Sacramento Kings: Ranking De’Aaron Fox and the rest of the starting 5

2. Richaun Holmes

Criminally underrated across the NBA landscape, Richaun Holmes is finally starting to get the respect he deserves. It’s high time he put the last year’s bubble infraction behind him and be anointed as the Kings’ second-best starter.

This season, Holmes is averaging 11.7 points and 8.4 rebounds per game. He also has a PER of 19.41, which ranks just outside the top 50 in the NBA prior to Thursday night’s action.

The most surprising development from Holmes this season has been his major improvement at the free throw line. He’s a 72.9 percent shooter from the charity stripe over his career, but he’s hitting 92.3 percent of his free throws this season. If he can get to the line more – just 1.9 attempts per game – his improvement there could create further problems for opponents.

Across the board, in fact, Holmes is emerging as an effective scorer. He ranks fourth in the league shooting 64.8 percent from the field. His 128.6 offensive rating also ranks in the league’s top 15.

Holmes has been having a challenging time staying out of foul trouble, having committed 29 already this year. That’s a shame for the big man, because he’s emerging as a dangerous offensive weapon for the Kings, even without a three-point shot in his arsenal.