a good relationship with the players before the hiring, according to De'Aaron Fox.

"It's always been good, even when he was doing the broadcasting, he was always around. He was always in the gym," Fox told the media, h/t NBC Bay Area. "Obviously, he wasn't working with us hands-on, but he was always around. He's just always been a great guy. He always comes in with a smile on his face." Fox told the media.

Christie will almost certainly land this job long-term if this trend continues, especially if the players show the type of love that they have been.

Kings Defensive grade under Christie: B

Defensive struggles is a common topic with Sacramento. Ever since their great season in 2022-2023 where they took the defending champion Golden State Warriors to seven games, they have had an identity of a fast-pace, elite scoring yet underwhelming defensive team. Christie noted that he would certainly be focusing on trying to improve the defense in his opening pressor, but noted they want to keep their identity as an elite scoring team.

Since Christie has taken over the Kings are currently ninth in the league in defensive efficiency rating, at 110.8, per NBA.com. They're currently fifth-best in the league in giving up second-chance points since Christie has taken over and are also No. 10 in the NBA for steals per game, in the last 11 games. The big concern right now on defense is still giving up open threes, which Sacramento doesn't rank in the top 20 under Christie in defensive three-point percentage. However, under Christie, the defense has certainly improved. It became glaring for most Kings fans and media when they defeated the defending champion Boston Celtics in their own arena, 114-97, on Jan. 10.

Holding such a high scoring team to under 100 points and blowing them out on the road the way they did gave Kings fans serious hope for a turnaround.

Kings offensive grade under Christie: A+

Many of us were confused as to how the Kings started so poorly, despite adding an elite scorer like Demar DeRozan to that lineup to replace Harrison Barnes. An A+ may seem a bit rich, but you cannot take away the facts with what Sac-Town's offense has done since Christie has taken over.

In their last 11 games, the Kings are No. 1 in the NBA with 122.1 points per game. Christie has found a way to get their offense back into sync while even slightly improving the defense. Since Christie has taken over the Kings are No. 12 in the league in three-point percentage (36.4%) and No. 13 in field goal percentage (47.1%).

A key factor in the shooting percentages as well is that De'Aaron Fox is reportedly playing with a finger injury on his shooting hand that is almost certainly affecting his long-range shooting.

Domantas Sabonis Mid-Season Grade: A

Domantas Sabonis was snubbed from the All-Star game last season, along with Fox. This season would be highway robbery if it were to happen again. Believe it or not, Sabonis currently leads the entire NBA in three-point percentage at 48.4 (of eligible players, of course). Coach Brown and Christie have certainly pushed Sabonis to take open jumpers more often despite his unselfish tendencies as a play-making big man. Sabonis is also having an elite season on the boards, leading the entire NBA with 14.2 rebounds per game. He also averages over 20 points per game and 6.3 assists per game with a field goal percentage of 60.5%. There is absolutely no excuse for him not to be named an All-Star this season.

De'Aaron Fox Mid-Season Grade: B+

Circumstances matter here with De'Aaron Fox. His field goal percentage compared to last season has taken a fair drop but that's due to a finger injury on his shooting hand. Even then, he is still shooting a formidable 47.9%. Fox is once again one of the top scorers in the league, even with the addition of a ball-dominant player like DeRozan. Fox ranks No. 10 in the NBA with 25.9 points per game, adding 5.2 rebounds and 6.3 assists per game as well. While he may seem a bit different as a shooter thus far, he still makes up for it with his gritty, underrated play on defense. Fox is still just as much of a peak with deflected passes and steals as he usually is, and Christie has made a note of that in multiple post-game press conferences. Fox is another player on the Kings who is eligible to be voted an all-star.

DeMar DeRozan Mid-Season Grade: B

Before the Christie transition, DeRozan may be in the C/D range with his play. While the flashes have been shown, he was pretty inconsistent at the start of the season. That does come with the bumps in the road when you join a new roster and work out the kinks. However, his play as of the last month or so alone bumps him up ten-fold.

DeRozan has been awesome in the clutch for Sacramento. DeRozan and Fox both rank 12th and 13th in the entire NBA in clutch points per game. Each of them roughly scoring 3.5 clutch points per game (per 3.8 MPG). Having two players rank in the top fifteen overall clutchest players be on the same team is crucial, especially come playoff time. You cannot take having a closer, or in this case, two closers, for granted.

If DeRozan continues the latest trend he has been on, his grade will be at least an A- by the end of the season.

Kings Overall Grade Thus Far: C-

All in all, this is a team that has been exciting for the last two seasons. There is no reason with the talent on this roster, that the Kings should be in this predicament. They're extremely lucky that Christie and the team has gone on this run to keep the season alive in the first place. Grading the entire season has to give you a C- as of right now. They are barely above .500 with a record of 22-20, but they look to improve as they go forward. If Doug Christie can push this team into the playoffs after taking over at 13-18, his grade alone should be at least an A.

As of right now, the overall team grade still has room to improve because the eighth seed is not an ideal place in the West.