1987–88 Sacramento Kings season

The 1987–88 Sacramento Kings season was the 39th season for the Sacramento Kings in the National Basketball Association, and their third season in Sacramento, California.^[1] This was also the team's final season in which they played their home games at the original ARCO Arena. The Kings received the sixth overall pick in the 1987 NBA draft, and selected point guard Kenny Smith from the University of North Carolina.^[2][3][4] During the off-season, the team acquired Ed Pinckney from the Phoenix Suns,^[5][6][7] acquired Jawann Oldham from the New York Knicks,^[8][9] and later on acquired Mike McGee from the Atlanta Hawks in December.^[10][11][12] The Kings also hired retired All-Star center, and Boston Celtics legend Bill Russell as their new head coach.^[13][14][15]

Under Russell, and with the addition of Kenny Smith and Pinckney, the Kings lost seven of their first nine games of the regular season, which included a six-game losing streak in November. The team posted an eight-game losing streak in December, and later on held a 14–29 record at the All-Star break.^[16] The Kings continued to struggle posting another eight-game losing streak between February and March; after holding a 17–41 record as of March 5, 1988, Russell was removed as head coach and became the team's General Manager, and was replaced with assistant coach Jerry Reynolds, who coached the Kings during the second half of the previous season as an interim coach.^[17][18] The Kings finished in last place in the Midwest Division with a 24–58 record.^[19]

Reggie Theus averaged 21.6 points and 6.3 assists per game, while Otis Thorpe averaged 20.8 points and 10.2 rebounds per game, and Kenny Smith provided the team with 13.8 points, 7.1 assists and 1.5 steals per game, and was named to the NBA All-Rookie Team. In addition, McGee provided with 14.2 points and 1.3 steals per game in 37 games after the trade, while Derek Smith contributed 12.7 points per game, but only played just 35 games due to knee injuries,^[20][21] Joe Kleine averaged 9.8 points and 7.1 rebounds per game, and second-year forward Harold Pressley averaged 9.7 points and 4.6 rebounds per game. Meanwhile, Franklin Edwards contributed 8.3 points and 5.8 assists per game, but only appeared in just 16 games, LaSalle Thompson provided with 8.0 points and 6.2 rebounds per game, Pinckney averaged 6.2 points and 2.9 rebounds per game, Terry Tyler contributed 5.5 points and 3.3 rebounds per game, and Oldham provided with 5.5 points, 5.6 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per game.^[22] Kenny Smith also finished tied in second place in Rookie of the Year voting, behind Mark Jackson of the New York Knicks.^[23][24]

The Kings finished 21st in the NBA in home-game attendance, with an attendance of 423,653 at the ARCO Arena during the regular season, which was the third-lowest in the league.^[22][25] Following the season, Theus was traded to the Atlanta Hawks,^[26][27][28] while Thorpe was traded to the Houston Rockets,^[29][30][31] and McGee was dealt to the New Jersey Nets.^[32][33][34] Meanwhile, Tyler signed as a free agent with the Dallas Mavericks,^[35] and Oldham and Edwards were both released to free agency.