# 2023–24 Sydney Kings season

The 2023–24 Sydney Kings season was the 35th season of the franchise in the National Basketball League (NBL).
On 16 May 2023, head coach Chase Buford parted ways with the Kings. On 21 June 2023, the Kings hired Mahmoud Abdelfattah on a two-year deal as head coach.

## Roster

Note: Flags indicate national team eligibility at FIBA-sanctioned events. Players may hold other non-FIBA nationalities not displayed.

### Depth chart

| Pos. | Starting 5 | Bench 1 | Development |
| PG | Jaylen Adams | Shaun Bruce | Jackson Makoi |
| SG | Denzel Valentine | Angus Glover | Klairus Amir |
| SF | Jaylin Galloway | Alex Toohey | Makuach Maluach |
| PF | D. J. Hogg | Kouat Noi | Isaac Gattorna |
| C | Jonah Bolden | Jordan Hunter | Sam Timmins |

## Standings
### Ladder

| Pos | 2023–24 NBL season vte | 2023–24 NBL season vte | 2023–24 NBL season vte | 2023–24 NBL season vte | 2023–24 NBL season vte | 2023–24 NBL season vte | 2023–24 NBL season vte | 2023–24 NBL season vte | 2023–24 NBL season vte | 2023–24 NBL season vte | 2023–24 NBL season vte | 2023–24 NBL season vte |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | PCT | Last 5 | Streak | Home | Away | PF | PA | PP |
| 1 | Melbourne United | 28 | 20 | 8 | 71.43% | 3–2 | W1 | 11–3 | 9–5 | 2615 | 2454 | 106.56% |
| 2 | Perth Wildcats | 28 | 17 | 11 | 60.71% | 2–3 | L2 | 10–4 | 7–7 | 2630 | 2563 | 102.61% |
| 3 | Tasmania JackJumpers | 28 | 16 | 12 | 57.14% | 4–1 | W4 | 8–6 | 8–6 | 2564 | 2378 | 107.82% |
| 4 | Illawarra Hawks | 28 | 14 | 14 | 50.00% | 3–2 | L1 | 8–6 | 6–8 | 2547 | 2518 | 101.15% |
| 5 | Sydney Kings | 28 | 13 | 15 | 46.43% | 2–3 | W1 | 7–7 | 6–8 | 2672 | 2602 | 102.69% |
| 6 | New Zealand Breakers | 28 | 13 | 15 | 46.43% | 3–2 | L1 | 8–6 | 5–9 | 2498 | 2480 | 100.73% |
| 7 | Brisbane Bullets | 28 | 13 | 15 | 46.43% | 2–3 | L1 | 8–6 | 5–9 | 2458 | 2534 | 97.00% |
| 8 | Cairns Taipans | 28 | 12 | 16 | 42.86% | 1–4 | W1 | 7–7 | 5–9 | 2506 | 2589 | 96.79% |
| 9 | Adelaide 36ers | 28 | 12 | 16 | 42.86% | 3–2 | W1 | 9–5 | 3–11 | 2457 | 2563 | 95.86% |
| 10 | S.E. Melbourne Phoenix | 28 | 10 | 18 | 35.71% | 1–4 | L4 | 7–7 | 3–11 | 2425 | 2691 | 90.12% |
Updated to match(es) played on 18 February 2024. Source: NBL.com.au
The NBL tie-breaker system as outlined in the NBL Rules and Regulations states that in the case of an identical win–loss record, the overall points percentage will determine order of seeding.

### Ladder progression

* Leader and qualification to semifinals
* Qualification to semifinals
* Qualification to play-in games
* Last place
2023–24 NBL season :
| Team ╲ Round | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 |
| Adelaide 36ers | 9 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 |
| Brisbane Bullets | 1 | 2 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 9 | 9 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 7 |
| Cairns Taipans | 8 | 6 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 9 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 8 |
| Illawarra Hawks | 10 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 5 | 6 | 8 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Melbourne United | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| New Zealand Breakers | 4 | 7 | 5 | 6 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 7 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 7 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 6 |
| Perth Wildcats | 6 | 5 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| S.E. Melbourne Phoenix | 5 | 9 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 7 | 8 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 |
| Sydney Kings | 2 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 7 | 5 |
| Tasmania JackJumpers | 7 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |

