Jerome Miron – USA Today Sports Images
The Sacramento Kings have been one of the most active teams in the NBA this off-season in terms of undergoing a ton of changes. Tyreke Evans is no longer with the team, Greivis Vasquez and Carly Landry coming to town, and even possibly sending out Jimmer Fredette and Chuck Hayes via a trade.
On Tuesday the Kings made yet another move as they agreed to a trade with the Milwaukee Bucks that will land them small forward Luc Richard Mbah a Moute in exchange for future draft picks according to CBS Sports’ Ken Berger.
Plagued by a knee injury last year in Milwaukee, Mbah a Moute didn’t have a great season. In 58 games he played 22.9 minutes per game and averaged just 6.7 points, 4.4 rebounds and 0.7 steals per game on just 40.1 percent shooting and 35.1 percent three-point shooting. He definitely wasn’t as effective as he can be.
Mbah a Moute is a hard player to assess when it comes to value because what he does really doesn’t affect the box score. That’s a cop-out argument in a lot of cases, but it’s truly the case with Mbah a Moute. He’s a lockdown defender on the perimeter, but not the type of defender that causes a ton of turnovers.
Bringing in a defender like Mbah a Moute is a huge move for Sacramento. Last season, the Kings ranked last in the league in defensive rating, allowing 108.6 points per 100 possessions. In the past few seasons, they haven’t put a focus on defense. With the new ownership and front office now in place, though, things are clearly about to change. Mbah a Moute should be a sign of good things to come, even if you can’t really see it in the box score.
Cody Williams is a Senior Writer with Rant Sports. Follow Cody on Twitter @TheSizzle20, add him on Google+ and like his Facebook page.
