In Tuesday night’s victory over the Milwaukee Bucks, the Kings’ Trey Lyles left the game with a knee injury and did not return. He then missed Wednesday night’s victory over the Los Angeles Lakers.
It’s a tough loss for the Kings as Lyles has spent the season as the first big man off the bench, and Sacramento is fighting for playoff positioning.
Key Kings Reserve Expected to be Out at Least Two Weeks
Lyles Has Played a Large Role off Bench for Sacramento
Over the last two seasons, Lyles has appeared in 123 games with the Kings. None of those came as a starter, but Lyles has still been an integral part of the team’s success.
After averaging 16.9 minutes per contest in 2022-23, Lyles is averaging 19.8 in 2023-24. In his 48 games this season, he has posted averages of 7.1 points and 4.4 rebounds on 45.0% shooting. He has connected on 38.3% of his three-point tries while attempting 3.7 per game.
This past offseason, the Kings gave Lyles a two-year deal worth $16 million. He is signed for $8 million next season before he will become a free agent in 2025.
Lyles was the 12th overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft out of Kentucky by the Utah Jazz. The ninth-year pro has bounced around the league and is now on his fifth team. As well as the Jazz and Kings, Lyles has played for the Denver Nuggets, San Antonio Spurs, and Detroit Pistons.
He has career averages of 7.7 points and 4.3 rebounds over 572 regular season games.
Who May Receive More Playing Time in Lyles’ Absence?
Looking at Wednesday night’s game against the Lakers, it seems like center Alex Len will enter the rotation. The fifth overall pick in 2013 played nine minutes in their last game while center Javale McGee did not receive any action.
Head coach Mike Brown did keep his starting frontcourt in for much of the game. Domantas Sabonis, Harrison Barnes, and Keegan Murray played 38, 38, and 39 minutes respectively on Wednesday. The only reserves that received ample time were guards Malik Monk and Davion Mitchell.
Battle to Avoid Play-In Tournament
The top six seeds in both conferences receive a playoff spot and avoid the Play-In Tournament. The Kings currently sit in the sixth spot in the Western Conference. Their 38-27 record is just percentage points ahead of the 39-28 record of the seventh-seeded Phoenix Suns. The eighth-seeded Dallas Mavericks are also just a game behind Sacramento at 38-29. They are also 1.5 games behind the fifth-seeded New Orleans Pelicans.
Last season, the Kings ended a lengthy playoff drought playing in the postseason for the first time since 2006. Sacramento was eliminated in the opening round by the Golden State Warriors in seven games.
The Kings next game is at home Saturday night against the New York Knicks. Sacramento has to be hopeful that the Trey Lyles injury doesn’t keep him out much longer than two weeks.
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