Category: NBA

Poison Ivey: Pistons Jayden Ivey scores winning shot to beat Kings 114-113; Sac coughs up 19 point lead for 5th straight loss

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Detroit Pistons Malik Beasly guard (5) congratulates guard Jayden Ivey (right) after Ivey’s game winning basket in the fourth quarter at the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Thu Dec 26, 2024 (AP News photo)

By Jeremiah Salmonson

SACRAMENTO–The Sacramento Kings were in free fall and back in action on Thursday night. After having two days off for Christmas, the Kings welcomed the Detroit Pistons to town. Previously, the Kings had lost their last four games and were reeling. On Thursday, they looked to get back on track against a Detroit team that had been performing well on their road trip. The Kings were without Domantas Sabonis, who was sidelined due to illness, and Alex Len stepped into the starting lineup in his place. The Kings continued to falter as they lost to the Pistons 114-113.

In the first quarter, it took the Kings a few minutes to adjust to life without Sabonis on the court. They started slowly, falling behind 7-2 early, but eventually found their rhythm. By the end of the quarter, the Kings had outscored the Pistons 37-34 to take an early lead. Keegan Murray led the way for Sacramento with nine points in the opening quarter, while Cade Cunningham paced Detroit with 12 points.

In the second quarter, the Kings extended their lead. A strong defensive effort held the Pistons to just 19 points in the period. On offense, Sacramento scored 31 points, fueled by a breakout 15-point quarter from Trey Lyles. This was a welcome sight for Kings fans, as Lyles had struggled in recent games. Meanwhile, Cunningham continued his strong performance, finishing the first half with 21 points. The Kings entered halftime with a commanding 68-53 lead.

The third quarter saw the Kings ease up slightly. Their shooting cooled off, and the Pistons outscored them 24-23 in the period. However, De’Aaron Fox came alive, scoring 14 points in the quarter to keep the Kings in control. Malik Beasley led the Pistons’ offense with eight points in the quarter. Heading into the final quarter, Sacramento held a 91-77 lead and appeared poised to secure a decisive home victory.

The final quarter proved to be a battle, as a determined Detroit team refused to back down. The Kings’ 14-point lead steadily evaporated, dwindling to just two points with 1:20 remaining in the game. It became a nail-biter. With 18.7 seconds left, De’Aaron Fox hit a clutch pull-up jumper to put Sacramento ahead 111-108. But Detroit wasn’t finished.

With 3.1 seconds left, Jaden Ivey sank a contested, and-one three-pointer over Fox and converted the free throw, giving the Pistons a 114-113 lead. The Kings were unable to respond, and the game ended in heartbreak.

Fox led Sacramento in scoring with 26 points, but it wasn’t enough to secure the win. Cade Cunningham starred for Detroit, finishing with 33 points as the Pistons improved to 14-17 on the season. With the loss, the Kings dropped to 13-18.

After the game, head coach Mike Brown was visibly frustrated by his team’s lack of focus in the closing moments. Brown lamented the failure to properly defend Ivey’s decisive three-pointer, stating, “The only thing that hurts us is a three.”

When asked postgame about where the Kings go from here and how they’ll prepare for their next game in Los Angeles, Fox offered a terse response: “Just get ready to play.” It was not an encouraging sign from the team’s star player after five consecutive loses.

Up Next: The Kings will travel to Los Angeles to face the Lakers on Saturday at 7:30 PM PST inside the Crypto.com Arena.

Sacramento Kings podcast with Jeremiah Salmonson: Kings drop fifth straight game in loss to Pistons 114-113

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The Detroit Piston’s Tobias Harris (12) takes a jump shot while the Sacramento Kings DeMar DeRozan (10) and Keegan Murray (13) can only hope it’s a brick at the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Thu Dec 26, 2024 (AP News photo)

On the Sacramento Kings podcast with Jeremiah Salmonson:

#1 Jeremiah, two teams both with identical records at 13-17 the Detroit Pistons and the Sacramento Kings going into Thursday’s game and it went right down to the wire with the Pistons coming back down 19 points to edge the Kings at Golden 1 in Sacramento 114-113. The Pistons now 14-17 and the Kings 13-18.

