[Game] 34/82: Kings vs. Celtics 01 JAN 2026, 7pm PT/10pm ET

[Sluggah]

Russ has…not helped since coming back in.

 

[Caccia]

No Monk this half. A bitter pill to swallow. He will end with zero points on two shots.

 

[Joshyjosh31]

Bro why’s westbrick throwing up threes and turning the ball over jesus

 

[Caccia]

What was Mike Brown's system?.....

Sabonis took control from above the key, directing traffic, opening up guys for threes on the direct handoff, or running the pick and roll. He and Fox went on a morning show and showed all the different permutations and possibilities of the system.

I think you are not giving Brown enough credit here. His first team had the highest offensive rating in NBA history.

 

[Mr. S£im Citrus]

Never change, Bill Kennedy.

 

[gunks]

Sabonis took control from above the key, directing traffic, opening up guys for threes on the direct handoff, or running the pick and roll. He and Fox went on a morning show and showed all the different permutations and possibilities of the system.

I think you are not giving Brown enough credit here. His first team had the highest offensive rating in NBA history.

Yeah it was pretty fun before it got all Deebo'd up

 

[SacTownKid]

This has been a pretty fun game overall. Haven't seen a real shootout much this season.

 

[Tetsujin]

Russ with truly one of the greatest Tank Commander performances I’ve seen lol

 

[Sluggah]

So cold

 

[Joshyjosh31]

Russ with truly one of the greatest Tank Commander performances I’ve seen lol

Just don’t say it at the game he’ll get you kicked out

 

[HndsmCelt]

After the horrendous performance in LA, this loss was a lot easier to watch.

 

[SacTownKid]

Ironic Queta would be the one to kind of put the stamp on it eh? Like sands through the hourglass, so are the days of our lives. lol.

 

[SacTownKid]

Russ with truly one of the greatest Tank Commander performances I’ve seen lol

If only this was intended, haha.

 

[iowamcnabb]

0-10 from three in the 4th after shooting 60 percent at half. Ouch

 

[ShastaKingsFan]

Sabonis took control from above the key, directing traffic, opening up guys for threes on the direct handoff, or running the pick and roll. He and Fox went on a morning show and showed all the different permutations and possibilities of the system.

I think you are not giving Brown enough credit here. His first team had the highest offensive rating in NBA history.

So the system was the dribble hand off and pick and roll?

 

[QWERTYLICIOUS]

Only thing I will say is that if we mess up this tank job while actually, and finally, tanking the proper way, we, as a franchise, do not deserve the good things in life. Ever.

 

[SacTownKid]

So the system was the dribble hand off and pick and roll?

And it peaked right before the NBA started gearing towards defense, iso star play, and draw and kick. To Browns credit he saw the turn but then we had to hear the term "spray" way more often than anyone wants to.

 

[SacTownKid]

Only thing I will say is that if we mess up this tank job while actually, and finally, tanking the proper way, we, as a franchise, do not deserve the good things in life. Ever.

Especially if otherwise the only thing they come out of this season with is Westbrook flying up the scoring charts. Might be hard to springboard from that singular thing.

 

[ShastaKingsFan]

Only thing I will say is that if we mess up this tank job while actually, and finally, tanking the proper way, we, as a franchise, do not deserve the good things in life. Ever.

again, keeping in mind these results were not intended and entirely by chance. Any move from them is possible in the second half of this season, whether it be a short stretch of wins late to drop down their odds in the draft, or a trade to bring in someone who hinders the path of another draft pick

 

[QWERTYLICIOUS]

again, keeping in mind these results were not intended and entirely by chance. Any move from them is possible in the second half of this season, whether it be a short stretch of wins late to drop down their odds in the draft, or a trade to bring in someone who hinders the path of another draft pick

I get this. And, yes, it scares me as well. It would be nice if Vivek can finally realize that tanking is the way forward, and he continues to direct this ship down that path. I am not holding my breath.

 

[See_Hanks]

Is this years draft even that deep? I haven't followed college basketball much this year.

