Update – 9:48 pm:
The Kings fell to the Raptors 130-122 Wednesday night at the Golden 1 Center. The third string group led a spirited comeback in the fourth quarter, but ultimately fell short.
Zach LaVine scored 16 points in the first half and showed he is taking defense seriously (he stopped Brandon Ingram on a drive, which led to a Keegan Murray block, and had a few other nice defensive plays). Domantas Sabonis finished with 19 points (interestingly only 4 rebounds). Murray went 2-9 from the field and 0-4 from three, but did have four blocks and steal. Nique Clifford and Maxime Raynaud led the fourth quarter push (the Kings were down by double digits most of the night). Dylan Cardwell (12 points in 14 minutes), Devin Carter and Isaiah Stevens were also part of the group that rallied back late.
Clifford scored 10 points to go along with 9 assists, 3 rebounds and 2 steals in 24 minutes. Raynaud finished with 7 points and 6 rebounds in 12 minutes.
The Kings defense showed brief, brief flashes of improvement at times, but ultimately fell flat overall, not demonstrating Doug Christie’s vision he has preached in training camp. The Raptors scored 130 and shot 54% from three and 48% from the field. Not ideal.
From Earlier Preview:
I love basketball. Sometimes, I even love Kings basketball. Sometimes.
The Kings are back in action tonight for the first time since their disappointing and dysfunctional 2024-25 season came to a close. Monte McNair is gone. Scott Perry is in charge, to the extent that anyone not named Vivek Ranadive can be in charge. Mike Brown is gone, and Doug Christie is here, without the interim tag, running his first training camp as an NBA head coach. De’Aaron Fox is gone, and Dennis Schröder is in… a downgrade on both paper and the court, however you’d never believe that if all you heard was how glowingly the Kings organization has been talking about him since he arrived in Sacramento.
Outside of the Fox-for-Schröder swap and a few maneuvers on the fringes of Christie’s rotation, this is largely the same roster we watched last season. Will the results be any better? I’m pessimistic, honestly, but if there is any time for optimism, it’s now. Preseason Game 1. Let’s do this.
Who: Toronto Raptors (0-1) @ Sacramento Kings (0-0)
When: Wednesday, October 8th, 7:00 PM PT, 10:00 PM ET
Where: Golden 1 Center, Sacramento, CA
Watch: NBA League Pass, supposedly. The Kings will be streaming it here.
While it’s only preseason and only game 1, it’s always fascinating to see where the coaching staff is with their roster a few weeks into training camp. Who gets the start? Who are the first few players off the bench? Does anyone have a larger role than expected? How will the guard logjam shakeout? In preseason, nothing is concrete, but after a summer of speculation, it’ll be nice to see where everyone is at in early October.
Go Kings.
Returned from this summer’s respite,
We all know that our roster’s not right.
Vivek’s still in place–
It’s such a disgrace–
Good thing it’s just practice tonight!
+1 And here we go…
Like clockwork, you are!
Kinda like our prospects for this season…
At least Jman rhymes are back! 🙂
“No major changes, we’re just going to rearrange the deck chairs. Nothing bad can happen, it can only good happen.” – Vivek
Hey guys. It’s been a minute.
How are the vibes?
Oh, wait …
Sheesh, I’m already looking forward to the end of this season. The next one, too. It’s the season after that, when Zach, DeMar, and Schrooooder are gone, that this team might have a chance at being something more than mediocre.
I’ve gotten to the point that until Vivek is gone, the only thing that the Kings will excel in is hubris.
And nepotism.
Burn
30 beams per year is a better average than marriage!
About how to pronounce Schröder: the closest English equivalent is Schrader. In German pronunciation the lips are pursed when making the “a” sound.
It’s pronounced like “Shroo-der”, although when Germans say the “der” sound, it often sounds like “duh”. There was a video about his name pronunciation when he joined the Raptors.
Here’s to another seven months of commiserating with y’all.
Although the commiserating is year-round, but a different flavor while they’re actually playing.
This org’s best weeks each year are during summer league.
My question is why did they send Toronto all the way to Sac, for a preseason game no less, when there’s what, 7-8 teams within an hour flight or so?
I looked and they’re not playing more west coast games after this one, so it seems dumb to me to send them out here for a preseason game when there’s so many teams much closer.
I think TOR wanted to play as many games as possible (they have 6 preseason games when the minimum is 4) and were probably willing to travel to any team they could schedule.
