Sacramento Kings Making NBA History With Shooting Numbers

The Sacramento Kings are having a historic start to their 2024-25 season shooting the ball.

Nov 8, 2024; Sacramento, California, USA; Sacramento Kings forward Domantas Sabonis (11) during the first quarter against the Los Angeles Clippers at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images / Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images

All eyes have been on the Sacramento Kings’ three-point shooting, but they have quietly been excelling inside the arc all year long.

Sacramento sits at 29th in the league in three-point percentage, shooting the long ball at a 31.8 percent clip, but they lead the league with a 59.8 percent mark on their two-point attempts.

Not only are they leading the league this season, but that would be the highest two-point field goal percentage in league history, according to Stathead.

Highest 2P% among qualifying players via @bball_ref

1. Josh Hart: 74.2%
2. Daniel Gafford: 72.5%
3. Kevin Huerter: 71.4%
4. Domantas Sabonis: 68.4%
5. Payton Pritchard: 67.9% pic.twitter.com/U7fJpa0q1g

— Will Z. Stats (@will_zimmerle) November 14, 2024

What’s so impressive about the Kings' interior shooting is how many players are shooting at a high clip inside.

• Keon Ellis: 72.2%
• Kevin Huerter: 71.4%
• Alex Len: 71.4%
• Domantas Sabonis: 68.4%
• Keegan Murray: 59.4%
• De’Aaron Fox: 58.3%

The other impressive aspect is how well the Kings are shooting everywhere inside the arc.

• Restricted Area: 72.6% (4th)
• Floater Area: 55.0% (1st)
• Mid-Range: 48.9% (3rd)

Sacramento isn’t just beating teams at the rim or from the mid-range, but using a balanced approach to chip away at teams. It allows for them to find an opponent’s weakness and exploit it.

If a team excels at defending the rim and has a shot blocker, they can hit the mid-range or stop short of the basket and hit a floater. If a team guards the mid-range well, they can take it further inside and finish at the rim.

Between Sabonis, Fox, and DeRozan, the Kings have an elite finisher on all three levels inside—Sabonis at the rim, Fox in the floater area, and DeRozan in the mid-range.

Three-point shooting will come and go throughout a season, as we’ve seen so far with the Kings. However, elite two-point shooting is more sustainable throughout 82 games.

If the Kings miss their threes, they can rely on other scoring options to keep them in or win games. If the Kings make their threes? That’s how you get blowout wins like the 127-104 win Wednesday night against the Phoenix Suns.

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