Heading into Thursday night’s contest against the lowly San Antonio Spurs, most Kings fans were understandably a little apprehensive. Not only have the Kings struggled against low-win teams at home this season, the Spurs also represent the sort of squad Sacramento has struggled with mightily this season – a group that plays hard for every possession over 48 minutes. The back-and-forth battle saw the Spurs take a 120-116 lead with just 2:12 remaining in the 4th, but a string of late game heroics from De’Aaron Fox snagged a close-game win for the Kings as they battle to work their way back into the top-6 in the Western Conference. Fox led the Kings with 28 points, 9 assists, and 5 boards, while Devin Vassell was brilliant for the Spurs, putting up 32 points and 7 assists of his own. Rookie sensation Victor Wembanyama was also all over the stat sheet with 19 points, 13 rebounds, 4 assists, 5 blocks, and 5 steals.
The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly
The Good:
- Mr. Clutch Returns: De’Aaron Fox has struggled to make shot in several late game situations this season, but Thursday night was an exception to that single-season rule. After Devin Vassell’s three-pointer gave the Spurs a 4-point lead with just over two minutes remaining, Fox was all over the floor. His step-back triple with 1:21 on the clock gave Sacramento a one-point lead that they wouldn’t surrender, and after Vassell beat him backdoor, Fox was able to recover and block his layup attempt. Thirteen seconds later, Fox knocked down a middy to seal the win for the Kings. Sacramento wasn’t going to win this one with Fox’s heroics.
- Domantas Sabonis – The Machine: In an era of load management, sitting for games against bad opponents, and a general lack of commitment to playing through pain or discomfort, the Sacramento Kings have found an underappreciated luxury in Domantas Sabonis’ absolute refusal to sit out. Entering Thursday night’s contest, Sabonis was listed as doubtful due to illness, but Sacramento’s star center stepped up in a huge way, despite being nowhere close to 100%, just as he did last season with a broken thumb. Domantas bullied Victor Wembanyama in the paint all night long, finishing with yet another triple-double: 22 points, 11 boards, and 11 assists.
- Guard Trifecta: It often feels like the Kings struggle to get all three of their best guards going at the same time, but De’Aaron Fox, Kevin Huerter, and Malik Monk were all fantastic for Mike Brown tonight. The trio combined for 70 points on just 47 field goal attempts, along with a combined 16 assists and 12 rebounds.
The Bad:
- (Most of the) Defense: Surprise, surprise, the Kings slept on the defensive end of the floor for most of the evening. San Antonio, the worst three-point shooting team in the league, made 44% of their three-point attempts, and many of those makes were wide-open – no bad luck shooting variance to be found in the Golden 1 Center tonight. The Spurs were also comfortable penetrating the paint for most of the game, scoring 72 points in the paint, although there were moments at the end of the half and the end of the game that saw Sacramento lock down on the defensive end of the floor.
The Ugly:
- Trey Lyles: Lyles is often one of the most reliable bench contributors for Mike Brown, but Thursday was simply not Lyles’ day. He was overeager offensively, jacking up three-pointers the second the ball hit his hand, and he was also a sieve on defense as well. Trey finished with 4 points on 1/6 shooting from the floor. This was the type of game that may have seen Sasha Vezenkov minutes if he was healthy.
The King of Kings
Domantas Sabonis was as impressive as they come, but the prestigious, hyper-important King of Kings award has to head De’Aaron Fox’s way. His two clutch buckets and nearly impossible block sealed the victory for Sacramento.
Up Next
Sunday, February 27th vs. Los Angeles Clippers – 6:30 P.M. (PT)
