The Sacramento Kings had a very disappointing 2015-16 season, as they missed the playoffs again with a 33-49 record. It cost head coach George Karl his job.
MVP: DeMarcus Cousins, center – 25-year old center DeMarcus Cousins might be a huge head case, but there is no denying his talent. He played in 65 games (all starts) for the Kings last year and he averaged 34.6 minutes, 26.9 points, 11.5 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 1.6 steals and 1.4 blocked shots per game. He had 47 Double-Doubles and 1 Triple-Double in 2015-16. He was even better at home, where he played in 33 games (all starts) in which he averaged 34.8 minutes, 29.4 points, 11.2 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.3 blocked shots per game.
MOST IMPROVED: Omri Casspi, small forward – 27-year old small forward Omri Casspi had by far the best year of his career in 2015-16. Casspi played in 69 games (21 starts) for the Kings last year and he averaged 27.2 minutes, 11.8 points, 5.9 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game. He shot an impressive 48.1% from the floor and 40.9% from the three point range in his game. Casspi had 6 Double-Doubles in 2015-16. He played in 18 games (12 starts) for the Kings last year in which he played more than 30 minutes and he averaged 35.4 minutes, 15.4 points, 7.5 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.1 steals per game.
BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT: Ben McLemore, shooting guard – 23-year old shooting guard Ben McLemore was in George Karl’s Dog House most of the way in 2015-16. He played in 68 games (53 starts) for the Kings last year and he averaged 21.2 minutes, 7.8 points, 2.2 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game. But, in the 7 games (all starts) in which McLemore played at least 30 minutes, he averaged 35.1 minutes, 18.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.3 steals per game. The new coach will likely give McLemore a clean slate heading into the 2016-17 season.