After their double overtime victory over the Magic on Wednesday, the Kings had a day off to recharge before hosting the Toronto Raptors tonight. The Raptors, relearning themselves after their recent trade of OG Anunoby for new teammates, RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley, had won their last two games coming into Golden 1 Center. With trade rumors swirling at an all-time high around the potential of Pascal Siakam coming to Sacramento, the Kings looked to ignore the noise, end the Raptors’ short winning streak, and begin one of their own. Let’s see how they did:
Quick Stats
Outcome: Kings win, 135-130
Sacramento Kings: 135 pts, 54.0% fg, 55.3% 3 pt, 66.7% ft, 35 ast, 42 reb, 15 to
Toronto Raptors: 130 pts, 52.0% fg, 35.1% 3 pt, 85.2% ft, 31 ast, 37 reb, 14 to
My chest hurts. We saw just about every version of the Sacramento Kings tonight: the Beam Team, the Kangz, and the Cardiac Kings. Let’s get into each one:
The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly
The Good:
- Beam Team: The Kings showed some of their best brand of basketball tonight, where they fully embodied the spirit of the Beam Team. The offense was *chef’s kiss*. The ball was constantly moving and there was a fluidity to their movements in relation to one another. This all resulted in a 20-point lead by the end of the first half after the Kings shot 14-27 from the 3-point line and tallied 22 assists. They were aggressive in crashing the offensive glass and capitalized on a bunch of second chance opportunities. It was all beamy vibes as everyone got a chance to contribute. Keegan Murray shot a perfect 4-4 from the 3-point line and scored 14 of his 18 points in the first half. Harrison Barnes had a productive night, scoring 16 points on 5-8 from the 3-point line. Malik Monk (15 points) and Trey Lyles (12 points) led the bench unit as they contributed another combined 7 3-pointers. On offense, every Kings player seemed confident and decisive with the ball in their hands, making quick decisions to keep the ball moving. The constant movement and sharp shooting broke this game open in the second and third quarters where the Kings enjoyed a 23-point lead at one point.
The Bad:
- The Kangz: While we got to relish in the beauty of the Beam Team on offense, we also had to suffer through a lot of Kangz defense. Sacramento struggled early on by committing numerous fouls at the rim. Even while the Kings were rolling on offense, the Raptors were able to hang around because the Kings sent them to the line 11 times in the first quarter, where they cashed in on every single one. Defending without fouling is a goal the Kings are still trying to meet while still focusing on increasing their physicality. In the second half, the Kings slowly let the Raptors back into this game with countless defensive breakdowns. Seven players, including all five starters, from the Raptors finished in double digits. The most glaring came from Dennis Schroder off the bench, who seemed to be able to get wherever he wanted on the floor and scored 18 points on 7-11 from the field, most of these being layups. Meanwhile, Scottie Barnes and Immanuel Quickley, each scoring 20 points and each making 4 3-pointers a piece, capitalized on the Kings’ lack of defensive discipline. Pascal Siakam seemed like he had to earn every bucket he got, but still managed to finish with 18 points and 9 assists. It’s difficult to fully appreciate the execution on the offensive end when the defensive end leaves so much to be desired still.
The Ugly:
- Cardiac Kings: The Cardiac Kings did it again. The signature of the Cardiac Kings is to let you get comfortable first with the 23-point lead, then punch you in the heart to get it racing by letting their opponent right back in during final possessions, only to win the dang thing like they should have in the first place. The conclusion of this all went down late in the fourth quarter, as the Kings allowed the Raptors to shrink their 23-point lead down to just 2 points with 2:30 left on the clock. What followed was a frenzied sequence that included great offensive execution by Malik Monk and De’Aaron Fox (24 points) to penetrate the paint and find an open Domantas Sabonis underneath the basket. Sabonis was fouled and made both free throws (a rare thing for the Kings tonight, who shot 66.7% from the line). The Kings tried to hold onto this 4-point lead, but a turnover by Sabonis, a failed close out by Monk, and Sabonis’ sixth and final foul put Chris Boucher at the free throw line where he cut the lead to just 3 points. Fox responded with a fallaway jumper in the paint to once again fortify the lead, and from there, the Raptors were unable to execute. But, none of this would have happened without the complete crumble by the Cardiac Kings. Sacramento failed to meet the moment when Toronto, unsurprisingly, turned things up a notch on both ends. The Kings failed to make proper adjustments and ultimately had to rely on their clutch star to get them out of this one in the end.
The King of Kings
Domantas Sabonis notched his 8th triple double of the season, finishing with 24 points, 15 rebounds, and 11 assists. His 10th assist that solidified this triple double couldn’t have been any sweeter:
Domantas Sabonis ↗️ Malik Monk 💥🔨 pic.twitter.com/UmNly62w5Y
— NBA TV (@NBATV) January 6, 2024
Up Next
Sunday, January 7th vs. New Orleans Pelicans – 3:00 P.M. (PT)
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Kings 135, Raptors 130: Cardiac Kings Do It Again - The Kings Herald
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