Category: Sacramento Kings

Boogie gets his revenge against the Kings leading the Pelicans to a 117-89 victory

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment

by Charlie O. Mallonee

Sacramento Kings v New Orleans Pelicans
DeMarcus Cousins dominates versus the Kings Photo: NBAE

Former Kings All-Star center DeMarcus “Boogie” Cousins did not want to leave Sacramento. In fact not long before the big trade, Cousins said he was looking forward to having his jersey being retired and hanging in the rafters at the Golden 1 Center.

Since being traded to New Orleans, Cousins has been quoted making statements about loyalty – or lack there of – in some not so veiled jabs at his former team. So, everyone who follows the NBA was ready to see the man they call Boogie go off against his former team when they met in NOLA on Friday night. The big man did not disappoint.

Cousins put up 37 points and grabbed 13 rebounds as he led the Pelicans to a 117-89 thrashing of his old team. He also had four assists, three steals and two blocked shots. Cousins teammates made sure their new superstar was able to be in a position to publically embarrass his former team – especially the ownership and front office.

In a post-game interview with the Kings Radio Network, Jordan Crawford of the Pelicans said that he and his teammates were doing everything they could do to help Cousins win the game and dominate his old team. They were successful in their efforts.

Before all Kings fans start tearing their clothes and sitting in ash-heaps in mourning, they need to realize that Cousins presence in New Orleans has not been the difference maker that many people thought it would be when the trade went down.

The “Pels” (33-43) have been on a bit of a roll as they have won eight of their last 11 games and have pulled within 4.5 games of the eighth-place Portland Trail Blazers for the final playoff slot in the Western Conference. With just six games remaining, New Orleans would need a miracle to make the playoffs and turn the first-round draft selection they sent to the Kings into a non-Lottery pick.

Yes, Boogie had a big night. But, it was a short-term success because in the long-run the “revenge win” will mean nothing in big picture of the NBA. That is one of the reasons Cousins in no longer with the Kings. There were too many short-term victories and not enough long-term successes.

How did the former Pelicans do against their former team?

nolahield
Buddy Hield working against the his former team the Pelicans Photo: NBAE

Buddy “Buckets” Hield scored 13 points shooting 6-for-9 from the floor. He was 1-for-4 from beyond the 3-point line. Hield hauled in eight rebounds, dished out three assists and had one blocked shot.

Tyreke Evans made the start for his old team against his old team – that gets confusing really fast. Evans recorded 11 points going 3-for-9 from the floor including two 3-point baskets. Evans played just 19-minutes in the game.

Langston Galloway played almost 21-minutes but really struggled on offense. He shot just 1-for-7 from the field. His one score was a 3-point bucket.

How did the other young Kings do in the game?

Skal Labissiere played just over 36-minutes on Friday night and scored 13 points. He also pulled down eight rebounds. The rookie did not have his best shooting night going 5-for-16 from the floor. Labissiere did not attempt a 3-point shot which is an oddity for him. He converted 3-of-6 from the free throw line.

nola wcs
Willie Cauley-Stein had a double-double game vs the Pelicans Photo: NBAE

Second-year man Willie Cauley-Stein recorded 11 points in 34-minutes of playing time. “WCS” made it a double-double game by posting 14 rebounds. Cauley-Stein is taking advantage his opportunities to start and play big minutes.

Ben Mac leads the Kings in scoring

nola mac
Ben McLemore led the Kings in scoring versus the Pelicans Photo: NBAE

Ben McLemore led the scoring attack for Sacramento recording 15 points against the Pelicans. He shot 6-for-16 from floor, added eight rebounds and distributed four assists in his 25-minutes of playing time. McLemore is an improving player under the guidance of Dave Joerger and his staff.

Up next for the Kings

After the game, the Kings headed for the airport and took off for a long flight from the “Crescent City” to the “Twin Cities” to face the Timberwolves. This is the type of brutal back-to-back scheduling that NBA has to eliminate if coaches are to be persuaded to stop sitting stars for rest.

Kings go to school for the season’s final games, Jazz conduct the first lesson, Kings bow to Jazz 112-82

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By Morris Phillips

SACRAMENTO–Skal Labissiere, an NBA rookie, raw and unrefined as any, but improving, shows his growth and limitations in spurts, sometimes alternating from one trip to the offensive end of the floor to the next.

