In a hard fought, back-and-forth affair, the Sacramento Kings held off the Dallas Mavericks in overtime to snag their 32nd win of the season. Once again, De’Aaron Fox led the way in scoring for the Kings, recording 36 points, while Terence Davis was huge off the bench, pouring in 22 points, and Domantas Sabonis was his usual stat-stuffing self, ending the night with 22 points and 14 boards. For the Mavericks, their two All-Stars combined for 53 points, 16 rebounds, and 12 assists, but their brilliance wasn’t enough to pull out the victory for Dallas.
Amidst the tight Western Conference race and after Friday evening’s disappointing performance against the same Dallas Mavericks, tonight’s win rings especially important, as the Kings have built a full two-game lead over the Mavericks for third in the West. The Kings will enjoy a couple of days of rest before heading to Phoenix to take on Kevin Durant and the Suns on Tuesday night.
Light the Beam!
My first post here in a long, long time…
LIGHT. THAT. MF. BEAM.
I also haven´t posted in a very long time, and I fully agree with your statement.
Against a Mavs squad with two legitimate superstars, Fox was the best player on the floor tonight.
And that’s saying something because Kyrie was also fantastic. Luka is 4-8 against Sac all time. He knows he should have come here.
Then we never draft Haliburton, who is never traded for Sabonis, who doesn’t sit out at the end of last season to drop us into the lottery slot with which we land the 4th pick, where we don’t get to draft Keegan.
No siree, I’m now content with Luka being in Dallas
Exactly. We’re so far removed from that draft that there’s no way to say this team would be better with Luka.
But you forgot to mention the most important thing… Do we even have Monte McNair as our GM if we drafted Luka? Vlade bet on his job on Bagley and lost.
i have said many times that Fox is not an all star because his game is one sided. Tonight he played both sides of the game and led the team without isolation shooting to lose.
This Fox is an All Star.
Thought he played well on both ends yesterday too, especially in the 4th again.
He did the same in the second Houston game. Dominated the last half of the 4th qtr and wins the game after falling down by 5 points with 52 seconds left on the clock.
Have never been a Fox fan prior to this season. Tonight I had to tell my son (who lives in Portland and who has been a fan of Fox since he was playing for Kentucky) that I have been totally wrong about him. IMO I think that tonight’s win over the Mavs was Foxey’s most complete game as a King and I think that he belongs as a first choice AS selection regardless of how the fans popularity contest goes. Tonight he played an incredible game. Who says no?
Agree with everything you said, with a minor quibble:
There were significant points of valid criticism for Fox in previous seasons (very bad defense, middling scoring efficiency). Especially that latter part has changed this season. He’s shooting over 50% for two for the first timme in his career, and has upped his FT% to .792. If he could improve his 3P% that would be great, but still, this is his highest TS% in his career by a wide margin.
His rebounding rate is up to his highest career mark, his TO% is at its lowest rate and his defense is not as bad though still spotty, but the improved offensive efficiency largely offsets that.
And then there’s his clutch play at the end of games.
Fox has taken his play to a next level. I’m eating crow.
And it is delicious!!
I say no to saying no.
Last 3 games- stripped Jaden Hardy last night for a steal and layup and did the same to Jalen Green in the Houston game, late.
When he shoots now, I expect it to go in- even the free throws. Has developed that mid-range pull up game – virtually unstoppable.
and TD stepped up–again.
Luka is talented but clunky- he was going half speed on a broken wheel. Most of his shots are: back down a smaller guy, spin, turn around and shoot over the defender. Good hand eye co-ordination, good strength but slow and ball stopping.
His put back dunk was impressive as was his get off the ground by a third of an inch three pointer.
For awhile this pairing of him and flat earth will work but eventually- conflict.
Good game and season and Fox has a great deal to do with that.
Twenty-six points in seventeen minutes of game time.
And he wore Kyrie’s ass out, too. The new dad is locked in.