They played a game in Vancouver a couple nights ago, so they were on the West coast anyway.
There it is. Makes more sense now.
Here we go, the chase for 48 dubs starts tonight!
Play-in or bust!
A quick update for everyone: We will have one game day thread for every game this season. So all comments will be taking place in one thread for each game. We figured this would streamline things for the writers and for all of you. Thank you all for your continued support of TKH. Here is to hoping the Kings are different this year, but at the same time, Just Wait ‘Til Next Year!
Do you know if anything can be done about new comments often not showing up right away? That’s been happening since the middle of last season, and it makes game threads particularly hard to follow.
Do they not not show up right away when logged in, or only when you aren’t logged in?
When logged in
I seem to recall someone else—Hobby916?—mentioning the same problem last season.
We’ll look into it
Yeah, sometimes the comments load when I’m in the article (yellow for the new ones), but usually I have to refresh the page for the new comments to show.
I use my phone mainly, so I don’t know how it works on the computer.
If on mobile, this ^
Since this is the first game of preseason I had some questions for all of you and more directly to the content creators of this community. How are folks watching the NBA this season?
My situation is I’m in the Sac market so I have satalite TV becuase, 1) I’m old and 2) I live in a rural area where the internet isn’t always great. Streaming live sports tends to be at a degraded quality. With the NBA’s eventual move away from cable, I was wondering how most of you are not only going to be watching the Kings but the NBA in general.
I can’t seem to keep track to which paid subscription is going to be airing the majority of games. ESPN, Peacock, Amazon, etc? Maybe a THK article on this would be cool?
Hey Adam, I’m on Xfinity, yesterday I added the “Ultimate TV” package which include NBC Sports and NBA TV. It was $32 to add, which I said “OK fuck it I’ll pay to still watch this team lol”. When I get the order email, it says $20 discount so I think ended up to be $12 (yay?)
I think others on Reddit mention NBA LP with certain VPN to bypass blackouts, but I don’t know details. Perhaps others can comment.
I’ve thought about goin the VPN route and cutting all cable/satellite. I have the most basic DirecTV subscription that has NBC Sports and NBA TV With a family of four I already have too many app subscriptions (Netflix, Amazon, Apple, Disney). A VPN seems like the logical path forward, but I’ve heard sports apps are cracking down on those and many of the VPN providers re now providing location details so I’ll get blacked out.
I think your current setup will cover most games. NBC Sports = Peacock. If you have Amazon Prime, I think you are 100% covered (I think they have exclusive rights to a few games). Its so messed up that watching sports has come to this BS.
Prime only has League Pass, no NBC Sports CA, and LP only works with a VPN (w/ location set to outside SAC market). I think Prime has the streaming rights for the in-season tourney games.
Otherwise its Comcast, YouTube, or Hulu as ways to access NBC Sports CA.
Personally, I cancelled my YouTube subscription the day after the regular season ended and I don’t know if I’m willing to pay $90/mo just to watch the Kings lose. Tonight, I’m going to watch on the NBA’s King’s livestream.
This! I tried the VPN route but the connection was inconsistent and the game would freeze sometimes. Got tired of that last season and went YouTube for the second season in a row. Cancelled after the season ended like I always do and I’m saving money this season because I’m boycotting. No point in spending a bunch of money on something that’s just going to piss me off for the next few months.
I guess it’s League Pass for me again. I live out of state, so I’m not sure how else I can get the most games. Prime might have some, but I don’t really know.
I’ve looked into the Hulu+ and YouTube TV options but it’s nearly what I’m paying for DirecTV. The satellite option is just much better quality. That’s the picture quality, and not necessarily the team.
See my comment re: YouTubeTV. Easy access to the Kings is the main reason we keep it. Besides the Kings and news we really don’t watch most of the other channels.
Same, I cancel between the seasons and didn’t miss it a bit.
I can’t believe how pathetic the NBA has become when it comes to making sure fans can actually watch their favorite teams and not just “highlights”.
Oh, you don’t watch them on your computer?
Too busy playing Pong.
#3
I currently have
This is seems like a logical path. YouTubeTV or Hulu + in place of cable/satellite. The major issue for me is internet speed. I’m in the sticks and am lucky to get 100Mbps in peak hours (my internet is via coax from a rinky dink provider). Couple that with the wife an/or kids streaming something while I’m watching the game, and it gets sketchy. I tried YouTube TV last year for about a week and it didn’t hold a candle to satellite.
