Help Wanted: Head Coach for Sacramento Kings – experience preferred

Vlade Divac Photo: @NBCS

by Charlie O. Mallonee

On Thursday morning, the Sacramento Kings announced that the contract of General Manager Vlade Divac had been extended through the 2022-23 season. That certainly appeared to be good news as it means there will stability in the upper management of the Kings organization for the next four seasons.

Divac made some big moves quickly

First, he fired assistant general manager Brandon Williams. Williams had been the focus of controversy since last December when coach Dave Joerger threw him out of the Kings practice facility. Joerger believed that Williams was trying to have him fired for not using Marvin Bagley III and Harry Giles III properly in games.

The unresolved tension between Joerger and Williams hung in the background of the basketball operation all season long. No one really talked about the problem, but everyone knew it existed and was unresolved. That changed Thursday morning.

One down – one to go

Ex-Sacramento head coach Dave Joerger Photo: @NBCS

After Divac sent Williams packing, there was some thought that Dave Joerger may have won the battle over Williams. Then the word came down, Joerger had been summoned to Divac’s office and the rumor leaked that Joerger was going to get a pink slip.

It did not take long for the news to be confirmed. Joerger had indeed been fired, and the Kings were in the market for a new head coach following their most successful season in a decade.

Divac tried to explain things in a press conference

Here are the highlights of his comments:

• Divac thanked Joerger for being a “good teammate” and for a job well done over his three years as head coach.
• Divac also expressed that he had been evaluating the team since the All-Star Break and how they could rise to the next level.
• The Kings GM also expressed that he thought the team could have (reporters emphasis: should have) made the playoffs this season.
• He was very clear that taking things to the next level meant going into the playoffs.
• Divac made it very clear that the decision to fire Joerger was his and his alone. He did indicate that he had informed ownership of his decision.
• The GM feels the Kings timing is good because they have plenty of time before the draft and free agency begins to get a new coach in place.
• Divac – to no one’s surprise did not name any potential candidates for head coach. Most reporters and analyst believe that Luke Walton is the number one target on Kings’ list even though he is still employed by the Lakers as of today.
• Divac also stated that Williams will not be replaced. His duties will be absorbed by Peja Stojakovic and Ken Catanella.

Next head coach of the Kings? Photo: @NBCS

Joerger did not do much to save his job

In this reporter’s opinion, Dave Joerger did not make a full court press to keep his job as head coach of the Sacramento Kings. His team went a pitiful 3-7 in their final 10 games in their effort to finish 41-41. When he should have been angry and ready to tear someone’s head off, Joerger remained stoic and apologetic for his team.

I think Joerger knew he was “a dead man walking” and had moved into a role of caretaker until the end of the season. It really is a sad ending to what was three years of hard work by Joerger and his coaching staff.

What’s next

The search and interviews begin. The Kings hope that they will be able to wrap up their coaching search quickly and with positive results.

Headline Sports with Tony Renteria: Curry is expected back by game one of the playoffs; Kings fire Joerger, Walton most likely successor; plus more

Photo credit: @theScore

On Headline Sports podcast with Tony:

#1 The Golden State Warriors say that Stephen Curry is day to day after he rolled his ankle in New Orleans on Tuesday night. Warriors head coach Steve Kerr says that Curry should be back by the first game of the NBA playoffs.

#2 Sacramento Kings fired head coach Dave Joerger Thursday after three losing seasons. The firing most likely will be an open door for Los Angeles Lakers head coach Luke Walton to take over the coaching job in Sacramento. Wednesday was the last day of the regular season for the Sacramento Kings. They grew, they had won 12 more games than last season, and they have a core of players that are much improved over last season. Tony tells us what the Kings will do to get a viable shot at the playoffs for next season.

#3 It was kind of historical in Boston on Tuesday night when members of the Boston Red Sox and the New England Patriots made an appearance on the field before the Sox ball game against the Toronto Blue Jays at Fenway Park. Both teams were showing their Championship trophies as both teams won Championships in the first year.