And big ups to TD who made Luka work a lot harder than he wanted to in his first game back. Doncic was never able to take over the way he can.
Seems time to move TD ahead of Davion when Monk gets back . TD is a sold defender as well .
Indeed. TD disrupted and caused Luka to rush an attempt at a pass, Fox intercepts it and goes in for the jam when a basket was really needed to keep the pressure on the Mavs.
I am with you. I would like to see TD get more playing time.
With how Brown staggers Fox and Sabonis, and Monk’s ability to create for others, it would work to play Monk at the point and share playmaking with Sabonis, and have TD take over some of Davion’s minutes.
I love Davion, and swore he was going to make a jump the second half of the season, but he is becoming more and more of a situational player. Still helpful, but not enough to keep TD on the bench.
Agree. I could get behind that. TD can give you 10 off the bench. When has Davion done that?
You need that defensive stopper that Davion gives you, Why not play all 3 together. Davion, Monk and TD. It just might work.
Why not play all 3 together?
TD had a great game. But I wouldn’t overreact. Davion is a consistent ball handler and while he’s rarely electric on offense, he also plays under control. TD is sometimes unplayable because he is completely out of control. Give TD more minutes but I’d need to see a lot more consistent play and effort before he leapfrogs Davion.
T F’n D!
What
A
Win
Fox stepping up again!
Lucky that Doncic did not in his “full form”…..first game back in action.
and lucky that Jason Kidd did not play Wood for extended minutes….
Luka definitely off today and did not look 100%
Did you see how many times he hit the floor tonight?
I don’t understand why he doesn’t get in better shape. Between his pudge, his usage rate, and the recklessness in hitting the floor, I wonder what that guy is going to look like in a few years. This may be his peak and when he hits his late twenties he is injury prone.
U are absolutely on crack, this is BLASPHEMY!
Luka “Michael Sweetney” Doncic
pudgy, out of shape, hits the floor and never, ever stops yapping to the refs. Shut the fuck up.
Compare his body to LeBron, Kobe, MJ-
he gets by on lazy talent, bulk and backing guys down.
TO BAD!
Mavs have 3 more losses in the loss column than the Kings after this game.
That is how much Fox means to the Kings.
A huge swing in the loss column because of his play tonight. Superb game.
All Star.
New Dad.
Playoff feel and Dallas much better . Seems , Clips, Mars, and Suns will be coming after 3rd !
Let them come. We’ll be waiting.
They coming regardless of how we feel about it. They coming after Memphis, too.
Kings can get passed by 3 and still be at #6.
LAC, Suns, Mavs- most likely and duds, NOP, LAL far less likely.
the third slot is unexpected and Kings may slide a bit but I suspect not past 6. Very tight in the West.
I would love to see duds and Fakers play in play in. One has to lose.
REALITY- this is our first meaningful playoff- type game in a long time and we won. We’re getting close. Ps………. I’m working on changing the username
Just get rid of the “baze”.
How do you like it?
All Star Fox!
Fantastic response tonight after a disappointing performance last night.
Not sure nba.com really wanted to put this at the top of their front page – they were probably hoping to post “Kyrie and Luka combo victorious in first game together” – but instead it’s “FOX DELIVERS TO SPOIL LUKA & KYRIE’S 1ST GAME TOGETHER“
wow…………..that’s really great to see that !!!!!!!!!!!
Including overtime, the Kings played 8 quality quarters against the Mavs and one absolutely horrendous quarter. If this is how they respond as the intensity ramps up to the playoffs it’s going to be a fun few months!
The entire team rose to the challenge in this back to back game. Tired, sore, beat up. Exactly what it takes to be a thorn in the playoffs.
Going to be some great games to watch in these next 25 games.
This was the best game of the year as was stated on the game thread by a commenter.
Credit to Mike120 and Yakshi on the game of the year comment.
