Takeaways & Observations From Kings vs Bulls
Mar 14, 2022, 9:46 PM | Updated: 10:05 pm
(Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images)
(Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images)
That was…fun?
In March, the Sacramento Kings have blown three games in which they held a lead of 19 points or more.
After watching a 20-point lead get reduced to just one point with plenty of time on the clock in the fourth quarter, the Kings did something that not many expected to see:
They locked it down and kept their composure down the stretch–against a very good Chicago Bulls team, nonetheless.
De’Aaron Fox topped the 30-point mark (for the third-straight game), Domantas Sabonis returned from a two-game absence and the Sacramento picked up an impressive 112-103 win over the fourth-seeded Bulls on Monday night.
Here are some notes and takeaways from the win:
Best Half of the Season?
It felt that way.
For the first time in what felt like forever, the Kings gave fans a show in the first half as they lit up the Bulls to take a 63-43 lead into the half.
The return of Domantas Sabonis, De’Aaron Fox’s continued success from three-point range (three-for-five from deep in the first half) and Davion Mitchell’s 12-point start put Sacramento in a strong position to begin the second half.
Dunks, three-pointers, excitement. The first half had it all.
While the offense was impressive during the first two quarters of play, the defense was the true hero in the first half.
Not only did the Kings force 11 Chicago turnovers (including two shot-clock violations) before the break, they held the Bulls to 35-percent shooting from the field and 27-percent from three-point range.
Answering the Run
The third quarter was not a fun one for the Kings as Chicago outscored Sacramento 34-25 in the period, but things could have been much worse if not for De’Aaron Fox.
Fox scored 10 points in the third to help keep the Bulls at arms reach, with the Kings taking an 88-77 lead to begin the fourth.
Following a 12-2 Bulls run to begin the fourth, Sacramento’s 20-point lead to begin the second half was reduced to just 90-89 with 8:11 remaining.
In shocking fashion, the Kings never let Chicago take the lead as they did a great job of stringing together stops and displaying some composure to close out the impressive win over a very talented Bulls team.
This team has a habit of blowing big leads, but Monday was a breath of fresh air in comparison to what we have seen over the past month.
The defense was there, as the Kings held Chicago to 103 points, tying their best defensive effort since holding Oklahoma City to 103 points back on February 23rd.
This game should be shown to the team before each of the final 12 games to display what a strong defensive effort looks like.
More History for Fox & the Return of Domas
Is anyone really surprised at this point?
De’Aaron Fox continued to add to his streak of 20-point games on Monday night, scoring 34 points on 13-of-25 shooting from the field to go along with six rebounds and six assists.
The 24-year-old has scored 20+ points in 16-straight games, which is the second-longest streak in the Sacramento era (1985-present).
Only Chris Webber (18 games) has done so in more consecutive games while wearing a Kings jersey.
Domantas Sabonis returned following a two-game absence that saw the birth of the 25-year-old’s first child.
“I’m very excited,” Sabonis said postgame of becoming a father. “I was there for the birth with my wife and it was awesome.”
The Kings center returned in a big way on Monday, finishing with 22 points, seven rebounds, and four assists over 37 minutes. Sabonis went a perfect 10-for-10 from the free-throw line, the most free-throws that the center has made in a game without missing.
Donte DiVincenzo finally starts
If you have been clamoring for Alvin Gentry to insert Donte DiVincenzo into the starting lineup, your prayers were answered on Monday night.
Due to Justin Holiday’s absence, the 25-year-old started his first game as a King, scoring 15 points (three-of-five shooting from three-point land) to go along with seven rebounds, four assists, and one steal over MIN minutes of play.
“I thought that it was his best game by far. I don’t think that he could have played (DeMar) DeRozan better than he did,” Kings head coach Alvin Gentry said postgame of the guard’s effort during the win.
Sacramento has longed for DiVincenzo for pretty much two seasons now, seeing that the failed Bogdan Bogdanovic deal from the summer of 2020 marked the beginning of the Done-to-Sac movement.
“All that I can say is that we traded for him twice…so, we obviously like him,” Gentry said pregame of how the organization views DiVincenzo.
Following the regular season, DiVincenzo will enter restricted free agency, meaning that the Kings will be able to match any offer sheet that the 2020 NBA champion might sign.
If Sacramento plans to build around a core that includes DiVincenzo–and we have been given every indication that they do–it would be in the team’s best interest to start the talented guard for the final 11 games of the season.
Will Gentry do that, though? Unlikely. We’ll see if this changes once the Kings are mathematically eliminated from postseason contention in the coming days.
Plays of the Game
It might not have been the Kings’ best play of the year, but this one was up there–literally.
Donte DiVincenzo tossed a lob to Chimezie Metu during the second quarter that caused Golden 1 Center to erupt. As you probably know by now, Mezzie is no stranger to posters, and the forward added another to his 2021-22 season collection.
Not even three minutes later, Domantas Sabonis got in on the fun with a poster of his own.
Sabonis displayed some serious athleticism by climbing the ladder to dunk on All-Star center Nikola Vucevic. Like I said before, the first half was a lot of fun on Monday night.
Injury Updates
- Alex Len (back soreness) did not play on Monday and is considered day-to-day.
- Justin Holiday (non-COVID illness) was not active on Monday night.
- Terence Davis will be re-evaluated in two months after undergoing successful surgery to repair a right wrist ECU tendon injury.
Coming Up
Another tough test for the Kings awaits on Wednesday as Sacramento will continue its home-stand against two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks.
Milwaukee has won 11-straight games dating back to the 2016-17 season, with the Kings having last defeated the Bucks on February 1, 2016, back at Sleep Train Arena.
Sacramento has never defeated the Bucks at Golden 1 Center.
Be sure to get all of your Kings vs Bucks coverage right here on Sports 1140 KHTK beginning at 3:00 pm PST on The Nick Cattles Show before a 7:00 pm PST tip-off from downtown Sacramento.
Upcoming Sacramento Kings Schedule
- March 16th vs Milwaukee Bucks
- March 18th vs Boston Celtics
- March 20th vs Phoenix Suns
- March 23rd @ Indiana Pacers
- March 26th @ Orlando Magic
