Sacramento Kings – Page 129 – Sports Radio Service

NBA Last 2 Minute Report to Kings: Oops! Our bad!

Published on January 22, 2017 by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment

Dwyane Wade, DeMarcus Cousins — Wade blows slam dunk but gets the foul versus the Kings

by Charlie O. Mallonee

Controversy reigned in the Kings 102-99 loss to the Bulls on Saturday night in Chicago. With 17.1-seconds left in the game, Dwyane Wade stripped Garrett Temple of the ball and broke for his basket. Wade was trailed by Kings defenders. The superstar guard blew his slam dunk opportunity which would have given his team the lead. As Wade came back down to the floor, he was brushed by the Kings DeMarcus Cousins.

Cousins was called for a foul. Wade was awarded two free throws. He converted 1-of-2 free throws to give Chicago a 100-99 lead with 14-seconds to go in the game.

The Kings turned the ball over on their possession and the Bulls scored to put the game in the win column for Chicago.

On Sunday, the NBA released the Last Two Minute Officiating Report. At the 14-second mark the report reads: Cousins (SAC) has his hand on Wade’s (CHI) back while he is airborne, but he does not extend his arm and push him and the contact does not affect the shot attempt. The report notes a foul was called. The conclusion of the review is listed as IC – incorrect.

No one who was watching the game and who then saw the replays has any disagreement with the report’s conclusion. The only problem with the report is there is no remedy for the Kings. The result is really a statement to the Kings by the NBA of – “Hey SAC, our bad!” When your team is 16-27 and has lost five games in a row, that does not mean anything to the team … really.

Update on Rudy Gay

gay-injured — Rudy Gay unable to walk after going down in the Pacers game

Rudy Gay will go under the knife in New York City on Monday, January 23 to have his ruptured left Achilles tendon repaired. The surgery will take place at the Hospital for Special Surgery and be performed by Dr. Martin O’Malley.

Gay suffered the season-ending injury in the third quarter of the game against Indiana on Wednesday in Sacramento.

Kings lose a heartbreaker in Chicago 102-99; SAC has now lost five in a row

Published on January 22, 2017 by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment

bulls-boogie-victim — The victim of Cousins wrath after the loss in Chicago Photo: Sean Highkin TheAthleticChi

by Charlie O. Mallonee

The Sacramento Kings and Chicago Bulls came into the game in Chicago on Saturday night looking to end losing streaks. The Kings had lost four games in a row and the Bulls had lost two consecutive games. Both teams had been beaten soundly on Friday night.

The Kings and Bulls played hard and gave their full 48-minute efforts in a game that ended with a controversial call – if you are a Sacramento fan. When the final buzzer sounded, the Bulls (22-23) had won the game 102-99 and ended their losing streak. The Kings (16-27) went to their locker room frustrated and the owners of a five-game losing streak – their longest of the season.

You call that a foul?

With 15-seconds on the clock and the game tied at 99-99, Dwyane Wade was able to steal the ball from the Kings Garrett Temple and start a fast break for the basket. Wade went up for an uncontested dunk and hit the back of the iron. DeMarcus Cousins was trailing Wade and may (emphasis on may) have brushed Wade on his way down after missing the dunk. The officials blew the whistle and called a foul on Cousins. Basically, the referees could not believe that superstar guard would miss the breakaway slam unless he was fouled.

Multiple video replays showed that there was no foul on the play but the play was not eligible for video review. The call stood. Wade made 1-of-2 free throws and the Bulls took a 100-99 lead.

bulls-wade — Dwyane Wade scored 30 points against the Kings Photo: NBAE

The final 14-seconds

The Kings began working a play following a timeout when Taj Gibson was able to reach in and steal the ball from Cousins. The Bulls were able to score when Michael Carter-Williams put the ball through the hoop on an Alley Oop layup with an assist from Wade that gave the Bulls a 102-99 lead.

Garrett Temple brought the ball into the frontcourt quickly for the Kings and put up a 41-foot desperation shot that banged off the rim as the buzzer sounded. The game ended with the Bulls winning 102-99.

DeMarcus Cousins was a one-man wrecking crew

Cousins scored a game-high 42 points and pulled down 14 rebounds to record his 23rd double-double game of the season. Cousins scored those 42 points on just 28 shots. He converted 8-of-9 free throws and hit 2-of-7 shots from 3-point range. He sank those 3-pointers on back-to-back possessions late in the fourth quarter to keep his team in the game. Cousins had three assists and two blocked shots while committing only two turnovers in the contest. The Kings big man was their only player to score in double figures in the game.