Great two-way games tonight from Fox and TD. Excellent response from the team and I give the credit to Brown and the staff for making sure the team understood that the intensity needed to be picked up for the rest of the season.
I think the question of ‘is Fox truly the alpha leader of this team’ has been answered definitively and consistently enough to be put to rest.
Huerter deserves some love for his efforts on both sides of the court. 8 rebounds, 5 assists, and 2 steals along with solid team defense. He even rediscovered his range for a night.
true, he contributed even when his shot was falling from 3 early
He knows that he was in a slump from 3 the last 10 games so what does he do but use his BBIQ and score more in the paint along with other stats such as rebounding and assists. You get out of your slump by keep shooting.
key late rebound
He’s been so great in adjusting to that. Buddy (and others) would just chuck forever, and somehow Coach brown has found a way to get him to be successful where he can until his shot returns. You love to see it.
We need Huerter to get back to his form. He is a big part of this team.
Maybe competing in the 3 point contest will get his shot back…or not.
I wouldn’t want him to embarrass himself right now but maybe that would be the ticket.
Hmmm, we beat a team that got better over the trade deadline, while we stood pat. Many thought we weren’t supposed to be doing that….weird.
Light the beam!
If Fox can play like this every night, locked in on defense as well as offense — we might have THE best 2 way PG in the NBA. Baby Kawhi. Holy hell Superstar potential. Not all-star. Superstar.
He will have his nights where things don’t go right but IMO they will not be many and we have the team that can back him up and still win. GO KINGS!
This game is pretty much the potential they said he had coming out. I’m convinced if he was a more selfish player he could easily average 30+ a night on O. With his elite athleticism he’s been lack luster on D but it seems like coach brown has worked some magic because when he is locked in he is a pesky ass defender and his team D is so much better too. 🦊⭐️
Most fun game of the season. What a battle. Would love a playoff round with Dallas.
Great game, great win. Man, Kyrie is good. What a great player. As goofy as he can be, he is really something on the court. The Mavs definitely got better trading for him.
That’s a great way to respond. That was a key win against a quality opponent, and one of the rivals jockeying for play-off positioning.
Very important win, on to the next one.
That’s a nice way to get an important win.
Great game from beginning to end, probably the best of the year intensity-wise. Fantastic win for the Kings against a quality opponent. Fox carried the Kings both on offense and defense and deserved the MVP chants late in the game. Davis stepped up with Monk out and I thought the play of Lyles was big too.
On another note: I hope
JeromeDwight Powell gets traded to a team in another country. What an absolute imbecile with his flailing arms and moving screens.Great game, some great performances, big success!
he looked like one of those balloons in front of the used car lot.
– Deal with it –
Important win – it brings Sac back up to 8 games above .500. It ties this season record at 1-1. It improves the Kings home record to 17-12 (Away 15-12). It keeps Dallas 2 games behind and the Kings at the 3rd slot.
L T B
I just want to point something out. We started 0-4. The Grizz started 10-0. Since that time we’ve gone 32-20, they’ve gone 24-21. Sure, that’s cherry picking and you could point to our 7 game winstreak or their recent slide or whatever. But we’re playing some great basketball right now, even compared with top teams in the west. Every team has clunkers, close games, and things like that. But we have legitimate stars who can take over games. I’m so happy with what is happening right now, and it’s a joy to be a Kings fan today. I wrote at the beginning of the year that there were teirs of teams we’d have to play better than, and teams we wouldn’t play better than. Right now, all of that is out the window. We’re playing competitively against the best teams and often winning. We’ve showed grit and toughness to win some ugly games. We’ve had nationally televised blowouts (where we’re winning!) and the team and the culture and everything is clicking in such an incredible way.
Light the Beam.
What I love is that we’ve had A LOT of close games this year, any other season we would’ve lost most of them, but I absolutely love the fact that we’ve found ways to get the win in a majority of them, something that has not really happened a lot in the past 16 seasons.