#4 Two players from Bay Area schools were drafted on Wednesday by the WNBA. From Cal, Kristine Anigwe, who was named Defensive Player of the Year, and from the Stanford Cardinal, Alanna Smith. It has to be a pretty big honor for these players to get to the next level and play in the WNBA.

#5 The A’s won another series this time over the Baltimore Orioles on this current road trip after getting swept in Houston by the Astros to start the trip. The A’s defeated the O’s in the four game series and head to Texas to open a three game series with the Rangers starting on Friday night.

Tony does the Headline Sports each Thursday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Kings miss 40 wins by just five points!

Photo/graphic: @NBCS

by Charlie O. Mallonee

The Sacramento Kings went to Portland on Wednesday night with the opportunity win their 40th game of the 2018-19 season which would have been the first time a Kings team had recorded 40 wins since 2005-06. Much to the chagrin of the multitude of Kings fans, the 40th win did not happen.

Portland decided to rest all of their starters and most of their key second team players. That gave the Kings a significant advantage in their quest to reach 40 wins.

A Record-Setting First Half

Buddy Hield hits his 600th 3-pointer in 3 seasons @ NBCS

The Kings started the game on fire. They scored a franchise record 87 points in the first half falling just three points short of tying the NBA record for the most points scored in the opening 24 minutes of an NBA game. They shot an incredible 66.7-percent (32/48) from the field. They hit 13-of-20 (65%) of their 3-point shots.

De’Aaron Fox scored 17 points. Rookie Marvin Bagley III scored 16 points in just over 14-minutes on the floor. Harrison Barnes, Nemanja Bjelica and Bogdan Bogdanovic all scored 10 points each in the first half.

The Kings went to the locker room at halftime with an 87-62 lead. It appeared that everything was going Sacramento’s way and that win number 40 was only 24 minutes away.

Coach Joerger’s Big Decision

Maybe that wasn’t a good idea Photo: @NBCS

Head coach Dave Joerger decided that all of his starters would not play in the second half of the game on Wednesday night. That in part may have been a tribute to the job well done by the starters and giving a well-deserved opportunity to the second team and reserves. The problem is the plan did not work.

The Trail Blazers outscored the Kings 36-26 in the third quarter and cut the Kings lead to 15 points. As the Kings went to the fourth period, you might have expected Joerger to have reinserted Hield and Fox to reenergize his team’s scoring attack. He did not do that.

Joerger chose to stay with his reserves and that decision did not go well for the team.

The Final Quarter

Portland scored 38 points in the fourth quarter while the Kings only managed to put 18 points in the book. Anfernee Simons led the Trail Blazers scoring attack with 12 points. Frank Mason scored 10 for the Kings.

When the final buzzer sounded, the Trail Blazers had defeated the Kings 136-131.

Top Performers

Portland

• Anfernee Simons led all scorers with 37 points.
• Former Kings player Skal Labissiere put up 27 points against his old mates. Skal made it a double-double by grabbing 15 rebounds.
• Jake Layman, Meyers Leonard, and Gary Trent, Jr. all scored 19 points each in the contest.

Kings

• The Kings leading scorer was Marvin Bagley III with 20 points and nine rebounds. The rookie has had an incredible season.
• De’Aaron Fox and Yogi Ferrell scored 17 points each.
• Bogdan Bogdanovic and Frank Mason III both scored 15 points in the game.

One Big Question to Ask

In his exit interview, this reporter thinks that head coach Dave Joerger needs to be asked why he did not do more to get win number 40 on Wednesday night. The psychological lift for the team and fans of crossing over into the 40 win plateau would have been huge. Joerger needs to be held accountable for letting that opportunity get away.

In the meantime, the NBA Draft is 72 days away.

Kings never trail in their 117-104 win over the Cavaliers on Thursday night

Buddy Hield shoots a 3-point basket Photo: Charlie O. Mallonee

By Charlie O. Mallonee

SACRAMENTO — The Sacramento Kings won their 39th game of the 2018-19 season on Thursday night as they defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers 117-104. It was not an easy win. The Kings had to earn this victory. The Cavs are not a great team, but they are professional basketball players who belong on an NBA court.

