We finally made it. The Sacramento Kings get their season underway tonight at 7:00 PST against the Phoenix Suns as they look to surprise everyone in the NBA.
They may not have many expectations from around the league, but internally, this team wants to win. They have talented veterans who are looking to make a playoff push, and getting a win against the Suns would be a huge start to that, as they have a gauntlet of a schedule through the end of November.
A new season is filled with hope and optimism, as well as new trends to watch for as players and coaches show their full hands for the first time following the exhibition schedules of Summer League and the preseason. Here are the three key things to watch for the Kings as they begin the regular season.
It feels like the Kings have the same roster as last season, but then you look at all the players that will be making their Sacramento debuts tonight. Dennis Schröder, Russell Westbrook, Nique Clifford, Maxime Raynaud, Drew Eubanks, and Dario Šarić are all set to be key parts of the rotation due to the Keegan Murray and Domantas Sabonis injuries.
That’s six players who weren’t here last year, which is no small number for the rotation. For Westbrook, we’ll be seeing him on the court for the first time in a Kings uniform, which is sure to bring even more excitement to the opening game. No matter how you feel about the signing, it’s a fun thing to get to watch such a talented basketball player put on the Kings jersey.
And making their NBA debuts are the rookies. Not only Clifford and Raynaud, but Dylan Cardwell has a chance to get on the court as well. All three have impressed during Summer League and the preseason, with Clifford standing out and looking like he’s already been in the league for three years.
Oct 17, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Austin Reaves (15) drives the ball against Sacramento Kings guard Nique Clifford (5) during the second half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: William Liang-Imagn Images / William Liang-Imagn Images
One of the main, if not the top, talking points of training camp was defensive pressure, guarding 94 feet, and pushing the pace. It’s one thing to talk about being a defensive team and pushing the tempo, but it’s another to do it.
This will be our first true test to see how much the players buy into what Doug Christie is trying to implement. Outside of Keon Ellis, they don’t have any pure defenders, so it will take a team defense to improve on that end of the court.
Given their offense’s considerable potential, they don’t need to be top-10 on defense, but they do need to improve over last year’s performance. I’ll be watching closely how often they pressure the ball and if their rotations are crisp and on time.
They’ll have a test against one of the best scorers in the league, Devin Booker, and another tough guard matchup with Jalen Green, who excels at getting to the rim. The Kings’ defense will have to start on the perimeter after struggling in that regard last year.
Christie has also stated multiple times how it’s not about who starts, but who finishes the games. And he has his work cut out for him on how he decides to finish a close game.
There’s no shortage of options for him to have on the court, especially when everyone is healthy. Schröder, Westbrook, Ellis, Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan, and Malik Monk can all make a case for being in the closing lineup.
Last year, Christie seemed to coach by feel more than by schedule and went with who was playing well on any given night. That could be the case again this year with so many players who could finish games, but tonight will be our first clue into who he trusts most down the stretch.