De'Aaron Fox still has much to prove. Where the Kings stand at point guard before draft
This is part of a series breaking down the Kings' roster by position and identifying the draft prospects who best fit those spots.
Point guard
Level of need (scale of 1-10): 5
Description
The Kings want their point guard to be aggressive on both ends of the floor. That means pushing the pace on offense, attacking the defense before it gets set and forcing the rest of the Kings to run with him. Defensively, they need a menace, someone who does not give up straight-line drives, which routinely put the Kings in a bind last season.
Who's there now?
The Kings have long sought the right person to run the point and they believe they have that person in De'Aaron Fox, the fifth overall pick in last year's NBA draft. They followed that up in the second round by drafting Frank Mason III.
That makes the Kings extremely young at the point, which means the leadership needed at the position can be lacking. That only comes with time, so the Kings must endure the mistakes along the way.
Bogdan Bogdanovic and Garrett Temple can be facilitators, too. But this position is about the development of the young guards, Fox in particular.
The Kings believe Fox is an All-Star talent, but they want to see him become more of a leader and take more control of the team in his second season. That means being the hardest worker, demanding more of his teammates and establishing the Kings' style of play by being assertive.
Fox proved he could make clutch shots and at times was a pest on defense, but that must become more consistent.
Mason looked more NBA ready than Fox at certain stages, given his four years of college basketball at Kansas. But listed at just 5-foot-11, Mason sometimes struggled to finish at the rim. That should change with experience.
Drafting a point guard, however, would be a surprise. The Kings are invested in their youth.
Best fits
Trae Young, Oklahoma: The freshman phenom led the country in scoring average (27.4) and assists (8.7). Young is an explosive scorer with great court vision, but there are concerns that at 6-foot-2 and 180 pounds, Young is not ready for the physical stress of the NBA.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Kentucky: This freshman stands out because he's 6-6, which gives him unique size for the position. It doesn't hurt that Kentucky coach John Calipari has a knack for sending guards to the NBA who can play at a high level.
Collin Sexton, Alabama: He averaged 19.2 points as a freshman. But with Fox on the team, he'd seem to be a duplicate scoring point guard.
This story was originally published May 24, 2018 at 6:08 PM with the headline "De'Aaron Fox still has much to prove. Where the Kings stand at point guard before draft."