The Cavs may have never held the lead in the game, but they did cut the Kings’ lead to just one point with 4:40 to go in the third quarter. Sacramento was able to make a surge in order to take a nine-point lead into the final period.

The Cavs reduced the Kings lead to just six points at the 8:03 mark in the fourth quarter, but Sacramento with the help of Marvin Bagley III and Bogdan Bogdanovic opened up a lead that would never put them in danger of losing the game again.

With the win, the Kings sweep the season series from the Cavaliers who drop to 19-60 for the campaign.

SAC is one game away from winning 40

Some fans have asked — is winning 40 a big deal? Yes, it is. The Kings won 27 games last season. Most analysts projected them win between  30-35 games this season (this reporter projected them to win 32). To improve their win-loss record by 13 wins and climb into the 40-wins stratosphere is psychologically a big deal for a young team.

As a Western Conference team, the Kings will have to win 45-47 games next season just to make it into the playoffs. If they can win 40 games, they will know what it takes to get where they need to be in order to reach the next level.

This team has already has recorded the best win total for a Kings deal team since the 2005-06 season. Winning game number 40 would make them the first Sacramento team to win at least 40 games since that 2005-06 team won 44 games.

Dave Joerger postgame thoughts

• Thought it was a good win
• Getting to 40 wins is a big deal
• Tonight, it didn’t feel like we made a lot of shots; they did make a lot of shots
• Out defensive activity was good — steals, deflections forced 22 turnovers
• We took care of the ball — seven turnovers that resulted in just eight points
• We scored points in the paint which was huge for us (SAC 62 CLE 54)
• When we moved the ball and we got in the paint, we were more successful

Top Performances

Fox takes it to the hoop Photo: Charlie O. Mallonee

Kings

• Buddy Hield was the game’s leading scorer with 23 points shooting 9-for-16 from the field. He hit 5-of-11 from downtown. Hield needs just six 3-point baskets to beat Damian Lillard’s record of 599 three-pointers in the first three seasons of a players career.
• Bogdan Bogdanovic had a strong game coming off the bench to score 18 points in just over 27 minutes of playing time. “Bogi” shot 7-for-13 from the floor including four 3-point baskets. He also dished out five assists. Bogdanovic seemed to play with more energy than he has in some time.
• De’Aaron Fox bounced back nicely after having a disappointing game versus the Rockets. Fox recorded a double-double scoring 16 points and distributing 10 dimes.
• Marvin Bagley III played only 20 minutes, but he made the most of his time on the floor. MB35 put up 15 points and grabbed eight rebounds. His play was very important to the Kings opening up their lead in the fourth quarter.
• Odd facts: the Kings were outrebounded by the Cavs 50-36 in this game. The Kings made 12 steals while the Cavaliers managed only three steals. Sacramento only turned the ball over seven times while Cleveland turned over 22 times.

Cleveland

Larry Nance, Jr, jams home Photo: Charlie O. Mallonee

• Jordan Clarkson was the Cavs leading scorer with 22 points. Clarkson came off the bench to play just over 31 minutes and shoot 9-for-13 from the field.
• Point guard Colin Sexton was very impressive in almost 38 minutes on the floor. For a player who is not supposed to shoot well, he was very impressive as a shooter. Sexton hit 8-of-14 shots overall and 3-of-5 from 3-point land.
• Second-year player Cedi Osman recorded 17 points and three assists. He was key to the Cavs first half performance.
• Cleveland shot 54.3-percent (44/81) for the game and hit 11-of-25 (44%) 3-point attempts.

Up Next

The Kings left immediately after the game for Salt Lake City where they will play the Jazz on Friday night.

The Cavaliers boarded their buses and headed for the Bay Area where they will face the Golden State Warriors tomorrow night.