#2 The Kings had been a struggling bunch occupying 12th in the Western Conference and dropped their fifth straight loss and are now 6-12 at home.

#3 The Kings previous game last Sunday a tough embarrassing loss at home 122-95 against the Indiana Pacers was a game that the Kings would hope to give them incentive and fire them up a bit for the Pistons game. The Kings couldn’t break out of it Thursday night as their defense collapsed allowing the Pistons to get back in.

#4 Jeremiah, the Pistons towards to the end of Thursday’s game made a go of it trying to close the gap at one time down by 19 points but made a fourth quarter came back. The Pistons top scorer Cad Cunningham was a big difference maker leading with 33 points.

#5 It doesn’t get any easier for the Kings they now head to the Southland and face the Los Angeles Lakers who took two games from them in Sacramento. The Lakers are sixth in the Western Conference have won five of their last ten and are 9-4 at home. The Kings road record are 7-6. Tip off at Crypto.com Arena at 7:30pm PST in downtown Los Angeles on Saturday night.

Join Jeremiah for the Kings podcasts Fridays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Sacramento Kings podcast with Barbara Mason: Kings will press to end 4 game losing streak tonight at Golden State

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December 22, 2024; Sacramento, California, USA; Sacramento Kings guard Malik Monk (0) shoots the basketball against Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton (0) during the second quarter at Golden 1 Center. (Photo: Kyle Terada-Imagn Images/REUTERS)

On the Sacramento Kings podcast with Barbara Mason:

#1 Kings lost their fourth in a row going into another slump.

#2 This game remained close in the first half but fell apart in the second half.

#3 There are some critical problems in the defense right now that have to be corrected.

#4 With what is going on in Sacramento right now there are bound to be some major changes in February. Especially if this continues going forward.

#5 The Kings are off until next Thursday night when they take on the the Detroit Pistons. How do you see this game and will they rebound?

Join Barbara for the Kings podcasts each Monday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Trouble in Sacramento Kings fall to Pacers 122-95

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Sacramento Kings guard De’Aaron Fox led with 23 points but the Kings would fall 27 points short of the Indiana Pacers at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Sun Dec 22, 2024 (Sacramento Kings X photo)

By Jeremiah Salmonson

SACRAMENTO–This isn’t going to be like my usual recaps. Normally, I would go through the game quarter by quarter and evaluate its progression. However, I can’t bring myself to write that kind of analysis Sunday night. The Sacramento Kings are broken, and I’m tired of repeating the same narrative every night. This is the lowest point of the season for the Kings, as they fell to the Indiana Pacers 122-95 on Sunday night.

On Sunday, the Kings gave up. It’s as simple as that. In the first half, they played decently enough to stay in the game, albeit against a not-so-good Indiana Pacers team. Both teams scored 52 points in the first half, as the Kings weren’t playing well but hadn’t yet resigned themselves to defeat. De’Aaron Fox scored 15 points in the first half, while no Indiana player had reached double digits.

In the second half, everything unraveled. How did it unravel, you might ask? Well, it was a typical Kings loss. Their defense was poor, their shooting was lackluster, and their effort appeared minimal to nonexistent throughout the entire second half. The team looked as if they had simply given up.

As the game ended and the final buzzer sounded, the Kings suffered a 122-95 loss. De’Aaron Fox led the team with 23 points but was far from efficient, shooting just 7-19 from the field. The Pacers, despite not having any player score more than 20 points, still won by over 25 points.

