Kings vs. Hornets Preview – By the Numbers

January 2, 2024

The Kings return to Sacramento for a 4-game road trip, starting tonight with the Charlotte Hornets. In the first game of a back-to-back, it would be prudent to jump out to a hot start and put this game away early in order to be rested as much as possible for Orlando tomorrow night.

The Hornets come into the game with the 26th ranked offense and last ranked defense, aka, they are not very good. A quick summary of some Charlotte offensive stats with league ranks:

  • Points: 110.0 (27th)
  • FG%: 46.5% (22nd)
  • 3P%: 35.9% (19th)
  • FTAs: 19.5 (29th)
  • Rebounds: 41.3 (27th)
  • Assists: 25.4 (24th)

As the defensive rating suggests, looking at their defensive numbers doesn’t get much better.

  • Opponent Points: 121.1 (6th)
  • Opponent FG%: 49.9% (4th)
  • Opponent 3P%: 39.7% (1st)
  • Opponent FTAs: 23.8 (10th)
  • Opponent Rebounds: 44.9 (6th)
  • Opponent Assists: 28.1 (5th)

There are so many areas that the Hornets struggle that the Kings would have to falter badly on both sides of the ball. To me the stat that the Kings can take advantage of most is beyond the arc. Sacramento is 13-1 when they shoot at least 36% from beyond the arc, which is the 2nd best winning percentage at that mark in the league. When they make their 3’s, they win. Against a team that allows 39.7% shooting from deep, they should easily be able to get good looks and hit that mark tonight.

For the Hornets, LaMelo Ball, Frank Ntilikina, and Gordan Hayward are all out and Terry Rozier and Mark Williams are both doubtful. As long as the Kings don’t let P.J. Washington go prime Shaq (again…), they should be ok tonight.

With the big names out, more focus will be on Brandon Miller, the 2nd pick in last years draft. Miller is averaging 14.9 Points, 3.8 Rebounds, and 2.2 Assists on 43.3/39.6/81.5% shooting splits. It’s solid numbers from the 6’9″ rookie. The Kings have shown the propensity to double or blitz opponents stars this year, and if Miller gets going, they can do the same thing tonight against a depleted team.

For the Kings, Davion Mitchell is back in the rotation, and has played well the last two games. Against Memphis, he had 8 Points on a perfect 4-of-4 from the field, 4 Assists, and 2 Rebounds. He looked decisive with the ball, driving the the hoop and dishing out passes to open teammates. Keon Ellis hasn’t played poorly, but Davion seems to be back in the mix, which is a great sign for the Kings going forward.