The Sacramento Kings continue to roll under interim head coach Doug Christie, as they blew out the Boston Celtics 114-97 at TD Garden on Friday. It was the Kings’ sixth straight win and their third in a row without star guard De’Aaron Fox and they have now improved to 19-19 on the season.
Domantas Sabonis was the star of the show against the Celtics, recording 23 points (10-15 FG), 28 rebounds, three assists, and a steal. DeMar DeRozan was a bit inefficient but still impressed with 24 points (9-26 FG), four rebounds, nine assists, one steal, and one block. Malik Monk (22 points on 9-24 FG) and Keegan Murray (19 points on 7-12 FG) stepped up too to help the Kings register a statement win.
The Celtics, meanwhile, were led by Jaylen Brown, who had 28 points (9-19 FG), one rebound, five assists, one steal, and one block. Kristaps Porzingis had a solid showing too with 22 points (6-15 FG), 10 rebounds, and two blocks, but that was it in terms of the positives. Jayson Tatum was a no-show on offense as he had just 15 points (5-13 FG) to go with 12 rebounds and five assists. No other Celtic even hit double figures and they dropped to 27-11 on the season with the loss.
Here’s a look at where it all went wrong for the defending champions.
The Kings Took Over In The Fourth
The final score may make it seem as if the Kings were in total control of this game throughout but that wasn’t the case. The teams were actually tied at 76 entering the fourth quarter but the visitors then took over, as they won the quarter 38-21.
The Kings went on a 24-9 run to start the fourth to all but end the game as a contest. While they were brilliant during that stretch, the Celtics helped them with some dreadful play and effort.
Really? pic.twitter.com/sEQHTeYWFW
— Bobby Manning (@RealBobManning) January 11, 2025
The Kings made eight threes in the fourth quarter and a lot of those were wide-open shots. The Celtics were shockingly slow on rotations and you’d expect better from a team that many consider to be the title favorites.
The Celtics weren’t all that great on offense either. They went 6-17 from the field and 1-7 from three in the fourth. Tatum and Jrue Holiday didn’t even attempt a shot in the period while Derrick White went 0-3 from the field. Brown was the only one who wasn’t a complete disaster in the quarter, as he had 12 points in it. Had he gotten some support, maybe the outcome would have been different.
The Celtics Got Crushed On The Glass And Lost The Turnover Battle
The Kings only shot 43.1% from the field and had 13 fewer free throw attempts than the Celtics in this game, so you’d wonder how they won so convincingly then. Well, they ended up attempting 18 more shots than the hosts in this one thanks to offensive rebounds and turnovers.
The Kings won the rebounding battle 56-43, hauling in 18 on the offensive glass compared to just eight for the Celtics. Sabonis alone had eight offensive rebounds while Trey Lyles had five and the second-chance points hurt the Celtics here. What also hurt them were the turnovers.
The Celtics had 15 turnovers here, with Tatum accounting for eight of them. The Kings scored 16 points off those turnovers, which was double what the hosts managed. The Celtics were only able to force nine turnovers and you won’t be winning too many games where you lose this battle and the one on the glass.
The Celtics’ Offense Grinds To A Halt
It would be bad enough to lose those two battles, but the Celtics didn’t shoot all too well here either. They went 34-84 (40.5%) from the field and 11-41 (26.8%) from beyond the arc. This would have been a truly horrific loss had they not gotten 22 free throws (18 makes).
The Celtics had scored over 100 points in each of their first 35 games this season but they have now failed to do so in two of their last three. They scored just 92 points in a loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday and you have to be slightly concerned about the offense at this point.
The Celtics should be fine in the long run but they have wobbled a bit off late. They have gone 8-6 after a 19-4 start and it looks quite unlikely now that they’ll be able to catch the Cleveland Cavaliers, who are running away with the top spot with a 33-4 record. They should win their next game, though, as they take on the New Orleans Pelicans at TD Garden on Sunday at 6 PM ET.
As for the Kings, they will look to make it seven wins in a row when they take on the Chicago Bulls at United Center on Sunday at 3:30 PM ET.
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