After floating on the unexpected cloud of a wonderful 2-0 start, the Kings have gently brought me back down to reality, where COVID is still rampant, Sacramento "influencers" are having mansion parties in Granite Bay, our president is asking the Georgia secretary of state to change his election results, and the Sacramento Kings return to an even 3-3 record. So, yeah, despite my desperate attempts to visualize a year where the Kings go undefeated and our world regains some semblance of stability, life as a human and as a Kings fan is still HARD.
The Backdrop
The Sacramento Kings entered this game 3-3 and seeded at the 9th spot in the Western Conference.
The Golden State Warriors entered this game 3-3 and seeded at the 8th spot in the Western Conference.
The Kings are coming off of a pretty embarrassing performance from Saturday afternoon, falling extremely short of the new and exciting expectations we all had for them. They reverted back to a lot of old habits of stagnant offense and lazy help side defense.
On the other hand, the Warriors are doing just the opposite. Even without their co-star, Klay Thompson, (*prayer hand emojis* for Klay's safe recovery), the Warriors are fully feeling themselves, after starting 0-2 and coming off of a big win over the Portland Trailblazers last night. Oh, yeah, and Steph also lost his whole damn mind and dropped a career-high 62 points, so the Warriors and their fans (our loud, annoying neighbors) are on one right now.
Look, I respect Stephen Curry. I do, and I get it. He's transformed the game with his incredible shot-making ability and unique handle. He deserves all the credit and memes and attention and will be remembered as one of, if not the best shooter in the game. He has a beautiful family, uses his influence in productive and meaningful ways, and seems to be an all-around great person. But, and someone please confirm that I'm not the only one who feels this way, there's just SOMETHING about him that really irks me. It could be the in your face confidence, the shimmy celebrations, the incessant mouthguard chewing, or the pre-game sprints that remind me of a toddler who's had too much candy - it's difficult to pinpoint what exactly it is, but it very much IS. I can't help but feel my face cringe and my eyes roll when I watch him just be so... corny. Perhaps if the Sacramento Kings had been the ones to draft him back in 2009, I would feel differently, but it is what it is.
Anyways, with all that off my chest, I think it's a good time for Steph to get a nap in. He's been running around, screaming in celebrations, and mocking in goggle symbols enough to make me feel exhausted just watching him. So let's hope he's finally tired himself out enough for the Kings to rebuild some momentum and wrap up this road trip with a win.
Quick Stats
Because numbers make things make sense.
Outcome: Kings lose, 106-137
Sacramento Kings: 106 PTS, 38.2% FG, 28.6% 3 PT, 21 AST, 14 TO
Golden State Warriors: 137 PTS, 52.0% FG, 53.5% 3 PT, 41 AST, 11 TO
De'Aaron Fox (SAC): 18 PTS, 7 AST
Harrison Barnes (SAC): 18 PTS, 9 REB
Stephen Curry (GSW): 30 PTS, 8 AST, 9 REB
Why do I even like basketball again??? I've got to admit, this whole dumb Kings blog was a lot more fun when they didn't play like complete shit. Holy hell, that was painful. The Warriors embarrassed the Kings in every category and sense of the game. Shooting 52% from the field and 54% from the 3-pt line are impressive and make you want to give all the credit to the Warriors. But that's not the case. The Kings gave up early in the game and set the table, served the meal, and watched in hunger as the Warriors feasted through all four quarters. I am disgusted.
The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly
Because all three are consistent parts of Kings basketball.
The Good:
De'Aaron Fox: De’Aaron is my oxygen - he is the only constant and quite literally keeps me alive in enduring this type of Kings basketball. Watching Fox carry this team puts a deep pit of fear in my stomach. As much as I LOVE seeing him go coast to coast, doing all that he can to keep this team afloat, I can't help but have a That's So Raven future vision of him getting fed up of having no help and demanding a trade in three years. Please don't desert us, De'Aaron - I will literally suffocate and die.
The Bad:
Free Throws: If my life depended on someone from the Sacramento Kings making two free throws in a row, I would have died seven times tonight. I would have died four times in the 1st quarter alone. This wouldn't have been so awful because at least I wouldn't have had to watch the remaining three quarters of this game.
First Quarter: *BIG SIGH* The Kings had a doubly bubbly start. Not only did they give up 37 points in the first 12 minutes, but they only managed to put together 20 points on their own end. This is a start we became accustomed to in the bubble when they gave up 40+ point quarters to start the game on more than one occasion, but the 20 point scoring total is a new low the Kings have managed to find.
The Offense, Again: The Golden State Warriors are the worst in the league for points allowed, averaging 124 points per game. The Kings managed to score 18 points below that average. I'm running out of words to describe this horrendous offense. It's a lot of half-ass hand-off screens at the top of the arc, only for Fox to get the ball back 30 feet from the basket with seven seconds on the shot clock. At this point, everyone stands around to watch how he will bail them all out with an acrobatic mid-range shot.
The Ugly:
My Face: What did my face look like watching 48 minutes of this bullshit that could have easily been mistaken as a varsity vs. JV scrimmage? UGLY. My face hurts from constantly switching between eye rolls, scowls, and long, disappointing blinks. Just picture that meme of the kid in a striped shirt with the 80s haircut and look of utter disgust. That is my face.
Royal Court Jester
Because someone is always actin' a fool.
UGHHHHHH. I really didn't want to speak about this because I really didn't want to warrant it any space, but this just fits too well for this segment. I really hate to give this any more attention, so I'll keep it brief. Today's Royal Court Jester title goes to... and I honestly never thought I would be saying this... the Kings' DADS and their utterly FOOLISH behavior on Twitter. It started with a tweet from Marvin Bagley III's dad:
Marvin Bagley II quickly deleted the tweet, but of course it was too late and a million screenshots were already taken and being used to explode Kings Twitter. He later retweeted one of these screenshots, I guess as a way to double down on his message. As the flames continued to grow, De'Aaron Fox's dad decided to also chime in on the issue:
Kings Twitter spent the better part of 48 hours talking about, tweeting, and spreading this story until it became just another great example to the world of what a clusterfuck the Sacramento Kings still are. And, yes, I am aware of the irony in that I am adding to this notion, but it's ultimately true. Things like this prove that we are still a hot mess. The Kings' dads need to find a large dosage of chill and knock off the Twitter antics and we all need to quit adding to the flames that ultimately make us all look like fools.
The King of Kings
Because at least one person does at least one good thing, usually.
Remaining in the vein of parents on Twitter, there is one Kings' parent who brings all the good vibes. For her unwavering support and for demonstrating the right way to be your kid's #1 fan, Dr. Lydecia Holmes is tonight's King of Kings.
Although her optimism was left out to dry by the Kings tonight, I still appreciate and recognize the endurance in her love - as much as I absolutely HATE the Kings, I will still always "love" the Kings. My favorite thing about her is that she also keeps it 100 when the Kings are being lame. As hyped as she gets when the Kings deserve it, she dishes out honest criticism just as easily when they don't. And she accurately summed up how we all felt tonight in just one word:
Up Next
Wednesday, January 6th vs. Chicago Bulls @ 7:00 P.M. (PT)
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