The close wins this season are great, but I don’t think that it’s true that they would’ve lost most of them in any other season during the playoff drought. I seem to remember that they had a good record in close games in at least 1 of Joerger’s seasons.
Point of order, we are one of the top teams in the west
Is this real life?
What’s crazy is that not everyone on our team is playing well. Meaning we’re still not at our peak this season. Kevin, who I think can be an all-star someday has been pretty inconsistent ever since his heater months of October-December. (I’d say December he started to drop, must be conditioning). Barnes has been straight ass in February after ulting in January. TD has been inconsistent primarily due to playing time. Our once starting C doesn’t even play. If he doesn’t get shipped off this June, I do hope he figures it out as a backup C as I still think Holmes is miles better than Chimmy. Metu has been Mehtu but I do wish he develops his 3 pt. Monk has been on and off. Davion is borderline unplayable because of his offensive deficiencies.
We’ve seen what this team can do with all cylinders firing; the Nets game, the Memphis game, etc.
All in all, this team’s ceiling will depend on the consistency of Kevin and the development of Keegan. They can raise this team on another level. If all goes well, I don’t see how we can’t make the WCF in 2-3 years.
I feel like I have made a similar post five times this season Timmy. The Kings are a very good team, evidenced by being the three seed for a few weeks this late in the season, but there is still room for growth!
I am with you, I don’t think we have seen the team just on fire for two weeks straight, with all weapons activated at the same time. Lord help the first round opponent if it happens near the end of the season.
Can you imagine facing Fox and the Ox in a deciding game in Sacramento with their shooters on a heater? Yikes.
I’m too optimistic about this team as is, Mike. Don’t say shit like this with me around. 🙂
True, I might beam
IIRC, the 7 game win streak happened over a 2 week period. During that streak, they were particularly on fire in the Nets game.
I wonder if being in the hunt for home court is going to make a difference in being able to get a helpful player in the buyout market.
If OKC buys out Dario Saric, he might be interesting with his size, shooting, and playmaking.
Perhaps Thad Young from Toronto, he is tough, smart, good passer, can play the five for twelve to fifteen a game. They paid a ton to get Poeltl from the Spurs, and now have a log jam up front with Precious, Poeltl, and Koloko at the five, and Siakam, Barnes, Boucher, and Porter at the four.
I guess Juan Toscano Anderson would be the other vet that would be really attractive if he was bought out.
I still feel one guy who could soak up minutes more effectively than Metu/Holmes would go a long ways towards the team having a chance for home court.
I thought coach playing Lyles at the 5 during overtime was a really good move. You can”t do this every time but because of the way Lyles was playing it was a good move on his part.
I think it depends on matchups. Lyles was up against Powell, who’s not exactly an imposing center. Lyles may struggle against the Jokic, Adams, and Aytons of the West.
Add another to the list of possible buyout help.
https://twitter.com/ShamsCharania/status/1624813135164239872
I like him too. For lack of a better phrase, someone who can soak up minutes. Ideal size guy to throw out against a Luka/PG/Kahwi on a heater in a playoff game. Not a bad passer/ball handler either.
. Playing against those three above I believe you are right but last night was the right move, That’s why a buyout if the right move could help against those big guys.
I think the issue with the buyout markets is the Kings will have to buy someone out to make a roster spot. I’d imagine that person would be Len. Is swapping out Len for Thad, Juan Toscano, Ibaka, or whoever that much of upgrade? Not to mention it would take time to gel with the team and system.
I think Thad would be a clear upgrade, he has a defensive versatility, toughness, and playmaking ability that is pretty appealing, in addition to being a pretty revered locker room guy.
I think Juan could help out too. Again, some versatility defensively, and has played in a similar system in GS.
