Kings fall 115-106 to Portland, eliminating them from the NBA Cup

Nov 29, 2024, 9:35 PM | Updated: 10:40 pm

PORTLAND, OR - NOVEMBER 29: De'Aaron Fox #5 of the Sacramento Kings drives to the basket during the...

De'Aaron Fox #5 of the Sacramento Kings drives to the basket during the game against the Portland Trail Blazers during the Emirates NBA Cup on November 29, 2024 at the Moda Center Arena in Portland, Oregon. (Photo by Cameron Browne/NBAE via Getty Images)

(Photo by Cameron Browne/NBAE via Getty Images)

BY BRENDEN NUNES

Sactown Sports writer

The Sacramento Kings’ 2024-25 NBA Cup dreams ended Friday night with their 115-106 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers. Their offensive identity crisis proved problematic, as they recorded more turnovers than assists in the first half while their pace and movement stalled.

Their unfortunate injury luck also reared its head again, with Kevin Huerter going down in the second quarter, leaving him unable to return.

Sacramento’s offensive creators of Malik Monk (27), De’Aaron Fox (22), and Domantas Sabonis (21) were left to do all the heavy lifting and knock down rugged, contested looks while their teammates supplied little help. That trio scored 72 of their 106 points on the night.

Keegan Murray, scoreless on six attempts through the first three quarters, ended the game with three points and five rebounds on 1/9 from the field, including 1/6 from three. As a team, the Kings were 15/42 from three.

Portland tallied 64 points in the paint and 24 points off Sacamento’s 20 turnovers. Despite the encouraging first half, their second-half struggles left them with no chance late Friday night.

Kings at Trail Blazers Game Notes

The Kings went into Friday’s matchup in Portland with a 0-2 record and -16 point differential in NBA Cup West Group A, leaving them dead last. They needed a win and the Los Angeles Lakers to fall to the Oklahoma City Thunder to keep their In-Season Tournament hopes alive.

Portland, meanwhile, sat third in West Group A with a 1-1 record and a -14 point differential.

Kings need to win, and need the Lakers to lose to the Thunder tonight, to stay alive in the NBA Cup. pic.twitter.com/3VhabNySmj

— Matt George (@MattGeorgeSAC) November 30, 2024

It was Sacramento’s second straight game without DeMar DeRozan (back) and Trey Lyles (calf), while Devin Carter (shoulder surgery) has yet to make his NBA debut. Conversely, Chauncey Billups was without Donovan Clingan, Scoot Henderson, Jerami Grant, Matisse Thybulle, Robert Williams III, and Dalano Banton.

Making his second appearance with the Kings, Jae Crowders started again alongside Fox, Keon Ellis, Murray, and Sabonis. They were matched against Anfernee Simons, Toumani Camara, Shadeon Sharpe, Deni Avdija, and Deandre Ayton.

They were able to create good looks early, knocking down 5/11 from three in the opening quarter despite Murray being 0/3 on encouraging attempts. Fox attacked Simons whenever the chance presented until Monk eventually took his place, while Sabonis helped set them up and finish plays.

Their 30-25 first-quarter lead was primarily thanks to Sabonis recording 14 points, two rebounds, and two assists on 6/7 from the field, including 2/2 from three.

As if their existing injuries weren’t already hindering enough, Huerter awkwardly rolled his ankle early into the second and would be ruled out from returning to action shortly after.

The Huerter injury, for those who want to see it.

Looks like he stepped on Kris Murray’s foot. https://t.co/XlN3kVpXze pic.twitter.com/e8tswXplwP

— Brenden Nunes (@BrendenNunesNBA) November 30, 2024

Isaac Jones recently embraced the “next man up” mentality they always encourage; now Jordan McLaughlin and second-year guard Colby Jones were asked to do the same.

McLaughlin attempted to provide some much-needed pace to a team that aims to play fast, while Jones’s well-rounded style tried to fit in. However, neither can replicate Huerter’s level of shooting—even if he’d only converted 28.0 percent of his shots from range coming into the night.

It put even more responsibility on Fox, Monk, and Sabonis to create and finish plays. As has been the case far too often this season, Sacramento’s pace was lacking, and their halfcourt offense heavily relied on a two-man game with dribble handoffs and pick-and-rolls.

