Kings Report – 3/5

The Sacramento Kings managed to win a game last week! They lost the other three games by 11, 24, and a whopping 31 points—ouch. So let’s focus on the win, shall we? In this historic season, the 14th win of the year is a big deal.

The injury bug continues to plague the Kings (not that it matters much at this point), but Keegan Murray has now joined the list with an ankle injury that should keep him out for at least two weeks.

Daeqwon Plowden, who you might remember coming up from the Stockton Kings G-League team, has become a much more important player in light of all these injuries. Plowden had a perfect night in the Kings’ win against the Dallas Mavericks on Thursday, February 26. He shot 7-for-7 from the field, including 3-for-3 from three-point range, and 2-for-2 from the free-throw line for 19 points, while adding four rebounds to his stat sheet.

Don’t get too excited, though; his other nights haven’t been quite this productive. In the other three games this week, he played over 20 minutes per game but averaged just 4.33 points. Still, it’s fun to see someone catch fire for a night. But the real star of the night was Precious Achiuwa, who led the team with 29 points (a career high) along with 12 rebounds, four assists, and three steals. Achiuwa has clearly taken full advantage of the extra minutes coming his way. The Kings beat the Mavericks 130–121.

The Kings’ most recent game, a home matchup against the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday, March 3, was actually nationally televised on NBC. Unfortunately, it didn’t start until 8 p.m. (again, I can’t stay up that late!). Luckily, I didn’t miss much. The Suns got the win they so desperately needed, as they are actually in the playoff race.

The Kings did get another strong performance from Maxime Raynaud, who recorded a double-double with a team-high 22 points, 10 rebounds, four assists, and two steals. He continues to impress me, and I’m excited to keep watching his development.

Don’t worry, I checked, and the title for worst NBA season in history still belongs to the Charlotte Hornets (known at the time as the Bobcats), who won just seven games in the 2011–2012 season. But we are still the worst team in the league this season, and with only 19 games left to play, and March Madness right around the corner, it might be time to start thinking about draft picks and next year.

March Madness begins with Selection Sunday on March 15, followed by the First Four on March 17–18. Next week, I’ll take a look at some storylines and players to watch as the tournament gets underway.

In the meantime, you can catch the Kings continuing their five-game homestand against the 19–44 New Orleans Pelicans on Thursday, March 5; the 25–37 Chicago Bulls on Sunday, March 8; the 15–46 Indiana Pacers on Tuesday, March 10; and the 31–31 Charlotte Hornets on Wednesday, March 11. It looks like it’s shaping up to be a battle for last place against the Pacers, so at least that game should be a toss-up. Go Kings!