De’Aaron Fox nearly matches career high as Kings top Spurs in NBA in-season tournament

Kings coach Mike Brown took an early timeout to yells at his team after the San Antonio Spurs jumped out to an early lead. Brown didn’t like how the Kings started the game, but he was pleased with the way they finished.

De’Aaron Fox had a season-high 43 points, eight rebounds and seven assists to help the Kings remain unbeaten in the NBA’s new in-season tournament with a 129-120 victory over the Spurs on Friday night at Frost Bank Center.

Fox made 14 of 24 field-goal attempts, 5 of 11 from 3-point range and 10 of 13 at the free-throw line, just missing his career high of 44 points. Fox’s performance was complemented by that of fellow All-Star and All-NBA Third Team selection Domantas Sabonis, who posted 27 points, 14 rebounds and seven assists while going 9 of 13 from the field and 2 of 3 from beyond the arc.

“Our two All-Stars obviously stepped up,” Brown said. “... Those two guys did exactly what they’re supposed to do in a situation like this. We played just enough defense to let those two guys find a way to take us home.”

Malik Monk came off the bench to contribute 20 points and eight assists for the Kings (7-4), who have won five in a row. The Kings shot 54.1% from the field and made 18 of 42 (.429) from 3-point range despite a dreadful start in which they fell behind by 18 points in the first five minutes of the game.

“I think they came out and they hit us in the mouth,” Fox said. “That’s all there was to it. They came in and got on us, and our second unit was really good for us at getting us back into it in the first quarter, but we can’t allow that to happen against anybody.”

Zach Collins had 28 points, eight rebounds and five assists for the Spurs (3-9), who have lost seven in a row. Victor Wembanyama, the No. 1 pick in the 2023 NBA draft, had 27 points and nine rebounds.

This was Sacramento’s first look at Wembanyama, the 18-year-old French phenom who stands 7-foot-4 with an 8-foot wingspan.

“He’s a special player, extremely special player,” Fox said. “When he’s rolling, you have to be under him because if they throw the ball up, there’s literally nothing you can do.”

Before the game, Kings guard Kevin Huerter was asked about the unique challenges presented by someone with Wembanyama’s size and length.

“Honestly, I don’t know if you’ll know until you’re playing against him,” Huerter said. “I don’t know how many times I’ve seen a guy that tall or, obviously, played against one, so it will be a new challenge.”

Wembanyama made his presence felt right away, posting six points and three rebounds in the first two minutes as San Antonio outscored Sacramento 9-0 to start the game. Kings coach Mike Brown was furious. He called a timeout and stormed on to the court, giving his starters an earful as they made their way to the bench.

Even that wasn’t enough to get their attention. The Kings soon found themselves trailing 23-5 after the Spurs went 9 of 13 from the field over the first five minutes.

“I thought we were sleepwalking to start,” Brown said. “I think back-to-back plays, Wemby beat us down the floor for a dunk, and then there was a loose ball and not one of our players got on the ground to get after it. Those two plays showed me that we weren’t ready. I just wanted to remind our guys that we can play better than we’re playing.”

Sabonis said the players knew it, too.

“On the offensive end, we weren’t aggressive,” Sabonis said. “We didn’t touch the paint. We were just settling for 3s and we didn’t make them, so that led to transition points, but once we kind of got yelled at and got ourselves going, we made the comeback.”

Monk, Sasha Vezenkov and Chris Duarte, the Defensive Player of the Game, came off the Sacramento bench to provide a spark midway through the first quarter.

“That’s our mindset,” Duarte said. “That’s the mindset of that second unit, just coming in, especially when we have nights like tonight where we start slow. Our job is to come in and lift them up, lift the team up by playing hard defensively and just running the fastbreak.”

The Kings outscored the Spurs 24-8 over the last 6:37 to cut the deficit to two and opened the second period with a 6-0 run to take a 35-31 lead. The game was tied at the half after Fox made a 3-pointer with three seconds remaining to even the score at 62-62.

The Kings seemed to have seized control in the third quarter, outscoring the Spurs 15-4 over the first 3:42 to take a 77-66 lead. Sacramento went up 84-68 on a three-point play by Fox with 6:39 to play in the third, but this time it was the Spurs who stormed back, staging a 14-2 run to get within one going into the fourth quarter.

The teams traded leads on a couple of occasions early in the fourth, but Fox took over from there. The NBA’s reigning Clutch Player of the Year scored 14 points over the final 10:41, carrying his team across the finish line.

