Inside The Kings

5 Key Takeaways From Kings’ Crucial Wins Against Lakers & Spurs

The Sacramento Kings headed home with a win after taking down LeBron's Lakers, and followed it up with a win versus a Wemby-less Spurs squad.

Sean Ackerman

5 Key Takeaways From Kings’ Crucial Wins Against Lakers & Spurs
5 Key Takeaways From Kings’ Crucial Wins Against Lakers & Spurs /
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If there's anything the Sacramento Kings do consistently, it's beat the Los Angeles Lakers. Now on a four-game winning streak against LAL, the Kings seem to be the kryptonite for an aging Lakers squad. After heading home from SoCal with a much-needed victory, the Kings defended their home court in a close matchup with the San Antonio Spurs.

The superstar duo of De'Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis lifted the Kings to both victories for a team that's trying to avoid the play-in tournament come playoff time. Thanks to a 44 and 33 point performances from Fox and two monster stat-lines from Domas, Sacramento were able to take down the Lakers in their second trip to Crypto.com Arena in two weeks and fend off the Spurs in the second-leg of a back-to-back.

One interesting aspect of Wednesday night's win over Los Angeles is how the minutes were spread among the roster. G Kevin Huerter and F Harrison Barnes played their least amount of game-time since early January with 12 and 15 minutes logged against the Lakers, respectively. Playing in their places were guards Davion Mitchell and Keon Ellis, two players that have been hot recently on both sides of the court.

Victories come in all different ways for a Kings team that's struggled to show a consistent form over the course of their season. From losses to some of league's worst to multiple wins against some of the league's best, the 2023-24 season has been a roller coaster for SacTown. One thing that has been consistent is dominating the Lakers, leading to the first takeaway from Wednesday night's dub.

Sabonis continues to dominate Anthony Davis in the paint

© Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

This big-man matchup is always one to look forward to, but Sabonis has proven himself in the paint against 9-time All-Star Anthony Davis time after time. After this victory, Sabonis moved to 9-0 all-time when playing against AD. No other player in the league has more wins without a loss against The Brow, showing how Domas is truly one-of-one.

In the win, Sabonis put up his 22nd triple-double on the season, leading the league in the category over two-time MVP Nikola Jokic. With 16 points, 20 rebounds, and 12 assists, the former Gonzaga University standout showed why he should continue to be in MVP talks for the year.

This win was the second consecutive game that Sabonis has eclipsed the 20-rebound mark, making it six total such performances on the season. On top of dominating the glass, the Kings' star center limited Anthony Davis to his worst shooting performance in his last 14 games. Davis shot under 40% on the night thanks to an outstanding two-way battle by Sabonis.

Malik Monk is undoubtedly Sixth Man of the Year

© Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

From scoring to general playmaking, Monk provides an offensive spark when he takes the floor. Over the last four games, Monk is averaging 23.5 points per game along with nearly 7 assists per game tallied on. The former Kentucky Wildcat is averaging the most assists in a season in his career by far, showing how Mike Brown trusts Monk to be a primary ball handler for his team.

Odds wise, Monk has become a heavy favorite in the 6MOY race, with most books having his odds at -300 or better. This would mark the first award that Monk has won in his NBA career which started in 2017 after being drafted to the Charlotte Hornets.

De'Aaron Fox is in a shooting slump, but still finds ways to score

© Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports

Leading the team in scoring over the past two games, Fox's return has been crucial to the fluidity of Sacramento's offense. In both games of the back-to-back, the Kings put up 130+ points, a number that hadn't been reached since before the All-Star break. Fox, a fellow former Wildcat, has now scored 30+ in two straight games, proving that he's one of the best scorers in the league.

In fact, only three other players in the league have more 40-point performances than De'Aaron Fox. His value to Sacramento is unparalleled, even despite being in a cold streak from beyond the arc. Since coming back from the break, Fox is shooting an abysmal 22% from three point land. While he's never been recognized as a shooter, hitting open threes would help Mike Brown's squad out a whole lot. 

The Kings continue to play down to their opponents' level

© Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports

Even though they won both games, it wasn't in very convincing fashion. In Thursday night's victory against the Spurs, the battle came down to a game-winning dunk by Sabonis to seal the deal against one of the NBA's worst teams without their best player. Granted, it was the second night of a back-to-back, but that's no excuse for a Kings team that's certainly better than the Spurs.

Coming out with two wins is what matters most for this team, as they've now clawed their way back into one game out of 5th place in the West. While the play-in tournament isn't worse case scenario, it's extra games that this team would like to avoid before taking on a top-seed in the Western Conference. 

The Kings have a clutch gene running through the team

Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports

Sure, there's been plenty of games that the Kings have donated away, such as their collapse against the Chicago Bulls. On the other hand, this team looks like they are built for big-time moments. From one of the top-5 4th quarter scorers in the league in Fox to Sabonis' game-sealing plays, this roster has something special.

The Kings are in the second-highest scoring team in clutch time in the NBA, demonstrating that even the biggest moments don't faze this team. The one thing they can improve on is free throws (of course). The Kings rank in the bottom-five of free throw percentage in clutch time, as there's been plenty of games that could've been put in the win column if shots from the charity stripe were knocked down efficiently. 

Sacramento now looks forward to a battle against the Houston Rockets at home on Sunday evening.

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Sean Ackerman
SEAN ACKERMAN

Sean Ackerman is the Associate Editor for Inside the Kings - SI.com's team website following the Sacramento Kings.

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