Kings vs Lakers

2023 - 1 - 9

Post cover — Image courtesy of "Sactown Royalty"

Kings vs. Lakers Final Score: 3 takeaways from a tough Sacramento ... (Sactown Royalty)

The Sacramento Kings lost an absolute heartbreaker to the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday, 136-134. There will be a lot of talk about missed calls, ...

For whatever reason, Fox has a special type of confidence and execution in the fourth. If the Kings are serious about breaking [the 16-year playoff drought](https://www.sactownroyalty.com/2022/9/30/23381329/sacramento-kings-longest-playoff-drought-professional-sports-nba-history), they really have to win the “easy” ones. As of Saturday morning, the Kings are 25th in defensive rating, which is likely not going to be a good enough ranking to get this team to the promised land. Zooming out, the Kings have gone 10-12 since starting the season 10-6. There will be a lot of talk about missed calls, but this was a game the Kings absolutely should have found a way to win regardless. While there could be some schematic and playing time adjustments, the Kings really don’t have many above-average defensive players on their roster.

Lakers did not benefit from incorrect calls down stretch vs. Kings, as ... (CBSSports.com)

The next beef for Sacramento came with 3.1 seconds to play. De'Aaron Fox, who was again sensational down the stretch and had just tied the game with seven ...

The Kings should've had a shot at their own game-winner and at worst had a shot to win in overtime. [NBA](https://www.cbssports.com/nba/) [confirmed in its Last Two Minute Report](https://twitter.com/JandersonSacBee/status/1590101491318411264) that Sacramento's [Kevin Huerter](https://www.cbssports.com/nba/players/2268227/kevin-huerter/) was fouled on his potential game-tying 3-pointer as time expired vs. the [Warriors](https://www.cbssports.com/nba/teams/GS/golden-state-warriors/). [Domantas Sabonis](/nba/players/2152455/domantas-sabonis/) was tagged with the foul. Schroder made the free throws to put the Lakers up two. Conversely, this win could loom large for the Lakers, who are also walking a tight playoff rope. The L2M confirmed it was indeed the right call. [LeBron James](/nba/players/400553/lebron-james/) drives right and gets the whistle for the and-1 finish. These were incredibly close calls, and you'll forgive the Kings if they're a little jumpy about being wronged in late-game situations. The Kings challenged it in real-time, and the call held up. The next beef for Sacramento came with 3.1 seconds to play. The contact occurs prior to Westbrook's gather and continuation was correctly not awarded."

Kings heated as late foul call in tie game propels Lakers to win (ESPN)

A controversial foul call on the Kings' De'Aaron Fox with 3.1 seconds left in a tie game gave Lakers guard Dennis Schroder two free throws, which ended up ...

"Just trying to figure it out and just trying to play for one another and not give in," James said. "If you foul, you foul," Schroder said with a laugh. Schroder made both free throws to cap a 27-point night on 8-for-11 shooting from the field and 7-for-7 from the foul line. Fox, who led the Kings with 34 points and nine assists, left the arena without speaking to reporters. Since Sacramento was already in the penalty, the foul meant two free throws for the Lakers. The foul was on the floor, with Fox hitting Schroder in the hip with his thigh as the Lakers point guard attempted to drive to the hoop.

De'Aaron Fox furious after LeBron James scores 37 in Lakers ... (Sacramento Bee)

LeBron James, Russell Westbrook, Dennis Schroder lead Los Angeles Lakers' win over De'Aaron Fox, Domantas Sabonis and the Sacramento Kings.

Fox broke out a signature move for a clutch turnaround jumper in the paint to tie the game with 6.8 seconds remaining, but then he was called for a foul on Schroder at the other end of the floor. The game was tied at 109 at the end of the third. Then Westbrook made the second of two free throws to put the Lakers up by two. The Lakers came back to tie the game on a 3-pointer by Westbrook. The Kings battled back to take a 38-37 lead at the end of the first quarter. The Lakers came in on the second night of a back-to-back after beating the Hawks 130-114 on Friday night at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. The Kings committed a costly turnover on an inbound play. The score was tied at 73 following a first-half shootout that featured 11 ties and nine lead changes. LeBron James had 37 points, eight rebounds and seven assists for the Lakers (19-21), who have won five in a row to move into a three-way tie for 10th in the Western Conference. The Lakers led by as many as nine while shooting 63.6% in the opening period. Kings coach Mike Brown was frustrated with the officiating throughout the game, but most of his postgame remarks centered on his team’s defense. Fox might have felt he was fouled on the final shot.

Kings' Fox heated after controversial foul call — or, calls — give ... (NBC Sports)

Sacramento Kings' point guard De'Aaron Fox was heated because he beleived two end-of-game calls were wrong in going against him in a loss to the Lakers.

The Lakers, as a team, shot 61% overall on their way to their fifth straight win. The referees are reluctant to call a foul on a desperation heave unless the contact is overwhelmingly obvious they have to. It was a soft foul call for the situation, but the NBA Replay Center tends to support its referees’ call if there is any contact, and there was enough. [January 8, 2023] [De'Aaron Fox](https://www.nbcsportsedge.com/basketball/nba/player/30431/deaaron-fox) knocked down a mid-range jumper with 7.4 seconds left on the clock, tying the game. It’s not just this season, [Kevin Huerter](https://www.nbcsportsedge.com/basketball/nba/player/30590/kevin-huerter) admitted on [the Lowe Post Podcast](http://www.espn.com/espnradio/podcast/archive/_/id/10528553) he went down a rabbit hole watching 2002 Western Conference Finals conspiracy theory videos.

LeBron James, Lakers take advantage of defenseless Kings in ... (NBC Sports Bay Area)

LeBron James and the Lakers take advantage of a defenseless Kings team and steal a win from Sacramento at Golden 1 Center.

The Lakers also outscored the Kings 70 to 48 in points in the paint. Although the Lakers failed to hit a 3-pointer in the final 24 minutes, Los Angeles did score 38 of its 70 points in the paint in the second half, which Brown said was "tough to swallow." "Somehow, someway, we have to figure out, collectively as a group, how to defend. Though the Kings matched the Lakers at every step offensively, Kings center Domantas Sabonis noted the team, collectively, has to do a better job of stopping opponents. "He was knocking down shots in the short roll, getting offensive rebounds late game where he converted them as paint points and that definitely hurt us," Sabonis said. "Coaches said they made zero 3s in the second half," Sabonis told reporters postgame. Brown is hoping the Kings can right the ship defensively sooner rather than later. Although Kings star De'Aaron Fox scored 17 of his game-high 34 points in the final 12 minutes, the game came down to two crucial plays. Fans watching this game knew the Kings (20-18) and the Lakers (19-21) were in for a shootout when both squads put up 73 points in the first half alone. However, it appeared Lakers guard Russell Westbrook made contact with Fox's arm on the follow-through, but no foul was called. Typically, halftime allows teams to regroup, be it on the defensive or offensive end. "Defensively, we are not good at all.