Neemias Queta Has Stockton Feeling Like Kings

It’s a great year to be a King.

While the Sacramento Kings are experiencing their most successful season in over 15 years, their G League affiliate not far down the road is putting together an equally impressive campaign. At 25-7, the Stockton Kings finished the regular season with the best record in not just the Western Conference, but also the entire G.

At the center of it all for Stockton has been Two-Way big man Neemias Queta. Following a standout career at Utah State during which he was named Mountain West Conference Defensive Player of the Year twice and All-Mountain West Conference three times, Queta was selected in the second round of the 2021 NBA draft by Sacramento. After a strong rookie campaign, his second season has been particularly impressive. Queta finished the regular season as the only player in the entire league to average at least 16.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks per game in at least 23 games - the 70% threshold to qualify him for league leaderboards. His play earned him a selection by league executives to the inaugural NBA G League Next Up Game during NBA All-Star Weekend in Salt Lake City, where he posted a team-high 22 points to go with 9 rebounds and 5 assists on 10-12 from the floor for Team Scoot.

With Queta carrying the scoring load on offense and acting as the anchor on defense, Stockton has been a two-way juggernaut. They own the league’s best offensive rating (119.3), rank eighth in defensive rating (110.6), and also boast the best net rating in the G (8.7). They’re one of just two teams, along with South Bay, to rank in the top ten in both offensive and defensive rating during the regular season. It’s a feat that puts them in pretty decent company: only one G League champion since the league expanded beyond 10 teams in 2007 has not been in the top 10 in both offensive and defensive rating. So it shouldn’t come as a surprise that this Kings team is one of the favorites to win it all in these G League Playoffs.

In the lead-up to their playoff run, we caught up with the pride of Portugal to talk about his upbringing, his time at Utah State, life in the G, and what to expect from Stockton in the near future.

Q: How were you first introduced to the game when you were growing up around Lisbon, Portugal and who drove you to want to play the game?

Neemias Queta: It was a fortunate situation. We had a teacher at my school that pretty much incentivized my older sister to start playing basketball. And so one of those days when I went with her, there was a practice starting right next to them. I just ended up joining the mix and ever since then, I never stopped playing.

Q: When you were coming up, who were some guys that you watched a lot of when you started developing your game and tried to emulate?

NQ: I would literally just watch a lot of the players from Portugal. Carlos Andrade was a big player for me that I used to look up to who was really big for me over here. I used to watch Hakeem Olajuwon for his footwork in the paint and bigs that could move and be versatile. Those types of players I used to watch.

Q: After you played your youth ball, you then spent some time with Benfica. What made you decide to go to Logan, UT and play for Utah State?

NQ: By playing that one year with Benfica, I had a few connections with other players that had actually played over here in college at different schools. But I really didn't feel like those schools would be good for me. So I went to Utah State just because of the coaching staff, the way they recruited me, they actually flew to Portugal to see me and my family. They gave me assurance. And at the same time, Diogo (Brito), the other Portuguese guy, was already there. He had gone to school with my older sister too, so it was a small world and it just made it easier for me to go over there.

Q: What were your first impressions of the town and the campus as a whole when you first got over there? 

NQ: I went straight from Portugal to Logan. It was a culture shock for sure. Different city, different environment, the weather was totally different. But I felt like they welcomed me with open arms and it was easy to adjust. Not only by the things I told you before, but at the same time just because of the way that the people and the fans and all my teammates were welcoming.

Q: Was there one memory that is always going to stick out to you when you think about your time there?

NQ: Probably the way that we finished the first year (2018-19). How we were picked to go ninth in the conference and we ended up winning the whole thing. Beating Nevada in the tournament and beating Nevada at home to pretty much clinch the regular season title. We shocked a lot of people and it was a great experience for us for sure.

Q: When you got drafted and then when you eventually made your debut, you were the first Portuguese player to get drafted and play in the NBA. When most people think of Portugal, they may think of soccer and Ronaldo or the guys riding the massive waves in the Nazare. What did it mean to you to finally be able to put Portugal on the map to that kind of extent in the NBA?

NQ: It meant a lot for me. Just being able to give the world a different facet of Portugal. Of course, you said all those things that we’re known for, but introducing a little bit of Portuguese basketball into the world was something I really wanted to do. And it's something that we're going to keep doing and keep on building from.