Both promising and maddening, his trials mirror the growth of the young Sacramento Kings, now in full rebuild minus DeMarcus Cousins, along with Coach Dave Joerger’s declaration that his remaining veterans will take a back seat to the youngsters in the season’s final eight games.

In the third quarter Wednesday night, with the Kings concluding their 17-minute, mid-game push for respectability after falling behind by 20 to Utah in the first quarter, Labissiere was on display for three straight offensive trips.

First, Labissiere drove from the top of the key and seamlessly dropped his jump hook in the lane, and after Boris Diaw’s answer three, the Kings’ rookie spun baseline and missed a jump hook, a lower percentage play than him turning or driving middle, then the third time Labissiere drove again, deftly shuttling the ball to Willie Cauley-Stein, who was fouled at the rim.

Some good, some bad.  The Kings started Labissiere’s display down seven.  It finished, the Kings were down eight.

“Every game, like I said before, is a learning experience,” he said.

Coach Dave Joerger says he wants to see his team’s basketball I.Q. soar.  But it’s a process, practice, film and games all factor in, and time, if not patience, is short. Sensing blood, Utah pounced, shooting 63 percent after halftime.

“Their size at the wing and their experience–they just moved us around places,” Joerger said. “Like I said, it was a good learning experience for our younger guys.  In the middle of five games in seven nights, you just try to pick yourself up and on to the next one.”

Joerger knows, having coached playoff-caliber Memphis, this isn’t what it supposed to look like.  With Cauley-Stein and Labissiere on the floor extensively, one or both have to get to shooters out to the three-point line, and the Jazz exploited the inexperience with five threes in the first quarter, and 13 for the game.  The nuanced nature of NBA pick and rolls put the Kentucky pair and mountain man Georgios Papagiannis, who played 20 minutes, in tough spots away from the rim which led to baskets in a pair of big runs that ballooned the Utah lead.

Papagiannis had a pair of smooth jump hooks.  The Greek center also left his feet defensively on the baseline away from the basket, and instantly turned Jeff Withey into a swooping dunk artist on par with Tom Chambers.

Ben McLemore came up with 17 points in the Kings’ resurgent second quarter, the highest scoring quarter of his pro career. But with the Kings trying to cut the deficit to single digits that same period, McLemore was stripped by Rodney Hood igniting a Jazz fastbreak.

The Kings made just two threes, intensifying the disparity between the clubs from distance.  The two makes was a season low; Buddy Hield missed all three of his attempts from three, McLemore was 1 of 4.

The Kings knew rebounding would be key against the physical Jazz, but perhaps not this aspect: the Kings managed just two offensive rebounds and often weren’t in position for second chance opportunities when shots were released.

Those finer points come with time and repetition, building blocks that don’t currently favor rebuilding Sacramento.

“By and large we just dribbled the bajeebers out of the basketball for most of the game so it’s hard to find guys who are open when we’re just constantly dribbling it,” Joerger admitted.

The Kings followed consecutive one-point wins over the Grizzlies and Clippers with the 112-82 loss to Utah.  The Kings never led, but after trailing 34-14 after one quarter, sliced Utah’s lead to two, twice in the third.  The Jazz responded by scoring 27 of the next 38 points.

Utah remained a game-and-a-half ahead of the Clippers in the race for the fourth spot in the Western Conference and home court in the first round of the playoffs.

 

 

 

The Sacramento Kings need an executive like Chris Granger for Basketball Operations

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment

This article first appeared on this site just after the NBA All-Star Game in February. In light of recent events, it seemed appropriate to post it again.

By Charlie O. Mallonee

Sacramento – The NBA All-Star Game on Sunday was overshadowed by the news that the Sacramento Kings had traded their All-Star center DeMarcus Cousins to the New Orleans Pelicans for three guards and two draft picks in the 2017 draft. The trade stunned Kings fans who had placed all of their hopes for success on Cousins for the past seven  years.