I’m paying around $13 more a month for DirecTV over Hulu+ or YouTube TV, but I get a crystal clear picture. I guess it’s the price I pay to live where I do. DirecTV and Prime should get me through another season but at a bit more of a cost.
Unless I’m mistaken, Prime does not carry any Kings games without an additional subscription to Comcast, Hulu, Peacock, or NBA LeaguePass (which requires VPN to change location).
YouTube TV. Nearly all the games except 1 or 2 on ESPN are broadcast. Most importantly, I can record the games because I don’t get home until well after they start, and I can get rid of all the commercials. Separately I record Pre- and Post-Game Live shows.
PS I’m in Nevada but we’re still considered part of the Sac/Bay Area market for sports. California Sports Net (NBC) carries the games, and they do a good job (though 2 games didn’t record correctly last season).
I can watch all NBA games but, how, is a different conversation. I dont want to risk the ban hammer since TKH is my single thread to the (in)sanity of Kings fandom.
“My name is InigoMontoya, Vivek killed my joy, prepare for a long season.”
This Vivek you speak of…does he have 6 fingers?
I am asking for pre-forgiveness from other TKH readers for my anger and hate-posting whenever Dario Saric gets minutes over IJ.
Well, at least Keegan looks ready.
Can somebody please turn Kayte’s microphone volume down?
It’s weird, I can hear everything she’s saying even when muted.
Down or off?
Drew Eubanks?
Defense looked solid for about 7 minutes
And we still don’t have an answer for Ingram!
Raptors 7/10 from three. The more things (don’t really) change…
Hey this Keon guy is a pretty good defender.
And a pretty good shooter. Can’t wait to let him walk so we can extend Lavine!
Emphasis on defense, yet giving up 36 1st Qtr points!
Blame the trip to India
36pt 1Q for TOR…eeghh
The Sabonis/Jones two man game ain’t it.
I can’t believe I heard Kayte say Doug Christie has to like what he’s seeing on the defensive end.
Ok yeah we can’t rebound or defend without fouling or switch effectively or get back in transition but have you seen those blocks?!??!
Cant stop the 3
cant hit the 3
Stop me if you have heard this before.
Kayte thinks the Raptors can “make some waves” this season? Nah Kayte, the Kings are just terrible.
Kayte giving props to the team that finished 10 games below the Kings last season is a very unsubtle tell.
Just got home and tuned into the live steam. I can’t tell you how happy I am to see an obvious defensive uptick by this team. Great score through 3. Bench performing well…oh wait, that’s not the Kings wearing their alternate red unis.
Never mind.
But but but Kayte said that Doug Christie has to be happy with the defense he’s seeing. Barf.
There’s no positive way to spin this. The Kings look bad. They’re a bad team. They don’t look like an NBA squad. There’s glaring holes on the roster and they stink.
Sadly, I have to agree. I watched the game. Not good. Really just not good. Keegan’s Defense might’ve the only thing I can say anything positive about. And Ellis defense as well.
how pathetic that we have a #13 pick from a year ago, essentially a rookie this year as he didn’t really play and he will see 5 minutes a night if he is lucky. What a waste. The imbalance of this squad is an embarrassment. That’s my vibe when watching this first preseason game 90 minutes of frustrated embarrassment.
This roster playing like this is a 30 win team at best. And they’ll still pick 9
It’s more fun to watch the young guys fight it out!
Garrett Temple still stealing NBA owners money. How good a locker room guy he must be. He was old when he played for us last decade.
Oh no! We suck again!”
(Somebody put up the Rob Schneider gif pls)
One of my mates talked me into sharing a League Pass this season – was planning to cancel altogether.
I’m so glad I spent money to watch this drivel. Also, this Keon Ellis guy looks pretty good.
At least you can watch Quinten Post…
Schroeder is very much not the answer but this was preseason game 1 so I won’t go all doomer. This team will probably win somewhere between 37 and 43 games because they have just enough talent to overcome severe fit problems but holy shit is this the least excited I have ever been.
Wait, maybe that is being doomer…
I couldn’t be less excited. Wasted my money on league pass. That pisses me off
Good to see the trend of opposing teams having their best shooting performance all season long is holding up.
