What we learned as Kings’ second-half comeback falls short in loss to Grizzlies originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
SACRAMENTO – Despite all that has gone wrong for the Kings over the past few years the one thing they could always count on was beating the Memphis Grizzlies at home, a streak that had extended back to late 2022.
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During a season in which almost everything that could conceivably go wrong has gone wrong, even that one glimmer of hope no longer exists.
Backed by a huge game from Memphis center Zach Edey, the Grizzlies rolled into town and rolled over the Kings, handing them a 115-107 loss at Golden 1 Center on Sunday.
Edey had a career-best 32 points and 27 rebounds for his third double-double of the season while leading the Grizz to their second win over the Kings this season.
The Kings didn’t go quietly.
After trailing by 13 Sacramento rallied to tie it at 81-81 on Murray’s layup late in the third, Edey scored on another tip-in to put Memphis back in front before Malik Monk and DeMar DeRozan connected on a back-to-back 3-pointers.
Sacramento led late in the fourth quarter but Edey scored six points down the stretch to secure the Grizzlies’ first win on the Kings’ home court since 2022.
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DeMar DeRozan scored 23 and made three 3-pointers for the Kings. Monk scored 21 and Zach LaVine added 19.
Here are the takeaways from Sunday:
Grizzlies Get Wet In Paint
Knowing they wouldn’t have to deal with the defense of injured Kings’ 6-foot-10 center Domantas Sabonis, the Grizzlies were very active in the paint and did a lot of damage there, especially in the first quarter.
Edey in particular had a field day down low. He nearly had a double-double by halftime on his way to an easy night at the office.
It wasn’t completely one-sided down low. The Kings had a good deal of success themselves in the key but the Grizzlies did put up a little resistance.
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On the other end, though, Memphis made it look way to easy most of the time they attacked the hope. Many of the put-backs that led to second-chance points were way too easy.
That’s aways going to be the challenge for Sacramento until Sabonis gets healthy, which won’t be for a while. Drew Eubanks has been a serviceable backup but it might be time for rookie Maxime Raynaud to get an extended looks.
The 7-foot-1 rookie center had nine points and six rebounds in 23 minutes before fouling out.
Another Spencer Doing Big Things
Pat Spencer has been an unheralded member of the Warriors over the past three seasons. The talent apparently runs in the family, as the Kings discovered when the Grizzlies and Pat’s younger brother Cam came to town.
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Cam Spencer came off the bench and was perfect on three shots behind the arc in the first half and had four for the game, finishing with a solid 16 points.
Not a huge factor but sometimes those are the ones that make the difference.
What Happened To Keon?
There was a time last season and earlier in this campaign when Keon Ellis was one of the keys to the Kings’ success, a play-maker and scorer off the bench who routinely provided big minutes.
It has been a different story lately, especially over the last two weeks. He had played fewer than eight minutes in two of the three previous games, then was scoreless in just over six minutes against the Grizzlies,
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Granted, the Kings have a glut of guards on the roster which makes playing time difficult to come by. Yet Ellis is one of, if not the, best two-way players on Sacramento’s roster.
For Ellis the question now is how much longer will he be in a Kings’ uniform? An unrestricted free agent in the offseason, the 25-year-old will undoubtedly draw interest on the open market.
The Kings could try to extend Ellis or attempt to trade him, but it’s more than likely he’ll be playing elsewhere in 2026.
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