Coming into this game, I fully expected this to be one of the uglier games of the season. The Heat are really, really good, and the Kings are really, really bad on the road. So I was pleasantly surprised by the play of the team tonight in what might have been one of the best offensive performances of the season for Sacramento.
The Kings got off to a great start against the Heat, starting out with a 17-9 lead. Miami would come roaring back, but the Kings remained competitive through three quarters, thanks to some of the best ball movement of the season. The Kings finished with 24 assists, and would have had several more if players had caught the ball cleanly on fast breaks. The best part of the ball movement was how well the Kings were cutting off the ball, particularly Marcus Thornton, who finished with 23 points on 16 shots.
Isaiah Thomas, in his 3rd start, led the Kings in scoring with a career-high 24 points, of which 20 came in the 3rd quarter alone. That is the most points the Heat have allowed by an individual player in a quarter this season. Isaiah hit 5 threes in the quarter, as well as being fouled on another one. The 5 threes in the quarter ties a Sacramento-era record set by Jason Williams in 1999. The Kings as a team shot very well from three point range, making 13-27 overall, with Thomas, Thornton and Francisco Garcia hitting at least 3 each.
Despite the slow start for Miami, they turned it up big time from the 2nd quarter on. This team was clicking on all cylinders and answered every Kings run with one of their own. The team as a whole shot a ridiculous 55.6% from the field, and answered the Kings great three point shooting with a 10-23 performance of their own. Sacramento knew they couldn't guard the Heat one-on-one and resorted to a zone for much of the game, which stymied the Heat a bit at first. The thing about zones though is that they can easily be broken by good outside shooting and good slashing and passing, and the Heat have those two things in spades. Mario Chalmers took full advantage of the zone to the tune of 20 points, 18 of which came off his 6 three pointers.
Dwyane Wade could not be stopped no matter what defense the Kings threw at him, as he scored 30 points to go with 10 assists, 4 rebounds, 3 steals and 2 blocks in just 30 minutes of play. Chris Bosh (20 points, 10 rebounds) and LeBron James (18 points, 8 assists) played second and third fiddle to Wade, but were still hugely instrumental to Miami's victory, particularly on defense.
For the 2nd game in a row, the Kings gave away a game they should have won through stupid mental lapses down the stretch. With Sacramento up by 1 points with 2.9 seconds left, Tyreke Evans fouled Kyrie Irving on what appeared to be a gamble for a steal, leading to two Free Throws and the lead for Cleveland with just 0.4 seconds left. DeMarcus Cousins' sweeping hook on the other end was short and Cleveland won the game. It was extremely frustrating to watch to say the least.
Despite the heartbreaking loss, the spectacular performance of Isaiah Thomas should not be overlooked. In just his 2nd game as a starter, Thomas almost had a triple-double, with 23 points, 11 assists, 8 rebounds and a block to boot. He matched Cleveland's Kyrie Irving point for point, and did a good job defensively on Irving in the 2nd half. Marcus Thornton had a double-double himself with 21 points and 10 rebounds. DeMarcus Cousins did not have the best shooting game, but finished with 19 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals.
For Cleveland, Irving's 23 points led the team, none more important than those final free throws. 17 of those points came in the 1st half. Antawn Jamison also was a handful for the Kings with 21 points and 8 rebounds, and Ramon Sessions (14 points, 5 assists) and Tristan Thompson (15 points, 12 rebounds, 3 blocks) both made a nice contribution off the bench.
Neither team shot well. The Kings went just 37.6% from the field and the Cavs finished at 36.0%. The Cavaliers did make 7 three pointers to Sacramento's 4, and also had 22 made Free Throws to the Kings' 18. Despite the poor shooting, the Kings ball movement continued to be good, as they finished with 21 assists for the game.
A loss is a loss is a loss. Whether it be by blowout or a buzzer beater, it still counts the same. But boy, did this one hurt. The Kings should have won this game, and probably would have if they had played more cohesively in the 4th quarter.
Sacramento got off to a hot start and fought off several Detroit runs with runs of their own, but they were derailed late, as Detroit came back to take the lead for good after two consecutive three pointers by Brandon Knight and Rodney Stuckey gave Detroit a 108-104 lead with 1:35 left.
Stuckey was absolutely brilliant for the Pistons, getting to the basket or the free throw line seemingly every time he decided to attack. He finished with a game and season-high 36 points. Rookie Brandon Knight joined Stuckey in having a big night as he finished with 23 points (4-6 from three) and a career-high 10 assists to zero turnovers. Tayshaun Prince chipped in with 22 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocks and finished 10-19 from the field after starting out 2-10.