It is malpractice that Monk is still on this team. I don’t care if monk is our best SG behind LaVine. He shouldn’t be on this team. His place on this roster should be a SF. Period.
In a sense it doesn’t even matter what player returns. The fact that your #13 pick last season who was injured for the entire season is basically a rookie this year and will never see any minutes on the floor is simply wrong. The kings are wasting that pick every day Monk is on this roster. And it was was a horrible use of an asset when they made the pick in the first place. The whole thing with Carter is an absolute mess. Messing with a young guys career like this is insulting to him and is a bad look for the franchise. It’s an embarrassment if you ask me.
All that said, Carter might be a bust. Key word there is MIGHT, that’s the point. We don’t really know. And looks like we are ok with not even attempting to find it out. You invested a #13 pick in the guy and then proceed to not support that investment in any way, as a matter of fact, to actively sabotage that investment. The whole thing is just sad. What a horrible franchise and leadership
1 pre season game in and I’m pissed off!! Good luck dealing with my chipper attitude over the next 85 games. My apologies in advance.
And it gets even worse when you add Keon into the picture. He also deserves a bigger opportunity. It’s good for your franchise and team to provide that opportunity to both Ellis and Carter. No offense to monk (I love the guy) he’s actually one my favorite players on the team but his presence on this roster is bad for him, bad for Ellis, bad for Carter, horrible for the franchise and really isn’t going to help us get any more wins with him here.
am I crazy?
as previously stated, not finding a trade partner for monk this off season was/is malpractice.
This performance seemed to mirror the 24-25 season. Not great shooting team shoots a high 3pt% in Sacramento, the Kings are down big and need the bench to get them back in it. Rutterless, lacking effort, not playing together.
Might as well just cut and paste the post-game analysis from last season’s threads.
Seems another season of fans becoming hostages instead of volunteers . Did anyone see spot 94 feet of defense ?
Kayte spent the entire first half talking about how this team spent the entire offseason hyper focused on defense, spending 2/3 of their practice and film sessions obsessing on defense… it was the hardest offseason program in the NBA,
welp, a 64 point first half for the Raptors… and double digit leads for most of the game. I was excited again until the game started… Lavine and Derozan were back out there Bullzing it up. This team is not a team I’m excited to watch this year. I liked the rookies though
I’d love to see Doug just yank the starters off the court in the 1st quarter when they are dogging it defensively and then put in the young guys that will hustle and show the vets how to play with some sense of urgency.
I think it is all bark, no bite with the Coach. I’d rather see Devin, Keon, Nique, Max and Keegan out there giving effort defensively instead of the elders sleep walking through the games.
A spade is a spade with Keegan now at his age
mediocre role player who can’t play both ends of the court with an u aggressive demeanor
his lack of development killed the original beam team, just think of the different completion of the org if he lived up to borderline all star billing
How is Franz Wagner doing..?
I watched the first half. I saw Zach put in defensive effort on 1 play, got beat, but Keegan helped with a nice block. Saw DeMar go after a steal, got a deflection.
Everything else leads me to believe this team has any very little chance at a +.500 record.
Carter, Nique and Max will see very little playing time based on the first half rotations.
Bring DeMar off the bench and start Keon or at the very least sub him out after 5 mins, like we used to do with Fox. Tell him it’s important for our offense that we have one of He and Zach on the floor at all times. That way we attempt to limit the number of gaping holes in our D.
Doug did say that he was going to tinker with the rotations during the preseason. That being said, I don’t think Carter and Max will play much as this team fights for the 10th seed.
Nique should be a rotational guy from day 1. If not, who the hell plays over him at the 2/3?
Monk, Keon, and Nique should be the top 3 bench guys in minutes, until any moves are made later in the season. I think Max should be getting minutes over Saric and maybe Isaac Jones.
Not sure why Perry the platyputz thought that Schröder could suddenly become a difference-maker point guard in his 13th NBA season on his 11th different team. Would’ve been cheaper and given the team more flexibility to just have gotten Westbrook instead of Schröder.
I watched a total of a few minutes, on and off, of the first quarter because the broadcast was free (I won’t pay a cent to watch this garbage this season). That’s about all the Kangzketball I can tolerate for this year. I don’t plan to watch any more, preseason or otherwise. There were a lot of good vibes coming out of training camp but there was predictably no good team coming out of training camp. The on-court product is a direct reflection of the owner – ridiculous, pathetic, disgusting, etc.
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