Harsh Truth Revealed Following Kings Loss to Trail Blazers

After wrapping up a six-game home stretch on Saturday, the Sacramento Kings traveled up the coast to take on the Portland Trail Blazers on Tuesday night. Although the Blazers were without Shaedon Sharpe and Deandre Ayton, Portland shockingly got the best of Sacramento, beating them 130-113 in a classic beatdown.

Anfernee Simons led the way for Portland with 29 points, while rookie backup center Duop Reath dropped season-highs with 25 points and nine rebounds. The 3rd overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, Scoot Henderson, had an outstanding performance, contributing 17 points, 11 assists, and zero turnovers off the bench.

The Trail Blazers went into Tuesday night with just seven wins on the season, yet they outplayed a 17-win Sacramento squad.

The Kings were led by their All-Star duo of De'Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis, combining for 77 points in the loss, while no other King scored in the double digits. All Kings not named Fox shot a combined 3-27 from deep.

While many would say it was just a poor performance from Sacramento, and Portland caught them on an off night, the blowout loss revealed the harsh truth about this Kings squad.

Sacramento does not have a championship-ready roster despite their championship hopes heading into the season. Sophomore Keegan Murray and sixth man Malik Monk had off-nights, shooting a combined 5-22 from the field, but they are the only bright spots on the roster outside of the All-Star tandem.

With the new year approaching, trade rumors will continue to circulate, and Kings fans should begin to hope some of them are true. Whether they are targeting Chicago Bulls' Zach Lavine, Toronto Raptors' OG Anunoby, or another game-changer, the Kings must make a move to get to the next level.

While it is not good to overreact to a single game, this Kings issue has risen throughout the season many times. The regression of Harrison Barnes and Kevin Huerter creates two weak spots in the starting lineup, while the promising bench pieces from the start of the season have not panned out as expected.

Expect Kings GM Monte McNair to be aggressive ahead of the trade deadline, as Sacramento fans have a hard pill to swallow with the current roster.

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