Sabonis outduels Jokic to help Kings smash Nuggets 48 hours after loss to lowly Pistons
The Kings followed their worst performance of the year with one of their best, taking down the defending champion Denver Nuggets for the second time this season.
Malik Monk came off the bench to score 23 points, Domantas Sabonis produced another triple-double and De’Aaron Fox kept swiping steals, leading the Kings to a 135-106 victory before a sellout crowd of 17,832 at Golden 1 Center.
The inconsistent Kings led by as many as 32 points while obliterating the Nuggets just 48 hours after suffering a 133-120 loss to the Detroit Pistons, who came in with the worst record in the NBA at 6-43.
“This was probably the best game we’ve had form start to finish,” Fox said. “We started the game the right way and I think we finished the game the right way. Obviously, it doesn’t erase what happened (against Detroit), but it’s definitely a step in the right direction.”
Sabonis finished with 17 points, 17 rebounds and 10 assists for the Kings (30-21), who handed the Nuggets a 123-117 loss on Dec. 2 in Sacramento. Sabonis posted his 16th triple-double of the season, moving ahead of two-time MVP Nikola Jokic for the league lead. Sabonis also recorded his 34th consecutive double-double, the second-longest single-season streak in franchise history behind Jerry Lucas (46).
Keegan Murray scored 17 points on 7-of-9 shooting after going scoreless against the Pistons. Fox had 15 points, 10 assists and five steals, giving him 21 steals in the past five games.
“I just want to be disruptive, change the game as much as I can on that end of the court,” Fox said.
Jokic had 23 points on 9-of-17 shooting with eight rebounds and seven assists for the Nuggets (26-17), who were tied for first in the Western Conference going into the game. Jamal Murray was held to 12 points on 4-of-10 shooting.
“I thought Fox, defensively, this was probably one of his better defensive games,” Kings coach Mike Brown said. “When you’ve got a guy like Jamal Murray out there, he’s tough for anybody, but the way Fox was up into him and trying to make it difficult for him, he was deserving of getting the defensive player of the game.”
The Nuggets came to Sacramento on the second night of a back-to-back after beating the Los Angeles Lakers 114-106 on Thursday in Los Angeles. They were also missing two starters after Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (hamstring) and Michael Porter Jr. (knee) were ruled out before the game.
The Kings have squandered a number of opportunities to win against shorthanded teams, but not this time.
“I told our guys, I said, ‘I believe in you guys. You guys have a chance to be great and it shouldn’t take a loss like we had to lock in like we did tonight.’ It’s up to us to lock in, focus on the small details, and go out there and perform for 48 minutes, and if we do, we’ll be happy at the end of the year.”
The Nuggets led by nine late in the first quarter, but the Kings scored six points in the last two seconds to cut the deficit to three. Trey Lyles struck first, hitting a 3-pointer with 2.0 seconds remaining. Monk then came up with a steal on the inbounds pass and hit a 3 of his own, sending Sacramento into the second quarter with some momentum.
The Kings took the lead on a soaring dunk by Monk early in the second period. They went up 50-46 on a 3-pointer by Kevin Huerter with 5:31 to play in the half, extended the lead to eight on two free throws by Sabonis and carried a 67-57 advantage into the halftime break. The Kings shot 58.1% from the field and made 10 of 18 (.556) from 3-point range in the first half while outrebounding the Nuggets 21-19.
Sacramento went up by 20 in the third quarter and led by 32 in the fourth. The Kings finished at 58.6% shooting from the field and 50% shooting from beyond the arc. They outrebounded the Nuggets 42-35, outscored them 60-42 on points in the paint and amassed a 37-19 advantage in points off turnovers.
“We beat ourselves,” Nuggets coach Michael Malone said. “Thirty-seven points off turnovers and that led to a lot of transition points for them. They had 60 in the paint. They made 17 3s. So, just like game one (against Sacramento), we didn’t take away anything, but you’re not going to beat a good team on the road with what we have. Twenty-one turnovers, and when they convert at that kind of a rate, 37 points off your own mistakes, you’re not giving yourself a chance to win.”
The Kings also had a 65-43 advantage in points off the bench, led by Monk and Lyles, who finished with 15 points and seven rebounds.
“We’ve been doing that all year,” Monk said. “We’re just picking up where we left off. We had a few down games, but we’re back now.”
Congratulating Keon
Brown said he was happy for Keon Ellis and his family Friday after the 24-year-old guard was converted from a two-way deal to a standard NBA contract.
Ellis, who went undrafted out of Alabama, signed a reported three-year, $5.56 million deal with a team option in the third year. Ellis was rewarded after splitting time between Sacramento and the G League Stockton Kings over the past two years. Ellis has been active in 47 games for Sacramento this season, three shy of the NBA limit for two-way players. The Kings resolved the numbers crunch by making Ellis a full-time member of the squad.
“It’s huge,” Brown said. “It lets everybody know that there are different paths to getting on an active NBA roster, especially with the Sacramento Kings, than just getting drafted. He’s worked extremely hard. He had a really good year last year with Stockton, and the opportunities he’s gotten so far this year, he’s played hard, he’s tried to play the right way, and he’s shown that he deserves an opportunity.”
New two-way player
The Ellis signing opened up a two-way roster spot. The Kings used that spot to sign G League Stockton guard Mason Jones to a two-way contract.
The Stockton Kings acquired Jones in December in a three-team trade with the Wisconsin Herd and Mexico City Capitanes. Jones, a 6-foot-4 guard, was an All-SEC First Team selection at Arkansas, where he led the conference in scoring at 22.0 points per game in 2019-20.
Jones previously held two-way contracts with the Houston Rockets, Philadelphia 76ers and Los Angeles Lakers. He has appeared in 36 NBA games, averaging 5.4 points, 1.8 rebounds and 1.3 assists.
Up next
The Kings have a three-game road trip before they hit the All-Star break starting with a Super Bowl Sunday showdown with the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Kings will then visit the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday and the Nuggets on Wednesday.
The Thunder (35-16) will be on the second night of a back-to-back after visiting the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday. This will be the third of four games between the Kings and Thunder. The first two were in Sacramento. The Kings beat the Thunder 105-98 on Nov. 10 and 128-123 on Dec. 14. They will meet again April 9 in Oklahoma City.
Upcoming schedule
Feb. 11 at Oklahoma City Thunder
Feb. 13 at Phoenix Suns
Feb. 14 at Denver Nuggets
Feb. 22 vs. San Antonio Spurs
Feb. 25 at Los Angeles Clippers