Headline Sports podcast with Tony Renteria: Lechler to go into Hall as Raiders punter for 13 seasons; Raiders sign Grant at wide receiver; plus more

Photo credit: @TDenFamilia

On the Headline Sports podcast with Tony Renteria:

#1 Former Oakland Raider Shane Lechler can look forward to be inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame after the five year wait . He played in 206 games for the Raiders and missed only two games in 13 seasons. In those 13 seasons, Lechler called Oakland his home. A seven-time Pro Bowler, he was one of the best punters in NFL history.

#2 Wide receiver Ryan Grant has signed with the Oakland Raiders. Grant formerly with the Indianapolis Colts signed with Oakland on Wednesday Grant’s deal is worth one year, $2.5 million.

#3 You can’t win them all the A’s, who won the first two games against the visiting Boston Red Sox on great pitching, and delivered two shutouts, but they dropped game three of the four-game series to the Red Sox. However, the A’s have been delivering excitement each night.

#4 The Giants had some troubles on this road trip, but still, they have gone 2-5 thus far. They have concluded their road series with the Dodgers with a 5-3 loss. They have their home opener on Friday, can they get back on track with some home cooking?

#5 The Sacramento Kings might be making changes again and knowing how much Kings owner Vivek Ranadive and general manager Vlade Divak like Los Angeles Lakers head coach Luke Walton. Do you see Walton getting fired by the Lakers as rumored and going to the Kings, which means Kings head coach Dave Joerger will get the boot at season’s end?

Headline Sports with Tony R is heard each Thursday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

Rockets make it “rain” 3-pointers, crush the Kings 130-105 on Tuesday night

Barnes tries to contain Harden Photo: Charlie O. Mallonee

By Charlie O. Mallonee

SACRAMENTO — The Sacramento Kings goal of finishing the season with a 41-41 record took a serious hit on Tuesday night when the Houston Rockets beat them 130-105 at the Golden 1 Center. The young, upstart Kings never held a lead in the game. The win gave Houston a four-game season-series sweep over Sacramento.

In his postgame comments, Kings head coach Dave Joerger noted that the Rockets have beat his team by over 20 points on average in all four games this season. He later would point out that the Rockets as a team are staffed with great players.

Why Did the Kings Lose?

Sacramento lost the game because they could not shut down the dynamic 3-point shooting of the Rockets. Houston literally made it “rain” 3-pointers at they attempted 61 shots from behind the arc and hit 26 of them. The 26 made 3-point shots tied the Rockets NBA record for most 3-point shots made in a game that they set against the Wizards back on December 19, 2018, at home in Houston.

The Rockets made 46 of their 94 field goal attempts (48.9%) in the contest. They converted 26 of their 61 3-point field goal attempts (42.6%). Yes, you are reading that correctly. The majority of the Rockets’ field goals made and attempts were from long range. Houston was very happy to trade 3-point baskets for Kings 2-point baskets all night long.

The Kings shot 44.2-percent overall (42/95) and went 7-for-23 (30.4%) from downtown.

Dave Joerger was not happy after the game

“We did not come with the mental or physical attitude of playing with some force and (weren’t) mentally locked in enough. We can’t play that way. We’re better than that. That’s disappointing if we had a hangover from a long trip – a bunch of games – young guys – but we cannot let go of the rope and we’re not going to.”

Top Performers

Bagley and Capela prepare to battle for the rebound Photo: Charlie O. Mallonee

Kings (38-40)

• Buddy Hield was the Kings leading scorer with 20 points. He shot 8-for-16 and four of his field goals were 3-pointers. Hield also grabbed seven rebounds and added five assists.
• Marvin Bagley III put 19 points up on the board to go with eight rebounds.
• Nemanja Bjelica scored 12 points and went 6-for-7 from the floor.
• Sacramento outrebounded Houston 51-43.

Rockets (50-28)

Harden gets ready to score three of his 36 points Photo: Charlie O. Mallonee

• James Harden was the leading scorer in the game with 36 points, and he made it a double-double by dishing out 10 assists. He went 12-for-19 shooting and seven of those buckets were 3-pointers.
• Eric Gordon and Danuel House, Jr. each scored 19 points for the visiting Rockets.
• Chris Paul scored seven points and distributed 12 dimes.
• Kenneth Faried posted a double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds.