It was arguably the worst loss of the season, a sentiment echoed by Mike Brown in his postgame comments. When asked by reporter Sean Cunningham if this was the lowest point of the season, Brown replied, “Uh, this is pretty low. We’ve had some other tough moments…” Well, this truly was the lowest moment for the Kings. Sunday’s loss to the Pacers dropped their record to 13-17, four games under .500, marking their worst record of the season so far.

I’m not frustrated with Brown’s comments—after all, what is he supposed to say? He can’t publicly criticize the front office during a postgame press conference, even if it would be entirely justified. This team has dealt with the same issues for years, and the front office has either failed to make a deal to improve the roster or hasn’t even tried.

Frankly, it makes little difference which of these scenarios is true. The simple reality is that they have failed to address well-documented issues, and that responsibility falls on Monte and his team. Brown went on to say in his media availability that he is doing everything he can to find someone on the roster who will step up, stating, “I’m going to keep searching.”

The fans were visibly and audibly frustrated with the team. The Kings were booed off the court, and chants of “Keon Ellis” echoed through the Golden 1 Center rafters late Sunday night.

This is not how the season was supposed to unfold. The offseason addition of DeMar DeRozan and the re-signing of Malik Monk were, on paper, among the better moves the Kings have made in recent memory. While DeRozan’s fit with the team was never perfect, it seemed like a step forward for the franchise. The pitch to DeRozan and his team was simple: “Come to Sacramento for a chance to win.” So far, winning has been left in the rearview mirror for this group.

This was the final game for the Kings before Christmas. Their next matchup will be on Thursday at 7 PM at Golden 1 Center against the Detroit Pistons. Kings GM Monte McNair and owner Vivek Ranadivé must decide on the direction they want to take this franchise in the coming years.

Will they rebuild from scratch and trade the core, or will they retool around one of their current stars? One thing is certain: this roster needs to change, and the Kings likely won’t have to wait long to see that change.

Sacramento Kings podcast with Jeremiah Salmonson: Reaves leads Lakers with 25 points defeat Kings 113-100

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LeBron James forward (23) for the Los Angeles Lakers set NBA record with 34 minutes against the Sacramento Kings that broke Kareem Abdul Jabbar’s 57,446 minutes. LeBron setting the new record at 57,471 minutes for most time in a career at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Thu Dec 19, 2024 (AP News photo)

On the Sacramento Kings podcast with Jeremiah Salmonson:

#1 Point guard Austin Reaves led the Los Angeles Lakers (15-12) with 25 points to help defeat the Sacramento Kings (13-15) at Golden 1 in Sacramento.

#2 Anthony Davis who scored 40 points in the previous game against the Memphis Grizzlies followed up Reaves with 21 points of his own he’s been a big contributor for the Lakers in these last two games.

#3 The Kings took a 62-58 half time lead over the Lakers getting some offense from De’Aaron Fox, Domantas Sabonis, and Malik Monk it was looking good up to that point.

#4 The Kings didn’t fare much better in the second half as the Lakers edged the Kings in the third quarter 24-22 and 27-20 in the fourth quarter winning it 113-100.

#5 Lakers and Kings have a go at it again this Saturday night at Golden 1. Thursday’s game was a 13 point difference. The Kings have the home floor and got a look at the Lakers in the first game can Kings turn things around?

Join Jeremiah for the Kings podcasts each Fridays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Kings drop first game of two game set to Lakers 113-100

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Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) and Sacramento Kings forward Keegan Murray (13) battle under the hoop while LeBron attempts to score in first half action at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Thu Dec 19, 2024 (AP News photo)

By Jeremiah Salmonson

SACRAMENTO–The Sacramento Kings were back in action on Thursday night against the Los Angeles Lakers. The Kings were coming off a loss to the Denver Nuggets at home, 130-129. The Kings lost to the Lakers on Thursday, 113-100.

In the first quarter, the Kings were outplayed by the Lakers. The Kings couldn’t get anything to fall on offense as the Lakers began to build an early lead. The Kings shot 44% from the field in the first quarter as they scored 28 points.