DeMarcus Cousins, who wasn't even supposed to play according to early reports today, fought through the pain and finished with 26 points, 15 rebounds, and 3 assists in just 32 minutes. Marcus Thornton added 24 points and 3 steals. In a surprise decision, Coach Smart changed up his starting lineup to add Isaiah Thomas and remove John Salmons, and it seemed to pay dividends, as the Kings ran a much faster and more efficient offense. Thomas himself finished with 13 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists in 23 minutes.
The Kings as a team moved the ball exceedingly well for most of the game, and finished with a season-high 25 assists. Tyreke Evans led the team with 9, and Jimmer and Isaiah chipped in 4 each. However, that ball movement ceased in the pivotal 4th quarter, during which the Kings had just one assist.
What a miserable game to watch. With all the hype and energy surrounding the Knicks currently and the way these Kings have stepped up playing in the Garden the last few years, you'd think that they'd come out looking to prove something. Instead the Kings came out flat and stayed that way much of the night.
Jeremy Lin's streak of 20 point games was ended at 6, but his scoring wasn't needed. As expected, he absolutely killed the Kings running the Pick & Roll, and he ended up with 13 assists (to go with 10 points and 5 rebounds) in just 26 minutes of play. Six more Knicks scored in double-figures, and Tyson Chandler had 9. Landry Fields led New York with 15, and Bill Walker and Steve Novak chipped in 14 each. The Knicks as a whole shot 51.3% from the field, and led pretty much throughout, as the Kings never made much noise.
The Kings were led in scoring by Tyreke Evans 19 points, most of which came in the 3rd quarter. New York was giving Evans free reign to shoot as many jumpers as he wanted, preferring to take their chances there instead of at the rim. DeMarcus Cousins had 15 points but just 4 boards, as Tyson Chandler did a very good job defending him. Chandler's presence greatly altered the game for New York on defense. He only blocked two shots, but he altered a great many more just by being in the general area of the hoop or by contesting.
The Sacramento Kings' offense sure broke out alright against the Chicago Bulls and their No. 1 defense on Tuesday, but unfortunately the Bulls scored a few more against Sactown's porous resistance to pick up a 121-116. Even without Derrick Rose, Chicago scored at will, shooting 52.4 percent from the floor, hitting 9-19 threes and 24 free throws. Luol Deng was the high scorer with 23, but the real killers were in the frontcourt: Joakim Noah and Carlos Boozer combined for 38 points on 14-25 shooting. Noah, in particular, was deadly (22 and 11 with four blocks).
Of course, his counterpart DeMarcus Cousins had a big night, too. Boogie finished with 28 points on 10-20 shooting (7-9 line) and 17 rebounds (seven offensive). That's a mammoth game for the young monster, but having given almost all of it back to Noah isn't great. Noah's a fine player, though.
Tyreke Evans had a strong game, too, with 27 points on 9-18 shooting, eight assists and eight rebounds. He thoroughly whipped up C.J. Watson, Rose's replacement, and was especially powerful in the second half, where he tallied 20 on 7-11 shooting with six of his assists. He sat for a total of about 45 seconds in the second half, so keep an eye on his energy as the road trip wears on.
Deng won his matchup with John Salmons so thoroughly as to be almost comical. While Deng had 23, a ridiculous 11 assists and seven rebounds, Salmons managed three points on 1-8 shooting, two assists and one rebound. Salmons played most of the third, shooting 0-5 in the period. He didn't get off the bench in the fourth as Keith Smart went almost exclusively with Evans at small forward and Isaiah Thomas and Marcus Thornton in the backcourt. (Jimmer Fredette was a late scratch due to a stomach bug.) That three-guard lineup was a +16 in the fourth quarter.
Donte Greene scored 10 on 4-4 shooting and held Deng scoreless in the second quarter. Woo! Then he missed a couple of buckets in the late third/early fourth and sat for the triple-guard attack. C'est la vie.
The Kings play the Knicks on Wednesday.
After the emotional high of the win over the Thunder on Thursday, tonight's effort and performance was like one big hangover. The Phoenix Suns came in and played great team basketball on both ends of the court, and ended up being in control for all 48 minutes. Sacramento never once had the lead or even tied.
Phoenix had a very balanced attack. Former MVP Steve Nash wasn't a factor scoring wise with just 4 points, but he ran the pick and roll perfectly and ended up dishing out 15 assists in only 29 minutes, just one less than the entire Kings team managed. The Suns were led in scoring by Jared Dudley, who had 20 points, 10 rebounds, 2 steals and 2 blocks. Marcin Gortat (15 points, 7 rebounds, 4 blocks), Channing Frye (17 points, 3-5 from three) and rookie Markieff Morris (18 points, 6 rebounds, 3 blocks) also chipped in with double figures. The Suns as a team shot exactly 50% from the field, the highest total for an opponent since Jan. 8th v. Orlando.