I am not on board with Ibaka, he looks pretty washed. I am not saying just anyone would help, but I do think the Kings looking legit, Mike Brown being exceptionally well liked around the league (he seems like he is a bit of a collector of players and coaches, maintaining relationships a la Popvich), that a useful vet might consider the Kings as a smart choice if they are bought out.
It is a small list, but I am hopeful.
The big I’d like to see the Kings go after is Goga Bitazde. He’s available, doesn’t seem to have fit with Carlisle. I’m curious if Brown could crack that puzzle as McMillan, Bjorkgren and Carlisle never did.
KG21- you have been hyping Goga for some time. He is large, he and the coach are at odds and he is free.
Can Edwards be sent to Stockton and still remain in Kings control- but does he maintain his #15 roster slot? Then it would have to be Len.
I think Johnson and JTA are too small.
Yes, Edwards can be sent to Stockton. I think he was on the available roster against Dallas due to the Okpala injury. But it wouldn’t change his roster status. The only way to sign a player at this point is to waive someone. Edwards included. I think they are taking a flyer on him to see what he’s got. There’s something about Kessler Edwards they like.
The guy who will get bought out is either Delly or Len. Most likely Len because he’s not the 3rd PG like Delly is.
I like the idea of taking a flyer on Goga but does he have the ability to contribute more than Len for 10 minutes in a crucial game? If not, sign him to Stockton and get a look at him for next season.
Not that you ever want Len in an important moment. But who hurts you less
Oh, I’m not worried about that at all. This is more about a long term fit than who fits in the playoffs.
He should be available in the summer unless he signs in Europe.
Idk about Goga, he’s like Enes Murica but worse.
Biggest win so far this year! Holding onto a top 6 spot is obviously not going to be easy judging by tonight’s game. The Mavs look dangerous to me and some of these other teams that made trades will probably be better as well. Great win, keep the beam lit Kings! LTB BOI!!!
I need to check, and see how many times these 4-10 seeds play each other. With so many so tight, they may just continue to cannibalize each other and make climbing the ladder slower than it would be if there were more tanking teams.
The Kings having a three to five game edge in the loss column gets more significant all the time. There are roughly 25 games left, it is going to be harder and harder to make up ground short of a team going on a real heater for a few weeks.
According to their schedule:
– Suns 3x
– Blazers 3x
– Clippers 2x
– Pelicans 2x
– Jazz 2x
– Thunder 2x
– Wolves 2x
– Mavs 1x
– Nuggets 1x
– Warriors 1x
I gotcha Mike. One quick note, this isn’t the entire schedule, just West contenders (2-13) in the standings that matchup with each other between now and the rest of the season.
Dallas first.
2/13 Minnesota
2/15 @Denver
ASB
2/26 LA Lakers
3 /5 Phoenix
3/7 Utah
3/8 @New Orleans (SEGABABA for Dallas only)
3/11 @Memphis
3/13 Memphis
3/17 @LA Lakers
3/20 @Memphis
3/22 Golden State
4/5 Sacramento
What’s interesting is that almost none of these games involve SEGABABA’s outside of the New Orleans game. It’s all the other non-contenders and/or East teams they square off where SEGABABA’s are involved. Of note to me are the 3 times in 4 games they square off against Memphis.
Phoenix next.
2/14 Sacramento
2/16 LA Clippers
ASB
2/24 Oklahoma City
3/5 @Dallas
3/8 Oklahoma City
3/11 Sacramento
3/13 @Golden State (first half of a b2b for Phx; SEGABABA in Phoenix with Milwaukee on 3/14)
3/19 @Oklahoma City
3/22 @LA Lakers
3/24 @Sacramento
3/27 @Utah
3/29 Minnesota
3/31 Denver
4/7 @LA Lakers
4/9 LA Clippers
Another interesting point is that while I didn’t include the whole schedule, I’m including any West team here that isn’t completely out of it (SA/Houston). No SEGABABA’s here. Interesting.
LA Clippers next.
