Sac Town Crown – Sacramento Kings Report – Kings vs Magic – HEARTBREAK HOTEL

Kings vs Magic Down to the Wire!

The Kings fell down by 17 in the 1st half against the Magic but battled back. Sacramento hopped on the backs of the ultra hot Nemanja Bjelica and reigning NBA Western Conference Player of the Week De’Aaron Fox to mount a comeback that just… fell… short.

HEARTBREAK HOTEL – NO VACANCY – ONLY KINGS FANS APPLY

Tom’s Tidbits (Quicker Summary of the Game)

The Kings came out of the gates a little sloppy and slow paced. They committed turnovers on two errant pass and catches on easy scoring opportunities early.

Bjelica was like a man on fire! He had 9 of the Kings first 11 points.

Marvin Bagley made his first appearance since he injured his foot a few games ago, and he looked good overall. Bagley played 23 minutes, and tallied 18 points, 6 rebounds and 2 blocks.

Sacramento had 5 assists and 5 turnovers in the first quarter, not conducive to winning basketball. The Kings were down at the end of the 1st quarter 25-33.

After more slow, selfish play on offense, the Kings fell down by as much as 17 in the 2nd quarter. The Kings went on a 7-0 run late in the quarter but that was countered by a Magic 12-0 run.

Bjelica had 22 points in the 1st half on 9/11 shooting, 4/5 from 3 point range. Bjelica ended up with a career high in scoring with 34 points in the game!

The Kings were down 65-52 at half.

2nd Half – ‘Tom’s Tidbits’

Sacramento came out in the 2nd half on and 11-2 run to bring it to within 4 points, 63-67.

The Kings were only down by 1 going into the 4th quarter. Though, the Magic were 15-1 coming into this game when tied or in the lead going into the 4th.

The game looked all but sealed with 1:49 left, with the Magic leading 109-102.

Then BIG SHOT BELLI hit a 3, 107-111 in favor of Orlando. Kings create a turnover, Fox drives to the cup for 2 of his career high tying 31 points, Magic lead 109-111…

Sacramento gets another stop! 20 seconds left…. Fox motions everyone to clear the lane, drives, is hit, FOUL… AND 1! Fox cool-ly sinks the free throw to put the Kings up 1, 112-111.

With 15 seconds left, the Kings need ANOTHER stop.

15 seconds left…. Sacramento plays tough defense on Fournier, he drives, draws a double team, forces him to give up the ball to Aaron Gordon… layup… AND 1.

UGHHHHHHHHH!

Magic go up 114-112 with 1.1 left. The Kings cannot convert with 1.1 seconds left, another heart breaking loss for Sacramento who fall to 15-25 overall on the season.

The Kings lead the league in one possession losses this season with 8.

Individual Stats and Thoughts – Kings vs Magic

Nemenja Bjelica and De’Aaron Fox carried this team all game.

Bjelica had arguably the best game of his career in a Sacramento uniform.

Belli scored a career high 34 points on 13-16 shooting, 8-10 from 3 point range, and added in 7 rebounds, 2 steals and only 1 turnover. Bjelica was doing it all, spacing the floor on offense, driving to the basket, playing tough defense on Vucevic and just playing smart, high IQ, European style basketball.

Fox had one of his best games of the season as well! The reigning NBA Western Conference Player of the Week tied his career high with 31 points, tallied 10 assists and 8 rebounds. His second game in a row being very close to a triple double.

Fox really made his mark late in the game. He was the facilitator and leader the Kings needed. He took the ball to the rim late, showcasing his incredible finishing skills. As Fox continues to drive to the basket more, he will keep getting more fouls called.

Fox shot really well from the field, going 12-18 and 2-3 from 3 point land. Like I have written previously, Fox is looking more and more confident each game with his long range shot.

Bagley Back in Action

Bagley played well in his first game back in two weeks after suffering a foot injury. He played well, logging 23 minutes, and tallied 18 points, 6 rebounds and 2 blocks. Bagley was subbed on in the last defensive possession of the game, Coach Walton showing his trust in his young big man in big situations!

Bagley looked good in the pick and roll with Fox and running the floor, catching and finishing around the rim.

Besides Bagley, the Kings bench scored a combined 4 points…. These injuries have been KILLING the Kings.

On the Orlando side it was the Vucevic and Fournier show. They combined for 51 of the Magic 114 points.

Team Stats and Thoughts – Kings vs Magic

The Kings came out flat in the 1st quarter, playing a slow pace and less than intense defense. Sacramento brought the energy, intensity and pace in the 2nd half but their slow start really was the biggest factor in this loss.

The Kings shot very well from the field, shooting 51% on the game.

Sacramento came into this game 2nd to last in the league in free throw attempts. They did not improve on that stat in this game.

The Kings did well to capitalize on their free throw attempts, shooting 90%. Sacramento made 10-11 free throws, compared to the Magic who made 25-30 free throws.

The Kings, and especially Fox, will get to the line more as he/they gain more respect in the league. But the Kings too often are inconsistent, have too many long periods of 1 on 1 basketball, marked by little to no passing.

The Kings are much more successful on offense when they push the pace, spread around the ball, attack the paint, try to draw fouls and create outside shots from inside penetration. I’ve typed that same sentence many times this season, and I will most likely be typing it again, and again.

The Kings did win the assist category, dishing out 25 compared to the Magic’s 17. The Kings were sharing the ball more in the second half after making it half way through the 2nd quarter with only 5 assists total, compared to 7 turnovers at one point.

The Magic really capitalized in this game coming out of timeouts. The Magic had multiple big scoring runs after they called timeouts, and that might have been a key difference in the end.

Link to ESPN game stats

Looking Ahead

The Kings finish their 3 game road trip at home vs the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday. I’m sure there will be a lot of hype about the ‘Luka over Bagley’ saga by the draft hindsight experts out there…

The Kings can stay in games and beat the best in the league, and can also look terrible against the worst teams in the league. The Kings need some consistency! As the games go on and the Kings can hopefully become healthier, I have high hopes for the melding of talents across the board!

Once Fox and Bagley have some time together they will start to play better, and better together. That will take some pressure off of and open up shots for Hield and the rest of the supporting cast, Bjelica, Bogi, Barnes, etc.

Health, finding the right lineup combos and getting these guys some time on the floor together will be crucial for the Kings growth.

There is still hope, Kings fans!

I predict a close Kings…. VICTORY against Dallas on Wednesday.

It ALWAYS has been, and ALWAYS will be…. GO SACRAMENTO KINGS!

-SpikeballTom

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