Sacramento Kings v Chicago Bulls — Cousins left it all on the court in Chicago Photo: NBAE

To no one’s surprise it was the Wade and Butler show for the Bulls

Dwyane Wade led the Bulls scoring attack with 30 points. Wade did not have a great night shooting as he went 9-for-20 from the field. He did go an impressive 12-for-15 from the free throw line. Wade also added four assists, four blocked shots and three steals in the game. The superstar guard sent out a tweet to Bulls fans apologizing for their poor play in Atlanta on Friday night. Wade has nothing to apologize for after the way he played against the Kings on Saturday night.

Jimmy Butler scored 23 points and dished out seven assists against the Kings. He spent most of the game acting as the playmaker. Butler shot 6-for-14 from the floor and was a perfect 10-for-10 from free throw line. Butler and Wade went a combined 22-for-25 from the charity stripe.

Coach Joerger’s postgame analysis

Good game
Really proud of our guys
Thought we played our tails off for 48-minutes
(team) made major progress
(We have to) keep working hard; we’re going to figure it out; work it out
DeMarcus had a heck of a game
(In this game) Too much Dwyane Wade and Jimmy Butler
On the foul call on Cousins as Wade missed the dunk: Live ball – three on one

Kings needed another double figured scorer

If one other Kings player had scored in double figures, the final outcome might have been different. Nine other players participated in the game besides Cousins but none scored in double figures. Afflalo posted nine points and Collison, Temple and Lawson each scored eight points. With Rudy Gay sidelined for the rest of the season, one of the Sacramento players has to step up and become a double-figure scorer. More 3-point production could help that situation.

Where’s Rondo?

Rajon Rondo’s time in the Windy City may be coming to a close. Rondo played just six-minutes against the Kings on Saturday distributing four assists and scoring no points. The point guard who was so productive in Sacramento is finding it rough sledding in Chicago. Do not be surprised if Rondo is wearing a different uniform by the trade deadline in February because his time with the Bulls seems to be over.

Up next on the schedule

The Kings travel to Detroit where they will play the Pistons on Monday night. The Kings last win came over Detroit in Sacramento. The Kings will be looking to pick up their first win on the eight-game road trip versus the Pistons.

The Bulls will return to action on Tuesday in Orlando against the Magic.

Kings lose in Memphis; 1 down 7 to go on key road trip

Published on January 21, 2017January 21, 2017 by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment

by Charlie O. Mallonee

The Sacramento Kings started an eight game road trip in Memphis on Friday night with a 107-91 loss to the Grizzlies. The Kings (16-26) have now lost four games in a row and have fallen to 11th place in the Western Conference but are just 1.5 games behind the Denver Nuggets who are in eighth place – the final playoff qualifying position.

As the Kings struggle to figure out how to win games without the injured Rudy Gay (Achilles tendon) for the rest of the season, the team must also deal with the fact they are still in playoff contention. At this point, it is almost appears that no team really wants to take control of eighth place in the West.

The Kings started the game strong in Memphis – something that this team has not been doing recently. They outscored the Grizzlies 23-15 in the first behind seven points from DeMarcus Cousins and Ty Lawson’s six points. The Kings also played strong defense holding Memphis to just 30.4-percent shooting including going 0-for-7 from beyond the 3-point line.

The situation changed dramatically in the second quarter as the Grizzlies came alive behind the play of Vince Carter who scored 11 points off the bench. Memphis shot 12-for-22 (54.5-percent) from the floor and hit 3-of-7 from long range. The Grizzlies outscored the Kings 34-19 and took a 49-42 lead with them to the locker room at halftime.

The Grizzlies came out in the third quarter ready play just like they had in the second period. In the third, it was Marc Gasol who led the Memphis attack with 15 points. Zach Randolph put up seven points in less than three minutes on the floor. The Grizzlies outscored Sacramento 34-22 as DeMarcus Cousins was limited to just three points in the period. At the end of three quarters, Memphis held a 84-63 lead.

After his team’s lackluster third quarter performance, Dave Joerger sat his starters for the fourth quarter and inserted Willie Cauley-Stein and Ben McLemore. Later in the fourth, rookies Malachi Richardson and Skal Labissiere saw playing time. The Kings did outscore the Grizzlies 27-24 in the final period.

