What we learned as Kings exact revenge in bounce-back win vs. Raptors originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
SACRAMENTO – At last, the Kings were on the right side of a late-game rally, escaping with a 122-107 bounceback win against the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday night at Golden 1 Center.
They entered the game seeking vengeance against the only team they fell to during their most recent road trip – and they got it.
Returning home from an all-over-the-place four-game road trip, the Kings began the game appearing to still be a bit fatigued from all the travel.
The first quarter – and first half, really – was a snoozefest in Sacramento. The Kings gave the Golden 1 Center crowd little to cheer for during most of the first 24 minutes of action.
But an all-around performance from Keegan Murray from start to finish helped keep them afloat, and strong finishing performances from the Big Three helped them close things out.
DeMar DeRozan led the way with 27 points. De’Aaron Fox added 21 and Domantas Sabonis had a 17-point, 11-rebound, 13-assist triple-double.
It wasn’t pretty, but hey, they’ll take it.
Here are the takeaways from the win.
Setting the tone
If there was any sign of life early for the Kings, it was Murray.
His first-quarter stats alone were comparable to others’ final game statlines, contributing 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting from the field and 2 of 3 from 3-point range, with five rebounds (three offensive).
Murray’s impact was so prevalent, Kings coach Mike Brown couldn’t help but play him the entire opening frame.
The 24-year-old didn’t check back into the game until the 5:08 mark of the second quarter, adding two more points, two more rebounds and an assist.
He finished with 22 points, 12 rebounds, three assists in 35 minutes. It’s his fourth double-double of the season, tying his double-double total from his entire rookie 2022-23 season in just eight games.
Bench still a concern
Kings players coming off the bench not named Malik Monk or Keon Ellis have been non-impactful and even unplayable at times, to put it bluntly.
That still was the case Wednesday.
Kings coach Mike Brown has said he doesn’t want to play his starters more than 38 minutes, but it’s clear the coach still isn’t comfortable with his rotations.
DeRozan — the oldest player on the team — played the most minutes of anybody with just over 35. Murray played 35, Sabonis and Fox played about 33 and Kevin Huerter played 23.
Meanwhile, Monk led all bench scorers with 13 points in 21 off the bench. Keon Ellis played 23 minutes. The rest of the bench played a combined 32 minutes.
Trey Lyles continues to struggle after returning to play from a groin injury.
Alex Len was impressive on the defensive end of the floor, earning the team’s Defensive Player of the Game crown after picking up six rebounds and four blocks in 14 minutes.
Right side of late collapse
One of the biggest concerns for the Kings last season was their way of falling to teams late after having a big lead early.
That frustrating trend slightly has carried over into this season — not on Wednesday.
After shootaround Wednesday morning prior to the contest, DeRozan admitted he was looking forward to facing the Raptors again to get their revenge against the team that just defeated the Kings in overtime only four nights ago.
And DeRozan made sure to take those matters into his own hands when things got ugly Wednesday.
The six-time NBA All-Star, alongside Fox and Sabonis, helped put things away as any good Big Three should.