Sacramento Kings: Jimmer Fredette Shows Promise in NBA Preseason Debut

The Sacramento Kings bench exploded out of their seats when their newest member put up his first career three-pointer.

Even though it just barely rimmed out, the Kings knew they had a gem on their roster.

Jimmer Fredette lived up to every bit of the hype in Saturday night's preseason showdown against the rival Golden State Warriors, dropping 21 points and dishing out four assists in his NBA debut.

Jimmer shot lights out from the field, knocking down 4-of-6 attempted three-pointers and 7-of-11 total attempts for the night. He struggled from the charity stripe, only knocking down 3-of-6 at the line, but his back-to-back 89 percent free-throw shooting seasons at BYU contest that he just had an off day.

When he was drafted 10th overall, many critics believed Fredette would have a difficult time creating his own shot at the next level. The Naismith College Basketball Player of the Year quickly answered the call, stringing together slick combos of crossovers and step-backs to get his shot off.

Defense proved to be an issue, as Monta Ellis made Jimmer look as responsive as an almond, but in his defense, Ellis is one of the most unguardable players in the NBA.

Fredette also picked up his dribble one too many times, which is something he'll have to work on before the regular season starts, but it was a more than solid first outing for the ex-BYU superstar.

It will be interesting to see how coach Paul Westphal will continue to run the three-guard tandem of Fredette, Tyreke Evans and Marcus Thornton, all of whom are proven scorers. The Kings, as of now, run a very small lineup, with the 6'4" Thornton at the forward and Fredette and Evans in the backcourt.

Still, the loss to Golden State is foretelling of the Kings' season. If they don't put some emphasis on defense, not even Jimmer's fourth-quarter heroics can save them.