Kings win 121-118 against the Blazers. Was this a get right game or are they still searching?
Sacramento survives OT thriller at home against Portland
After three consecutive loses on the road that included a heartbreaking defeat to the Golden State Warriors and back to back embarrassing loses to the Houston Rockets, the beam was finally dusted off tonight. Still without De’Aaron Fox (ankle), the Sacramento Kings managed to come out victorious after a narrow 121-118 overtime win against a hobbled Portland Trailblazers squad.
Going into this matchup, things were looking bleak in the capital city. There are a great number of words that could been used to describe how the Kings played in this recent stretch and almost all of them ware unsuitable for children. So instead I’ll just use this one word…desultory.
The offense was sloppy and ineffective. The defense was nonexistent. Yes it was only a couple games, but they genuinely hurt to watch.
However, sometimes a team just needs a kick in the ass from reality to get back on track. Hopefully this game is a sign that the Kings will get back to playoff form soon.
Here are three takeaways from tonight’s bounce back win.
Sometimes it’s selfless to be selfish
In basketball, being selfless is typically beneficial to success. It can lead to better looks and get more players involved. However, it’s not uncommon for big time facilitators to get caught up in trying to pass the ball too much. This leads to missed opportunities avoidable errors.
That was the case for Domantas Sabonis during the trip to Houston. In those two losses, he totaled just 14 combined shot attempts and 9 total assists. He wasn’t aggressive enough and in the games where they’re missing Fox, the Kings need him to step up and score.
Tonight, he matched his total from Houston with 14 shot attempts and 9 assists. He also finished with a team high 27 pts and 11 reb. Domas is an All-Star and an All-NBA player and he needs to realize it. When he gets “selfish” and makes it a point to be an aggressive scorer, he’s usually very successful regardless of the opponent.
Even after Fox returns, and Domas isn’t the top scoring option, keeping this level of aggression will allow the Kings’ offense to become even more potent.
Nothing is more important than effort
The main reason the Kings were able to get it done tonight is that they gave it their all. What does that look like? Chasing loose balls, running in transition, staying in position on defense, being active on the glass, jumping the passing lanes, etc. Even when the shots aren’t falling and nothing seems to be going right, if a team leaves it all out there on the court a few plays are bound to go their way. At worst, they’ll be able to walk away with their head held high instead of regret.
In Houston, it looked as if they were on sleep mode waiting for Fox to come back and save them. Playoff teams don’t do that. They step up when their leader is out and stand on business. A couple guys used this opportunity for minutes to their advantage, and Mike Brown rewarded them for it. Second year guard Keon Ellis got his first career start in the NBA tonight after scoring more points than minutes played in the previous game. Kessler Edwards and Alex Len also saw increased minutes, but Brown made a point by giving Keon the nod.
While Davion Mitchell and Malik Monk would both end up with more minutes played and their typical role, Keon played well finishing with 4 pts, 4 reb and 3 stl. Not the most attractive numbers, but he didn’t fold in the moment and made big plays that won’t end up in the box score. Hopefully we get to see more of him moving forward.
At some point the shots are going to fall
The Kings shot miserably tonight, finishing 11-37 from 3PT and 28-38 from the stripe. Not great at all from a team that showed how talented they are at shooting last season. But it’s not as if they aren’t getting good looks. They are legitimately just unable to make their shots.
Between Kevin Huerter, Keegan Murray and Malik Monk, there’s some sort of mental block that’s keeping them from shooting they way we all know they can. They combined to go 5-22 from 3PT range tonight and are shooting an abysmal average of 27.5% together on the season.
The harsh reality is that the team simply has to live with this for now. They are doing their job and just happen to in the middle of a cursed stretch of play. In time these shots will fall and we’ll all love watching them again. It’s a long season.
Watch the full game highlights below.