Joerger’s postgame analysis

It was a tough game
We didn’t play really well
We didn’t make shots
We threw the ball away
Memphis has a really good team -players

Stars of the game

Grizzlies

Marc Gasol scored a game-high 28 points on Friday night shooting 9-for-19 from the floor. He shot 3-for-6 from 3-point range and was a perfect 7-of-7 from the free throw line. Gasol recorded eight rebounds and handed out four assists.
Zach Randolph was a star of the bench which is really no surprise. He posted a double-double scoring 20 points and grabbing 10 rebounds in just 23-minutes of playing time

Kings

It will come as no surprise that DeMarcus Cousins was the Kings star of the game. Sacramento with Rudy Gay lost for the remainder of the season is even more dependent on Cousins than they were three days ago. He led the Kings in scoring with 19 points and made it a double-double by recording 10 rebounds. The oddity was Cousins scored 16 points in the first half and just three point in the third quarter. He did not play in the fourth quarter by coach’s decision. Cousins also picked up his 14th technical foul in the second quarter of the game. That becomes very serious because technical foul number 16 results in a one-game suspension with additional suspensions for every two technical fouls after that 16th tech.

Co-stars

Kings

Garrett Temple made the start at forward and made an effort to fill the gap left by the loss of Rudy Gay. Temple put up 14 points and hauled in three rebounds while distributing three assists.
Ty Lawson worked hard on the second unit again on Friday night. He scored 13 points and dished out five assists. Lawson has really become a dependable “go to ” player off the bench for the Kings.

Grizzlies

Mike Conley showed again why he is such a key to the Grizzlies success working at the point by scoring 16 points and distributing eight assists. He also recorded eight rebound.
Tony Allen recorded a double-double at guard for Memphis against the Kings. He scored 13 and pulled down 10 rebounds. Five of those rebounds were offensive boards which kept possessions alive.

Key stat of the game

The Grizzlies out-rebounded the Kings 58-35. More importantly, 15 of the Memphis rebounds were offensive rebounds which extended possession and created second chance scoring opportunities. The Grizzlies posted 18 second-chance points to just four for Sacramento.

Up next on the schedule

The Kings moved on to Chicago were they will play the Bulls in the second game of a back-to-back set on the road. They will also face former teammate Rajon Rondo.
The Grizzlies are also back in action on Saturday as they host the high powered Houston Rockets in the FedEx Center “Grind House”.

Rudy Gay’s Achilles is torn, needs surgery and changes everything for Kings

Published on January 19, 2017January 19, 2017 by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment

by Charlie O. Mallonee

Rudy Gay fell to the floor at the Golden 1 Center on Wednesday night with 14.3-seconds to go in the third quarter of the game with the Indiana Pacers. When that happened, everything about the Kings current campaign changed and what will happen with the team’s personnel in 2017-18 may also have been affected as well.

The diagnosis is as bad as it gets

A full MRI on Thursday revealed that Gay suffered a full rupture of the left Achilles tendon. The tendon will require surgery to repair. The surgery has not yet been scheduled.

symptoms-of-achilles-tendon-rupture

Rehabilitation is tough and recovery is not assured

Dr. Steven M. Raikin wrote in Sports Illustrated back in April 2015 about the recovery issues associated with an Achilles tendon and his notes are sobering:

The Achilles is the largest and strongest tendon in the body so when it is injured it is always serious
70-percent of Achilles ruptures are sports related and nearly one-half happen while playing basketball
It tends to be a “weekend warrior” type injury but pro athletes are not exempt: see Kobe Bryant
Following a rupture the tendon almost never returns to 100-percent and 36-percent of NFL and NBA players are never able to return to pro sports following the injury
The recovery/rehab period is usually about a year in order to return to competition
Players returning after an Achilles surgery experience up to a 50-percent decrease in power and will usually play 3-4 seasons after they return to competition

Rudy’s plans for next season have probably just changed

gay-smiling

Gay had notified the Kings that he intended to opt-out of the final year of his three-year contract to test the free agent market at the end of the 2016-17 season. A player with Gay’s skills and experience under the new salary cap and CBA should be able to upgrade their salary package considerably in “the Association’s” current market conditions. The Kings were expected to bid for Gay’s services but in the open market there were certainly no guarantees that he would be back in purple and white in 2017-18.