“It’s amazing,” Sabonis said. “I even told him today when they made that run in the third quarter, if you’ve got to go early and start going in the third quarter, do it. Get hot and lead us, and he definitely did.”

Jordi’s advice

Brown isn’t one to skip practice or a shootaround, but assistant coach Jordi Fernandez came to him with some advice leading up to Friday’s game against the Spurs.

“(Fernandez) suggested that we don’t have shootaround today,” Brown said. “I love to practice, I love to go to shootaround, and I didn’t really want to hear it at first, but Jordi has known me for years and he’s not afraid. He’s going to speak his mind and that’s why he’s going to be a head coach this summer somewhere.

“But he said, ‘Let’s give the guys (time) off in the morning and have it be optional. As a head coach, you’ve got to listen to the people around you, so I thought about it. I said that’s probably the right thing to do. We changed time zones and we had a long day yesterday because we practiced in (Los Angeles), got here late, and when we landed our guys had a two-hour meeting.

“I think if we would have gotten them up and went through a normal shootaround this morning, we probably don’t win the game just because of the mental fatigue and San Antonio’s aggressive play. But I think what probably happened is we got punched in the mouth, we still had a lot of energy — not just physically, but our minds were fresh from not having to get up and go to shootaround this morning — and we found a way as the game went on.”

In-season tournament

The Kings sit atop West Group C with a 2-0 record and a plus-16 point differential. They have wins over the Oklahoma City Thunder and Spurs with remaining group stage games against the Minnesota Timberwolves and Golden State Warriors.

Each of the six group stage winners and one wildcard from each conference will advance to the knockout rounds. Group winners and wildcards will be determined by group play records with point differential serving as a tiebreaker. Here’s a look at the updated standings in West Group C with point differential in parentheses:

▪ Kings 2-0 (+16)

▪ Timberwolves 2-0 (+10)

▪ Warriors 1-1 (-1)

▪ Thunder 1-2 (+27)

▪ Spurs 0-3 (-52)

Huerter’s hand

Huerter left the game with 4:46 to play in the third quarter and headed to the locker room with members of the team’s medical staff.

Huerter returned to the Sacramento bench at the end of the third quarter with an ice pack on his left non-shooting hand. Moments later, the team announced he would return to the game. Huerter knocked down a big 3-pointer to put the Kings up 119-111 with 3:46 to play in the fourth quarter.

Huerter said he sprained a joint in his left pointer finger when he “got caught between two players on a screen,” but he said it was “nothing that should be bothersome long term.”

Keeping tabs on Colby

Kings rookie Colby Jones has turned in two impressive performances since being assigned to the G League Stockton Kings.

Jones, who came out of Xavier as the 34^th overall pick in the 2023 NBA draft, had 16 points, six rebounds, nine assists and eight steals Tuesday in his G League debut. He had 31 points, eight rebounds, six assists and three steals on Thursday. He went a combined 20 of 34 (.588) from the field and 6 of 14 (.429) from 3-point range.

Jones has appeared in six NBA games for the Kings, averaging 3.2 points and 2.0 rebounds in 8.5 minutes per game.

Update on Alex Len

Kings center Alex Len has been out since going down with an ankle injury in Monday’s win over the Cleveland Cavaliers.

X-rays and an MRI showed Len suffered a moderate high ankle sprain. After additional testing and further evaluation, the Kings announced Friday that Len is expected to be sidelined for six to eight weeks.

Up next

The Kings will complete a Texas two-step when they head north to play the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday on the third leg of this six-game road trip.

The Mavericks (9-3) are second in the Western Conference, a half-game behind the defending NBA champion Denver Nuggets. They will face the Kings on the second night of a tough back-to-back after visiting the Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday to conclude a four-game trip.

Luka Doncic has been sensational for the Mavericks, averaging 30.7 points, 7.8 rebounds and 8.1 assists. Doncic is shooting 50.2% from the field and 42% from 3-point range. Kyrie Irving is averaging 22.3 points, 4.1 rebounds and 6.7 assists while shooting 46% from the field and 40.3% from beyond the arc.

Upcoming schedule

Nov. 19 at Dallas Mavericks

Nov. 20 at New Orleans Pelicans

Nov. 22 at New Orleans Pelicans

Nov. 24 at Minnesota Timberwolves

Nov. 28 vs. Golden State Warriors