The Kings got their Raptors revenge. Let’s celebrate!
Full recap to follow.
Nov 6, 2024; Sacramento, California, USA; Sacramento Kings forward DeMar DeRozan (10) drives to the basket against Toronto Raptors guard Ochai Agbaji (30) during the first quarter at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Ed Szczepanski-Imagn Images
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That’s the way it’s supposed to be done. Good win.
This was a good, fun, competitive game of basketball that the Kings firmly took control of in the final minutes. 6 guys in double digits with 3 guys scoring 20+. Domas with a usual 17-11-13. The Kings equal opportunity, dynamic offense just pours outward from Domas actions and spills into easy baskets for everyone. Not to mention making 28/32 free throws to go with 26 team assists.
This was one of the few games so far this season I’ve thought, “yes, this is what it’s supposed to be.” If the Kings are searching for an identity this is the one – elite offense with closers in Monk, DDR, and Fox. Looking forward to a lot more wins this season.
The equal opportunity is six players that can and will score. Beyond those six there is no opportunity. Glad they went all in on their strength and got it done.
Kings got the Dinos dancing to our tune tonight!
I’m still trying to take my mind off what has been a rough 24 hours, but at least the Kings won so that’s something positive!
Hope the entertaining basketball and the W helped you smile and let your mind wander to something pleasurable. Keep going and looking forward to the next smile.
Not my favorite 24 hours, either. Was really thankful for the welcome distraction.
Kings kong’d the dinos!
Brown knows what he has and he didn’t mess around with anything else. Go hard and fast for the win with what this team can do.
No defense ALL OFFENSE!
I liked MB’s decision to use Keon down the stretch instead of Monk tonight. Solid defense from Keon and Keegan got us some stops, and we were able to ride Derozan’s offense to extend the lead.
One or two stops is a solid night for this team. They are built to score a WHOLE BUNCH. Got a big enough lead to get Jones and Jones in as well. Build a lead for junk time in the fourth and everyone gets to play!
Yeah, that was a new look for crunch time. Keon in place of Monk brought a different kind of intensity at the end.
Agreed. They absolutely locked them down in the 4th quarter with that lineup. Against a team like Toronto, having Fox/Ellis/Keegan on the perimeter can really stop penetration if they’re locked in.
The Raptors only scored 107 so there had to be some defense.
The Kings had another relatively poor shooting night but were only barely bested by Toronto in FG% / 3P%. It certainly helped that the Raptors ended up missing a handful of open threes but the defense became more intense throughout the course of the game.
Yet again, the Kings got to the FT line far more often (32 vs 15) and dropped 87.5%. This is exactly the opposite of how the Kings have won games in the past few years. It’s starting to look like this is who the 2024-25 Kings might just be.
They’re not relying on frantic threes to try to catch up to or bury teams. They’re getting (and frequently making) their shots in the paint while drawing fouls. Then they rachet up the defensive intensity as the game wears on to make things uncomfortable for the opponent. They also Domanated (Murraydered?) the Raptors on the offensive glass.
It feels like a much more consistent way to beat teams. If they can get those threes to fall occasionally in the 40% range, they will end up running away from some teams. I’m cautiously optimistic (knock on wood) that their approach will prevent some of the big blowout losses they experienced last year.
All this to say, I thought the defense was overall solid. They are:
Grain of salt here, but indications so far show a top 15 defensive team. Not exactly championship caliber yet but encouraging progress nonetheless.
DeMarvelous!
DeMar is going to be fun to watch in the playoffs.
If we can push our scoring average up to about 145 a game we have a chance at winning a playoff series. Nobody can score like that. We might be able to?
The Kings aren’t too shabby on defense though. After tonight they rank 11th in defensive rating, tied with the T-Wolves.
Looking at the stats Davion is even more impressive than what we saw him do in the game. He is everything the Kings ever wanted him to be and then some. Glad to see it and hope he has a good run in Toronto. Guy has earned it.
I went to the game and Davion was playing to win. Dude was all effort and pressured Fox like crazy. Everyone lined up to hug him too at the end. Gonna miss Off Night. Will always root for him.
It’s impossible to not enjoy what Mitchell does, and I’m thrilled that McNair found him a great landing place to continue building his career. The man is pure bulldog.
Decent win against a team that plays hard.
Biggest takeaway for me from this, is that the Kings always have to have two of Fox/DeRozan/Murray/Sabonis on the floor. If it’s just one, you’re just lacking quality and relying too much on players like Len and Lyles.
I was also really impressed with Murray’s all round offensive game – he scored from everywhere, showcasing the growth he’s made on that end of the court. Spot-ups, DHOs, attacking close-outs, step-through moves, you name it.
I mean, look at this:
*Chef’s kiss*
and 12 rebounds
a late game block
assigned to defend the team’s star
two way player
3 level scorer
Imagine if he was the 1 or 2 option and not 3 or 4.
Averaging 15.4 ppg/8.4 rpg.
Growing up in front of our eyes!
And as I am sure will be mentioned in the round up:
(this is my copy and paste from Sean Cunningham:
He gets away with a clear double dribble … that is class!
Nice win, good team effort.
I liked the Len minutes tonight, and the minute distribution in general.
Good to see Davion do well. He was a good guy here and deserves playing time.
I still wonder how well we’ll fare if we can’t hit threes at a decent clip. It was good enough tonight, at least.
In the first half, Len looked rusty. By his second stint in the 3rd/4th quarter, he seemed to be playing like the Alex Len we all know.
Once the Kings get in to the meat of the schedule and start playing the better teams in the West, they’ll need to hit those 3s more. Fox has been really bad from 3. The other shooter have been below their career averages.
Last year I hoped Kevin Huerter would overcome his slump and get back to being at least an average shooter. But he end up struggling the whole season. What if this is the new norm for the Kings. We would get 2-3 games where they’ll bust 50% and the rest of the season sub 30% … ????
My worry on Huerter is his defense. Players drive right past him on most occasions.
I couldn’t help but notice the ebb and flow of the game:
Kings down five
Kings up three
Kings down nine
Kings up two
Kings down one – then
Kings up one
Kings up six
Kings up nine
Kings up fifteen
The upswings mirror when Brown finally woke up and put Ellis back in the game. The fourth quarter in particular, when MB finally moved off of Monk and Huerter, was when Sacramento was able to pull away and win comfortably.
There will be plenty of games where each of those guys absolutely light it up and win a game almost single-handedly, but Ellis will consistently help you win the possession-by-possession battle. He makes things happen, and team defense improves markedly. Ellis is a grinder, and his teammates instinctively step up their own effort on the defensive end.
My impression is that the leading counterargument is that Ellis needs to “learn how to score.”
Not easy when you only get four shots per game. Besides, what difference does it make if your PPG is low when your team routinely wins the plus/minus when you’re in?
Monk was on one last night and got a T. He was kinda all over the place driving and trying to draw fouls but still drained some key shots. Keon steadied their play a bit and disrupted the Raptors. You’re comment is 100% correct.
Solid post as usual, Andy. The “learn how to score” comments are easily dismissed. Keon is efficient and scores within the flow of the offense. His defense never lets up and he really disrupts teams in the half court and even more so in transition. I’m in the “start him over Huerter” camp but at least he should be getting roughly equal minutes with Huerter, possibly more when Huerter’s shooting is cold.
Feels good to be looking downward in the standings at both LA teams.
Once again, the Pacific has every team playing above .500.
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