As the Sacramento Kings were on their way to another blowout loss on Sunday afternoon, fans in attendance at Golden 1 Center shared their frustrations with the lack of playing time for defensive guard Keon Ellis.
On the heels of a 30-point defeat against the reigning champion Oklahoma City Thunder, Sacramento (3-7) dropped a 27-point contest to the Minnesota Timberwolves less than 48 hours later–but outside of the ever-growing sound of boos, another call reverberated throughout the arena on Sunday.
Near the end of the third quarter, those who hadn’t already made their way for the exits sounded off in unison for Ellis, who, for the second-straight game, failed to check in until the game was out of reach.
“WE WANT KEON… WE WANT KEON…”
“We want Keon” chants for Keon Ellis at Golden 1 Center. pic.twitter.com/95gFTkRwB5
— Frankie Cartoscelli (@FCartoscelli3) November 10, 2025
More on Kings guard Keon Ellis
Frustrations are growing in KingsLand, and Keon Ellis’ lack of playing time comes as the cherry on top of the franchise’s worst ten-game start to a season since 2017-18, a year that saw Sacramento win just 27 games.
Aside from the Kings’ obvious logjam at the guard spots, which head coach Doug Christie pointed out during his postgame press conference on Sunday night, Sacramento has a clear lack of defensive impact.
Ellis, who finished the 2024-25 season ranked fifth among all NBA players in total steals (121) and 11th in steals per game (1.5), is the Kings’ best defender, but is currently buried on the depth chart behind veterans Dennis Schroder, Zach LaVine, Russell Westbrook, and Malik Monk.
Following Sacramento’s loss to Minnesota, Ellis’ minutes per game average dropped to 18.0, the ninth-highest on the team, although he has logged over 20 minutes of playing time just once over the past five games (and only done so in three of the Kings’ ten games this season).
“There’s a logjam at that position,” Christie said of Keon Ellis’ lack of playing time following Sunday’s loss. “But I know in this league, things happen how they happen. The one thing we’re going to try to do is figure it out, so we’ll see.”
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On Friday, Christie shared a similar response when asked why Keon Ellis didn’t check in until the fourth quarter, which was pretty much garbage time as Sacramento faced a massive deficit against the reigning champions.
“It’s a numbers game. There’s a big logjam there, so night to night it could be different,” Christie said. “It’s not going to get any easier when we get Keegan back. But this is a good problem to have. It’s one that hasn’t been here for a long time when you talk about wing players and the ability to have them. But Keon’s a pro, so I know he’ll be ready and prepared.”
Of course, Ellis’ lack of playing time could be improved by Christie simply restructuring his rotations, but it’s more complex than that for the Kings.
As Christie pointed out, there is a logjam at the guard spot. Sacramento brought in veteran point guard Dennis Schroder in the offseason, signing him to a three-year, $45 million deal. Zach LaVine is on the books for $47.5 million with a player option for next season worth $48.9 million.
Malik Monk has played well during the early stages of this season and still has at least one more season worth $20.1 million, with a $21.5 million player option for the 2026-27 season. Russell Westbrook is on a league minimum deal, but–as crazy as it sounds–has arguably been the Kings’ best player over the first ten games, and certainly been the most engaged player on the floor.
We haven’t even brought up last year’s lottery pick Devin Carter, who is completely on the outside looking in when it comes to Sacramento’s rotation.
First-year general manager Scott Perry has his work cut out for him in re-shaping this roster, but making moves will be easier said than done in the early stages of the regular season when teams are less desperate for upgrades.
The February trade deadline is the true finish line when it comes to finding a solution for the Kings’ overcrowded backcourt, but by then, Sacramento could be well out of the postseason picture–if that is still even the goal for 2025-26.
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Regardless of what happens, Ellis’ time in a Kings uniform is likely in its final stages. By picking up Ellis’ $2.3 million team option for 2025-26, Sacramento ensured that the three-and-D guard will become an unrestricted free agent at this season’s end, giving him the chance to sign a deal with any team on the open market.
Plenty of contending teams could use a defensive-minded guard who is also shooting 43 percent from three-point range during his NBA career.
It’s possible that Ellis’ cheap contract is used as a sweetener in moving off veteran contracts like DeMar DeRozan or Malik Monk later in the season, as it’s become clear that it’s a matter of when–not if–the Kings will make moves to chizzle down the depth chart.
Alas, moving Keon Ellis isn’t what the majority of Sacramento fans want to see happen. Gauging the temperature of the fanbase on Sunday, watching young players like Ellis, Carter, Keegan Murray, Nique Clifford, and Maxime Raynaud develop would be more entertaining than seeing aging veterans play out the final stages of their NBA primes.
It’s undeniable that the Kings have talent. It just isn’t the right mix or collection of talent. And because of it, players like Keon Ellis–as well as the Sacramento fanbase–are having to deal with the consequences.
More Sacramento Kings content from Sactown Sports
Outside of Russell Westbrook’s impressive performances over the past week, the Sacramento Kings have been hard to watch during the early stages of the 2025-26 regular season.
48 hours removed from Friday night’s 31-point loss to the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder, Sunday’s matchup against the Minnesota Timberwolves was more of the same for Sacramento.
The Kings (3-7) fell behind early and never recovered, looking flat on both ends of the floor during a 144-117 loss that secured Sacramento’s worst ten-game start to a season since 2017-18, a year that ended with a final record of 27-55.
It’s early, but the Kings appear to be a team on the fast track to the bottom tier of the Western Conference standings.
Keegan Murray’s return will help Sacramento’s defense, but won’t solve all of their issues–especially on the offensive end, where spacing and cohesiveness are glaring issues for a roster that is top-heavy at the guard spots.
Until the Kings make some moves or drastically alter their rotations, it doesn’t appear that things will improve anytime soon.
Read more about Keon Ellis and the Sacramento Kings below:
Kings fall to T-Wolves, secure worst 10-game start since 2017-18
Upcoming Sacramento Kings schedule for the 2025-26 season
Tuesday, November 11th – vs. Denver Nuggets – 8:00 PM PT
Wednesday, November 12th – vs. Atlanta Hawks – 7:00 PM PT
Friday, November 14th – @ Minnesota Timberwolves – 1:00 PM PT
Sunday, November 16th – @ San Antonio Spurs – 1:00 PM PT
Wednesday, November 19th – @ Oklahoma City – 5:00 PM PT
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