Turnovers were their Achilles heel in the first half. They tallied 14 as a team and just 13 assists, and the Trail Blazers added 16 points off those blunders. Fox (4), Sabonis (4), and Monk (3) were the main culprits.

The second was one of those quarters for the Kings, scoring just 20 points on 1/8 from three. Portland had a 54-50 lead at the midway point, with 16 of their points coming off turnovers.

Sabonis had a game-high 18 points with four rebounds and two assists on 7/9 from the field, 2/3 from three, and 2/2 on free throws.

With a narrow lead, Portland came out hot in the second half, knocking down three triples in a hurry en route to an 18-5 run, extending their advantage to 72-55 (their largest lead up to that point). The Kings went scoreless over a three-minute sequence during that swing.

As has been the case far too often early into their 24-25 season, their offensive identity was lacking. The pace was down, and threes weren’t falling, leading to highly contested attempts while their attention to detail was lacking.

Fox, Sabonis, and Monk continued to do what they could but received little aid from their teammates. At the end of the three, Murray had zero points on 0/6 from the field while the Trail Blazers led 87-72.

Sacramento’s star guard tried to take matters into his own hands in the final frame, but their defense waned. Simons knocked down timely triples to maintain Portland’s lead and halt any potential momentum.

Deni Avdija with his 5th assist of the night!
A nice pass to Simons for the 3! pic.twitter.com/pBdC4O0aAg

— MrBuckBuck (@MrBuckBuckNBA) November 30, 2024

Turnover struggles continued, and threes still weren’t falling. Ultimately, the Kings could not recover from their poor quarter, suffering a 115-106 defeat to the Trail Blazers and eliminating them from the 24-25 NBA Cup.

Monk (27), Fox (22), and Sabonis (21) combined for 72 of Sacramento’s 106 points, while Murray ended the game scoreless for the fourth time in his young career on seven attempts.

Twenty turnovers led to 24 points for their opposition, allowing 64 points in the paint.

The positives were scarce as they fell to 9-11 on the year, keeping them at 12th in the Western Conference, with Portland (8-12) right behind them in 13th. It’s too early for them to fall behind, but with 62 games remaining in the season, there’s still time to right the ship.

Kings vs. Trail Blazers Game Stats

Sacramento:

Field Goal Percentage: 35/78 (44.9%)
Three-Point Percentage: 15/42 (35.7%)
Free-Throw Percentage: 21/28 (75.0%)
Points off Turnovers: 14 points off 12 Portland turnovers
Points in the Paint: 34
Malik Monk: 29 points, nine assists, three rebounds, five turnovers on 10/21 FG, 8/15 3P
De’Aaron Fox: 22 points, five rebounds, five assists, five turnovers on 8/18 FG, 1/6 3P, 5/7 FT
Domantas Sabonis: 21 points, 14 rebounds, 11 assists, five turnovers on 8/10 FG, 2/3 3P, 3/4 FT

Portland:

Field Goal Percentage: 46/90 (51.1%)
Three-Point Percentage: 11/37 (29.7%)
Free-Throw Percentage: 12/15 (80.0%)
Points off Turnovers: 24 points off 20 Sacramento turnovers
Points in the Paint: 64
Deandre Ayton: 26 points, nine rebounds, two assists on 11/19 FG, 0/2 3P, 4/6 FT
Anfernee Simons: 21 points, nine assists, five rebounds on 8/14 FG, 3/8 3P, 2/2 FT
Deni Avdija: 20 points, nine rebounds, five assists on 7/15 FG, 4/9 3P, 2/2 FT

When’s the next Sacramento Kings game?

Harrison Barnes, who played 406 games (including playoffs) over 5.5 seasons with Sacramento before being traded this offseason, makes his first return to Golden 1 Center as a member of the San Antonio Spurs (10-9) Sunday night.

Despite their slew of injuries, the Kings (9-11) have put together two straight wins, while the Spurs last their recent game against the Los Angeles Lakers after winning the four prior.

Positioned alongside one another in the highly competitive Western Conference, Sacramento will look to not fall into another losing streak and continue to fall behind.

We’ll see what happens with Huerter (ankle) and DeRozan (back), but Lyles (calf) and Carter (shoulder) will be unavailable.