The Denver Nuggets stunted the Kings’ four-game winning streak and stopped them from completing an undefeated road trip. This isn’t a hot headline, considering the Kings were without Malik Monk and Domantas Sabonis, and Denver is 3rd in the west with the best basketball player in the world on their team. But lucky for you, that’s what we’re here for: to tell you the beautiful story behind the boring headline. And tonight’s story is one of hope, hustle, and heartbreak. A Kangz classic, if you will.
Quick Stats
Sacramento Kings: 45.8% fg, 40.7% 3 pt, 78.6% ft, 22 ast, 45 reb, 12 to
Denver Nuggets: 46.0% fg, 34.3% 3 pt, 80.0% ft, 28 ast, 46 reb, 13 to
The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly
The Good:
- The Hope: Let’s start from the beginning. The Kings shocked everyone with their 42-point first quarter performance. Keegan Murray, who was ultimately stunted by foul trouble throughout the entire game, started out with a demonstrative aggression on the offensive end. It was a hopeful sight to see him attack the basket with confidence. Though he wasn’t able to capitalize on this mentality through the thick of the game, his teammates followed his example and never backed down. Jonas Valanciunas (19 points, 13 rebounds) went at Nikola Jokic as an equal, even backing him down in the post and getting him to flop for an easy bucket. Zach LaVine (20 points) showcased his passing ability with a handful of perfectly placed pocket passes to Valanciunas within the flow of the offense. My favorite play of the night was a high pick and roll between LaVine and Valanciunas that led to a pocket pass to Valanciunas at the top of the key where he found a baseline cutting Keon Ellis for a dunk. The Kings really executed Denver’s most signature offense against them and it was beautiful to see. The biggest spark in the first quarter came from Jake LaRavia off the bench, who scorched the Nuggets for 11 points in four minutes to end the quarter. The Kings looked poised and confident on both ends of the ball and as a result, put the Nuggets on their heels.
- The Hustle: The Kings came out with a clear plan on defense and executed it about as well as you could have asked them to. Keegan Murray started out on Nikola Jokic, which left Jonas Valanciunas available to protect the rim and provide back side help whenever Jokic got the ball. When Murray got into foul trouble, Jake LaRavia stepped in and spent every ounce of muscle battling for position against Jokic in the post. Sacramento’s goal was to force the ball out of Jokic’s hands and live with the chances of others beating them. This worked out a majority of the game, until Denver’s supporting cast began to capitalize on their open looks. The Kings held Jokic to 22 points, 15 rebounds, and six assists. For anyone else in the league (besides maybe Domantas Sabonis), this stat line would make it seem like the Kings didn’t do their job. But against the best player in the world, I tip my hat to this team. They took their chances on a strategy and fought like hell to pull it off. The ball just didn’t fall in their favor enough times.
The Bad:
- The Heartbreak: The Kings were able to maintain a 10-point lead over the Nuggets for three quarters. While the Nuggets went on some runs in the third quarter, the Kings were able to respond to hold on to control of the game, thanks in large part to DeMar DeRozan and his 18 points in the quarter. Things were looking good heading into the fourth, and thoughts of a fifth win in a row felt very real. But, like so many classic Kangz stories, this one ended in heartbreak. The Kings ran out of gas, scoring just 17 points in the quarter, while the Nuggets finally started hitting shots. Russell Westbrook (25 points) and Christian Braun (15 points) combined for seven made 3-pointers by the end of the night after being left open as a result of the extra attention on Nikola Jokic.
The Ugly:
- Free Throw Discrepancy: The Kings shot just 14 free throws in comparison to the Nuggets’ 30. It’s not why they lost, but it was frustrating to see DeMar DeRozan get hacked on one end and Keegan Murray suffer from tight foul calls on the other.
The King of Kings
This game was most memorable for the heart and hustle we saw from the Kings. And no one displayed that more tonight than Jake LaRavia. Off the bench, he was fearless in his assignment against the much larger Nikola Jokic, fighting for every inch he could get in position against the MVP. LaRavia finished with 15 points on 3-5 from the 3-point line and two steals.
Up Next
Friday, March 7th vs. San Antonio Spurs – 7:00 P.M. (PT)
Mirann should write more stuff.
Howdy Luther, good to “see” you through the internet of everything.
