Getty Sacramento Kings forward Harrison Barnes
The new-look Sacramento Kings are set to debut on Friday against the Miami Heat. After a few trades prior to Thursday’s NBA deadline, the team added some new faces, specifically including Harrison Barnes and Alec Burks. With both players heading to an intriguing Kings team which is certainly on the rise, there was good news for fans who’ll be in attendance for Friday’s game.
Barnes, Burks and Corey Brewer (signed to a 10-day contract) are all available to make their debut with the Kings. While the official starting lineup hasn’t been revealed, it’s almost certain that Barnes will play with the first five. Another acquisition in Caleb Swanigan’s status remains up in the air to this point.
The Kings will roll out their new core for the first time as they continue to make their push towards the playoffs this year. While there’s still work to be done, Sacramento holds the No. 9 spot in the Western Conference entering Friday’s game, just one game behind the Los Angeles Clippers.
Let’s break down the Kings’ full roster and expected starting lineup for Friday’s game against the Heat.
Kings Roster & Starting Lineup vs. Heat
*Notates expected starter
C: Willie Cauley-Stein*, Harry Giles, Kosta Koufos
PF: Nemanja Bjelica*, Marvin Bagley
SF: Harrison Barnes*, Bogdan Bogdanovic, Corey Brewer
SG: Buddy Hield*, Alec Burks
PG: De’Aaron Fox*, Frank Mason, Yogi Ferrell
It’s going to be interesting to see how the rotations look for the Kings in this game and also moving forward. Bogdan Bogdanovic has put together a strong start to the season and should still see decent minutes. It wouldn’t be surprising if Marvin Bagley takes over the starting job from Nemanja Bjelica sooner than later, as the No. 2 overall pick has impressed as of late.
In three games to start the month of February, Bagley is averaging 16.0 points, 11.7 rebounds, 1.7 blocks and shooting 46.7 percent from the field. He’s also averaged 30.3 minutes per game over that stretch. He should have even more space to work inside with the addition of Barnes also, who has the potential to stretch the floor.
Outlook at Guard for Kings
The good news is that Bogdanovic can play shooting guard as well, but the addition of Burks should help with depth at the guard spots. Frank Mason has primarily held down the backup point guard role for the Kings to this point, but it’ll be interesting to see if anything changes with that situation.
As things stand, it doesn’t seem likely that Burks will run the point much, but there’s a chance we could see the Kings opt to try a few new looks moving forward. Regardless, the recent additions, including the one of Brewer, should create solid depth at point/shooting guard as well as small forward.
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