Kings coach Luke Walton says Marvin Bagley III can be ‘like Giannis’ Antetokounmpo
One of the hottest topics among Kings fans lately has been the idea of playing Marvin Bagley III and Richaun Holmes together in the frontcourt. Coach Luke Walton was discussing that possibility the other night in Indianapolis when he revealed something new about the organization’s plans for Bagley.
Skeptics scoffed at general manager Vlade Divac’s assertion that Bagley would be capable of playing small forward after the Kings chose him over Dallas Mavericks sensation Luka Doncic with the No. 2 pick in the 2018 NBA Draft. Now, Walton is going even further in his assessment of Bagley’s potential, saying one day he will be “like Giannis,” capable of playing all five positions as reigning MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo has for the Milwaukee Bucks.
Bagley’s role will continue to be a focal point as the Kings (12-17) come home to face the Houston Rockets (20-9) on Monday at Golden 1 Center after playing 12 of their past 16 games on the road. Sacramento has lost four of its last five while struggling to reintegrate Bagley and De’Aaron Fox after prolonged injury absences, falling to ninth in the Western Conference.
Bagley started at power forward in the season opener against the Phoenix Suns, but he has been redeployed behind Holmes as the team’s backup center after missing 22 games with a broken thumb. Walton briefly experimented with Bagley and Holmes together in losses to the Indiana Pacers and Memphis Grizzlies over the weekend, but he wants Bagley to master the center spot before taking on additional responsibilities, perhaps to prevent him from getting lost on defense.
Bagley’s perimeter shooting not an issue
One common concern about playing Bagley and Holmes together is that both players like to operate inside and floor spacing might suffer without the 3-point shooting of Nemanja Bjelica or Harrison Barnes at power forward, but Walton said Bagley’s perimeter shooting isn’t an issue.
“No, his 3-point shooting looks good,” Walton said. “It’s more that we want him to get really comfortable with the playbook at one spot first, and when he’s really comfortable at that spot then we can move him.
“If we play him with Richaun now, he’s playing the 4 and every play we call, he’s got to be somewhere else and make different reads. We want him to be free out there. We want him to be able to go all out, so he’ll play one position for now and then we’ll grow that out so eventually one day he’s playing 1 through 5 like Giannis does in Milwaukee.”
Walton conceded “you won’t see that for a while,” but he clearly has big plans for the 20-year-old big man from Duke. Bagley averaged 14.9 points and 7.6 rebounds as a rookie last season. He participated in the Rising Stars game at All-Star Weekend and was named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team.
Bagley is averaging 13.4 points and 7.4 rebounds this season. He is shooting just 30 percent from 3-point range, but he shot nearly 39 percent from beyond the arc after the All-Star break last season.
At 6-foot-11 and 235 pounds, Bagley has the size to play anywhere in the frontcourt. He might be athletic enough to play small forward as his defensive awareness improves. He has also shown the ball-handling ability to lead the break in grab-and-go situations.
“Whatever the team needs,” Bagley said. “Obviously, I’m capable of playing more than one position. I can play every position. I’m a player. I don’t have a position. I’m a positionless basketball player. Whatever the team needs, whether I’m playing the 5, the 4, the 3 – whatever they need – I’m going to adjust to it, learn it and do it.”
