Kings Fall Behind Early and Falter Late in Loss to Lakers

The Sacramento Kings fall to 13-15 on the season after a disappointing loss to the Los Angeles Lakers.

Dec 19, 2024; Sacramento, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Austin Reaves (15) dribbles the ball against the Sacramento Kings in the second quarter at the Golden 1 Center. / Cary Edmondson-Imagn Images

After falling behind quickly to the Denver Nuggets in the first quarter on Monday, the Sacramento Kings once again found themselves in an early hole against the Los Angeles Lakers. They trailed 2-15 just four and a half minutes into the game, and the lead swelled to 15 in the first quarter.

Sacramento battled back to make it a close game, but the back-to-back slow starts is an extremely worrisome trend for Sacramento.

It felt like the Kings never got an offensive rhythm going. Anthony Davis disrupted everything inside with six blocks and chipped in three steals on top of the shot protection. Sacramento ended the night with 16 turnovers that turned into 24 points for the Lakers.

Malik Monk had five turnovers, De'Aaron Fox and Kevin Huerter had four each, and Domantas Sabonis had two. The Lakers roster is filled with lengthy wings that made life difficult for the Kings all night.

Los Angeles really made the Sacramento pay on the offensive glass as well, grabbing 15 offensive rebounds for 18 second chance points.

Not only did the Kings turn the ball over and allow the Lakers to get second looks, but they also lost the free throw battle. The Kings shot 15-of-22, 68.2%, from the line while the Lakers shot 25-of-30, 83.3%.

Pretty much every stat related to posessions favored the Lakers, and it's how they easily beat the Kings shooting just 40.4% from the field and making only 12 threes.

The Kings get a chance to right the ship against the same Lakers team on Saturday with back-to-back games against LeBron James and company.

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