Given the sudden turn of events and the one-year rehab process that Gay is facing, a $14,263,566 contract for next season may look much more attractive than it did 48-hours ago. No team is going to be willing to invest big money in a player until they know what his abilities are going to be on the floor following recovery and rehab. Gay has to protect his family and himself by staying under contract to Sacramento while recovers and then hopefully has the chance to show NBA teams he is ready to play in the second-half of next season.

This changes things for the Kings personnel decision makers

kings-manage

NBA observers had been calling on the Kings to trade Gay ever since the forward had declared he intended to opt-out of the final year of his contract. The experts said the team could not afford to just let a talent like Gay walk away for nothing in return.

The problem for the Sacramento management has been their team’s flirtation with the number eight spot in the Western Conference and the chance to make the playoffs. Portland, Denver and Sacramento have all been battling for that final playoff position and the Kings believe they needed Gay’s 18.7 points and 6.3 rebounds per game to make the playoffs a reality for their team. It is difficult to argue with their point of view.

Now, the dream of making the playoffs continues but it does so without Rudy Gay’s considerable talents in the lineup. The fact that Gay will probably be on their roster and unavailable until at least mid-January 2018 also changes how the Kings have to plan their player personnel acquisitions and revenue for next season.

There is a little light at the end of the tunnel

The Kings have played 11 games this season without Rudy Gay in the starting lineup when he was sidelined with a hip flexor injury. Sacramento had a record of 5-6 in those games without Gay in the lineup.

The Kings have to hope that their production without Gay in the starting lineup was not a fluke and that they can pick up the slack in quick order.

Kings drop homestand finale to the Pacers, and lose Rudy Gay to injury

Published on January 19, 2017January 19, 2017 by moepeaLeave a comment

ap17019267846731 — Sacramento Kings forward Rudy Gay, center, is carried off the court after suffering what the team reported to be a torn left achilles tendon, during the third quarter of an NBA basketball game against the Indiana Pacers, Wednesday, Jan. 18, 2017, in Sacramento, Calif. The Pacers won 106-100. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)

By Morris Phillips

SACRAMENTO–For a year, and maybe longer, the Kings have contemplated life without Rudy Gay. Now that the reality has arrived that the Kings will play the second half of their season without the high risk, high reward forward, the reality that this moment couldn’t have come in a more devastating manner has arrived as well.

With the Kings leading the Pacers by 10 points in the third quarter on Wednesday, Gay put his head down and attempted to attack the rim from the left wing. But in an instant, and immediately following his first step, the 30-year old was felled by what would be diagnosed as a season-ending, leg injury, most likely a torn Achilles, pending a thorough inspection.

Unable to put any weight on his foot, Gay was carried to the locker room by teammates. That moment was just one of many during a second half collapse that saw the Kings squander a 19-point halftime lead, allowing the Pacers to escape with a 106-100 win.

The loss capped a 1-7 homestand that has Sacramento looking in from the outside of the playoff race, with an eight-game road trip starting Friday in Memphis. But the playoffs weren’t on the mind of the players after the game.

“That’s a tough thing to watch, man. I hate it for him,” DeMarcus Cousins said. “I spoke to him and told him I’ll keep you in my prayers.”

Gay missed eight games in December, and the first two games this month, as the Kings struggled to find a rhythm without then with their high-scoring forward. With him, the Kings dropped five of their last six games–all at Golden 1 Arena–despite Gay scoring in double figures in all six.

But that pattern was familiar with Gay in the lineup. Despite his solid offensive numbers, the Kings often struggled with him as ball movement and shot making lagged, while the team also struggled defensively. That prompted the constant trade rumors as the Kings reportedly listened, but never found a suitable deal. Now, with Gay’s absence, GM Vlade Divac will have to consider another trade chip to shake up his club, and bring valuable shooting and defense to a team that’s dropped eight of ten.

On Wednesday, the Pacers did the Kings no favors with their rollover act in the first half, in which they trailed by as many as 22 points and looked lifeless. Starting guard Jeff Teague got into early, foul trouble, and the Pacers were embarassed on the glass, getting out-rebounded 24-11 in the first half.

But in the second half, Teague returned, and the Pacers roared, outscoring the Kings 65-40 in the final, two quarters. When Gay went down late in the third quarter, the Kings were still in control, but the injury was in the midsts of a 9-0 run for Indiana that had things much closer just minutes into the fourth.

Indiana took the lead for good with 1:55 remaining on a pair of made free throws by Teague. Cousins missed two of his four free throw attempts down the stretch, as the Pacers scored nine of the game’s final 11 points to win it.

