After being acquired in an offseason trade with the Indiana Pacers, guard Chris Duarte has quickly gained the attention of Kings coach Mike Brown.
At a recent Sacramento Republic FC match, Brown caught up with FOX 40’s Sean Cunningham and shared his thoughts on Duarte.
“Chris Duarte is about as smooth as they come," Brown said. "You remember Iceman [George Gervin]? Oh no, you know what I’m putting expectations on him. I tell you what, his game has surprised me. I didn’t really follow him obviously in college, and I didn’t watch him a ton when he was in Indiana. But to see him this summer and see him play pick up and so on and so forth, and workout. I’m excited about what he can bring to the table.”
Brown then shared that as excited as he is about Duarte’s offensive skill set, he also envisions him being a tremendous asset on the defensive side of the ball.
“He can shoot it from the 3, he can go get his shot, he’s got a medium game, he can finish, and he’s got great size. So, with that size, hopefully, he’ll also help us on the defensive end of the floor because that’s where we need to pick it up a little bit. But what a promising, promising prospect.”
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Duarte was the 13th overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft and had a strong rookie season that saw him average 13.1 points per game while shooting 36.9 percent behind the arc.
After a sophomore season that saw his numbers regress across the board, Duarte will look to rediscover his form on a Kings team with lofty expectations in 2023.