Coming off a win in Orlando, the Kings needed another win to get their season back on track. Having played their best defense of the year against the Magic, the Kings took a step backwards and blew a 22-point lead in the second half.
Kemba Walker’s 39 points helped Charlotte’s second-largest comeback in franchise history, which secured an impressive 127-122 victory in overtime.
That is a stinger for the Kings. On top of that, their All-Star big man did not finish the game due to a stiff back, which we have yet to know how serious it is.
“You could see it was bothering him,” Karl told the Associated Press. “He went back in. We probably should have not played him because he was never a hundred percent after that.”
DMC finished with 30 points and 11 rebounds, while Rudy Gay chipped in 28 points and 10 boards. Rajon Rondo had another monster stat line with 14 points and 20 assists (which is a Sacramento franchise single-game record for assists).
George Karl stuck with Kosta Koufos down the stretch knowing he needed a rim protector, which was strange to say the least. You have a goalie (Willie Cauley-Stein) on you bench and do not utilize him?
Some questions will need to be addressed because many of his lineups have not made much sense as of late, which is strange to say about a Karl team.
“I should have substituted probably earlier and more often,” Karl told the Associated Press. “I thought we were going to win the game with the switching. We probably should have changed it up with more blitzing.”
The Hornets trailed 91-74 in the third quarter before Walker got hot. He was 9 of 10 from the field in the fourth with three 3-pointers.
The Kings beat themselves tonight and will need to rebound against a talented Bucks team on the road Wednesday night.
Fun fact: Rondo was two assists shy of the franchise record of 22 set by Phil Ford in 1979
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