The Kings fell 1 1/2 games behind Denver with the loss, with the Nuggets currently occupying the eighth and final playoff spot. The Kings also trail the Blazers, and are percentage points behind the Pelicans as their skid has tightened the standings.

On Friday, the Kings open their road trip in Memphis against the Grizzlies at 5pm.

Sacramento Kings podcast with Charlie O: Kings are only a half game out in ninth spot from a playoff position

Published on January 17, 2017 by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Sacramento Kings forward Rudy Gay, right, hangs on the rim after stuffing over Oklahoma City Thunder forward Andre Roberson during the second half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, Jan. 15, 2017, in Sacramento, Calif. The Thunder won 122-118. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)

It’s very interesting right now as the Sacramento Kings have a record of 16-24 normally you would look at that and say 16-24 in the Western Conference their out of it. Dump players that you could dump, move on and write the season off. The situation this year especially for that number eight spot in the playoffs is very much like it would be in the eastern conference. Right now the Kings are in the tenth spot in the Western Conference.

The Kings are 18.5 games behind Golden State now you say “Wow” but that’s a whole different story the fact is the Kings are only a half game out of the number eight spot which would put them in the playoffs behind Denver and Portland who are tied right now with 18 games back of Golden State. The Kings are only a half game out from making the playoffs right now even though things have going horribly their 2-5 for the month thus far.

Charlie O has it all complete Kings coverage on this week’s podcast at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Kings battle hard again but come up short against the Thunder 122-118

Published on January 16, 2017 by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment

okc-west — Westbrook en route to 20th triple-double Photo: Kelley L Cox USA Today Sports

by Charlie O. Mallonee

Sacramento — Stop me if you have heard this before. “Tough night. Tough game to watch. The guys (Kings) are playing as hard as they can,” Sacramento head coach Dave Joerger after watching his team lose to the Oklahoma City Thunder 122-118. The Kings actually cut the Thunder lead to just two points with 11-seconds to go in the game, but there was not enough time left to finish the potential comeback.

The Kings were down by 12 points with 2-minutes remaining in the game and it felt like things were over at that point. Three 3-point baskets by Tolliver, Collison and Gay along with three Oklahoma City turnovers allowed Sacramento to work their way back into the game. Literally, the Kings waited 60-seconds to long to start their comeback and have enough time to finish it with a positive outcome.

The Kings are playing hard. They are not giving up. They just do not have enough “____________” (fill in the blank with your own opinion because there are so many and no one idea seems to be the right one at this moment). There can be no doubt that something is missing. Be assured the Kings want to fix it. At this point, it must not be that easy to fix or the organization would do it immediately.

No team wants to be in playoff contention – and the Kings are still in ninth place one-game back of Portland even after this loss – with a record of 1-5 on a seven-game homestand. The Kings management, coaching staff and players want to fix whatever is wrong. At this point, they just have not been able to do so successfully.

What will the Kings do next? They have a multitude of options so predicting the next move is very difficult despite whatever anyone is saying. The one thing that is known at this point is the Kings want that eighth spot in the Western Conference Playoffs.

Oklahoma City Thunder v Sacramento Kings — Dave Joerger draws up a play for the Kings versus the Thunder Photo: NBAE

It was a long game on Sunday night

Early in his postgame comments, Kings head coach Dave Joerger talked about what a long game it was on Sunday night. In fact, Joerger said it felt like game went on for hours.

There were 57 personal fouls committed by both teams
A total of 81 free throws were attempted
Four technical fouls were assessed

Add in timeouts, arguments by coaches and players plus video reviews and it was a long night for everyone

Stars of the game

Russell Westbrook – it did not look like the triple-double machine would pull off another impressive stat night early in the game. The OKC star guard had just 11 points, four rebounds and six assists at the half. By the time game ended, Westbrook had posted his 20th triple-double of the season by scoring 36 points, grabbing 11 rebounds and dishing out 10 assists. The man is truly a phenomena.
DeMarcus Cousins – the Kings center had a big night as he scored 31 points for his team and made it a double-double game by hauling in 11 rebounds (6 offensive). He also had seven assists. It was not a great shooting night as he went 8-for-20 from the floor but Cousins made up for it from the free throw line by hitting 14-of-17 from the stripe.

