Sacramento Kings: What to expect from Trevor Ariza next season?

The Sacramento Kings signed veteran Trevor Ariza to help provide some depth on the wing. What should we expect from Ariza this upcoming season?

The Sacramento Kings roster is shaping up to be stronger and deeper than last season’s even though the starting five remains very similar. Most of that is because the team has done a great job of adding some increased depth including veteran small forward Trevor Ariza.

While breakout years from De’Aaron Fox and Buddy Hield helped catapult the Kings to their best record since the 2005-06 season last year, their overall depth held them back. On top of that, their hole at small forward was evident earlier on before it was filled with the acquisition of Harrison Barnes.

Re-signing Barnes helps solidify the position but the signing of Ariza helps fulfill both the need for help on the wing and increased depth.

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Ariza is a 15-year veteran who has played for seven different teams throughout his career. A second-round pick of the New York Knicks way back in 2004, Ariza has made a name for himself as a three-and-D role player/fringe starter.

After spending a decade and a half bouncing around the league, Ariza split time with the Phoenix Suns and Washington Wizards last season. In total, he averaged 12.5 points and 5.4 rebounds per game in 34 minutes per game while shooting 33% from three-point range.

While that percentage seems low, it doesn’t help that he played for two of the bottom-five teams in three-point percentage. Essentially, it’s very likely that defenders were able to key in on him as a shooter without the threat of having to worry about many other scorers.

Still, it is a bit concerning that the 34-year-old put together his worst shooting season in nearly a decade last season.

On top of that, Ariza has always been known as a stout defender. However, as our friends over at Sactown Royalty point out, advanced metrics would indicate that he took a step back last season.

"“Where he fell hard was how opponents fared on shots when Ariza was the primary defender. On overall attempts, opponents shot 54.7 percent with Ariza guarding. It’s a DIFF% of 8.8. On three point attempts, opponents were 40.2 percent with a DIFF% of 4.3. Players benefited massively with Ariza guarding them and that’s not a positive sign.”"

Still, Ariza remains an excellent ball stealer using his long arms and high basketball IQ to jump into passing lanes regularly. His 1.3 steals per game last season is right on par with his career average of 1.5 and his hustle is never something that has been called into question.

Fortunately, with Barnes already locked in as the starting small forward, Ariza will take on a bench role for the first time since his 2012-13 season with the Wizards. The decreased minutes could go a long way towards improving his efficiency all around.

The same could be said for his shooting percentages which could see an uptick given his improved supporting cast. With the exception of Marvin Bagley, all five starters shot 37% or better from long-range last season and Bagley himself has been working on that area of his game.

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It’s certainly feasible to see Ariza climb back towards his career average of 35% and perhaps even surpass it. Moreover, the defensive metrics are a bit concerning but could also be a product of playing on poor defensive teams like the Wizards and Suns.

Overall, Ariza gives the Kings very reliable depth at a position where they struggled mightily to find a reliable starter, let alone adequate depth last season.

Suddenly, a second-unit of Cory Joseph, Bogdan Bogdanovic, Ariza, Nemanja Bjelica, and Harry Giles looks particularly strong and should help the Kings compete in a much-improved Western Conference.

Ariza may be on the decline, but a reduced role and better supporting cast could help him fight father time and play some of his best basketball in years.

At the very least, you could never underestimate the influence of a veteran locker room presence.