In a news conference on Monday, vice president of basketball operations and general manager Vlade Divac revealed that Kings missed out on a better trade for Cousins two days earlier after it was pulled off the table. A franchise that has been viewed as unstable and without direction looked even more so after that revelation.

messy office 2

In the 2016 off-season, free agents and top draft prospects refused to come to Sacramento for workouts. The events of the past 48 hours have done nothing to improve that situation for the upcoming free agent period and 2017 NBA Draft which has been labeled as being “star-studded”.

The Kings are in desperate need of an basketball operations executive who can set a direction, develop realistic goals and establish stability for the team. They need a person who can create a can do atmosphere and attract top talent. You are probably thinking the Kings could never recruit that kind of top executive talent. That is where you would be wrong.

Granger
Chris Granger Photo: Capradio.org

Let me introduce you to Chris Granger – President of the Sacramento Kings and Sacramento Basketball Holdings, LLC and here is what he has accomplished in that position:

  • The value the franchise has risen to $1.025-billion from the original purchase price of $534-million in 2013
  • The Golden 1 Center was built in downtown Sacramento in joint public – private partnership that saved the Kings franchise from moving to Seattle
  • The Golden 1 Center has been tagged as “the Tesla of arenas”
  • Granger and the Kings are the driving force behind a $500-million mixed-use downtown development that includes a team owned 16 story hotel that is center-piece of a city revitalization project
  • Under Granger’s watch – a downtown that became a “ghost town” after sunset is now alive and thriving because of the thousands of people coming to the city center for sports and entertainment events on evenings and weekends  at the Golden 1 Center

Fast Company just named the Sacramento Kings the Number One of the “Most Innovative Companies” in the Sports Sector for creating a what they call the “Modern Day Fan Experience”.

Granger came to the Kings with a wealth of experience in the NBA having worked in the league offices from 1999-2013. In his last assignment, he was the executive vice president of Team Marketing  and Business Operations advising NBA, WNBA and NBA D-League teams on ticket and sponsorship sales, marketing, communications, digital media and community relations. The Sacramento franchise has excelled in all of these areas because of his experience.

If Vivek Ranadive had hired a basketball operations leader with same level of experience that Granger possesses on the business side, the Sacramento Kings would not find themselves in the disarray that they are in currently.

reset

The Kings have hit the “reset button”. They cannot afford to blow this reset. The fan base in Sacramento has been waiting for 10 long years for a return to the playoffs. They have endured multiple threats to have the team ripped away and moved to another city. Fans stepped up and purchased every available season ticket package in support of the team moving into the new arena.

Now, the Kings one legitimate All-Star has been traded away for three guards and two draft picks. The not so hidden message to the fans is “you’ll have to be patient while we figure this out.” The fans will not be patient for long because they are very, very tired from years of chaos from what is supposed to be entertainment and escape from the cares of daily life.

If Ranadive can recruit and hire a high-powered executive like Chris Granger to run the business operations and “make it rain” money for organization, he is capable finding an experienced basketball operations executive with a successful track record who can come in and turn the Kings around.

hinkie
Sam Hinkie

Bringing in a President of Basketball Operations does not mean that Vlade Divac and his staff need to pushed out the door. Having Divac and Peja Stojakovic in the front office is a great link to the history of the franchise and to the fans. They also have great ties to Europe which is becoming an increasingly more important player development and recruiting region for the NBA.

Ranadive needs to do one more thing. He needs to follow the “Rooney Rule” even though the NBA does not have a mandate to follow that protocol.  Marc J. Spears wrote in June 2016 on his theundefeated.com about the distressing lack of black leadership in the NBA. Mr. Ranadive has the opportunity to address two critical issues simultaneously.

The key is Ranadive must act now. The Kings cannot afford to make a miscalculation in this year’s draft. A major mistake could have years of negative impact. The team must also create an atmosphere where at least quality second unit free agents are willing to come play in Sacramento.

Ranadive did not become a baron in the high tech world by letting things just happen. He has a man of experience and action on the business side. Now, he must hire someone with the same level of expertise on the basketball operations side or face years of anguish and frustration.