2/14 Golden State
2/16 @Phoenix
ASB
2/24 Sacramento (SEGABABA for Sac)
2/26 @Denver
2/28 Minnesota
3/2 @Golden State
3/3 @Sacramento (SEGABABA for LAC)
3/5 Memphis
3/15 Golden State
3/19 @Portland
3/21 Oklahoma City
3/23 Oklahoma City
3/25 New Orleans
3/29 @Memphis
3/31 @Memphis
4/1 @New Orleans
4/5 LA Lakers
4/8 Portland
4/9 @Phoenix (SEGABABA for LAC)
New Orleans Pelicans now.
2/13 @Oklahoma City
2/15 @LA Lakers
ASB
3/1 @Portland
3/3 @Golden State
3/6 @Sacramento
3/8 Dallas
3/11 Oklahoma City
3/12 Portland (SEGABABA for New Orleans)
3/14 LA Lakers
3/25 @LA Clippers
3/27 @Portland
3/28 @Golden State (SEGABABA for New Orleans)
3/30 @Denver
4/1 LA Clippers
4/4 Sacramento
4/5 Memphis (SEGABABA for both clubs)
4/9 @Minnesota
Memphis Grizzlies are on the schedule clock!
2/15 Utah
ASB
2/25 Denver
2/28 LA Lakers
3/3 @Denver
3/5 @LA Clippers
3/7 @LA Lakers
3/9 Golden State
3/11 Dallas
3/13 @Dallas
3/18 Golden State
3/20 Dallas
3/29 LA Clippers
3/31 LA Clippers
4/4 Portland
4/5 @New Orleans
4/9 @Oklahoma City
Golden State has arrived!
2/14 @LA Clippers (SEGABABA for GSW)
2/23 @LA Lakers
2/26 Minnesota
2/28 Portland
3/2 LA Clippers
3/3 New Orleans (SEGABABA for GSW)
3/5 @LA Lakers
3/7 @Oklahoma City
3/9 @Memphis
3/13 Phoenix
3/15 @LA Clippers
3/22 @Dallas
3/26 Minnesota
3/28 New Orleans
4/2 @Denver
4/4 Oklahoma City
4/7 @Sacramento
4/9 @Portland
And, alas, Minnesota. (For the purposes of this exercise I’m excluding the Lakers, Utah, Portland and OKC.) These are the last of the contenders (IMO) for the top 6 spots.
2/13 @Dallas
2/26 @Golden State
2/28 @LA Clippers
3/3 @LA Lakers
3/4 @Sacramento
3/26 @Golden State
3/27 @Sacramento (SEGABABA for Minny)
3/29 @Phoenix
3/31 LA Lakers
4/2 Portland
4/9 New Orleans (SEGABABA for Minny)
A couple of things. There’s a point where the Wolves play 8 straight East opponents. They also play the Kings twice on SEGABABA’s where the Kings have the rest advantage. And look at the Kings for a moment. They are basically in the middle of all this. The Clippers will play 17 of their 21 ASB games against West contenders for the playin/playoffs. The Suns will play 22 games after the ASB, they might not have the time to gel with Durant. And that’s assuming he’s there for game 1. I think you saw a lot of Dallas’ flaws these last several games. Zion might not return until mid March for New Orleans now, and hell he might have more setbacks. You never know with him. That changes everything with the Pels. How good is Minnesota at this point?
My point here is that despite the perception that the Kings will drop off, the opportunities are there. No guarantees of course, but the opportunities are there. These are the key games for Sacramento over the rest of the season.
