Kings Deemed 5th-Best Offense in NBA by CBS Sports

The Sacramento Kings are coming off a historic season by recording the highest offensive rating by a team in league history with 119.4, breaking the record initially set by the 2020-21 Brooklyn Nets.

Despite an all-time 2022-23 season, the Kings offense is being underrated. Sacramento finished first in the league in points per game last season with the highest offensive rating of all-time, but Sam Quinn of CBS Sports ranks the Kings as the 5th-best offense heading into the 2023-24 NBA season.

Quinn statistically explained how the Kings were able to achieve the most efficient NBA offense ever:

The Kings ranked sixth in the NBA in 3-point attempts per game (37.3). The Kings ranked seventh in the NBA in fast-break points per game (14.9). The Kings ranked seventh in the NBA in free throw attempts per game (25.1). The Kings ranked fourth in the NBA in passes per game (299.3) and third in potential assists (49.7). The Kings were by far the healthiest team in the NBA last season. All five of their starters missed fewer than 10 games. They used the same starting lineup of [De'Aaron] Fox, [Domantas] Sabonis, Kevin Huerter, Keegan Murray and Harrison Barnes in 61 of their 82 games and that lineup played 900 total minutes. Only two other lineups even reached 600 last season.

Led by All-Star duo Fox and Sabonis, the Kings are poised to be one of the best teams in the NBA. While they might not be the most talented group in the league, their group of guys gel well together. With reigning Coach of the Year Mike Brown leading from the bench, the Kings undoubtedly have a top-three offense in the league.

The teams Quinn ranked ahead of Sacramento are the Denver Nuggets, Milwaukee Bucks, Phoenix Suns, and Boston Celtics. Based purely on star power, all of those teams deserve to be ranked in the top four, but none of them have proven to have a better offense than Sacramento.

Quinn added what he thinks the Kings will do well on offense:

There's no reason to believe Sacramento will suffer major injury issues this season. They remain pretty good at just about every element of offense. They've improved their shooting slightly by adding Chris Duarte and EuroLeague MVP Sasha Vezenkov. Their roster is still relatively young with room for internal growth. Fox's speed and Sabonis' incredible screening are still a lethal combination.

The additions of Duarte and Vezenkov are two of the most underrated off-season moves across the league and should help improve the already record-breaking offense. Quinn thinks the Kings will struggle as well:

They probably aren't going to be 10 points per 100 possessions better in clutch situations than the rest of the league this season because clutch performance tends to be somewhat random if your point guard isn't Chris Paul. Even if they don't suffer major injuries, they'll likely have a few more dings and bruises. They won't sneak up on anyone this year.

While the league will now be preparing for a fast-paced and high-power offense from the Kings, it does not mean they will be able to stop it. The Kings are no longer in a position to "sneak up" on the rest of the league, but they can still shock the world by contending for a championship.

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