Mirann, what Luther said. Thank you.
Thank you both! I am trying to get back into doing more games!
Hey HJP , Thanks. Been meaning to ask…
Did you listen to the Royals on radio?
I thought the refs were pretty in inconsistent tonight on both ends. Not sure when the last time I’ve seen two teams combine to be 4/4 on challenges.
Overall I thought the Kings settled a lot for midrange fadeaway shots so not sure how many of those you realistically will get a foul call for. Levine needs to be more aggressive and attack the paint.
Through the first three quarters, maybe. Not in the 4th. Plus the 5 fouls on Keegan.
Excellent write up and explained the game exactly as it happened. . Kings now have a good bench when healthy .
Lots of issues in that 4th quarter led to the loss but the officiating throughout the game was so painful. Dear NBA, if you’re wondering why viewership is down please aim your attention at the one thing you directly control: the officials. All four coaches challenges were overturned. Let the kids hoop instead of blowing the whistle whenever two players exchange glances.
Mirann Tsumura is an absolute treasure. I love her.
I appreciate you so much!
Denver’s Offensive Player of the Game:
&ct=g
And yes, I was offended.
1 free throw through the first 3 quarters. That is some lopsided officiating. Kings lose by 6, Nuggets with 16 more FTA.
I believe this to be the difference in the game. Sac appeared to be the better team.
That challenged no call on Russ’s push in LaRavia’s back was some F’in’ BS.
I generally don’t like making a big deal about the refs BUT that was about as bad as it gets. From obvious no calls on SAC (DDR had a few in the last 8 mins alone) to touch fouls for DEN.
The refs wanted DEN to win, so they won.
That reffing crew was a joke.
Laravia taking more shots than Murray…
There are reasons, excuses, whatever, but you also have to want it, Keegan.
Overall not bad. At Denver, without Domas and Monk.
I was getting worried Mirann had left us! Always love your articles & takes- more, please!
I could never leave! Thanks so much!
For a loss, a pretty good game. I thought the Kings would have a chance when I heard Aaron Gordon was out. Hard to beat the champs from two years ago on the road. Zach LaVine got taken out of the game. He hits a few more shots, and maybe there’s a different result.
Yeah, felt like he needed to be more aggressive. Can’t put all the “create a shot” weight on DeMar
How can a team that drafts nothing but point guards be in need of point guards? Asking for a friend.
Well, the Kings are often pointless.
They drafted combo guards. None of them are actual PGs that can orchestrate an offense as their primary skill.
Hali, Davion, Fox. These were all guys that were unquestioned PGs coming out of college. And Carter was his team’s lead guard.
I’m inclined to agree they lean more towards shooting / combo guards. Whatever they may have been in college, Vivek gets them here and sits them down one day and says (like a sith lord) “you’re a 2. Feel the shots flow” and they all buy into it. Then the coach has to backfill holes in the lineup and dudes get stuck out of position. I’m just waiting for the day Vivek gets Ben Simmons to be our “center”, I can see him cackling in glee over it now…
Add this to the list of wins we should’ve had. Ugh
32 FGA by Derozan! Yikes, that’s a bit much. During the 4 game winning streak, no one took more than 19 FGA. I know he had a solid game and was efficient, but it’s not good team basketball when one dude takes a 1/3 of all FGA, and most of those are in ISO.
As much as I enjoyed the Kings’ intensity and aggressiveness on defense, the over dependence on DeRozan iso plays on offense was a joy killer.
The inexplicably weird decisions Lavine seems to make pretty consistently on the offensive end bother me more. He made some of them too, but he takes stupid shots a lot.
My problem is if he’s going to disappear on offense for a while, the least he could do is be a defensive pest in the interim. He just kinda disappears from both sides for stretches sometimes.
Zach needed to step up and initiate some. If DeMar wasn’t initiating, they just passed the ball around the perimeter and jack a contested 3.
35 points on 32 shots isn’t that efficient.
I thinks on many nights, teams are fine with letting DDR cook, as long as they can limit the others around him and don’t send him to the line too often.
Exciting game. Really liked our effort. If we bring it like that every night, we’ll win a lot of games. Liked the chase down blocks by Keegan!
Fuck the Refs!
