The Kings spent the final 25 games of last season laying a foundation. Next week, they start building.
Las Vegas summer league play opens next Friday _ a time for the Kings' four second-year players to show what they learned from that 8-17 finish. The summer league roster announced Friday includes eight draft picks from the last two years.
All-Rookie first-team member Buddy Hield, Georgios Papagiannis, Malachi Richardson and Skal Labissiere face a "critical" time in their development entering their sophomore seasons, Kings coach Dave Joerger said. Richardson's last game action came in February, when he injured his hamstring.
"They've been with us for a year; they know what we're trying to do," Joerger said.
Rookies De'Aaron Fox, Justin Jackson, Harry Giles and Frank Mason III are also on the squad, but as Joerger notes, they're recovering from the hectic draft process and probably haven't even found a place to live before departing for summer league.
So while their play is important, it's understood that they'll be learning a lot and trying to catch up.
Hield, Papagiannis, Richardson and Labissiere, on the other hand, have been working out in Sacramento and are expected to play bigger roles next season.
"It's a good opportunity for them to carry over the confidence they had the last 25 games of the year with the minutes they were playing," Joerger said. "To be, 'I'm here now, I don't want to go back, we want to keep getting better.' And our guys have that mindset."
Assistant coach Jason March will coach the team, which opens play next Friday against Phoenix.
The Kings will hold a summer league minicamp starting Monday before leaving Thursday for Las Vegas.
