Week in review: De'Aaron Fox stars, Kings drop three straight

Kings continue to struggle down the stretch

Author

James Ham
March 12, 2022

The Kings Beat Notes

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Kings record: 24-44

Kings record on the week: 0-3

Whatever fleeting hopes there may have been of a possible play-in appearance died on the vine this week...or did they?

The Kings finished off their trip Saturday in Dallas with a heartbreaker. After building a big lead, Sacramento gave it all back. With just over three seconds remaining, Justin Holiday left his man alone in the corner and Dorian Finney-Smith laced a 3-pointer to give the Mavericks a 114-111 lead.

Sacramento had a last ditch 3-ball from Harrison Barnes come up short. Holiday put the attempt in to make it a 114-113 loss. The Kings squandered a monster 44-point performance from De'Aaron Fox in the loss, which tied his career high.

After a disappointing 2-3 road trip, the Kings returned to Golden 1 Center on Monday to host the New York Knicks. Sacramento once again built a big first half lead, but let it slip away.

Julius Randle looked like a superstar in the second half, knocking down 8-of-16 from deep on his way to a 46-point, 10-rebound performance. Domantas Sabonis compounded the 131-115 loss by making contact with an official while getting ejected in the third quarter.

With Sabonis sitting out due to suspension, the Kings hosted Michael Malone, Nikola Jokic, DeMarcus Cousins and the rest of the Denver Nuggets on Wednesday night. Despite a spirited effort and another big night from Fox, Sacramento dropped their third straight, this time by a final of 106-100.

Injuries

Richaun Holmes has missed two straight games due to personal reasons. He's played in just one game since the All-Star break and 42 of the Kings' 66 games this season.

Jeremy Lamb (left hip soreness) and Moe Harkless (right ankle sprain) missed all three games this week and are listed as questionable heading into Saturday.

Terence Davis is out for the season after undergoing surgery to repair tendon damage in his right wrist.

Player of the Week: De'Aaron Fox

When the Kings added Sabonis at the trade deadline, it was with the hopes that he would help unlock Fox's enormous potential. That is exactly what has happened. On the week, Fox averaged 33.3 points, 7.7 assists and 4.3 rebounds while shooting 55.6 percent from the field and 57.1 percent from three. Despite the 0-3 stretch, he was a nominee for Western Conference Player of the Week. 

Previous winner: Harrison Barnes

Stats of the Week

  • 1: Coming into Monday's matchup agains the Knicks, Sabonis had never been ejected from a game. That streak is over and now he can add that he's been suspended as well.

  • $127,586: When you make $18.5 million per season, losing a game check is pricey. The one game suspension cost Sabonis $127,586. That's a lot of dough.

  • 3.5: Regardless of how poorly the Kings play, they still aren't even close to being eliminated from play-in contention. With 14 games remaining in the season, they trail New Orleans by 3.5 games, hold a 2-1 advantage against the Pelicans and still have one more game against them. You would think the race was over for a team that sits 20 games under .500, but nope.

Tweets of the Week

Kings stand with Sabonis:

Neemy gets Wiseman:

Brickhouse Industries making The Kings Beat merch:

Teamwork:

Quotes of the Week

"I think the fans here will embrace your team if you go out there and give them everything you've got." -Alvin Gentry

"As much as De'Aaron Fox drives the ball to the basket and as much as he is in the paint, I'm a little bit miffed as to how he shoots 6 free throws." -Gentry on Fox, who scored 44 points on 31 shots, including 27 shots inside the 3-point arc and only took 6 free throws

"I think we've done an okay job so far. I think we have a good ways to go and we just want to bring our team wins. That's the big goal for us." -Fox on the developing chemistry with Sabonis

Videos of the Week

DiVincenzo still working to find a rhythm:

Sabonis on his ejection:

Gentry on building a winning culture:

Weekly Reading

Weekly Podcasts

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What's next?

Kings vs. Utah Jazz, Vivint Smart Home Arena, Saturday 6PM

Kings vs. Chicago Bulls, Golden 1 Center, Monday 7PM

Kings vs. Milwaukee Bucks, Golden 1 Center, Wednesday 7PM

Kings vs. Boston Celtics, Golden 1 Center, Friday 7PM

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