Simons spoils Valanciunas debut, Blazers defeat Kings 108-102

Simons (30 pts) spoiled Valanciunas' Sacramento debut, as the red-hot Trail Blazers defeated the Kings 108-102 Thursday night in Portland.

BY BRENDEN NUNES

Feb 6, 2025, 9:43 PM

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PORTLAND, OREGON - FEBRUARY 06: Jonas Valanciunas #17 of the Sacramento Kings shoots the ball as Do...

Jonas Valanciunas #17 of the Sacramento Kings shoots the ball as Donovan Clingan #23 and Jerami Grant #9 of the Portland Trail Blazers look on during the first half at Moda Center on February 06, 2025 in Portland, Oregon. (Photo by Soobum Im/Getty Images)

(Photo by Soobum Im/Getty Images)

Figuring things out on the fly, Zach LaVine and the Sacramento Kings went into Portland Thursday night to take on the Trail Blazers, who had won nine of their last 10 games.

The defense had been the key to their recent surge, which remained consistent against the new-look Kings. It was the Sacramento debut for Jonas Valanciunas, who ended the night with six points, five rebounds, and three assists on 2/8 shooting in 17 minutes.

Jake LaRavia, who the team acquired via trade with the Memphis Grizzlies earlier today, was yet to join the team. Despite LaVine being expected to help their three-point struggles, the Kings converted six fewer triples than the Blazers, allowing Anfernee Simons to convert eight triples.

Suffering a 108-102 loss to the Blazers drops Sacramento back below .500 (25-26) and temporarily out of the Western Conference play-in picture.

Growing pains are to be expected, but there’s little margin for error as 31 games remain on their 24-25 regular season schedule.

Kings at Portland Injury Report

Sacramento

Colby Jones (trade pending) – OUT
Alex Len (trade pending) – OUT

Portland

Matisse Thybulle (right ankle) – OUT

Sacramento’s Starting Five: Malik Monk, Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan, Keegan Murray, Domantas Sabonis

Portland’s Starting Five: Anfernee Simons, Toumani Camara, Deni Avdija, Jerami Grant, Deandre Ayton

Kings at Trail Blazers Game Notes

Winners of five straight and nine of their last 10, Portland had been playing much-improved defense thanks to the length and versatility supplied by Camara, Avdija, Grant, and Donovan Clingan.

It was no different when the Kings were in town Thursday night. After defense was the problem in their 130-111 loss to Orlando the night before, Sacramento struggled to get a bucket.

Having Monk function as the primary point guard while guys like LaVine and DeRozan run the second unit is likely to have it’s growing pains and occasional hiccups.

After failing to hit a triple (for just the second time this season) in his Sacramento debut, LaVine converted his first three-point attempt while both sides battled early.

With LaRavia unavailable as his trade was still being finalized, Trey Lyles and Keon Ellis were Christie’s first substitutes, replacing LaVine and Murray.

Toward the latter portion of the opening frame, Valanciunas checked in for the first time as a member of the Kings. It didn’t take long for him to get a bucket, assisted by LaVine — a statement fitting of Sacramento’s new era.

Zach LaVine assists Jonas Valanciunas’ first bucket with the Kings.

New times for Sacramento. pic.twitter.com/CCOsxbF0w0

— Brenden Nunes (@BrendenNunesNBA) February 7, 2025

The scoreboard was tied at 27-27 after 12 minutes of action.

Given the new additions, Sacramento’s offense was understandably clunky and Portland’s aforementioned impressive defenders made creating isolation buckets challenging. Portland was efficient from beyond the arc, allowing them to start to pull away.

It’s been a typical tale this season, but the Kings were outmatched when it came to three-point shooting. The Kings started the quarter 1/8 from the field.

Sharpe had it rolling, helping his squad jump out to a five-point advantage (34-29) at the 8:30 mark of the second.

Rookie Devin Carter, playing in his 15th NBA game after missing the start of the season due to a shoulder injury, struggled to create and looked out of control as the second unit fell behind.

Transition points, especially off of turnovers, played in Sacramento’s favor, but they struggled with the long ball.

Portland had a four-point lead (54-50) at halftime. The newest King, Valanciunas, had four points and two rebounds, while Murray added 12, leading his team in shot attempts (9). Monk had 13 points on 4/8 shooting. Sharpe (14) and Ayton (12) led the way for the Blazers.

Simons started taking over in the third, converting triples of varying difficulty left and right. Perimiter defense wasn’t a strong suit for the Kings before the deadline, and it didn’t seem much better Thursday — albeit LaRavia was unavailable.

They allowed the opposing offense to get into the paint with will, spraying out to open catch-and-shoot attempts. But, LaVine, DeRozan, and Monk weren’t going to go down easy.

The back-and-forth nature that existed in the first half carried over through halftime. Neither side was able to gain a notable lead as the momentum continued to swap.

Shooting 5/15 from three compared to Portland’s 9/19 from three heading into the fourth quarter, the Kings faced a 79-77 deficit as the third ended.

Recognizing the moment, DeRozan stepped into his moment by doing what he does best: getting buckets. He seemed to have figured out how to deal with the defensive length, converting in isolation over the top of guys. LaVine added some of the same.

Not long into the fourth, Sabonis picked up two quick fouls, taking his game total up to five — one short of fouling out. Facing a narrow deficit as time started to wind down, he found himself in a tough spot.

The Blazers held a 94-91 lead with five minutes remaining as the game officially entered clutch time in the Moda Center. DeRozan had a stellar fourth quarter up to that point, but they needed him to keep rolling.

Sabonis didn’t let his foul trouble impact his aggressiveness. His all-out effort was needed in the close game, but officials called his sixth foul while fighting with Sharpe for a rebound. Christie challenged the call quickly, but it was unsuccessful, signaling the end of the big man’s night.

His new fellow countryman Valanciunas quickly subbed in, but they quickly elected to go small with Lyles.

After neither team was led by more than six throughout the night, Portland took a seven-point lead (96-103) with 1:22 remaining.

There was no recovery from there. DeRozan scored 15 of his team-high 22 points in the fourth quarter. He, Monk (21), and LaVine (20) all surpassed the twenty-point mark. Their newly bolstered bench was outscored 35-15, largely due to Sharpe’s 24-point performance.

But it was Simons who stole the show, converting eight three-pointers on 12 attempts, leaving Thursday night with 30 points, six assists, two rebounds, and one steal.

Growing pains are expected with this new-look Sacramento roster, but each loss hurts in a crowded Western Conference. Falling to 25-26 dropped the Kings to 11th in the West, just out of the play-in, with 31 games remaining in their season.