Q: This year specifically, watching Stockton over the course of the season, there’s been a lot of team-centric success. Eight guys are averaging over 10 points per game and on any given night, any one of you could go lead the team in scoring. How important would you say it is to have so many guys that are able to take over a game?

NQ: I think it is really important for us just to have so many guys that take pressure off each other, seeing what the defense gives you, and feeling that hot hand because there's always going to be one. It’s really a great benefit for us. I feel like it's one of our biggest strengths and it makes us want to share the ball even more. Our defense sets the tone for all of that and I think we're on the right track just as playoff time is coming.

Q: Speaking of that success, as a team you’re top-eight in offensive and defensive efficiency. With the nature of the G being what it is, guys are constantly going in and out. How do you maintain the kind of continuity that you guys have had over the season despite those absences?

NQ: We really look at it as a next-man-up type of mentality. Guys are going to be back and forth in the lineup whether it's through injuries, call-ups, whatever you want to call it, it's always something going on. So guys have to be ready. We're ultimate pros and we just have to stay on top of our game for whenever our names get called. And we just want to keep on building because we're a team that's got big goals and we just want to help each other get to those goals.

Q: Sacramento’s on a growing list of NBA teams that have their G League affiliates located closer to them. How much of a benefit is it to play in Stockton, and then if you have to spend time with the big club, them being as close as they are?

NQ: This is one of the best situations in the whole league. Both teams are pretty close to each other. You look at some teams, they have to fly to go back and forth and it's not the best situation. We're just really fortunate to be in one situation like this. Management did a really good job.

Q: Speaking more of the time you get to spend with the Sacramento Kings, how do you balance having to be a role player in Sacramento and then having to lead the way when you come back down to Stockton? Are there certain things that Sacramento wants you to really focus on while you're spending time with Stockton?

NQ: That's a good question. I feel like it's good for us young players to have different types of responsibilities and learn how to deal with them. Just as a young player, it’s only going to help you get better and build your character growing up. One of the things that they really want me to do down here is just be vocal, communicate, be a presence in the paint. And I feel like I've been doing that at a high level and I just want to keep on doing the things that they want me to do so I can get my chance.

Q: This is your second season under Stockton Kings head coach Bobby Jackson. He's obviously a legend in Sacramento, having won Sixth Man of the Year as part of those awesome Kings teams back in the early 2000s. What has he instilled in you and the team as a whole that's allowed you guys to succeed over the course of the season?

NQ: Bobby's a coach that's played in the NBA for many years at a high level on winning teams. So we're just trying to pick his brain as much as we can. He's a great personality. He's always around, always giving us confidence and he's really improving as a coach. Eventually, he's going to get a shot at the NBA level too.

Q: Sacramento’s obviously having one of their best seasons in almost two decades. How much has their success trickled down to you guys?

NQ: Like you said, it trickles down. We're all an organization. Everything goes on a string, everybody goes back and forth. So we pretty much have the same foundation of philosophies, ways of going to work, going through adversity. So I feel like it's definitely going in the right direction with the decisions that we're making. It started with Summer League with the way that we set the tone from there. Guys bought into this system and we've been playing hard ever since.

Q: Looking ahead, you guys have put yourselves in a pretty good position to make a deep playoff run. Obviously, once you get into the playoffs, nothing is ever really guaranteed. But how do you feel about the outlook of the team moving forward?

NQ: We’ve got so many different options. We’ve got a deep bench and we're all so versatile that it’s a tough matchup for any team in the G. I feel like we’re playing our best basketball and we're really confident about what’s ahead of us and we're just ready for it. I feel like we're going to be ready for these types of games in the playoffs and it should be fun.

Q: It's not the ultimate goal of winning an NBA title, but what would it mean to win a G League title this season with this team?

NQ: It would mean a lot. We put in a lot of work for this type of opportunity this year. All the guys bought in from the beginning, all the guys have been locked in, all the guys have been gelling well together. So it would just be the pinnacle, the cherry on top of the cake for us to win this championship.

Watch Queta and the Stockton Kings continue their pursuit of a title when they take on the Sioux Falls Skyforce on Thursday, March 30, on ESPN2 at 10 pm/et.