Sacramento Kings podcast with Charlie O: Kings seek permission to speak with 76ers GM; team seeking operations manager

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nbcphiladelphia.com still: Philadelphia 76ers general manager Sam Hinkie speaks to the media as talks about his possible being the Sacramento Kings Basketball Operations Manager has been the latest news

by Charlie O

SACRAMENTO–There been a lot talk regarding a new basketball of operations man that could take over and be over team president Vlade Divac. This was a story that was broke by Mark Stein of ESPN. You hear a rumor coming down from his level him and CBS Sports Jack Maloney you sit up and take notice. All of a sudden you hear those two guys say that the Kings and owner Vivek Ranadive who is the managing governor for the Kings that they are seeking permission to talk to Philadelphia 76ers GM Sam Hinkie.

The Kings who acquired all of the 76ers draft picks you then sit up and take notice and say “wow” the other thing that kind of makes that interesting is that Hinkie is living in Northern California right now and that makes it a little more intriguing as the story goes along. Just to give a little background on that as managing or majority owner Ranadive apparently does not have much of a percentage with the Ranadive group and does not have as large of a percentage as you might think.

There’s varied reports on what that percentage is but his group has the largest percentage therefore they ended up with the managing partner status, they wound up with the governorship which doesn’t have anything to do with the Lakers situation involving the Buss family. Jeanie Buss wound up as owner of the Lakers for life after some legal struggles with her brothers.

There’s a lot more on the Kings management scramble and Charlie O covers it’s all at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

Sacramento Kings Monday game wrap: Collison’s steady hand lifts Kings 91-90

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Sacramento Kings center Willie Cauley-Stein (00) breaks away for a dunk against the Memphis Grizzlies during the second half of an NBA basketball game in Sacramento, Calif., Monday, March. 27, 2017. The Kings won 91-90. (AP Photo/Steve Yeater)

By Jeremy Harness

SACRAMENTO – Things were going very smoothly for Darren Collison and the rest of his Kings teammates going into the fourth quarter, but the wheels started to fall off in the final minutes and allowed the bigger, more intimidating SUV that is the Memphis Grizzlies to get back in to the game and take the lead.

However, Collison did not back off and continued to attack, and after Sacramento lost the lead in the final minute, he went to the basket and forced the Grizzlies to foul him. He then knocked down two free throws with 5.7 seconds left to give the Kings a 91-90 win Monday night at the Golden 1 Center.

It was the Kings’ second win against a playoff-bound team in as many days, a night after knocking off the Los Angeles Clippers in another game that came down to the final possession. This can be seen as a young team passing a major test in its development into the playoff team that it aspires to be.

Collison, who has arguably been the Kings’ steadiest player in the past month, got the better of his head-to-head matchup with his point-guard counterpart in Mike Conley – who just happens to be the NBA’s highest-paid player – scoring 23 points on 8-of-13 shooting to go along with seven assists and four rebounds, while Conley had 22 but went 8-for-23 from the field to do it.

To do so, Collison continually came off of high screens and pulled up for midrange jumpers – which he seemed to have down for three quarters – or making quick darts to the basket for nifty layups, the exact moves that he was seen rehearsing in the hour leading up to Monday’s game.

In fact, he only missed one of his nine shots for that timeframe, and the Kings were in control of the game.

In the fourth quarter, however, things swung heavily in the other direction. The shots that poured in during the first three quarters began to bounce off the rim in the fourth, allowing the more physical, playoff-tested Grizzlies to use their style to get right back into the game.

Even Collison couldn’t find the basket in the final minutes. Leading by one with less than a minute left, for instance, the Kings had the ball and ran a high screen for Collison, but he missed the elbow jumper that had served him well for three quarters.

Sacramento secured the offensive rebound, but Anthony Tolliver then missed an open 3-pointer. Memphis then grabbed the rebound and forced a foul on the other end, and when Zach Randolph sank a pair of free throws as part of his 17 points and 15 rebounds, the Kings had lost the lead for the first time in the quarter.

The Kings, however, would have the final say, thanks to Collison.

Sacramento controlled the action for much of the first quarter, as the team was jump-started by the early hot shooting by Buddy Hield, who nailed a pair of threes to put Sacramento ahead. Hield finished the game with 14 points on 5-of-12 shooting and also grabbed four rebounds.

The Kings also edged the Grizzlies from the free-throw line, drawing six fouls on Memphis in the first quarter and making all but one of their nine free throws.