On the other hand, the Lakers shot 46.4% from the field and scored 37 points. The Lakers seemed to be bringing more physicality to the game, which was lacking on the Kings’ side. Reaves was leading all scorers after one quarter with eight points.

In the second quarter, the Kings played much better. However, it wasn’t enough to stop the Lakers from retaining the lead. The Kings outscored the Lakers 30-25 in the second quarter as the Lakers held onto a 62-58 lead going into halftime.

The Kings did a much better job in the second quarter matching the Lakers’ physicality. The Kings were within striking distance heading into halftime as they looked to restart a winning streak at home. The leading scorers for the Kings at halftime were Domas, Malik, and De’Aaron, who all had 12 points. Austin Reaves was leading the Lakers with 12 points in the half.

In the third quarter, the Kings’ offense went dormant again. The Kings only scored 22 points in the third quarter as the Lakers were able to extend the lead over the Kings going into the fourth quarter. The Lakers scored 24 points in the third to lead the game 86-80, as Austin Reaves was leading the Lakers with 17 points. Domas Sabonis had 18 points through three quarters.

In the fourth quarter, the Lakers sealed the deal over the Kings. The Kings couldn’t get the offense going late and lost to the Lakers, 113-100.

The Kings lacked effort in the defeat as the Lakers turned the Kings over 17 times for 24 points. The Kings were outscored in the fourth quarter, 27-20. Austin Reaves led the Lakers in victory with 25 points. De’Aaron Fox led the Kings in defeat with 26 points.

The Kings are now 13-15 on the season, and the Lakers improved to 15-12.

Up Next: The Kings will stay home to take on the LA Lakers again on Saturday at 3 PM PST.

Sac Kings wrap: Nuggets Jokic triple-double helps edge Kings 130-129

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Denver Nuggets center) Nikola Jokic (left) and Sacramento Kings forward Domantas Sabonis (right) battle for the basketball first half action at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Mon Dec 16, 2024 (AP News photo)

By Jeremiah Salmonson

SACRAMENTO–The Sacramento Kings were back in action on Monday night in Sacramento. The Kings last played in New Orleans, where they defeated the Pelicans. On Monday, the Kings welcomed the Denver Nuggets to town.

The Nuggets entered the game 13-10 on the year and right in the middle of the pack in the standings. The Kings entered play on Monday with a 13-13 record and looking to get above .500. The Kings and Nuggets tipped off at 7 PM PST as the Kings fell to the Nuggets 130-129.

In the first quarter, the Kings got off to a rough start. The Nuggets were asserting themselves physically with the Kings early and exploiting bad defensive matchups. With 2:34 left in the quarter, the Kings would be down 32-13 and in desperate need of a spark.

It was one of the toughest quarters of the season for the Kings so far. In the quarter, the Kings only shot 9% from three and 36% overall. The Kings struggled mightily as they were outscored 41-21 in the first.

In the second quarter, the Kings competed hard to get back into the game. However, the defense continued to lack. The Nuggets would score 34 points in the second quarter to continue to put pressure on the Kings.

However, the Kings’ offense exploded for 46 points in the quarter to pull closer heading into halftime. The Kings would trail the Nuggets 75-68 heading into halftime. Domantas Sabonis led the Kings in the first half with 15 points. Aaron Gordon led the Nuggets with 16 first-half points.

In the third quarter, the Kings picked up right where they left off in the first half. The Kings’ shooting was much improved as they scored 35 points in the third. On the other hand, the Nuggets only managed to score 21 points as the shooting dried up for them. After three quarters, the Kings would lead the Nuggets 103-96.

In the fourth quarter, the Kings just couldn’t seal the deal. The Kings battled, but ultimately, they couldn’t make any shots on the final few possessions, and they lost the game 130-129. The Kings were outscored in the fourth quarter 34-26.