## Game log
### Pre-season

2023 NBL Blitz game log Total: 0–3 (Home: 0–2; Road: 0–1) :
September: 0–3 (Home: 0–2; Road: 0–1)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
1
18 September
S.E. Melbourne
L 86–93
Jaylin Galloway (18)
Denzel Valentine (11)
Shaun Bruce (5)
Gold Coast Convention Centre n/a
0–1
2
20 September
@ Melbourne
L 105–87
Alex Toohey (19)
Jordan Hunter (8)
Jaylin Adams (5)
Gold Coast Convention Centre n/a
0–2
3
22 September
Brisbane
L 76–105
Denzel Valentine (12)
Alex Toohey (5)
Shaun Bruce (5)
Gold Coast Convention Centre n/a
0–3 :

### Regular season

2023–24 game log Total: 13–15 (Home: 7–7; Road: 6–8) :
September: 1–0 (Home: 0–0; Road: 1–0)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
1
30 September
@ Illawarra
W 81–96
Kouat Noi (23)
Hunter, Valentine (7)
Denzel Valentine (10)
Wollongong Entertainment Centre 4,322
1–0 :
October: 3–3 (Home: 2–1; Road: 1–2)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
2
6 October
@ Tasmania
L 80–72
Jaylen Adams (21)
Alex Toohey (9)
Adams, Valentine (4)
Derwent Entertainment Centre 4,340
1–1
3
8 October
Adelaide
W 109–100
Jordan Hunter (22)
Jordan Hunter (8)
Jaylen Adams (8)
Sydney SuperDome 14,029
2–1
4
13 October
@ Brisbane
W 102–113
Jaylen Adams (26)
Jonah Bolden (12)
Denzel Valentine (6)
Nissan Arena 3,713
3–1
5
15 October
Perth
W 99–86
Jordan Hunter (20)
Jonah Bolden (15)
Jaylen Adams (6)
Sydney SuperDome 10,546
4–1
6
22 October
Tasmania
L 95–105
Jaylen Adams (21)
Jaylen Adams (10)
Denzel Valentine (6)
Sydney SuperDome 10,721
4–2
7
28 October
@ Cairns
L 87–80
Kouat Noi (18)
Jaylen Adams (8)
four players (2)
Cairns Convention Centre 4,587
4–3 :
November: 3–1 (Home: 2–0; Road: 1–1)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
8
3 November
@ Illawarra
W 83–103
Adams, Maluach (16)
Bolden, Hunter (9)
Jaylen Adams (7)
Wollongong Entertainment Centre 3,934
5–3
9
5 November
New Zealand
W 87–85
D. J. Hogg (18)
D. J. Hogg (7)
Jaylen Adams (9)
Sydney SuperDome 12,143
6–3
10
12 November
Brisbane
W 104–95
Jaylen Adams (24)
Jonah Bolden (9)
Adams, Hunter (4)
Sydney SuperDome 10,235
7–3
11
19 November
@ Melbourne
L 105–93
D. J. Hogg (20)
Jonah Bolden (12)
Denzel Valentine (7)
John Cain Arena 10,175
7–4 :
December: 3–4 (Home: 1–2; Road: 2–2)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
12
1 December
@ Perth
L 114–105
Jonah Bolden (28)
Denzel Valentine (9)
Jaylen Adams (8)
Perth Arena 11,897
7–5
13
7 December
@ Cairns
W 83–86
Jaylen Adams (24)
Jordan Hunter (10)
Jaylen Adams (7)
Cairns Convention Centre 4,126
8–5
14
10 December
S.E. Melbourne
L 94–104
Jaylen Adams (19)
Jonah Bolden (15)
three players (3)
Sydney SuperDome 13,197
8–6
15
17 December
@ Tasmania
W 84–90
Jaylin Galloway (22)
Denzel Valentine (7)
Jaylen Adams (10)
Derwent Entertainment Centre 4,340
9–6
16
22 December
@ New Zealand
L 109–101
Kouat Noi (19)
Alex Toohey (7)
D. J. Hogg (8)
Spark Arena 5,228
9–7
17
25 December
Illawarra
L 90–94
Jaylen Adams (22)
Jordan Hunter (8)
Jaylen Adams (5)
Sydney SuperDome 8,578
9–8
18
29 December
Cairns
W 101–82
Denzel Valentine (29)
Jordan Hunter (16)
D. J. Hogg (5)
Sydney SuperDome 12,783
10–8 :
January: 2–5 (Home: 2–3; Road: 0–2)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
19
4 January
Melbourne
L 85–101
Shaun Bruce (16)
Jordan Hunter (9)
Denzel Valentine (8)
Sydney SuperDome 12,898
10–9
20
7 January
Brisbane
L 93–101
Jaylen Adams (21)
Jordan Hunter (10)
Jaylen Adams (8)
Sydney SuperDome 13,078
10–10
21
11 January
@ Adelaide
L 95–82
Jaylen Adams (20)
Jordan Hunter (9)
Jaylen Adams (4)
Adelaide Entertainment Centre 9,580
10–11
22
14 January
New Zealand
W 105–76
Jaylen Adams (39)
Jordan Hunter (10)
Denzel Valentine (5)
Sydney SuperDome 16,605
11–11
23
21 January
Perth
L 98–104
Jaylen Adams (29)
Hunter, Noi (12)
Denzel Valentine (8)
Sydney SuperDome 13,138
11–12
24
25 January
@ S.E. Melbourne
L 104–98
Jaylen Adams (24)
Galloway, Valentine (5)
Jaylen Adams (9)
State Basketball Centre 3,422
11–13
25
28 January
Melbourne
W 98–86
Makuach Maluach (18)
Jordan Hunter (9)
Denzel Valentine (9)
Sydney SuperDome 12,921
12–13 :
February: 1–2 (Home: 0–1; Road: 1–1)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
26
2 February
@ Adelaide
L 85–78
Jaylen Adams (21)
Denzel Valentine (9)
Adams, Valentine (5)
Adelaide Entertainment Centre 9,434
12–14
27
11 February
Illawarra
L 95–106
Denzel Valentine (21)
D. J. Hogg (8)
Jaylen Adams (7)
Sydney SuperDome 14,832
12–15
28
17 February
@ S.E. Melbourne
W 67–122
D. J. Hogg (25)
Denzel Valentine (8)
Jaylen Adams (9)
John Cain Arena 8,279
13–15 :
2023–24 season schedule :