2/14 @Phoenix (game 57)
2/23 Portland
2/24 @LA Clippers (SEGABABA for Sac and I’d rest De’Aaron/Domas for this one; plus you have them rested for two real opportunities to win in OKC)
2/26 & 2/28 @OKC
3/3 LA Clippers (SEGABABA for LAC; gotta take advantage if you are the 3 seed)
3/4 Minnesota (SEGABABA for the Wolves after playing against the Lakers the night before)
3/6 New Orleans (you really need to win this one at home)
3/11 @Phoenix (likely the first matchup with Durant and the Suns)
3/20 @Utah (Front half of a b2b for Sac; SEGABABA is in Sac with Boston on 3/21)
3/24 Phoenix
3/25 Utah
3/27 Minnesota (SEGABABA for the Wolves after playing in SF the night before)
3/29 & 3/31 @Portland (huge opportunity here as well)
4/4 @New Orleans
4/5 @Dallas (SEGABABA for Sac)
4/7 Golden State (game 81)
4/9 @Denver (game 82)
Lots, lots and more lots of opportunities. You also play the Knicks, Bucks, Celtics at home. There’s also a road trip where you’re @Chicago (3/15), @Brooklyn (3/16; SEGABABA for Sac) and @Washington 3/18 before hitting the Jazz on 3/20. The Boston game on 3/21 is the last game the Kings play against the Eastern Conference all season. FWIW.
The opportunities are there. And it’s not a slam dunk for anyone unless they just go on a really long winning streak. The team that I would be most concerned about is the Clippers, actually. Outside of the fact that they haven’t beat the Bucks (2x) or the Mavs recently. Or the Suns for that matter, but who knows who will play there? Or defend De’Aaron Fox. I really don’t like that matchup for them now that Mikal Bridges is no longer there, and that’s typically the way teams have defended Fox.
Like I’ll keep saying Mike, the opportunities’s are there. Do the Kings take advantage? I don’t know. But I think they can. For a lot of reasons, I think they’ll be okay. Milwaukee might rest their guys and aim for the Phoenix game they have the next night in Phx (3/13 & 3/14). Boston will be at the end of a 6 game trip (although with several days off between game 5 in SLC & game 6 in Sac).
It is what it is. If you’re going to make it, you play your way in. If you aren’t, you fall back. We saw that 4 years ago. Hopefully we see something different this time, but I’m more optimistic than hopeful. For one thing, this team’s offense is much better overall but especially in the halfcourt. A lot of that is due to Fox and Sabonis making guys around them better (or just simply being better in the halfcourt individually in Fox’s case than he was the first couple years of his career).
I think the Kings chances of sticking in the top 4 are 50%-ish. I was hoping the Kings would roll into the ASB with a 34-23 record, but alas if you could hit the ASB with a 33-24 record I’d be over the moon. If the Kings manage a .500 record from here on out, they’d be squarely at 45 wins. At the current pace, they are at 47 wins.
Finally, relevant basketball is here! I can’t wait!
Terrific work, thank you for that.
To borrow one of Kayte’s favorite phrases, “it goes to show ya” that the Kings are solidly in third place. All of these teams we fear are going to drop us to the sixth seed or worse, all play against each other often to finish the season, so just the math of that will make it difficult for multiple teams to jump ahead of the Kings and their 3-5 game buffer in the loss column as long as the Kings play at least .500 ball to close the season, and very unlikely if the Kings continue with their current win rate.
Awesome legwork here, Thanks!
Mavs play Denver once and Grizz 3 times.
I’m envisioning a De’Aaron Fox article in Slam Magazine with the headline
5. STAR.
in huge letters
Also, is TD becoming the modern day Vernon Maxwell? He’s a bit wild out there sometimes but his energy is infectious
haha. GREAT comp.
Well done Joe.
A really fun game, and Fox is a cyborg! What’s up with Doncic, he looked out of shape, face all pudgy and shit
To much pizza and pancakes.
and complaining- I think complaining and flapping his jaw is what he considers cardio/exercise.
Been away for a while, but wanted to point out the obvious: Fox outplayed Irving in both games. Irving played well, Fox played great. Dominant on both ends. The team played excellent defense in the 4th and overtime last night, forcing a couple of shot clock violations. Not something that I expected to see the Kings do in the past.
