The 2025-26 Sacramento Kings can’t escape the injury bug. Domantas Sabonis and Keegan Murray have yet to play a game together as they sit 8-28 nearly halfway through the season.
Sunday’s game against the Milwaukee Bucks marked Zach LaVine’s return, but unfortunately, it also featured Murray and guard Keon Ellis going down.
Murray did not participate in their team practice the following day after coming down on his left ankle in the game.
Here’s the play where Keegan Murray rolled his left ankle after landing on it.
Has some help to the locker room. Kings can’t seem to escape the injury bug this season. pic.twitter.com/46EUEY4Mow
— Brenden Nunes (@BrendenNunesNBA) January 5, 2026
Ellis, however, was active and explained his thumb injury to the media in attendance on Monday.
“(Kyle) Kuzma ran into me, they called a foul, I didn’t feel anything, and then we challenged. I walked off, DeMar high-fived me… that’s when I realized it started hurting,” Ellis said. “I tried to tape it and come back out, but it was still hurting to try and shoot.”
The role that Ellis has played this season has been inconsistent, to say the least. He’s recorded two DNP-CDs along with seven instances of fewer than 10 minutes, while also having eight occasions with at least 25 minutes of action.
Head coach Doug Christie seems to alternate between Ellis and scoring guard Malik Monk being active in the rotation, as Monk has recorded two straight DNP-CDs himself, his third and fourth of the season.
With LaVine returning to action, Ellis’s opportunity remains unclear. He had logged just five minutes of action on Sunday before becoming unavailable due to his thumb injury. The Alabama product said he expects to be ready for Monday’s game when the Kings host the Dallas Mavericks.
“The more people that we have that are not on tables in the training room is a big thing,” Christie said after Monday’s practice. “It was really good to see (Keon).”
An update on Murray is expected to be provided in the coming days, but at least Ellis will be available in the immediate.
Playing in the final season of his contract, if Kings general manager Scott Perry wants to keep Ellis in royal purple, their best chance would be agreeing to an extension prior to the soon-to-be 26-year-old guard reaching unrestricted free agency.
Ellis could be used to acquire assets via trade. Either way, having him available for action is an encouraging sign.
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After missing nine games due to a moderate ankle sprain, two-time All-Star guard Zach LaVine was back in uniform for the Sacramento Kings on Sunday night.
LaVine, who hadn’t been in action since December 14th, made his return against the Bucks–the team that has been heavily linked to the Kings guard in trade rumors and reports ahead of next month’s NBA trade deadline.
In his first game appearance in almost three weeks, LaVine came off the bench on Sunday, marking the first time since January 8, 2024 (while with the Chicago Bulls), that he was not part of the starting lineup.
Read More:
Zach LaVine returns, comments on trade chatter
Upcoming Sacramento Kings schedule for the 2025-26 season
Tuesday, January 6th – vs. Dallas Mavericks – 6:00 PM PT
Friday, January 9th – @ Golden State Warriors – 7:00 PM PT
Sunday, January 11th – vs. Houston Rockets – 6:00 PM PT
Monday, January 12th – vs. Los Angeles Lakers – 7:00 PM PT
Wednesday, January 14th – vs. New York Knicks – 7:00 PM PT
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