Up Next

The Kings return to action on Thursday night when they will host the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The Rockets play the second game of a back-to-back on the road in Los Angeles versus the Clippers on Wednesday night.

The term “ugly loss” was redefined as Nets come back to beat Kings 123-121

Bogi goes to the hoop Photo: Charlie O. Mallonee

by Charlie O. Mallonee

Sacramento — At the end of three quarters on Wednesday night, the Sacramento Kings held a 25 point lead over the visiting Brooklyn Nets, 103-78. The Kings largest lead of the night had been 28 points. All of the fans in the Golden 1 Center were settling in and getting ready for some “Showtime” basketball in the final period. Things did not go as planned.

The Nets – behind an incredible 27-point scoring barrage by D’Angelo Russell – outscored the Kings 45-18 the fourth quarter to end a three-game losing streak and defeat Sacramento 123-121. The stunned sellout crowd left the arena trying to figure out how the Kings allowed what appeared to be a sure victory to become such agonizing defeat.

This was just the fourth time in the NBA shot clock era that a team has come back to win after trailing by 25 points through three quarters. That is not the kind of stain you want to have on your season if you are the Kings.

Why Did the Kings Lose?

1. The took their foot off the gas in the fourth quarter. The looked at the scoreboard, saw a 25 point lead and relaxed. After all, there was no chance the Nets were going to mount a comeback down by that many points.
2. Sacramento did not hustle back on defense. D’Angelo Russell and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson made them pay for that as the two Nets combined for 39 points in the final quarter. Russell hit 10-of-15 shots including four 3-point baskets. Hollis-Jefferson was a perfect 5-for-5 from the field in the fourth quarter.
3. The Kings also shot horribly in the final stanza. They connected on just 5-of-22 attempts (22.7%) and went 0-for-8 from behind the 3-point line. They also turned the ball over seven times which resulted in six Brooklyn points.

Fox takes the shot from the key Photo: Charlie O. Mallonee

KINGS

Top Performers

• Marvin Bagley III was the Kings top scorer with 28 points. He shot 12-for-15 in the game and went 2-for-2 from 3-point range. Bagley has been working on adding the 3-point shot to allow him to become a true “stretch four”. Bagley also played just over 29 minutes. That is the most playing time he has seen since returning from his knee sprain.
• De’Aaron Fox added 27 points as he hit 10-of-20 shots from the field. Fox went 2-for-5 from downtown. The point guard dished out nine assists and made four rebounds in almost 35 minutes of playing time.
• Harrison Barnes put up 17 points, added seven rebounds and played just over 38 minutes in the loss.
• Buddy Hield did not have a “Buddy Buckets” type game. He scored just eight points shooting 4-for-13 overall while going 0-for-8 from beyond the arc. His off night was not the cause of the Kings loss.

Team Stats

• SAC shot 51.6-percent (49/95) for the contest. They sank 9-of-25 (36.0%) of their 3-point attempts.
• The Kings went 14-for-20 (70%) from the free throw line. Both the percentage and number of attempts are a little low.
• The turnover to assists ratio was awful. The Kings made 25 assists but they turned the ball over 21 times. That missed the desired 2:1 ratio by a “country mile”.
• Sacramento was outscored in the paint 68-64. The Kings usually own the paint when they win.
• The Kings are now 34-36 for the season. They are 7.0 games out of the eighth-place and the final playoff slot in the Western Conference with 12 games to play.

BROOKLYN

Spotlight Players

• D’Angelo Russell was the games leading scorer with 44 points. He shot 17-for-33 from the floor and connected on 6-of-15 from downtown. Russell made it a double-double by distributing 12 “dimes”. He made four steals. Hey Lakers, Mr. Russell is a Restricted Free Agent in the off-season. Maybe you should make a play for the one you traded away.
• Rondae Hollis-Jefferson came off the bench when it looked like it was going to be “mop-up” time and wound up scoring the winning bucket. He scored 14 points in just under 17 minutes on the floor. Hollis-Jefferson went 6-for-7 shooting from the field.
• Jared Dudley scored six points in the contest. Why is that significant? All six points came in the fourth quarter when all the points were scored by three players – Russell, Hollis-Jefferson, and Dudley.

