What we learned as Kings hit rock bottom with huge loss to Pacers originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
SACRAMENTO – Another game, another double-double from Domantas Sabonis and another frustrating loss for the Kings.
Sabonis had 17 points, 21 rebounds and four assists, but finished minus-26 as the Kings romped to a 122-95 loss to the Indiana Pacers on Sunday at Golden 1 Center.
De’Aaron Fox added 23 points and seven assists. Malik Monk scored 14 points, while Keegan Murray had 10.
By comparison, the Pacers had seven players score in double figures. Tyrese Haliburton, the former Kings’ first-round draft pick, scored 14.
The Kings stayed close in the first half and went into halftime tied 52-52, but Indiana erupted for 35 points in the third quarter and went from there.
It wasn’t all bad.
The Kings did a much better job taking care of the ball than in recent games, racking up 15 offensive boards.
However, since the end result is still an L, it doesn’t matter much. After getting back to .500 a few weeks ago, Sacramento fell to 13-17 and remained in 12e place in the Western Conference.
These are the conclusions from Sunday’s match:
Ddouble-double dynasty
Sabonis takes a lot of heat because of his defense, which comes from often having to guard players who are much bigger and more physical than him.
There’s no arguing about Domas’ dominance on offense.
The Kings’ 240-pound center, who is already the franchise leader in double-doubles, added another in what has become an annual gameday tradition. It took him just two quarters to record his last.
That’s 26 of the 28 games Sabonis has played this season, and 359e of his career – fifth in the NBA since 2016-17.
Lnumber of kick-out passes
The Kings had only mild success shooting, mainly from behind the arc because they didn’t get many open looks.
A lot of that could be solved by pressing the key to pull defenders down low and then making a spray pass to the perimeter. It’s been one of Mike Brown’s biggest pet peeves all season, something the head coach has been openly critical of in the past.
Instead of driving to the perimeter and dealing, the Kings were content to drive against traffic in an attempt to get through multiple defenders. When passing the ball to the arc, the Pacers were never caught off guard and closed out with ease.
Kan MIA
Keon Ellis has been the Kings’ best player off the bench this season because of his willingness to do whatever it takes or play where Brown needs him.
Still, Ellis almost finished as a healthy DNP. At one point, several fans who were with the Kings broke out into chants for Ellis to play, only to see No. 23 remain on the bench.
Ellis didn’t make his first appearance until there were less than five minutes to play and finished with three points in four and a half minutes. In a tight game like this, where Sacramento seemed to need an infusion of energy, it would have been nice to see him get more time.
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