Co-stars

Darren Collison – the point guard had just two points in the first half of the game and finished the game with 21 points. He shot 7-for-9 from the floor including going 2-for-3 from 3-point range. Collison also took advantage of the charity stripe going 5-for-6 from the free throw line. He also posted two assists and two steals.
Enes Kanter – he is an easy selection for the Thunder. When Steven Adams went down due to injury, Kanter picked up the slack. Kanter scored a season-high 29 against the Kings hitting 10-of-18 shots. He also recorded a double-double by pulling down 12 rebounds.

Other featured players

Kings – Rudy Gay 21 points and 10 rebounds, Anthony Tolliver 10 points, Garrett Temple 8, Matt Barnes 7 points and 8 rebounds, Arron Afflalo 7 points
Thunder – Victor Oladipo 23 points shooting 7-for-14, Alex Abrines 13 points and Steven Adams 6 points and 4 rebounds in just 19-minutes before being injured

Spotlight on stats

Points in the Paint: Thunder 56 Kings 46
2nd chance points: Kings 17 Thunder 14
Fast break points: Thunder 25 Kings 9
Turnovers: Kings 22 (23 pts for OKC) Thunder 19 (28 pts for SAC)
Rebounds: Kings 44 (14 offensive) Thunder 44 (17 offensive)

Injury update

Steven Adams, OKC Thunder – Adams went down after battling for a rebound at the 10:48 mark of the third quarter. He left the court and did not return to the game. Adams hit his head on the floor and was experiencing concussion-like symptoms. He will be evaluated on Monday to determine if he must enter the NBA concussion protocol program.

Up next on the schedule

Kings – Sacramento closes out the seven-game homestand versus the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday night at the Golden 1 Center. Sacramento is just 1-5 on the current homestand and would like to close it out on a positive note before heading out on a brutal road trip. The Kings will play eight games over 13 days on the road and will not be back in Sacramento until February.

Thunder – Oklahoma City has the second game of a back-to-back set on Monday night in Los Angeles against the Clippers. The Thunder will then head back to the Bay Area on Wednesday night to take on Kevin Durant and the Golden State Warriors in a nationally televised game.

Kings play the Cavs tough but come up short 120-108

Published on January 14, 2017 by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment

Cleveland Cavaliers v Sacramento Kings — Kings Ty Lawson scored 17 points against the Cavaliers Photo: NBAE

by Charlie O. Mallonee

Sacramento — The Kings had the unenviable task of taking on LeBron James and the defending NBA Champion Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday night on their homecourt. The Cavs came into the game losers of two consecutive games and they were not looking to make it a three game losing streak. Cleveland did win the game 120-108 but after making look like they would just runaway with it in the first half, the Cavs found out the Kings have some fight in them this season as they made a battle of it in the second half.

The Kings (16-23) ran into trouble early as DeMarcus Cousins picked up two personal fouls in the first quarter and had to go to the bench with 4:18 remaining the period . The Cavaliers took advantage of the Kings big man being off the floor and ripped off 10 quick points to take a 32-15 lead into the second quarter.

In the second quarter, Kings head coach Dave Joerger took a big chance when he returned Cousins to the floor with 9:52 remaining because the Cavaliers were threatening to run away with the game. The move had the desired affect as Cleveland outscored the Kings just 29-28 in the period behind Cousins’ 11 points. Even more importantly, the Kings center did not pick up another foul in the quarter. At the half, Cleveland led Sacramento 61-43 but there appeared to be a pivot in the game. Frankly, the Cavs seemed to lose focus and possibly interest in the game late in the second quarter.

After halftime, the Kings picked up where they left off in the first half. In the third quarter, it was Rudy Gay who picked up the offense scoring 11 points (4-for-6 shooting, 1 3-pointer, 2-of-3 free throws). Cousins had only three points in the quarter but had four assists as the team ran the ball through him on the high-post. Sacramento outscored the Cavaliers 31-23 in the third. The Kings shot 70.6-percent (12-for-17) from the field and hit 4-of-5 (80-percent) 3-pointers in the period. After three quarters, the Cavaliers led the Kings 84-74.

What the Kings needed in the fourth quarter was a run of 10 to 12 unanswered points. It looked like that was going to happen early in the quarter when Sacramento went on a 6-0 run and cut the Cleveland (29-10) lead to just six points. But, that was as close as the Kings would come to regaining the lead. Ty Lawson scored 13 in period for the Kings while Kyle Korver led the Cavs with eight points. When the final buzzer sounded, the Cavaliers had won the game 120-108.