Team Stats

• The Nets shot 50.0-percent (47/94) from the floor and hit 12-of-35 (34.3%) attempts from 3-point land.
• Brooklyn hit 17-of-23 (73.9%) of their shots from the charity stripe.
• BKN recorded 28 assists and committed 18 turnovers. The TOV’s were too high but they made it work.
• They made 16 steals versus 13 for SAC.
• The Nets blocked four Kings shots. The Kings recorded only one blocked shot.
• The Nets are now 37-36 on the season and one-half game back of sixth-place Detroit in the Eastern Conference.

Up Next

The Kings will return to action on Thursday when the Dallas Mavericks come to Sacramento for a 7:00 PM tipoff. This will be a chance for Sacramento fans to see rookie Luka Doncic and possibly see Dirk Nowitzki for the final time.

Brooklyn will continue their seven-game road trip on Friday night in Los Angeles when they will take on the Lakers.

 

 

 

Kings crush the Bulls 129-102 on St. Patty’s Day

Bagley shoots over Lopez Photo: Charlie O. Mallonee

by Charlie O. Mallonee

The Sacramento Kings broke up a three-game losing streak on Sunday by devouring the hapless Chicago Bulls 129-102 before a delighted sellout crowd at the Golden 1 Center. After returning home from a very disappointing four-game road trip that saw the team pick up just one victory, the young Kings were in need of something to put a smile back on their faces. There were plenty of smiles after the game on St. Patrick’s Day.

Kings head coach Dave Joerger said, “… they do work so hard, it’s fun to see them get the result that does make them feel good.”

The teams played a tough first quarter that saw seven lead changes and four ties. It appeared that the Bulls had arrived ready to put up a fight on Sunday.

Sacramento was trailing 23-21 with 6.7-seconds to go in the first quarter. Bogdan Bogdanovic brought the ball up the court while watching the clock, took a step back behind the 3-point line, and sank a 26-foot shot to give the Kings a 24-23 lead at the end of the first period.

The Kings would never trail in the game again.

The bigs crash the boards Photo: Charlie O. Mallonee

Why did the Kings win?

1. Sacramento was ready for a win, and they came out willing to work for it. Dave Joerger revealed after the game that their plan was to work the for a shot in the paint early in the possession (four to six seconds) then start looking for open shots outside if layups were not available. The Kings outscored the Bulls 80-56 in the paint.
2. The Kings shot the basketball very well in the contest. They shot 52.4-percent (54/103) overall and 34.8-percent (8/23) from 3-point land. They also converted 13-of-16 (81.2%) or their free throw attempts. Poor free throw shooting had hurt them on the road trip.
3. The Kings also banged on the boards. Sacramento out-rebounded Chicago 48-39. They also outdid their opponent on the offensive glass 15-10. The Kings scored 23 2nd chance points to 15 for the Bulls.
4. Sacramento continued to take very good care of the basketball as they turned it over just 12 times (13 CHI points) while the Bulls turned it over 20 times (25 SAC points).

Top Performances

Bogi challenges Lopez Photo: Charlie O. Mallonee

Kings

• Marvin Bagley III played an amazing 21-minutes of basketball (we believe the minutes restriction from his knee injury is still in place). He scored a game-high 21-points by shooting 9-for-14 from the field and going a perfect 3-for-3 from the charity stripe. MB35 also grabbed nine rebounds and dished out two assists.
• The other young big – Harry Giles III – also played 21-minutes. H20 scored 16 points while shooting 8-for-14 in the contest. He also hauled in six rebounds, added three assists and blocked three shots.
• And those other guys: De’Aaron Fox scored 17 points, Buddy Hield, 16, Harrison Barnes 15, Willey Cauley-Stein 9, Bjelica 8, and Bogdanovic 8.
• All 13 players on the active roster saw playing in the game on Sunday.