They found themselves leading 51-49 at the half, and after Memphis took the lead early in the third quarter, Collison seized control of the game and keyed a surge that saw the Kings leading by as many as nine. He scored seven points and hit all three of his shots in the quarter, and when he wasn’t putting it in the basket himself, he was finding teammates such as Garrett Temple and Willie Cauley-Stein for wide-open threes and alley-oops.

Are the Kings looking to hire a new head of basketball operations?

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment

by Charlie O. Mallonee

SACRAMENTO–Just when you thought things were settling down into an end of the season routine, bam! – here comes another rumor out of right field that Kings managing owner Vivek  Ranadive  may be looking to hire someone to head up the basketball operations department. That person would supervise Vlade Divac and the rest of the operations staff according to the rumor mill.

The executive the Kings are targeting may be as much of a surprise as the fact they are looking for additional front office help. The rumors say the Kings are pursuing former Philadelphia 76ers general manager Sam Hinkie.

Hinkie has been out of the league for almost a year since the Colangelo’s (Jerry and Bryan)    took over the Philadelphia operation. Hinkie  is known as “the process” for his plans he put together to rebuild the 76ers especially by “tanking”.

Hinkie drafted Joel Embiid, Dario Saric and Jahlil Okafor. He also put together a deal with the Sacramento Kings that netted the Sixers Nik Stauskas plus the right to swap first-round picks in 2016 and 2017. The trade also results in Philadelphia receiving the Kings 2019 first-round draft pick. The Kings basically received salary cap relief and the rights to two little known Euro League players.

There have been persistent rumblings that minority owners have been putting pressure on Ranadive to bring in someone with more experience to run the basketball operations. The Kings have been very successful on the business and marketing side under the leadership of Chris Granger. The minority owners are looking for the kind of expertise that Granger brings on the business side to be put in place on the basketball operations side.

Does this story have legs? Six months ago, I would have said no but now I have to say maybe. The team who was never going to trade DeMarcus Cousins did move him and that makes everything fair game in this reporter’s opinion.

As of today, the Kings will two lottery picks in the 2017 NBA Draft. Those picks could determine the success or failure of the team for seasons to come. Having all the experience and expertise in the front office as possible at this critical time for the organization would be a major plus for the Kings.

Sacramento Kings Sunday game wrap: Clips Paul misses jump shot at buzzer gets Kings razor thin win 98-97 at Staples

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Sacramento Kings center Willie Cauley-Stein (00) reacts with teammate guard Buddy Hield, right, after scoring the go-ahead basket with 1.8 seconds left in an NBA basketball game while Los Angeles Clippers guard Chris Paul look on, Sunday, March 26, 2017, in Los Angeles. The Kings won 98-97. (AP Photo/Danny Moloshok)

By: Jessica Kwong

LOS ANGELES – The struggling Sacramento Kings entered the fourth quarter with a 11-point deficit against the playoffs-bound Los Angeles Clippers. So when 1.8 seconds remained in the game Sunday afternoon and Chris Paul missed a jump shot, handing the Kings a 98-97 victory, Staples Center was shocked.

Sacramento chipped away at the Clippers lead to 97-96 and with 4.9 seconds left, Kings guard Ben McLemore missed a running lay-up. But Kings forward Willie Cauley-Stein got the rebound and scored a put-back lay-up to put his team up by 1 point with only a few seconds to go.

“I just remember taking off and seeing Ben had a lay-up and the only thing I’m thinking is, ‘If this ball comes off, I’ve just got to grab it and put it up,’” Cauley-Stein said of the last Kings possession. “And it just came right to my hands.”

The victory was a bright spot in the Kings’ (28-45) season that’s now focused on developing the young players and anticipating a high draft pick. It hurt the Clippers (44-31), who are chasing the Utah Jazz in hopes of taking fourth place in the Western Conference.

“It’s a bad loss, probably the worst one in the regular season in my career,” said the Clippers’ star point guard Paul. “It’s tough. That was a bad one. That was a bad loss.”

The Kings held their own in the first half.

