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Welcome to your morning cup of Kings.

Tuesday night had a twinge of nostalgia as De’Aaron Fox and Harrison Barnes were announced as starters for the San Antonio Spurs. This duo brought back memories of better times in Sacramento when the Kings were exciting and on the way up, not a franchise careening towards a top lottery pick.

It wasn’t a contest. The Spurs aren’t the Utah Jazz, Chicago Bulls or Indiana Pacers. They are a well-oiled machine with incredible talent at every position and they jumped all over the Kings from the opening tip.

The final score of 132-104 wasn’t indicative of the actual game. San Antonio has no reason to run up the score in a mid-March game when they hopefully have another two or three months of basketball ahead of them.

While the game wasn’t competitive, there was plenty to take away from the action, including the connection between Maxime Raynaud and Victor Wembanyama, as well as Russell Westbrook moving from seventh to fifth on the NBA’s all-time assist list.

Over early. The San Antonio Spurs walked into Golden 1 Center with a purpose. This wasn't a matchup against the Jazz or Pacers. The Spurs are a bonafide contender and they ran over the hometown Kings to the tune of 132-104. Here are six quick thoughts from a St. Patty's Day drubbing:

🏀 1. Moving on up. Russell Westbrook leap frogged a pair of passing legends Tuesday night, skipping ahead of both Mark Jackson and Steve Nash to move into sole possession of fifth place on the NBA's all-time leading assists list. Russ scored 5 points and dished out 10 assists.   

🏀 2. Battle of the Frenchmen. Maxime Raynaud and Victor Wembanyama have known each other for years and it showed. Raynaud posted a career-high 32 points with 9 rebounds in 42 minutes. Wembanyama countered with 18 points and 8 rebounds in 22 minutes. 

🏀 3. Russ statline. Nique Clifford quietly put together one of the better all-around games of his career. Forget the final score. Focus on a young player scoring 15 points, grabbing 8 rebounds and dishing out 6 assists. His 3-point shooting continues to improve as well.

🏀 4. Showing something. Killian Hayes inked a two-year deal with the Kings over the weekend and now he's settling in and looking like a player. The 24-year-old point guard scored 7 points and dished out 5 assists. He added a steal and played solid defense. 

🏀 5. Dougie McBuckets. With all of the injuries, veteran sharpshooter Doug McDermott is getting a shot to play meaningful minutes. He found his shooting stroke in this game, knocking down 4-for-8 from 3-point range for 12 points.  

🏀 6. Keep building. Daeqwon Plowden is finishing the season strong for a 27-year-old two-way player trying to earn his way into the league. He's athletic, plays defense and isn't shy about hoisting. Plowden shot 3-of-8 from 3 on his way to 14 points and 2 steals off the bench.  

The idea of losing games intentionally and without basic decency may have gotten under my skin over the last week or so. Watching the Jazz may have triggered something.

Commissioner Adam Silver has a problem and the integrity of the league is at stake. After ranting on Sunday night/Monday morning about the situation, I continued that discussion for Tuesday’s show as well, but with my idea for a solution.