I liked the effort too. I thought the defensive scheme/game plan was brilliant and executed really well for the most part.
DDR was cooking, but I still think the ball gets stuck in ISO too much these days.
Loved this game, favorite loss of the season. Team showed so much grit and creativity (credit to Christie) in matching up against a good team without two of our main players. Besides actually winning, there’s nothing I love more than when our team flusters a team on the defensive end to the point where they make silly turnovers. Keon must be prioritized as a key part of our future, his value and untapped potential on this team is HUGE!
Towards the end, believe we got away from our set plays and did too much ISO, seemed players were not on the same page (probably due to fatigue from road trip, or getting thrown out of the rhythm by too many whistles as Deebo put it)
All in all, anyone who watched this game knows we can go up against one of the best teams in the league, with a team that was put together half way through the season and a new head coach. Promising signs of things to come, front office needs to prioritize continuity moving forward with this squad and good things will come.
Too bad getting called out on their bullshit 4 times didn´t stop the refs from creating a ton more of it. I think the Kings could have won 10 challenges last night.
I haven’t felt the Kings have been ref-jobbed in a long time. I can’t go all the way there last night, but man there were some really questionable calls/non calls that went against them seemingly more often than not.
I think the calls/non-calls went in favor of Denver overall, but I think what was so disappointing about last night was inconsistency, with some shoves being no calls, and then some very faint contact being called. Either call it tight or let them be physical.
Naji, Watson and ESP Westbrook took over. Better than anyone on the Kings. Now that’s depth. When your starters aren’t having the best night.
Loved that the Kings went toe to toe with a legit contender in their house with a playoff atmosphere. Fun game to watch*
Some things to clean up as always but I was encouraged by their play for the most part.
* This was despite the horrible officiating in which they violated the cardinal rules of refereeing in my book, they decided the game instead of the players and they became a noticeable part of the game. Refs IMO always need to remember nobody is there to watch them.
More challenges needed? 3 per half total of 6? Who says no?
Not until they streamline the system, please.
I don’t think the floor Refs should litigate the challenges. There’s an inherent bias to validate your calls.
Should all be done in the replay center.
Agreed 100%. Simply no way to be above reproach, which to me, is the most important aspect of officiating. You try to get the calls right, but you always want your integrity to be above reproach.
There is a fine line to toe.
My beef with the system – is the universal agreement that the judgement time is not regulated. Once the green light is lit, New Jersey and Co. have 60 seconds. If after 60 seconds they can’t reach a conclusive decision, then the call on the floor stands.
Too often, the challenged call, even with Garden State input – isn’t correct and we have to put up with the nonsense decision anyway.
Being an NBA referee sucks – but it is a necessary evil and for the most part, the folks doing this thankless work are trying to do their best. And it is the highest standard for this work in the U.S. – but man, sometimes they do a terrible job that causes an outcome for the contest that should not be.
Grade the officials. DON’T make the grades public – that does not help one bit. But – educate and school with the intent to improve their officiating. Reward the best, dismiss the worst, and use technology to aid as much as possible without making the game a disjointed mess.
The current system could be better and should be better.
And 1 –
it is easy to sit on my couch and make proclamations and hand out my sage wisdom – there are committees out there, including a coach’s committee – to help develop a better product.
When I first started watching the NBA, there were just 2 officials, no replay, no coach’s challenges. It should be noted that the effort is there and improvements have been made.
I feel like you should be able to challenge until you miss one. Games would take 5 hours, but why penalize a team because the Refs screwed them twice already?
Could have used 10 or so in 2002.
3 challenges is ok as long as they cut the time to challenge from 30 secs to 15 secs. Too much time for a coach to decide to challenge and they have been relying on replays rather tthan their instinct i.e. overturned foul on Jake. Of course it cuts both ways and the Kings could also lose out, but it is more fair, IMO. YMMV.
I find myself upset about an expected loss. Progress? It was actually a pretty good game by the team, especially without Domonk, until the very end. We’ll see how the rest of the season goes. The org is clearly going all-in on “win now”, whether that’s a good idea or (more likely) not. Screw first round draft picks (in a highly talented draft class)! We don’t need or want any!
OT but I was going through the comments of the pod post, and the topic of worst things to happen to fan bases was being discussed.