Chicago

• Zach LaVine was the leading scorer for the Bulls with 18 points. You may remember that Kings tried to get LaVine in the off-season, but the Bulls matched the Sacramento offer to keep talented guard in Chicago.
• The real star for the Bulls is “tankathon”. Chicago is 19-52 on the season and their real goal is to finish with the best chance to get the number one pick in the NBA Draft Lottery in June. Right now, they have the fourth worst record in the league and have a 12.5-percent chance in Zion Williamson sweepstakes. It is tough to be too motivated when you know your team’s goal is to be “the biggest loser”.

Import Milestone

The Kings record improved to 34-35 after the win on Sunday. That is most wins for Sacramento since back in 2007-08 when the team won 38 games. The prognosticators at FiveThirtyEight.com predict that the Kings will win 39 games this season.

Bjelica hits the corner three Photo: Charlie O. Mallonee

Up Next

The Kings are off until Tuesday night when they will face the much improved and playoff-bound Brooklyn Nets at the Golden 1 Center.

Chicago traveled to Phoenix after the game and will play the pesky Suns on Monday night.

No brotherly love in Philly: Sixers beat the Kings 123-114 on Friday night

Photo/Graphic: @NBCS

by Charlie O. Mallonee

The road to the NBA Playoffs just became a long, uphill battle for the Sacramento Kings after they lost to the Philadelphia 76ers 123-114 on Friday night to wrap up a four-game road trip. The Kings will return home having won just one of those four games. At a bare minimum, Sacramento needed to go 2-2 on the trip.

Sacramento is now two games under .500 with a record of 33-35. The team is 3-7 over their last 10 and has lost three consecutive games. The Kings are mired in ninth-place in the Western Conference 6.0 games behind the LA Clippers and Utah Jazz who are tied for seventh-place. With just 14 games remaining in the season, time is running out for the Kings unless they can go on an incredible multiple game winning streak.

The Kings played better basketball on Friday than they did on Thursday night in Boston. They improved their performances from the free throw line and from behind the 3-point line. Sacramento took care of the ball turning it over just nine times.

It is not often that a team improves its play in the second game of a back-to-back set on the road.

Why did the Kings lose?

Photo: @NBCS

1. They played a better team. The Philadelphia 76ers are a talented team that should go deep into the Eastern Conference Playoffs. All five of the Sixers starters scored in double figures with Ben Simmons being the low scorer with 18 points.
2. The Sixers shot 50.5-percent from the field. It is very difficult to win when your opponent shoots over 50-percent for the contest.
3. Philadelphia won the battle at the free throw line converting 24-of-27 (88.9%) opportunities. It does need to be noted that the Kings dramatically improved their free throw shooting performance over Thursday night by sinking 19-of-24 (79.2%) of their chances from the charity stripe.

Kings top performers

• Marvin Bagley III was not the Kings leading scorer, but he did score 15 points in just over 20 minutes of playing time. His playing time is being limited after missing five games from suffering a knee sprain. Dave Joerger said after the game that he hated to take him out, but he knows there is no reason to risk rushing MB35 back into longer minutes.
• Harrison Barnes continues to show why the Kings would like him to exercise his player option on his 2019-20 contract or request to talk to management about long-term options. Barnes recorded 16 points, six rebounds and three assists versus the Sixers.
• Harry Giles III put up 12 points in just over 18 minutes on the floor. H20 shot 6-for-9 from the field and pulled down four rebounds. He also dished out four assists.
• Other contributors: De’Aaron Fox 16 points, Buddy Hield 14, Willie Cauley-Stein 13 points and seven rebounds.

Philadelphia performers

Photo: @NBCS

• Jimmy Butler was the leading scorer in the game with 22 points. He also added seven assists and six rebounds.
• Joel Embiid put a double-double in the book scoring 21 points and grabbing 17 rebounds. He is just a force on the defensive glass.
• Tobias Harris continues to show why the Sixers made a trade to get him as he scored 19, made seven rebounds and distributed four assists.
• JJ Redick put 19 up on the board. Redick went 4-for-9 from downtown.

