We continue our Season Review series, in which we look back at how the season went for each Sacramento Kings player. Today we look at Keon Ellis.
Keon Ellis had a storybook season, going from a two-way contract to a postseason starter for the Sacramento Kings. Crazier still is that despite a few solid stretches in sporadic opportunities throughout the year, nobody really saw this coming. Sure, Ellis had good minutes off the bench, like the 15 points, 2 rebounds, 1 steal and 1 assist in 14.5 minutes against the Houston Rockets. Ellis entered the game as the Kings were badly losing their second straight game against the Rockets, and made enough of a positive impression to earn him rotational minutes for the next six games. But Ellis failed to hold onto that spot in the rotation, and spent most of the season being juggled in and out of lineups. And in Mike Brown’s defense, Ellis wasn’t lighting the world on fire in some of those early opportunities.
Fast forward to March, when the Kings lost both Kevin Huerter and Malik Monk to injuries. Ellis found himself starting for the Kings and completely transforming the team. Ellis’ swarming defense was a revelation, and was a key factor in the team’s sudden defensive improvement. In February the Kings had a defensive rating of 118.0, and a net rating of 5.2. Ellis started playing more significant minutes on March 1st, and took over as starter for the injured Kevin Huerter on March 20th. The Kings finished March with a defensive rating of 110.8 and a net rating of 5.2. April saw those numbers continue to improve, with a defensive rating of 106.7 and a net rating of 6.6.
Ellis finishes the season with 21 games started. In his games as a starter, Ellis averaged 8.8 points, 3.5 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 1.7 steals, and 0.6 blocks. And while defense is the first thing that comes to mind when thinking about Ellis, it’s equally impressive how he contributed on offense. Ellis shot 41.7% from three for the season, but even as Ellis became a starter and his attempts increased, his efficiency didn’t wane. As a starter Ellis shot 40.4% from 3 on 4.5 attempts per game. Ellis is a bona fide 3-and-D player, the exact type of player every team tries to find.
Going into next season Ellis is going to be one of the best value contracts in the NBA, earning $2.1 million. The Kings will have a club option the following season as well.
Ellis was one of the great surprises and bright spots of this Kings season. I can’t wait…
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