The Kings Dave Joerger was a proud coach

“Good game – proud of our guys. We got off to a slow start. We didn’t make a lot of shots in the first half and we turned the basketball over 14 times, so they were able to get out and run. I had them for 24 fast break points in the first half. They ended up with 24. We cut it down in the second half a little bit. I’m happy about how we battled. We got three stops in a row 11 times which we haven’t done for a long time. And, we fought like crazy. They’re a good team. They present a plethora of problems to solve and that was a good experience for our guys and I was happy that we kept battling.

Stars of the game

Kings – While there were others with bigger numbers, no player had any more important stats than guard Ty Lawson. Lawson scored 17 points in the game and shot an impressive 7-for-10 from the floor. But what was really impressive about his scoring was that 13 of those 17 points were scored in the fourth quarter. Lawson shot 5-for-6 in final period. He played like a man possessed. A man who wanted to win the game.
Cavaliers – Again there were other players with larger numbers but Kyle Korver and his 18 points really stood out in the game. Korver was playing in just his third game for Cleveland since being traded from Atlanta. He had not even been able to have a full practice with the team before beginning to play for them. Kover did have the opportunity to participate in a shootaround on Friday morning and it looked like it paid off. Korver shot 7-for-10 from the field while hitting 4-of-6 from “downtown”. He also recorded five rebounds (1 offensive), two assists and two steals in the game.

cavs-korver — Kyle Korver had his best game for his new team in Sacramento on Friday night Photo: NBAE

Co-stars

Kings – DeMarcus Cousins posted maybe his most impressive double-double of the season. The big man scored 26 points and dished out 11 assists. The Kings made a nice adjustment against the Cleveland defense and started running the ball through Cousins on the high-post. When his teammates were moving to open space, Cousins was finding them and setting them up to score. Former Kings head coach George Karl who we know was not a big Cousins fan on many levels, called the center the best passer on the Kings multiple times last season. It seems Karl got at least one thing right.
Cavaliers – Iman Shumpert finished the game with 16 points for Cleveland, but he did his real damage in the first quarter. The talented guard went a perfect 3-for-3 (all 3-pointers) from the floor in the opening period. Those nine points helped to propel the Cavs out to a 32-15 lead that ultimately the Kings would never be able to overcome in the game.

cavs-shumpert — Iman Shumpert’s first quarter scoring influenced the entire game for Cleveland Photo: NBAE

Other key players

Kings – Rudy Gay 23 points and 10 rebounds (5 offensive); Darren Collison 13 points and four assists; Matt Barnes eight points and five rebounds in 17-minutes on the floor (his coach said in retrospect he should have probably played Barnes more).
Cavaliers – Kyrie Irving 26 points (10-for-22 shooting); LeBron James 16 points and 15 assists ( how’s that for a double-double?); Kevin Love 15 points and 18 rebounds.

The numbers game

Both teams shot over 50-percent from the floor: Cleveland 50.6-percent (44-for-87) Sacramento 52.5-percent (42-for-80)
There were 24 3-point baskets made in the game. The Kings shot a very nice 9-for-25 (36-percent) from beyond the arc. The Cavs made it rain as they hit 15-of-37 (40.5-percent) from downtown as teams continue to burn the Kings from beyond the 3-point line
The Kings out-rebounded the Cavaliers 42-39. They also were slightly better on the offensive glass grabbing 11 to the Cavs 10
Turnovers were a big problem for Sacramento in the first half as they committed 14 of their 21 miscues in the first 24 minutes. The Kings turned the ball over 21 times which resulted in 26 points for the Cavaliers. Cleveland took better care of the ball turning itover just 12 times but the TOVs did turn into 20 points for Sacramento.

Up next on the schedule

The Kings will be back on the floor on Sunday when they host Russell Westbrook and the Oklahoma City Thunder at the Golden 1 Center. The Kings beat the Thunder in Sacramento back in November 116-101 behind a 36 point effort from DeMarcus Cousins. Westbrook scored 31 for the Thunder in that contest. The game on Sunday night tips off at 6 p.m.

The Cavaliers are off until Monday when they will play their archrivals the Golden State Warriors in Oakland in a nationally televised game.

