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Apr 11, 2025; Sacramento, California, USA; Sacramento Kings guard Keon Ellis (23) handles the ball against the Los Angeles Clippers during the second quarter at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

By the Numbers Analysis - Can Kings Thrive in Transition?

Originally posted on Sacramento Kings on SI
By Will Zimmerle | Last updated Oct 1, 2025 6:46 PM ET

As the Sacramento Kings get underway with training camp, all attention has been on their plan to run and use defense to get out in transition. Doug Christie has a clear vision for this team to be pesky and wreak havoc on the defensive end, and use that to get easy buckets on offense.

I think we all know that the Kings weren't great on the defensive side of the ball last year, finishing with the 22nd-ranked defense in the league, but let's take a look at how the team and players did in transition last year as well to see how much they stand to improve in that aspect of the game.

According to NBA.com's play type stats, the Kings were the 19th-ranked team in transition plays last season. That, much like with their defense, leaves a lot of room for improvement in the upcoming season under Christie.

They averaged 19.5 transition plays per game (20th), and shot 53.9% on those attempts (t-10). That's not a bad shooting percentage, as shown by the rank, but the volume of looks is likely the easiest way to climb the transition play type rankings.

Now transitioning to the players specifically, the Kings have a lot of talent that can thrive by getting out and running, and it's not just the eye test that proves it. Nine of the players on the Kings roster this year averaged enough of the play type to make it onto NBA.com's stats for it, and finished with the following percentiles, with higher being better:

Drew Eubanks: 94.6th Percentile

Keon Ellis: 86.9th Percentile

DeMar DeRozan: 85.4th Percentile

Zach LaVine: 77.2nd Percentile

Keegan Murray: 54.5th Percentile

Devin Carter: 38.7th Percentile

Domantas Sabonis: 38.1st Percentile

Malik Monk: 35.9th Percentile

Dennis Schröder: 15.8th Percentile

What immediately stands out is Drew Eubanks being at the top of the list. Eubanks' signing was seen as an afterthought by many around Sacramento, with the hope that rookie Maxime Raynaud gets more of the backup center playing time behind Domantas Sabonis.

Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images

But Eubanks has a skillset that quietly fits what Christie is looking to do this season and a similar skillset on offense to Sabonis. It's a small sample size, but he did extremely well last year in transition with the Utah Jazz.

The next three players on the list should be no surprise. Keon Ellis, DeMar DeRozan, and Zach LaVine all excel in transition and could make a living on either getting to the rim or shooting early opportunity threes. DeRozan is entering his age-36 season, but can still get up and down the court with the best of them, as shown last year.

What's surprising is seeing Sabonis and Malik Monk at the bottom of the rankings. Sabonis is one of the best centers in the league who can grab the ball and go, and Monk is one of the most electric players in the league with the ball in his hands. Between the two of them, Keegan Murray, and Dennis Schröder, there is plenty of room for improvement from last year to this year.

None of this is saying that the plan will go perfectly and that the Kings will be the best transition team in the league, but it does show that they have a roster that can help bring Christie's vision to life. They have the players with the skillset to get the job done in transition, theoretically. Now, all we can do is wait and see if that becomes a reality throughout the season.

This article first appeared on Sacramento Kings on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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