We’ve had our first buzzer-beater win of the season, and it feels like the NBA season is in full swing. The Kings ended the week in Miami, and it was the perfect end to a four-game road trip. Picture this, after going down 48-61 in the first half, De’Aaron Fox heats up in the third quarter, scoring 16 of his 28 points and giving Kings fans some hope that we could win this game. After a very competitive fourth quarter, with both teams taking turns making buckets, we saw the Heat up 108-103 with only 1:14 left on the clock. Then, our new addition, DeMar DeRozan, somehow hits the most beautiful 3-point shot AND draws the foul. A made free throw makes it a one-point game. Two more free throws by the Heat followed by a MONSTER dunk by Malik Monk, and the Kings are down one point with 9 seconds on the clock. Domantas Sabonis grabs an offensive rebound (over the Heat’s Bam Adebayo, mind you) and puts it back to put the Kings up 111-110 with only .07 seconds on the clock, and the Kings win the game!
Sabonis showed everyone why he leads the entire league in rebounds; he finished the game with 16 of them, along with 16 points and seven assists. The second half of that game saw the Kings looking like the team we knew they could be, and I’m hoping this is the team we see going forward. The Kings also beat the Atlanta Hawks, 123-115, where Fox scored his season-high 31 points and DeRozan put up 27 more. Unfortunately, I can’t say the same for the Toronto Raptors game. After traveling all those miles from Atlanta overnight, the Kings did, indeed, lose to a shorthanded Raptors team, 128-131. At least it wasn’t a blowout. We did get some good news out of that game: third-year player Keegan Murray became the fastest player to reach 400 three-pointers in just 163 games.
The Kings are back at home this week and will have hopefully gotten some revenge against the Raptors on Wednesday, November 6th. I’ll attend my first game of the season with my best friend, Theresa, and our kids, to watch the Kings take on the Los Angeles Clippers. My son is already a die-hard Kings fan. Do you think I’ll be able to buy the allegiance of another seven-year-old boy with a foam finger and an ice cream? I don’t know, but I’m going to try, and I think we’re going to have to light the beam to seal the deal! Next, the Kings will travel to Phoenix to take on Devin Booker and the Suns on Sunday, November 10th, before heading to San Antonio to play Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs on Monday, November 11th, for their third back-to-back game in three weeks. They’ll then come home for a four-game home stand, starting with the Phoenix Suns again on Wednesday, November 13th. Let’s keep that beam lit! Go Kings!