The Nuggets were able to hit the big shots they needed down the stretch to erase the Kings’ eight-point lead with roughly 4:00 minutes to play. The Kings’ best performance came from De’Aaron Fox, who finished the game with 29 points.

Jamal Murray led the Nuggets in victory with 28 points on the night. It was a disappointing loss for the Kings as they tried to win their fourth game in a row. However, they will have a chance to get back on track on Thursday.

Postgame, Malik Monk talked about how the Kings needed to come with intensity and attention to detail right from the start of the game. Monk said, “That’s a hard question. It’s just on us really, just being locked in from the get-go. Can’t really say what we can do better. We just got to be locked in from the jump ball on those things,” he said. “Like boxing out, getting on the floor for loose balls. Getting rebounds, second-chance points, not fouling and things like that. We just got to be on our toes from the get-go instead of letting them put us on our toes.”

Up Next: The Kings will stay home to take on LeBron James and the LA Lakers at 7 PM on Thursday.

Sacramento Kings podcast with Barbara Mason: Nuggets pay Kings a visit tonight at Golden 1

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The Sacramento Kings forward Domantas Sabonis (11) goes to the basket against the New Orleans Pelicans guard Dejounte Murray (5) in the first half at Smoothie King Arena in New Orleans on Sun Dec 15, 2024 (AP News photo)

On the Sacramento Kings podcast with Barbara Mason:

#1 The Sacramento Kings Domantas Sabonis scored a season high of 32 points on Thursday night and grabbed a season best 20 rebounds as the Kings defeated the New Orleans Pelicans 111-109.

#2 The Kings DeMar DeRozan scored 29 points and Keegan Murray and De’Aaron Fox each scored 18 points no doubt Murray and De’Aaron are a big part of the starting line up.

#3 The Kings are rolling they have won four of their last five games. So their getting some consistency.

#4 The Pelicans CJ McCullom did the heavy lifting hitting six 3 pointers and finished with a team leading 36 points but not good enough to beat the Kings.

#5 The Kings have now not scored less than 115 points in any of their last eight wins. The Kings 111 points against the Pelicans were their lowest score this season.

Barbara Mason covers Sacramento Kings basketball at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Sacramento Kings podcast with Jeremiah Salmonson: Kings just get past Pelicans 111-109 in the Big Easy

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Sacramento Kings forward Domantas Sabonis (11) passed the ball past the New Orleans Pelicans center Yves Missi, left, and guard CJ McCullum (3) in second half action at Smoothie King Arena in New Orleans (AP News photo)

On the Sacramento Kings podcast with Jeremiah:

#1 The New Orleans Pelicans couldn’t keep the Sacramento Kings Domantas Sabonis down he led the Kings with 32 points and had 20 rebounds in the Kings win 111-109 against the Pelicans at Smoothie King Arena in New Orleans.

#2 DeMar DeRozan scored 29 points and the Kings De’Aaron Fox and Keegan Murray each scored 18 points that help contribute to the offense.

#3 Jeremiah the win give the Kings three in a row and they have now won five of their last six games and have improved over the last two weeks.

#4 The Pelicans CJ McCullom scored six 3 pointers and tallied 36 points. One the remarkable shots that McCullom took was a shot that hit off the glass while he was falling for three points as he got fouled by Fox with 1:20 remaining in the game.

#5 The Kings will return to Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Monday night against the Denver Nuggets. The Nuggets are seventh in the Western Conference and have been playing .500 ball winning five of their last ten games. Tip off is 7:00pm PST on Mon Dec 16, 2024.

Join Jeremiah for the Kings podcasts each Friday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Kings Beat Pelicans 111-109 Extending Win Streak to Three

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The Sacramento Kings forward Domantas Sabonis (11) and guard Malik Monk (0) celebrates Sabonis’ 3 point shot against the New Orleans Pelicans at Smoothie King Arena in New Orleans on Thu Dec 12, 2024 (AP News photo)

By Barbara Mason

Thursday night the Sacramento Kings (13-13) beat the New Orleans Pelicans (5-21) in the final seconds of the fourth quarter. It was not easy by any means but they discouraged two straight Pelican stops closing out the game and sealing the deal.