 

[Mr. S£im Citrus]

I get this. And, yes, it scares me as well. It would be nice if Vivek can finally realize that tanking is the way forward, and he continues to direct this ship down that path. I am not holding my breath.

You and I do not have the same working definition of "nice."

 

[Caccia]

So the system was the dribble hand off and pick and roll?

You know better than that, and could explain it better than I can.

 

[kingdivac]

Bro why’s westbrick throwing up threes and turning the ball over jesus

Its "brah"

 

[kingdivac]

Is this years draft even that deep? I haven't followed college basketball much this year.

That's a Baja question........

 

[kingdivac]

A small sampling of kinda amusing comments from Celts/Kings Youtube:

"
-It’s the Kings

-Yea, But there's still two HOF player's on the floor for Sacramento Westbrook and Derozian.

-Noooooooooooo!! Useless Kings! You beat us up, but can't beat any of the teams I dislike. I'm so unfortunate! Why must everything in my life go wrong? Oh well, Boston's black magic will end. Whether it comes at the cost of the Celtics or the Patriots. Hopefully the former. Mavericksforever❤

-Teams seem to have the same pattern they go up on the Celtics in the first half and then collapse and the Celtics just sh!t on them
"

 

[whitechocolate]

That sounds like something from @whitechocolate's Desert Island album collection.

I did watch The Kids in the Hall back in the day, and even watched that skit not too long ago.

 

[serbiangoat]

As bad and selfish as the vets are the complete lack of talent/creativity from the young core of Murray/Ellis/Carter/Max/Clifford is one of the lowest upside "young cores" ( most of them 23+ should be breaking out) I have seen in a while. Murray is the only piece that's valuable but again zero creativity

The Kings need one elite 18/19 year old talent drafting 23 year old is a sure way to stay trash forever.

 

[dude12]

As bad and selfish as the vets are the complete lack of talent/creativity from the young core of Murray/Ellis/Carter/Max/Clifford is one of the lowest upside "young cores" ( most of them 23+ should be breaking out) I have seen in a while. Murray is the only piece that's valuable but again zero creativity

The Kings need one elite 18/19 year old talent drafting 23 year old is a sure way to stay trash forever.

When Christie is your head coach, there is zero chance the young guys will shine or be able to flash. Make it doubly hard when the pups are surrounded by these vets. Case in point, the last 4-5 minutes when Christie’s lineup of vets shat the bed again.

But yes, these core players are going to be rotation guys and not stars. Our star is in the draft and to be determined.
Technically, we already have “stars” in DDR and Westbrook and Lavine. How is that going for us?

 

[Padrino]

Technically, we already have “stars” in DDR and Westbrook and Lavine. How is that going for us?

Even with the quotation marks, I would dispute this categorization. The Kings have names, not "stars". In other words, they've acquired a few also-rans who were stars once upon a time. 36-year-old DeMar DeRozan is still doing his Master of the Middy™ thing, but he's not competing at the level of current Western Conference stars in their prime. And 37-year-old Russell Westbrook is still commanding the ball the way he's always done it, but he hasn't been a starting quality PG for a playoff contender in years. He's firmly in the "journeyman" stage of his career, having played for, like, five teams in the last half-decade.

As for 30-year-old Zach LaVine, he's certainly not in the advanced stages of his career like DeRozan and Westbrook, but he is also a far more common NBA phenomenon: the 2-time All-Star. These guys dazzle for a brief period, convince you that they could become the Next Big Thing™, but ultimately fail to make the leap into the upper tiers of the league because they've got physical limitations, or they stop evolving, or they possess a lack of drive, or they hit their ceiling, etc.

Again, what the Kings have are names, which is great for a minute while you sell a few extra tickets off the novelty of those names, but now they're 8-26 and toward the bottom of the league in average attendance (after selling out every single home game in the Beam Team season). You're right that the "star" of this team is likely awaiting the Kings in the upcoming draft, but while they wait, Scott Perry's got quite a mess to begin sorting out so there's room for that potential future star to actually become one.