The sophomore thinks he, Fox and Mitchell are going to be a strong fit in Sactown.
Tyrese Haliburton was the featured guest on this week’s episode of “The Old Man and the Three” with JJ Redick and Tommy Alter and the Kings guard spoke highly of Sacramento’s newest acquisition Davion Mitchell, the No. 9 overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft.
Though the two haven’t shared the court beyond open workouts, Haliburton was able to watch Mitchell lead the Kings to a Summer League victory in Las Vegas last month and he’s excited about the potential of the team’s back court:
“I’m really interested and really excited about it. I think, at first, the instant reaction by a lot of people was, ‘Why would the Kings take another guard? They already have two guards along with Buddy [Hield] and Terence Davis?’ I see a fit because they are bringing in another guy who is very defensive-minded. I think he was the National Defensive Player of the Year last year in college basketball.”
The back court of De’Aaron Fox and Haliburton was beginning to blossom last year before the two shared a plethora of injury bouts, resulting in neither player getting to finish the season. With the 30th-ranked defense in the league, you can see that players and brass understand the importance of making a stamp on D this season.
Despite initial draft doubts on Mitchell amongst Kings fans, a three-guard rotation is a notion that people have come around to and Haliburton shared his thoughts on the vision that might be in store:
“I think if you keep bringing in more guys that are about the right things — they want to win, are proven winners and talented guys — it is going to help. I’m really excited about it. I think by guarding [Fox and Mitchell] and playing alongside them in my limited time with Davion in runs, I would say they both have a really quick twitch and are really fast to get up and down. I like to run as well so I definitely see a fit with those two.”
Haliburton and Mitchell had an opportunity to work out together during the Kings’ extended stay in Vegas:
It will be exciting to see Fox included in this mix near the end of the month as training camp shapes up and preseason begins. I look forward to seeing Haliburton’s words turned to action as the three triple up and form what could be a strong rotation and the Kings’ backcourt of the future.