Kings continue to slide, drop third straight game to Lakers

Dec 21, 2024, 5:49 PM | Updated: 5:55 pm

SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA - DECEMBER 21: LeBron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers shoots over Trey L...

(Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)

Lead Editor & Kings Beat Writer

It was a dark and gloomy day at Golden 1 Center on Saturday–a fitting scene for a Sacramento Kings team that continues to forge ahead into rough waters.

Rather than bounce back from Thursday’s loss to the Los Angeles Lakers with a much-needed win, Kings players not named De’Aaron Fox fell flat on the offensive end as LeBron James (32 points) led his team to a 103-99 win on Saturday afternoon.

Sacramento (13-16) dropped another close game, falling to 6-10 at home this season and 3-10 in games decided by five points or less.

The Kings experienced a cold night from the perimeter (27%), but they sill had their chances to take the lead in crunch time. Instead, they fall further out of the postseason picture in the loaded Western Conference as questions regarding the future of this team’s core continue to mount.

12 pts in Q1 😤 pic.twitter.com/VMUxUJaLOs

— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) December 21, 2024

Kings vs. Lakers recap & takeaways

Less than 48 hours before Saturday’s action at Golden 1 Center, Sacramento opened Thursday’s game against Los Angeles on a sour note. Flat. No urgency. Sloppy play. Failure to stop the fast break.

The opening to this one didn’t go much better for the Kings.

Sacramento allowed the Lakers to assert themselves early–especially on the fast break–as Los Angeles followed the same blueprint that led them to a 113-100 win on Thursday. Los Angeles scored 11 fast break points during the first quarter as the Kings fell behind by double-digits–again–before the midway point of the opening period.

LeBron James–who will celebrate his 40th birthday next week–torched the Sacramento defense for 12 points on five-of-seven shooting in the first quarter as the Lakers took control early.

James turned back the clock during the first half, leading all scorers with 23 points on 10-of-13 shooting from the field (eight-of-eight inside the paint) to apply pressure to the Kings’ thin forward depth.

De’Aaron Fox, who had a slow start to Thursday’s game, had his offense going from the jump on Saturday, scoring 17 points on six-of-seven shooting to bring Sacramento within three at the break.

Both teams shot 27 percent from three-point range during the first half, meaning there was a good chance that whoever snapped out of the cold spell first would be walking out of Golden 1 Center with a win.

GET UP, DeMar 😤

pic.twitter.com/GlU30iuh9T

— Kings on NBCS (@NBCSKings) December 22, 2024

The Kings and Lakers traded baskets throughout the third quarter, with Fox and James continuing to lead the way on offense as both teams struggled to find the bottom of the net from three-point land.

Outside of Fox, Sacramento’s offense had no other go-to option on Saturday, meaning the Kings would have to find a way to jumpstart the rest of the offense in the fourth quarter to avoid falling to 0-3 against Los Angeles on the season.

Domantas Sabonis had his moments (19 points and 19 rebounds), but Fox was the Kings’ only hope in this one.

The Lakers benefited from big moments from roleplayers like Cam Reddish, Austin Reaves, and D’Angelo Russell during the fourth quarter, while Sacramento’s Fox-or-nothing offensive approach very well cost them the game.

Outside of Fox’s 31 points on 12-of-17 shooting, the rest of the Kings offense scored 68 points on 27-of-74 (36%) shooting, including just 17 bench points (Los Angeles scored 31).

Sacramento had its chances late, but the Lakers’ offensive rebounding–including a game-sealing offensive board following two missed free throws by Anthony Davis) proved fatal, with Los Angeles outscoring the Kings 13-8 in second-chance points.

“The missed free-throw box-out opportunity was huge,” Mike Brown said of the late mistakes.

12 pts in Q1 😤 pic.twitter.com/VMUxUJaLOs

— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) December 21, 2024

Fox was the only Sacramento player to carry his weight on the offensive end, while players like DeMar DeRozan (four-of-ten shooting), Malik Monk (three-of-14), and Keegan Murray (three-of-nine) failed to contribute at the level needed to secure the win.

The defense wasn’t the game-deciding factor, especially not in the paint (Kings outscored the Lakers 48-46). Three-point shooting loomed large, as Sacramento fell to 3-7 this season when shooting under 30 percent from deep.

Feeling The Pressure?

Pressure is beginning to mount around the Fox-Kings marriage.

The Athletic‘s Sam Amick and Anthony Slater reported on Saturday that Fox’s agent, Rich Paul, recently met with Sacramento’s front office to discuss the organization’s path forward, raising alarm around the Kings fanbase.

Expectations were high for Sacramento entering the season, and a sub-.500 start to the season has led to questions regarding Fox’s future to come to the forefront as the guard inches closer to the end of his Kings contract.

If he doesn’t sign an extension with Sacramento this coming summer, Fox will become a free agent at the end of the 2025-26 season, making the remaining schedule–and the upcoming February 6th trade deadline–that much more important for general manager Monte McNair.

A loss to the Lakers on Saturday has only caused those outside voices to grow louder, making the Kings’ upcoming stretch even more critical as Sacramento looks to get this season back on the rails.

It’s still relatively early in the 2024-25 NBA campaign–but if things continue to trend in this direction, the Kings may face some difficult questions in the coming weeks, and McNair could be the first person to answer for those shortcomings if things don’t improve.

Notes

Domantas Sabonis posted his 179th career double-double with Sacramento tonight vs. LAL, passing Arnie Risen (178) for the seventh-most in franchise history. Sabonis leads the NBA with 25 double-doubles this season.

Injury Updates

Trey Lyles (right calf strain) returned following a ten-game absence.

Devin Carter (left shoulder surgery) continues to make progress in his return from torn labrum surgery. Carter has been participating in on-court activities and is getting closer to being re-evaluated. On track to debut sometime in early January.

When is the next Sacramento Kings game?

Sacramento will continue a five-game homestand on Sunday and play the second leg of a back-to-back against old friend Tyrese Haliburton and the Indiana Pacers.

Haliburton has played at Golden 1 Center as a visiting player just once since the deadline deal in 2022 that brought Domantas Sabonis to the 916: A 137-114 loss to the Kings on November 30, 2022.

Be sure to catch all of the Kings vs. Pacers action right here on Sactown Sports 1140 AM, with pregame coverage starting at 1:30 PM PT on Game Night before action tips off at 3:00 PM PT from downtown Sacramento.