Though Los Angeles took the lead early on, Tyreke Evans hit a three-pointer that gave Sacramento a 18-17 lead near the end of the first quarter. DeAndre Jordan’s slam dunk to put the Clippers up 20-17 with just under 3 minutes left in the quarter, but Darren Collison answered back with a triple to bring the Kings within 24-22. Then Kings center George Papagiannis made a three-foot lay-up to tie the game at 24 at the end of the first quarter.

Sacramento held on in the second quarter and quickly scored to take a 29-24 lead in the first minute-and-a-half. Clippers forward Anthony Tolliver scored two three-pointers, the second putting his team up 40-33 with less than five minutes in the quarter. But Los Angeles caught up and Paul passed the ball to Jordan for a slam dunk that gave them a 44-42 lead at the half.

The game started getting away from the Kings in the third quarter. A few minutes in, Jordan made a running lay-up and the Clippers took a 54-44 lead. That grew to as much as 17 points when Clippers guard Jamal Crawford scored a triple with 2 minutes and a half remaining.

But Sacramento kept at it. Guards Langston Galloway and Buddy Hield hit some big shots and the Kings cut the Clippers’ lead to 11 points at the end of the quarter.

“It felt like we couldn’t score a basket in the third quarter, but we didn’t put our heads down,” Kings Head Coach Dave Joerger said. “We kept saying we were two baskets down from being 10 down or nine.”

The fourth quarter was looking even worse for the Kings, who trailed by as many as 18 points a few times. Hield, Galloway and Cauley-Stein made several shots to bring the Kings back within single digits and the latter’s lay-up and the Clippers meltdown gave Sacramento the win.

“We didn’t lose hope. You talk about when LG (Langston Galloway), Buddy, Ben, Willie, they didn’t lose hope, not one bit,” Collison said. “They kept pulling and pulling and pulling and eventually got some big threes.”

Collision said beating his former team was “fun.”

“It’s all competition and the Clippers are considered one of the best teams in the NBA,” he said. “Anytime you get to play one of the best teams in the NBA, we definitely want to perform at a high level.”

The Kings return to the Golden 1 Center to face the Memphis Grizzlies on Monday, with a 7:30 p.m. tip-off.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Kings go to Golden State University on Friday night losing to Warriors 114-100

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment

gswtoppix

by Charlie O. Mallonee

The Sacramento Kings educational tour continued on Friday as they traveled to the Bay Area to take on the Golden State Warriors for the final time this season. The Kings had a chance to split the season series at 2-2 with a victory. The Warriors won the game 114-100 and win the season series three games to one.

The Kings did not go with an all youngster starting lineup

Dave Joerger was not of a mind to just let his team be steamrolled for the sake of learning and falling back in the draft lottery standings. Joerger went with Afflalo, Koufos, Cauley-Stein, Hield and Lawson to open the game.

Sacramento did hold out Darren Collison, Tyreke Evans and Anthony Tolliver for “rest”. The bottom line on those decisions are designed to get the less experienced players more time on the court. With the playoffs out of reach, getting  playing time for younger players in order to evaluate their talent and value to the organization is the priority.

Buddy Hield led the way again for the Kings

gsw hield vs curry
Hield works against Curry Photo: NBAE

Hield had another big night for Sacramento as he finished the game as their leading scorer with 22 points. He shot 7-for-14 (50-percent) overall from the floor and hit 4-of-9 from behind the 3-point line. The rookie out of Oklahoma was perfect 4-for-4 at the free throw line. He played 33-minutes versus the Warriors.

Hield grabbed eight rebounds, dished out seven assists and had two steals in the game. He continues to show marked improvement in handling the basketball in traffic and passing the ball when open shots are not available.

WCS was efficient on offense

Sacramento Kings v Golden State Warriors
Willie Cauley-Stein works against Curry Photo: NBAE

Cauley-Stein scored 12 points as the starting center playing 27-minutes against Golden State rather than his usual 30-plus minutes of “PT” we have been seeing from him in recent games. He hit 5-of-6 shots from the floor and was a perfect 2-for-2 from the charity stripe. He also recorded four rebounds, two assists and one steal.

That other kid from Kentucky played 27-minutes as well

Rookie Skal Labissiere did not start the game but did play substantial minutes. Labissiere finished with a double-double scoring 10 points and hauling in 10 rebounds. He also distributed eight assists.

