Toronto defeats the Kings 131-128 on the night of Carter’s jersey retirement

Nov 2, 2024, 8:03 PM | Updated: 8:09 pm

TORONTO, CANADA - NOVEMBER 2 : Gradey Dick (1) of Toronto Raptors in action during the NBA basketba...

Gradey Dick (1) of Toronto Raptors in action during the NBA basketball game between the Toronto Raptors and the Sacramento Kings at the Scotiabank Arena on November 2, 2024 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. (Photo by Mert Alper Dervis/Anadolu via Getty Images)

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BY BRENDEN NUNES

Sactown Sports writer

The Sacramento Kings continued their first road run of the 2024-25 NBA season with a trip to Canada to play the Toronto Raptors on a night filled with storylines.

Drake was sitting courtside, and the world was waiting to know if he and former Raptor DeMar DeRozan were still cool after the star’s appearance in Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” music video. Okay, maybe people don’t care, but some authentic basketball-centric storylines did exist!

During the extended halftime, Vince Carter became the first Raptors player to have their jersey retired. The Kings came out in warmup shirts that read “VC15”.

🥹 pic.twitter.com/fuNKUpOVDd

— Sacramento Kings (@SacramentoKings) November 2, 2024

DeRozan, whose name is littered throughout Toronto’s record book, returned to the building where he spent the first nine seasons of his career. Davion Mitchell, who the Kings drafted with the 9th overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft, got his first game against his former team.

Kevin Huerter, who played against the Hawks, was unavailable Saturday due to an illness. Doug McDermott got his first start in his place.

Devin Carter (shoulder) and Orlando Robinson (MCL sprain) remained inactive. Meanwhile, Toronto was littered with injuries. They were without Scottie Barnes (orbital fracture), Immanuel Quickley (pelvic contusion), Bruce Brown (knee), and Kelly Olynyk (back).

Head coach Darko Rajaković wasn’t left with many options, which partially contextualizes their four-game losing streak coming into Saturday. Well, that and their horrible defense.

It was the second night of a back-to-back for head coach Mike Brown and the Kings, who defeated the Atlanta Hawks 123-115 the night prior.

That reality may explain some of their early sloppiness. By the end of the first quarter, Sacramento had 29 points on 60 percent shooting but trailed by eight, largely due to five turnovers and poor transition defense afterward.

Mitchell pestered the ball, as he does, but many of their errors were unforced. Toronto’s defense is not good, and that’s putting it lightly.

But, the Kings were struggling to find a flow. Their opposition knocked down countless triples after drives resulting from poor perimeter containment. By halftime, Chris Boucher was 3/3 from distance while the rest of his team shot 6/15. RJ Barrett was able to get to the basket by going left far too often, leaving him with 13 points at the midway mark.

Malik Monk (15) led Sacramento then, with a narrow 63-66 deficit before one of the most extended halftime breaks occurred. It was a beautiful moment for Carter, but it created an atypical situation for the guys that still had a game to finish.

Vince Carter’s No. 15 forever in the Toronto rafters 💜

Vinsanity becomes the first Raptor EVER to receive the honor 🙌 pic.twitter.com/N9klL8d2yc

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) November 3, 2024

With Huerter unavailable and Coach Brown already preferring to run a tight eight-man rotation, they were set up for an intriguing second half. The Raptors came out with more juice, reaching their largest lead of the night (13) six minutes into the third by knocking down more triples.

Mitchell, familiar with Fox’s game, continued to cause chaos and attempt to make the Kings star guard have an “Off Night.” But Monk and the bench continued to pick up the slack. After he checked in as point guard, their paint touches and spray threes returned. Monk made seven of his first eight shots from the field.

Next thing you know, the defensive pressure supplied by Keon Ellis, Keegan Murray, and Domantas Sabonis had cut the lead to two in minutes. Then, Boucher checked back in.

Toronto shot 31.5 percent from three in their six showings before Saturday, but you never would’ve known without prior context. It was raining threes inside Scotiabank Arena.

They held a 96-86 advantage heading into the final frame, but a quick 6-0 run from the Kings was then met with a haste 5-0 run from the other side. The Raptors held a slight lead for most of the night, but the margin was back and forth from double digits to one or two possessions.

As the saying goes, basketball is a game of runs. Toronto managed to return to once against match their largest lead of the night (13) while five minutes remained on the clock.

Were the Kings, who have two of the best fourth-quarter scorers in the NBA, going to overcome the slew of triples and fatigue that comes on the second night of a back-to-back? Fox recognized the moment, turning it up after a lazy turnover that led to him getting postered on an alley-oop in transition.

Their defensive intensity increased as time became increasingly limited. The inaugural Clutch Player of the Year (Fox) showed why he previously received those honors, leading his group to a 12-0 run that cut the lead to one.

Care to guess how Toronto responded? They hit a timely three.

Then, it was DeRozan’s turn to remind everyone in Toronto why he had scored the most points in that building.

With the shot clock turned off, Barrett missed one of two free throws, giving Sacramento the ball down two late. DeRozan missed a look, but Sabonis was there for the putback, and overtime ensued.

Fox and DeRozan had huge fourth quarters, but this Sabonis putback takes the game into OT.

They’ll be without Keegan Murray, who fouled out. pic.twitter.com/6nw8EeoaaL

— Brenden Nunes (@BrendenNunesNBA) November 3, 2024

While playing the foul game late, Murray picked up his fifth and sixth, leaving Keon Ellis to play for the extra five minutes. Well, it was still the DeRozan show as the guard recorded all eight of Sacramento’s overtime points.

Unfortunately, they needed a bit more. Fox went 0/11 from three in the game, with his biggest miss being his last. He seemed to think Boucher tipped the ball, but I’ll let you be the judge.

Do you think Chris Boucher tipped the final 3PA? pic.twitter.com/dD0nVqP8Aq

— Brenden Nunes (@BrendenNunesNBA) November 3, 2024

Barrett tried again to give the Kings a chance, but the difference in three-point effectiveness was too great to overcome.

Boucher, Jamison Battle, Ochai Abgaji, RJ Barrett, and Gradey Dick all converted at least three from range. Their 17 made threes (on 37 attempts) blew away their previous season high of 12.

Huerter’s absence, Fox’s tough shooting night, and the fact that it was the second night of a back-to-back led to Sacramento’s 131-128 loss.

Now sitting at 3-3, they’ll stay the night in Canada before heading to Miami for their final game remaining on this road trip Monday against the Heat.

Notable Final Statistics:

Sacramento:

Field Goal Percentage: 46/100 (46.0%)
Three-Point Percentage: 10/40 (25.0 %)
Free-Throw Percentage: 26/32 (81.3%)
Offensive Rebounds: 15
DeMar DeRozan: 33 points, four rebounds, four assists, three steals on 12/27 FG, 2/7 3P, 7/7 FT
Malik Monk: 21 points, four rebounds, four assists, two steals on 9/16 FG, 3/7 3P

Toronto:

Field Goal Percentage: 46/95 (48.4%)
Three-Point Percentage: 17/37 (45.9%)
Free-Throw Percentage: 22/31 (71.0%)
Offensive Rebounds: 12
RJ Barrett: 31 points, nine rebounds, six assists, one steal on 10/26 FG, 3/9 3P, 8/11 FT
Chris Boucher: 24 points, five rebounds, one assist on 9/13 FG, 4/6 3P, 2/3 FT