If seeing what happened on defense last night I might feel that they might be getting it. We will see after the break. I also think they will start getting a lot better on their 3″s. They are a better 3 point shooting team then they have been the last couple of weeks.If so the best time to come out of the slump. All in all it will be the defense that does it.
https://twitter.com/ShamsCharania/status/1624904828819492865?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Just read on Yahoo Sports that Zion reinsured his hamstring and may be out for several more weeks.
Reinjured
He’s the most overrated star in the league, IMO. The dude plays in barely half of his possible games. I fear his body and athleticism just won’t hold up over a long career. He’s like a heavier and springier version of Blake Griffin. He may be out of the league before he is 28.
Totally. I remember quite vividly in my little kings chat group when he was drafted, people saying, “You really think a dude as big as that flying around the rim is going to have a long career?”
he has had a long career- but most of it spent in the training room.
He’s injured so often he should be trying to insure his body parts.
LOL, when I read “insured”, I thought to myself…that makes sense, its like when JLo insured her ass or Taylor Swift her legs.
Grizzlies lose. Kings 2 games behind in the loss column.
My first G1 game since before COVID when the team hadn’t yet reached its nadir. One of the best games I’ve ever watched–excitement, competitive, and a battle of great players and role players. If they keep this up, I’m going to change my handle on this site to ‘UsedToLoveTheKings…andNowLoveThemAgain.’
Glad you got to see it in person!
Agreed. I’ve been to many games at G1C and that game had the highest intensity I’ve ever seen. I’m so glad I was there. My buddy and I texted the next morning we were still kind of buzzed about the game.
You know, Dallas is rationalizing why they lost Marty. But the truth is, they were just as close to being swept in both games as they were to sweeping both. It wasn’t like the Kings hit a bunch of unexpected shots. They won in a sustainable way. And frankly, Dallas won because of a 17-2 run in a 3 minute span of the 1st qtr (when Wood entered the game basically).
I think the most important takeaway is that this Kings team isn’t that short on talent. And without DFS, Dallas doesn’t have that long wing to stick on Fox. Same with Phx and Bridges. It’s going to be a problem. Smaller G’s can’t keep Fox from getting to his spots.
Now, with the weapons around Fox, it’s harder to stick that wing on him. And small G’s have to guard him now.
The Kings are tough to stop if you get great games from Fox and Sabonis. Huerter was effective. Davis had his best game of the season (I think it was more impactful than the Brooklyn game). Lyles had a strong bounceback game.
I think if the Kings have the energy, they win tomorrow. They are due for a good shooting game.
Mavs are like the duds in that way. Oh, Kings were lucky etc.
and like you KG21, I dislike Christian Wood- that guy is a dweeb.
He scores. He won’t stop shooting and he never passes.
I get a modern day Joe Barry Carroll vibe from him.
Random thoughts on this SB LVII Sunday night:
It’s just one game and there are many more to go
But…
Can TD become a reliable piece of this roster puzzle? He has shown flashes of brilliance and he has had periods of absence (DNP-CD).
At what point does a player graduate from second bench to first (off the) bench to sometime starter to starter?
Certainly consistency and reliability play a major factor.
At the same time, when does a player move from first off the bench to role player off the bench. We’ve seemingly seen Davion take that step.
Injuries are opportunities, and that is certainly one way to get your minutes and show your worth. We’d all rather that method isn’t used.
And if a player shows enough value, and I’ll stick with TD for my example, than it becomes less desirable/likely that a waiver wire vet is needed to take those minutes. (Justin Holliday/Patrick Beverly/Russell Westbrook/Terence Ross/Stanley Johnson are all to be hitting the market soon, for example.
K’Von is going to the 3 point contest:
https://www.sacbee.com/sports/nba/sacramento-kings/article272477397.html#storylink=hpdigest_sports
good for him. He really wanted that.
Good on ya K’Von.
Badge Legend