Labissiere just keeps doing things that amaze and prove that he deserves to be in a Kings uniform and on the floor playing in NBA games. The future is bright for this rookie and the fans in Sacramento.

“Papa G” spent some valuable time in class

Sacramento Kings v Golden State Warriors
Papa G tries to stop Curry Photo: NBAE

Kings rookie center Georgios Papagiannis received 26-minutes of classroom time on the floor versus the Warriors on Friday night. The big man had times when he looked confident and time when he looked lost. Just what you would expect from a 19-year rookie facing the best team in the NBA.

Papagiannis finished with seven points shooting 3-for-6 from the field and hitting 1-of-1 from the free throw line. He also posted four rebounds, one assist and one blocked shot.

Other Kings contributors

Ty Lawson scored 20 points hitting 8-of-9 from the floor. Ben McLemore scored 11, Langston Galloway 8 (they need to find this guy more shots), Garrett Temple 5, Arron Afflalo 3 and Kosta Koufos 2 points.

Sacramento team numbers

The Kings shot an impressive 48.2-percent (40-for-83) from the floor. They had a better 3-point shooting percentage – 47.6-percent – than the Warriors. Both teams sank 10 3-point shots.

Two stats that killed the Kings:

  • Turnovers: Kings 21 that resulted in 36 GSW points; GSW 13 that created seven Kings points
  • Assists: Kings 27 ; Golden State 37 … let that sink in

Streaks

  • Kings: have lost four-in-a-row and are 2-8 in their last 10
  • Warriors: have won six-in-a-row and are 7-3 in their last 10

Up next for SAC

The Kings are back in action on Sunday at 12:30 PM PDT when they will face the LA Clippers at Staples Center in Los Angeles.

 

 

 

Sacramento Kings Wednesday game wrap: Kings can’t catch up in the end continue free fall in loss to Bucks 116-98

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sacbee.com photo: Kings guard Darren Collison (7) drives to the basket as Bucks center Greg Monroe (15) defends Wednesday night at Golden One Center. Hector Amezcua hamezcua@sacbee.com

By London Marq

SACRAMENTO–The Kings season is all but over when you look at the standings. Since the trade of Demarcus Cousins, Sacramento has been in a free fall, winning only two of their last 13 games that free fall continued Wednesday night in a 116-98 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks at Golden One Center. In their 36th home game this season, the Sacramento Kings (27-43) host the Milwaukee Bucks (35-35). The upside is all of the young talent the team has acquired over the past two seasons is playing valuable minutes. With the likes of Skal Labissiere and others, the future looks bright for the Kings.

The great Pat Summit once said “you can’t win a game in the first half, but you can lose one.” Through two quarters Milwaukee shot 61% from the floor totaling 69 points, including 12 points off of seven turnovers. The Bucks also capitalized from deep, hitting nine of 18 three pointers. Giannis Antetokounmpo had a monster half against the Kings on both ends of the floor, with 22 points and eight defensive rebounds in the first half alone he finished the game with 32 points, 13 rebounds and six assists. The Kings were able score 50 points in those two quarters but their defensive deficiencies were too much to overcome.

As usual, the Kings played efficiently on offense, and dreadfully on defense. After giving up 44 points in the second quarter, they were in a hole too big to get out of. The Kings closed the gap to 11 with 5 minutes to go in the fourth quarter but failed to capitalize on the momentum they had gained.

Bucks def. Kings 116-98

Sacramento Kings podcast with Charlie O: Kings prepare to host Milwaukee Wednesday; Kings taking a look at draft picks this week

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Oklahoma City Thunder guard Victor Oladipo (5) reaches for the ball held by Sacramento Kings center Willie Cauley-Stein (00) in the first quarter of an NBA basketball game in Oklahoma City, Saturday, March 18, 2017. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

Charlie O on the Sacramento Kings podcast:

1) The Sacramento Kings have a busy week ahead of them.

2) NBA Commissioner Adam Silver is saying something has to be done about resting star players- what do you think the league will do?

3) Who are this weeks projected draft picks for Sacramento?

Join Charlie O each week for the Kings podcasts at http://www.sportsradioservice.com