What would everyone’s opinion be? Obviously losing Luka is ridiculous, I think the sonics are worse though. Just curious to hear everyone’s opinions. The KANGZ have many but I’m sure there’s some stories out there
+1 when I was thinking about the Mavs, losing Luka is crazy yes. But as Greg mentioned, they had a great 20 year run so I understand the argument on that end, and if it just ends up being the luka trade, then get ready to see what a non competent owner feels like in Dallas. If the move is to eventually move them to Vegas though, I think that might top it all. What a terrible ownership if that’s the long game. But if it just ends up being the trade and they can build a team in their mold then it’s not the worst case scenario
Miriam Adelson is one of the wealthiest women in the world and I believe is the second wealthiest owner in the league, behind only Ballmer. She can probably do whatever she wants and it wouldn’t surprise me one bi if she moves the Mavericks to Vegas. She has definitely torched the fanbase in Dallas and has raised prices on top of it.
I should point out that Las Vegas is the Lakers TV market. Part of me wonders if the Luka trade was the price paid to to get approval to Vegas. It sounds tin-foiled hat for sure, but it wouldn’t surprise me. From all that, I could simply see the league granting Dallas an expansion team.
So why didn’t Adelson just wait for an expansion team to Vegas? It likely would have cost her more and the team would suck for years. By poaching the Mavs she has a couple of superstars from the get go. Everyone loves a good conspiracy, amirite?
I never even considered that aspect of it regarding the territory. I think Luka was also offered to the Twolves for Ant. If the wolves actually bit on that trade, things actually don’t seem nearly as bleak for them. But the whole behind closed doors only nico and rob talks, it wouldn’t really surprise me, especially with the new ownership. Cuban seemed so good to everyone top to bottom in that organization from the time he took over. It’s sad to see some cutthroat business person ruin so much of the fandom so quickly
I’m re-watching the game and I couldn’t be much more impressed with Keegan, Keon, LaRavia and the rest for the way they battle defensively, especially on Jokic, who is such a BEAST!
Also I’m watching, and mostly listening, to the FOBBV live eagle cam, and it’s SO fascinating. I hope some of you have taken the opportunity to check it out. It’s riveting! Even just the sound alone is like a transcendent.
Great recap, excellent read!
Very good effort against some Grade A adversity, the team almost held up. +1 to do so without 2 of your starters, kudos to Monte for finally rounding out the bench a little and DC for keeping these guys locked in with some effective play calling.
One takeaway, besides the shit officiating, was that in the 4th quarter we saw a veteran team do what a successful veteran team does; they controlled the game with effective defense and efficient offense. They made the Kings uncomfortable and put their foot on the gas when they had the advantage and most importantly, they executed. I believe that comes with time together. Not sure if this group has that but they certainly have a lot more talent at their disposal and that helps.
Was surprised we actually had a shot at taking a game from them at home and not at all down on the loss. This team has a lot to figure out but they really do have good talent at the top end and the depth. A shot blocker would be nice, but they seem to be finding ways around that and staying fairly successful on defense, at least from the eye test. Its the offensive end where I see they really could develop another gear, they just haven’t had the chance to work on it. I wouldn’t hate to see this group again, especially if they can get into the first round. Here’s to the Kings sticking it to Fox and the Spurs tomorrow…
Go Kings!
Kings are pretty much smoke and mirrors. They won a few decent games against teams injured or teams like the Rockets still needing a go to scorer or the Celtics bored in the middle of the season. Or a Denver team who just needs to keep it in the ballpark and step in the gas in the 4th.
Team core will be one of the oldest in the league next year. The MO is to win now?
They could get pass the play in depending on the match up. What then?
Maybe they get lucky and face the
Rockets, Wolves, Dallas, Memphis.
All a toss up.
But the chances of beating the likes of the Dubs, Lakers or OKC are downright laughable. They will be swept and eaten alive in 4. Playoff Jimmy is not fiction. 3 ECf and 2 Finals in the past 5 yrs. Think of what he’s going to accomplish with a real star. Curry
Hate to enlighten anyone. Lakers are guaranteed to be championship quality for many many years now. Even when LeBron steps down.
Another star will take his place.’The day after.
Playoffs certainly on the table.
Championship? Blazers will be closer to a championship next year compared to the Kings
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