Domantas Sabonis had a season-high 32 points with 20 rebounds. DeMar DeRozan finished the game with 29 points and De’Aaron Fox and Keegan Murray each had 18 points. Sacramento now has a .500 record at 13-13.

Game recap: After the first 12 minutes of play the Kings held a slim lead 28-26 and as play wore on the Pelicans, despite being short-handed, were going to be a handful. New Orleans outscored the Kings in the second quarter 29-25 and led at the half 55-53. Sacramento would be looking for a dominating second half as they’ve seen in the past.

The Kings were dominant in the third quarter outscoring the Pelicans 38-28 and taking an eight point lead 91-83 going into the fourth quarter. Neither team was able to score in the opening 1 1/2 minutes of play.

New Orleans was able to outscore the Kings in the final quarter 26-20 but came up just short unable to make up the eight point lead Sacramento had established. The Kings took as much as a 14 point lead in the fourth quarter.

With under five minutes left in the game, the Pelicans began to chip away at the Sacramento lead. With under two minutes left in the game the Kings were clinging to a three-point lead 109-106. Sacramento was unable to score at all in the final 1:41 left in the game.

The Pelicans had a huge opportunity with two straight defensive stops with under a minute left on the clock but could not score. Malik Monk blocked a Dejounte Murray shot that was rebounded by Domantas Sabonis and that was the ball game 111-109.

The 111 points scored by the KIngs tied their season low in this very tight contest. Domantas Sabonis really stepped up for this game scoring a season high 32 points and another double double with 20 rebounds. DeMar DeRozan chipped in 29 points.

De’Aaron Fox and Keegan Murray each scored 18 points. Murray also had a great defensive game with 10 rebounds. Sacramento had a great night at the line shooting at 93% a vast improvement. Ball protection was also a part of this win with only 11 turnovers. Sacramento hung on for dear life but came out on top in this game pushing their season record to 13-13.

Game notes: The Kings had a great start to the 2024-25 season. Through the first seven games the Kings were holding down sixth place in net rating. This was a significant improvement over last season when they finished in 17th in the net rating.

The Kings went on to finish with a 46-36 record exiting in the Play-In Tournament. Back in early November, they were fifth in offensive rating and 12th in defensive rating both an improvement over last season.

Things got a bit spotty going into the second week of November. They really fell on hard times around mid-November dropping four games in a row. They have seemed to have pulled it all together recently beating the highly rated Houston Rockets and winning three of four games.

Thursday night they played the struggling Pelicans and got their third win in a row and getting back to a decent .500. The Pelicans Brandon Ingram is out until Jan. 3rd and of course they will also be without Zion WIlliamson.

The days of beating Sacramento every time they met up is over for New Orleans with the loss tonight for the Pelicans. Last season the Kings lost all six games in their matchups. The Kings are now getting back to good health after a tough time dealing with injuries.

With only Trey Lyles listed as out, the Kings have everyone on board. There is also Devin Carter, the Kings first round draft pick who has not seen any action due to an offseason shoulder injury. The win tonight was ideal but going forward how do the King’s bounce back after losses: that is equally important. Right now the win Thursday night was big for Sacramento and taking it one game at a time.

The Pelicans are reeling from the second most players lost to injury this season. Only the Memphis Grizzlies have more. They were without Karlo Matkovic, Jordan Hawkins, Brandon Ingram, Jose Alvarado, and Javonte Green who is listed as questionable. Zion Williamson missed his 17th game.

The Kings will now have another three days off before taking on the Denver Nuggets at Golden 1 Center next Monday evening. Tipoff for that game is scheduled for 7:00 PM as Sacramento seeks their fourth win in a row.