The 2023 NBA Draft takes place on Thursday, June 22, as both rounds are wrapped up in one night. As it approaches, TGH will be taking a quick look some teams’ draft strategies, and shedding some light on what direction they will go with their picks.. Here is the Sacramento Kings NBA Draft profile for 2023.
The upstart Kings finished first in their division and third overall in the Western Conference. For his efforts, Mike Brown was named the first ever unanimous Coach of the Year. Despite forcing a Game 7 in the first round against the defending champions, the Kings went on to get bounced by the Warriors.
The Kings have three picks in the 2023 NBA Draft.
First Round (one pick):
Second Round (two picks):
Pick #24: Rayan Rupert, F, New Zealand Breakers
Despite being only 6-foot-6, Rupert has an absolutely massive wingspan of 7-foot-2. That’s more than some of the near 7-footers both in the NBA and in this draft. Rupert uses this advantage to be a dominating defender. Some are saying that his combination of on and off-ball defense, combined with his aptitude reading offenses to create turnovers, makes him the best defensive prospect in this draft.
Rupert is not quite an offensive liability, but he’s not a consistent shot-maker. That part of his game will need to grow, but, in fairness, he’s only 19-years-old. Plus, the Kings were the best offensive team in the league last year, but were not great (to put it mildly) on defense. If any team can take their time on that aspect of his game, it might be Sac-Town.
Pick #38: Tristan Vukcevic, C, KK Partizan (Serbia)
If there’s anyone to pair with Vukcevic, it’s Domantas Sabonis.
Vukcevic is a pure shooting center prospect, who can knock it down from anywhere, including past the three-point line. While he didn’t see quite as much time on the court overseas as teams would like, it’s clear why he’s entering the draft. At 6-foot-11, he has the ability to be a dangerous scorer that teams will have to put much smaller wings on defensively.
While he has a lot of touch around the rim, too, his defense is (probably not surprisingly), lackluster. It may seem unintuitive to get a second Sabonis out on the court, but this is a true “double down” mentality pick. If Sabonis can take him under his wing and the coaching staff can find some packages to get them on the court together, there isn’t going to be enough length for other teams to stop them with consistency once the ball passes half court.
Pick #54: Jalen Slawson, F, Furman
Slawson is pretty raw offensively when it comes to any shot outside the painted area. His three-point shooting isn’t quite there (just below 33 percent in college), and his mid-range game is untested at best. But that doesn’t mean he can’t develop those aspects of his game.
The reason to pick him, though, isn’t just for his offensive potential. He’s another defensively-minded wing who loves preventing other players from getting the ball. At 6-foot-7, he’s also a more than decent rim protector. Couple his well above-average defensive play with his passing ability, and all the Kings have to do is let him get some shots up and they have a winner.
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