Sacramento shot a mere 35.1% from the field in comparison. DeMarcus Cousins (26 points, 9 rebounds) and Marcus Thornton (21 points, 2 steals, 2 assists, 2 rebounds) were the only players on the Kings that could get anything going offensively. Tyreke Evans had the 2nd worst shooting night of his career, going just 1-9 from the field for 4 points. Donté Greene was the third highest scorer for Sacramento with just 8 points.
That was absolutely amazing. With all the hype going into the game beforehand and the fact that Oklahoma City was the best team in the league, this was a night that seemed like it could have been ripe for disappointment. But it lived up to all the hype and more as the Kings pulled out the victory over the Thunder.
In many ways, this game was a parallel to last year, and the efforts to keep the Kings from moving to Anaheim. Not many people thought that Sacramento would succeed in keeping the team here, just as not many expected the Kings to win tonight. In both cases, the fans indirectly influenced the outcome by showing their support. The grassroots movements last year spurred Mayor Johnson and the city to action to begin the process of saving this team and keeping it here, and tonight the sellout crowd energized the players all night long. In the end, that support was rewarded with victory, improbable as it may have seemed.
The Kings as a team didn't have a single individual who truly stood out as the hero of this game. It was a team effort all around, with every player on the court making a meaningful contribution. The Kings were also relentless and fearless attacking the basket tonight, scoring 60 points in the paint. That's despite the efforts of Serge Ibaka, who had 10 of Oklahoma City's 17 blocks. Tyreke Evans led the Kings with 22 points, 5 assists, 5 rebounds and 4 steals. The Kings also had 21 assists to just 12 turnovers, half of those occurring in the first quarter, meaning they took better care of the ball as the game went along. The bench also outscored Oklahoma City's bench 34-19.
Oklahoma City had big production from their main weapons. Kevin Durant had 27 points on 9-19 from the field, James Harden had 17 on 5-11 from the field, and Russell Westbrook led all scorers with 33 on 15-26 from the field. That's over three-quarters of the Thunder's points coming from three guys. Those three players also combined for 15 turnovers though (Westbrook had 7 himself) and that was a big problem for the Thunder. They had just 13 assists to 23 turnovers, as the Kings defense did a good job of deflecting and swiping at the ball all night.
There are many reasons Sacramento lost this game. Turnovers, bad calls, missed shots, terrible defense. But the biggest factor of all was yet another slow start to the game, as Minnesota jumped out to a 15 point lead to end the first quarter with the Kings only scoring 16 points. Sacramento would outscore Minnesota in each remaining quarter, but try as they might, they couldn't close it out. Donté Greene had an opportunity to win it with a three pointer at the buzzer, but it was just short, and thus the Kings three game winning streak was ended.
For the victorious Timberwolves, they needed someone to step up in the absence of Kevin Love. They found that person in Nikola Pekovic, who had a wonderful game on both ends of the court, scoring 23 points on 12 shots to go with 10 rebounds, 3 steals and 2 blocks. He also completely took DeMarcus Cousins out of the game, and while Cousins finished with another double-double at 10 points and 11 rebounds, he shot just 3-13 from the field. Rookie Derrick Williams started in Love's absence, and while he didn't have nearly the impact as Love would, he did have a big game, scoring 14 points, including a big three in the final minute. Williams also chipped in with 8 rebounds and 3 blocked shots.
Sacramento was led in scoring by Marcus Thornton with 22 points, 10 of which came in the 3rd quarter, but he missed a big free throw with 30 seconds left that would have made it a one point game. Thornton was the only one of the Kings "Big Three" to be on his game though. As mentioned above, DeMarcus had one of his worst nights in a long time, and Tyreke Evans was similarly awful. Tyreke ended with 11 points on 13 shots, with 3 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 turnovers. The turnovers don't tell the whole story with Tyreke however. Turnovers don't take into account the possessions where he is the only one to touch the ball for 10-15 seconds and then settles for a fadeaway jumper. Tyreke did not play well tonight.
Sacramento's bench had some good contributions tonight. J.J. Hickson was one of the few Kings in the first half that could get anything going and he finished with 8 points on 4-6 shooting to go with 11 rebounds and a block. Jimmer Fredette played sparingly in the first half, making some nice passes but being completely off on the couple of shots he took. He came back in the 4th quarter and looked like a different player. He started out by hitting three triples in a row, then found Donté Greene for a slam, and followed that up with a driving layup off a steal and another jumper on the next possession. Jimmer finished with 13 points (all in the 4th quarter), 3 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals in 17 minutes.
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