A little over half of the Sacramento Kings’ 2018-2019 campaign has passed, and although we’re not yet to the All-Star break, I think it’s time for some reflection.

As of January 16, the Kings sit just half a game out of the eighth seed at 23-21. Outsiders looking in, or people not familiar with Sacramento’s last 15 years in the league, might not be impressed. They’re barely over .500, not even top-eight in the conference, blah blah blah. To put this into perspective, Vegas estimated that the Kings would win just over 25 games the ENTIRE SEASON. They have 23 already, and we’re only halfway through January.

Their 23rd win last year didn’t come until March 16, which is still two months from now. So, I think it’s safe to say that expectations were exceeded. If you’re a Kings fan, you have more than enough reason to be excited.

The team has had their rough patches – a devastating and embarrassing loss to the Suns, blown leads in fourth quarters, rebounding issues, and front-office hiccups. However, with rough patches also come nights of pure bliss – Bogi’s buzzer-beater against the Lakers, keeping up with top-tier teams, positive words from the likes of Steph, Popovich, KD, and more. Let’s take a closer look at some highs and lows of the first half-ish of the regular season.

Most Improved

via NBC Sports Bay Area

The easy answer here would be De’Aaron Fox. In his sophomore year, he’s looking like the best to come out of that draft and has led this team into the thick of the Western Conference playoff race. His stats have improved across the board; averaging six more points than he did his rookie season and sinking 37% from beyond the arc up from 30% last year.

His average assists per game of 7.3 has him ranked eighth in the league. Some may argue that this is an expected bump from a rookie season to a sophomore season. This topic can’t go without the mention of Buddy Hield.

Although not as much of a bump in three-point percentage as Fox, Buddy has been consistently improving his long ball season after season. Hield holds the sixth best 3P% in the league at .444. Averaging just over 20 PPG, he’s just as important to the success of the team this year as De’Aaron has been. Many times, he’s the best player on the court for Sac.

Biggest Disappointment

via. NBC Sports Bay Area

I’m not ready to fully give up on Willie Cauley-Stein. It seems, however, that a majority of the Kings’ fan base is. During Monday’s contest against the Trail Blazers, he received a pass around the free-throw stripe. As soon as it was clear to the crowd that he was going to pull-up for a short jumper, the stadium echoed with boos…before the ball even left his hands.

If he carries the ball too long you can hear a handful of people shout at him to get rid of it. The 25-year-old will be a free agent this offseason, and many expected his game to take a huge leap in order to land as big a contract as possible next year.

With that in mind, it’s safe to say he hasn’t met our expectations. He started off the year very well with an average of 17.4 points and 9 rebounds per game in October but hasn’t come close to that since then. He’s grown inconsistent as time passes. Yes, his stats have all increased from last season but only very slightly. He’s averaging less than one more PPG than he did last year and not even two more RPG than last year.

The Kings are struggling in the rebound category and hoped to lean on their starting big man to help boost these numbers, but he can’t hang against elite big men like Steven Adams, Jusuf Nurkic, or Nikola Jokic. They toss him around like he isn’t 7′ 240lbs..which he is. With the growth of Marvin Bagley and Harry Giles, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Willie somewhere else next year.

Second-Half Expectations

It’s hard to expect anything more when expectations were already blown out of the water in the first half of the season. They rank second in the entire league in 3P% behind only the San Antonio Spurs. After placing dead last in PPG last year, they find themselves sitting pretty at fifth in the league. They’re ranked eighth in FG% after ending the 2017-18 season at 21st.

One expectation is to improve rebounding. The Kings allow an average of 48.5 RPG while only averaging 44.8 rebounds of their own. This hurts the most when it comes to offensive rebounds. Sacramento allows the third-most ORPG in the league. This needs to change in order to stop second-chance points which kills them late in games.

A second major expectation for improvement is free throws. Sacramento is 28th in the league when it comes to nailing their shots from the line, and that adds up in close contests. Hopefully, we see that pickup in the second-half of the year.

Another huge difference from last year is the pace at which the Kings play. Sacramento was dead last in pace of play last year, slower than all 29 other teams in the NBA. This year, they’re the second-quickest team in the league. The Kings are top-five in points off turnovers and points in the paint, which I expect to be maintained. The team is scoring like they haven’t scored in 15 years, they have kept up with teams that nobody thought they’d keep up with, and they’re winning games in thrilling fashion.

Hopeful Kings fans can expect (and pray) that if this keeps up, we’ll see them in the postseason. It won’t be easy by any means. LeBron won’t be injured forever. Anthony Davis and Karl-Anthony Towns sit just below Sac in the standings. The Western Conference is so tight that if a couple games are lost it could be the end of a team’s playoff hopes. For now let’s bask in the positives of the first half and buckle up for a wild ride through April.

@QuinnM13