Kings Complete Comeback, Take Down Pelicans 123-118

The Sacramento Kings didn't make their lives easy against the last-place New Orleans Pelicans, falling behind 9-29 early, but they fought back to claim victory in a much-needed win.

Everything was going the Pelicans way early. Zion Williamson was getting whatever he wanted, the Kings weren't making shots, and hope seemed lost in Sacramento.

And then Jake LaRavia made his Sacramento Kings debut.

With the Kings down 9-29, LaRavia checked in and had about the best debut possible. In a four-play span he: Stole the ball and made a fastbreak layup, banked in a three-pointer, blocked a shot with the ball going off the Pelicans, and made a backdoor cut and got a wide-open dunk.

New King Jake LaRavia: "I said I was going to bring hustle. I said I was going to bring winning plays and I thought I did that tonight."

In his debut: 7 pts, 2 rebs, 2 asts, 2 blks, 1 stl on 3/4
— Brenden Nunes (@BrendenNunesNBA) February 9, 2025

The Kings have desperately needed production off the bench, and LaRavia came in and did just that on both sides of the ball, finishing with 7 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 blocks, and 1 steal. He impacted the game on both sides of the ball, which is exactly what he was brought in to do.

Between LaRavia, Keon Ellis, Jonas Valančiūnas, and Trey Lyles, the Kings now have a legitimate bench that can impact the game in a multitude of ways, something they've struggled with all season.

Sacramento was able to outlast Zion Williamson's 40-point performance and CJ McCollum's late push to hold off New Orleans and earn the victory. While those two had big games, the rest of the Pelicans struggled.

Trey Murphy III had 20 points, but on 38.9% from the field.

Possibly the biggest takeaway was the fact that Keon Ellis closed the game for the Kings.

After sitting in the final minutes of the loss to the Portland Trail Blazers, Ellis found himself in the game for the clutch minutes tonight.

Malik Monk subbed out with 6:49 minutes left in the game and didn't check in again until there was 1:58 left. And instead of coming in for Ellis, he spelled DeMar DeRozan, a.k.a. one of the best clutch players in the NBA.

It was a move that showed this team is willing to do whatever it takes to win. It was a move that encapsulates everything Doug Christie is preaching to the team. The story was about fighting and sacrifice. From being down 20 early on to making difficult choices down the stretch, the Kings did exactly what they needed to do to win.

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