Keon Ellis – More Than Just a Defender

March 24, 2024

Keon Ellis supplanted himself into the rotation with his defensive tenacity. His hustle, quick hands, and defensive acumen is something the Kings have been looking for all season and he’s been a huge reason for the Kings rise to the 15th ranked defense in the league on the season and 4th best in the month of March. Labeling Keon as a just a defender though is a disservice to his game and what he’s providing on both sides of the ball. He’s not only playing game changing defense, but is providing an offensive spark as well.

Keon is coming off of a career high 19 Points last night against the Magic on a highly efficient 7-of-12 (58.3%) from the field and 4-of-9 (44.4%) from beyond the arc. With Malik Monk and the Kings bench going cold, they needed every one of his Points in the 2-point win.

On the season, Keon is shooting 39.1% from 3, which is second to only Harrison Barnes’ 39.8% on the team (min 2 3PAs per game, sorry Sabonis). Since his defense is the main point of discussion, it’s easy to forget that Keon shot 43.6% from beyond the arc for the Stockton Kings last year.

In the month of March, his 3P% jumps to 44.4% on 3.3 attempts per game. It’s the prototypical and highly coveted 3&D player stats that every team is the league is searching for.

What’s stood out in the last month is that not only can Keon knock down the Catch and Shoot open shots that the Kings are so great at creating, but he’s also shown the ability to shoot off the dribble. It’s a small sample size, but Keon is 6-of-12 (50%) on his Pull-Up 3’s in the month of March. It wasn’t a 3 with his foot on the line, but his step-back shot over Paolo in clutch time last night is a glimpse into his growing confidence.

If he’s able to knock down shots off the dribble at anything close to that rate, he opens up so much more for his and the Kings offensive game. The best part is that his impressive offensive numbers don’t stop at the 3-point line.

Keon leads all Kings rotational players with a 64.9% 2P%, and he’s getting it done everywhere inside the arc. On the season, Ellis is shooting 63.2% in the Restricted Area, 66.7% in the Floater Area, and 66.7% from Mid-Range. It’s a small sample size, but it matches the eye test that he is looking more comfortable each game he’s out there.

Keon’s defense will continue to get the headlines, and rightfully so. But if he blossoms into an above average offensive player, he raises the Kings ceiling heading into the playoffs by a wide margin. The peripheral stats are telling a story that that’s a high possibility, and I can’t wait to see what happens next.