Up next

The Kings traveled back to Sacramento after the game and will have Saturday off. Sacramento returns to action on Sunday at 3:00 PM when they will host the Chicago Bulls at the Golden 1 Center.

The Sixers head out on the road and will have to face the “Greek Freak” and company in Milwaukee on Sunday afternoon.

 

The playoffs are “slip, sliding away”: Kings lose to Boston 126-120

Photo/graphic: @NBCS

by Charlie O. Mallonee

On Thursday night, the Sacramento Kings record fell under .500 for the first time since January 8th when they lost to the Boston Celtics 126-120. The Kings are now 33-34 on the season after this loss on the road. They are now 1-2 on the four-game road trip with one game to go in Philadelphia on Friday night

This was once again a battle of the tiers. There are three tiers in the NBA. Tier one is the upper one-third of the teams that are guaranteed a playoff spot and have a relatively realistic chance to go deep into the playoffs.

Two tier teams are the ones that are battling for the number seven or eight slots in the playoffs and may wind up in the draft lottery with very late selections. Tier three teams are tanking to get the best shot at one of the top three picks in the draft lottery in order to turn their team around as soon as possible.

Boston is a tier one team. The Kings have made the jump from tier three to tier two this season. That has been exciting for fans, but ultimately, it is going to be painful because each loss drops the Kings further out of playoff contention.

Why did the Kings lose?

1. The first reason the Kings lost was the play of Kyrie Irving. Irving is a closer. He is a legitimate superstar. Irving posted a triple-double scoring 31 points, dishing out 12 assists and grabbing 10 rebounds. As they said in the classic movie Glengarry Glen Ross, “Coffee is for closers.” Kyrie can have the whole pot.
2. The Kings also lost because they did not convert their opportunities at the charity stripe into points. Sacramento went to the free throw line 23 times but put only 13 shots through the hoop. A 56.5-percent free throw shooting percentage is just unacceptable for professional basketball players. This has been an on-going problem for the Kings this season, and it is a problem that the team must address in the off-season if they are to take their game to the next level.

Kings top performers

Photo:@NBCS

• Buddy Hield was the game’s leading scorer with 34 points. He hit 14-of-24 shots overall and went 6-for-10 from long distance. Mr. Hield also distributed seven assists while turning the ball over just one time.
• Willie Cauley-Stein recorded a double-double with 10 points and 13 rebounds. WCS added four assists and made zero turnovers.
• Marvin Bagley III returned to the court and scored 14 points in just over 19 minutes of playing time. It is reasonable to believe that MB35 was playing with a minutes restriction in place. After the game, Dave Joerger said it was unfair to expect too much from Bagley having to come back in a “playoff game”.
• De’Aaron Fox turned in another strong performance scoring 19 points while dishing out nine dimes and hauling in seven rebounds.
• Harrison Barnes put 20 points up on the board.

Boston top performers

Photo:@NBCS

• Kyrie – see point 1 on why the Kings lost.
• Jaylen Brown came off the bench to score 22 points. His play proved to be a real “back-breaker” versus the Kings.
• Marcus Morris posted a double-double with 21 points and 12 rebounds.

Where the teams stand after the game

With the loss, the Kings remain in sole possession of ninth-place the NBA Western Conference, but they are now five games back of the eighth-place LA Clippers. The Kings have 15 games left to play in the regular season. The projection has been that they would need to win a minimum of 43 games to make the playoffs. That would mean going 10-5 in the final 15 contests.

The Celtics record improves to 42-27 on the season and Boston has a very secure hold on fifth-place in the Eastern Conference. They have a 6.5 game lead over sixth-place Brooklyn. Boston is chasing Philadelphia for fourth-place. The Sixers currently have a 1.5 game lead over the Celtics.

Up next

The Kings made the short flight to Philly and will play the very tough 76ers on Friday in the second game of a back-to-back set on the road. The tip-off is scheduled for 4:00 PM PDT.

Boston will host the scrappy Atlanta Hawks on Saturday afternoon.