Sacramento Kings Tuesday game wrap: Bench sparks Kings’ win 100-94

Published on January 11, 2017January 11, 2017 by jeremy2878Leave a comment

Sacramento Kings center DeMarcus Cousins (15) drives to the basket around Detroit Pistons defender Tobias Harris (34) during the second half of an NBA basketball game in Sacramento, Calif., Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2017. The Kings won 100-94. (AP Photo/Steve Yeater)

By Jeremy Harness

SACRAMENTO – A severe rainstorm tore through Northern California Tuesday night, causing flooding in several areas and treacherous driving conditions everywhere.

The Kings had to endure a storm of their own early on that night, as missed opportunities and careless turnovers caused them to fall behind the Detroit Pistons for the majority of the game.

It wasn’t until key reserves and role players, such as Ty Lawson and Kosta Koufos, stepped up in the fourth quarter and propelled Sacramento in the final minutes, surging past the Pistons, 100-94, at Golden 1 Center.

“We can’t keep putting ourselves in these situations where we have to make these dramatic finishes in the end,” DeMarcus Cousins said. “We’ve just got to put a full game together.

“We’re going to continue to work on it, but we’ve got to (come up with) a solution quicker than we’ve been doing right now. We have to realize the constant mistakes that we’re making on a nightly basis.”

After a series of dispiriting wins early on in this current homestand, this win was equally gratifying due to the fact that the Kings (16-22) found themselves behind early but found a way to come back and win a game that they did not appear to have any business winning, particularly after turning the ball over 10 times in the first half alone.

A few things happened to turn things around for Sacramento. First off, the Kings did a much better job of holding on to the ball, as they committed only six turnovers in the second half while forcing Detroit into six of their own.

“There were fundamental, I-can’t-believe-I-just-did-that turnovers,” Kings coach Dave Joerger said. “I think we had three turnovers in the first half in the backcourt, which is very uncharacteristic. (To turn things around,) you just try and refocus.”

They also maintained their edge on the boards, as they outrebounded the Pistons 46-35 as well as grabbing four more offensive rebounds.

One more key was that it wasn’t all about DeMarcus Cousins, either. Cousins did have 24 points on 8-of-14 shooting to go along with 13 rebounds and six assists, a far cry from the nightmare outing he endured Sunday night against the Warriors.

But he got some help, particularly in a fourth quarter that saw the Kings claw their way from an 18-point deficit, a big portion of that coming with Cousins resting on the bench. Koufos, a one-time starter but has been relegated to a reserve role these days, especially sprung to life with 10 fourth-quarter points, finishing strong at the rim and also finishing with eight rebounds.

Although the stats don’t begin to tell the story for Lawson – eight points on 2-of-9 shooting and two assists against four turnovers – he settled down in the fourth quarter and put pressure on the Pistons with his penetration to the basket and presence on the defensive end, particularly when forcing Detroit guard Reggie Jackson to fumble the ball out of bounds midway through the quarter to keep the Kings’ surge going.

After sitting the first half of the fourth, Cousins re-entered the game with 6:39 remaining and Sacramento trailing by six, and the Kings only increased their momentum.

After a pair of Rudy Gay free throws, the Kings tied the game at 89-89 with just more than three minutes to go.

The Kings took their first lead since the first quarter when Garrett Temple, who has pushed his way into the starting lineup with his consistent play, sank a 3-pointer to put Sacramento ahead, 95-92, with 1:50 left.

However, Jackson came right back down and had a chance for a three-point play to tie the game. But Jackson missed the ensuing free throw, and Cousins quickly answered by draining a three to give Sacramento a 98-94 lead, a lead that they would not relinquish.

Sacramento Kings podcast with Charlie O: Kings still battling to retain an eighth spot for a playoff position

Published on January 10, 2017 by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Sacramento Kings head coach Dave Joerger reacts as his team takes on the Milwaukee Bucks during the first half of an NBA basketball game Saturday, Nov. 5, 2016, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Darren Hauck)

Right now as we take a look at the Kings current status as of Tuesday they are in ninth play at 15-22 in the NBA Western Conference. They are literally a half a percentage point out of eight place behind Portland the Trailblazers right now with a .410 winning percentage and the Kings with a .405 winning percentage. They are one game ahead in the win column and they are one game ahead of New Orleans. So you have this clump right there vying for that number eight spot. Then you got the Lakers that are just a couple of games back at this point.

So what we’ve had in the conference over the last couple of years where there was such a gap between the eight teams and teams below that you have teams running away with everything and then the rest of the teams. You have this real cluster that is really battling for that last spot that’s trying to get into the playoffs. This makes it very interesting for all the teams that have not been there for awhile.

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