### Postseason

2024 finals game log Total: 0–1 (Home: 0–1; Road: 0–0) :
Play-in qualifier: 0–1 (Home: 0–1; Road: 0–0)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceSeries
1
28 February
New Zealand
L 76–83
Jaylen Adams (18)
Denzel Valentine (8)
Jaylen Adams (5)
Sydney SuperDome 8,231
0–1 :
2024 finals schedule :

## Transactions
### Re-signed

| Player | Date Signed | Contract |
| Jaylin Galloway | 21 March 2023 | 3-year deal (club option) |
| Angus Glover | 24 March 2023 | 2-year deal |
| Kouat Noi | 25 March 2023 | 1-year deal |
| Jackson Makoi | 28 March 2023 | 2-year deal |
| Isaac Gattorna | 28 August 2023 | 1-year deal |

### Additions

| Player | Date Signed | Contract | Former team |
| Makuach Maluach | 12 April 2023 | 2-year deal (club option) | Melbourne United |
| Klairus Amir | 4 May 2023 | 3-year deal | Dream City Christian School |
| D. J. Hogg | 26 May 2023 | 2-year deal (club option) | Cairns Taipans |
| Jonah Bolden | 19 June 2023 | 1-year deal | Phoenix Suns |
| Alex Toohey | 24 June 2023 | 2-year deal (next star) | Gonzaga Bulldogs |
| Jaylen Adams | 12 July 2023 | 1-year deal | Qingdao Eagles |
| Sam Timmins | 20 July 2023 | 1-year deal | New Zealand Breakers |
| Denzel Valentine | 26 July 2023 | 1-year deal | Maine Celtics |
| Jasper Rentoy | 18 September 2023 | 1-year deal | Eastern Mavericks |

### Subtractions

| Player | Reason left | Date Left | New team |
| Xavier Cooks | Contract buyout | 17 March 2023 | Washington Wizards |
| Justin Simon | Free agent | 20 March 2023 | Scaligera Verona |
| Biwali Bayles | Released | 25 May 2023 | Illawarra Hawks |
| Dejan Vasiljevic | Declined player option | 17 October 2023 | Adelaide 36ers |

## Awards
### Club awards

* Club MVP: Jaylen Adams
* Coaches Award: Alex Toohey
* Player's Player: Jaylen Adams
* Defensive Player: Jordan Hunter
* Hard Work Award: Shaun Bruce
* Members Player of the Year: Jordan Hunter