Washington Wizards forward Anthony Gill (16) takes a shot agianst the Sacramento Kings guard DeMar DeRozan (left) at Capital One Arena in DC on Sun Feb 1, 2026 (AP News photo)
By Barbara Mason
When it appears it could not get any worse for the Sacramento Kings (12-39) it did. They lost their ninth game in a row to the struggling Washington Wizards (13-35) 116-112. Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozen each had a great game, LaVine finishing with 35 points and DeRozan with 32. That was about all that was going right for the Kings in this game. The Wizards beat them in the paint barely pulling this game out.
After losing nine games in a row, the Kings took on another struggling team in the Wizards Sunday afternoon with only one thing on their mind; break this horrible losing streak. The Kings have been playing some of the best teams in the NBA and this game the Kings should have taken the opportunity to turn things around.
Sabonis was out with a lower back soreness and Russell Westbrook also remains out with a right foot contusion, his third game in a row.
The newly acquired Trae Young was not available to play for the Wizards his new team out with a right MCL sprain delaying his debut until mid-February. Young is currently going through rehabilitation and being re-evaluated. A return date is probably after the All-Star break.
Game report: The opening quarters was an absolute disaster for the Kings being outscored by the Wizards 23-14. The second quarter began on a sour note as well with Washington leading by as much as 17 points.
Where was the Sacramento offense? The tide began to change late in the quarter when the Kings cut the Wizards double digit lead to single digits. Sacramento picked away and at 2:17 Washington was clinging to a four point lead 46-42. Going into the half the Wizards had a five point lead 53-48. Sacramento had outscored the Wizards 34-30 as the Kings offense came to life.
Zach LaVine had the team high at the half scoring 22 points and four rebounds. The rest of the offense was quiet with DeMar DeRozan finishing the half with four points. The Kings would need a lot more from some of their starters and their bench in the second half of play. The Kings really came around as the second quarter wound down and they would need more of the same in the second half.
Zach LaVine continued to carry the team in the third quarter while DeMar DeRozan and Maxime Raynaud started to heat up. With two minutes left in the quarter, it was a 2-point game 79-77 in favor of the Wizards.
When Sacramento got close to taking the lead, they allowed an AJ Johnson three followed by a turnover which resulted in a Jamir Watkins dunk pushing the Wizards lead out to 86-78 After three quarters the Wizards continued to lead 88-82.
Sacramento needed a fourth quarter push in the worst way but it was not to be. Every time the Kings got close, the Wizards pushed back and Sacramento had so far been unable to stop them. Again the Kings got within two points and at long last Sacramento tied up the game at 95 with 9:09 left in the game.
The King’s surge prompted a Washington time-out. This game went right down to the wire. With 30 seconds left on the clock the Wizards had a three-point lead that they were able to hang onto. The win for the Wizards is their third out of their last four games and the Kings had now strung out nine losses in a row.
While LaVine and DeRozan both had great games they did not get a lot of support from the rest of the team. The bench was not good and the team sure did miss Sabonis and Westbrook in this game. It was an awful start for Sacramento and they faltered in the final minutes of the fourth quarters.
The Kings now return home to Golden 1 Arena in Sacramento for a game Wednesday night taking on another struggling team in the Memphis Grizzlies. Sacramento continues to search for an end to this drought which they will hopefully realize Wednesday night.











