The Sacramento Kings made a comeback in the playoffs with a bang after 16 years of absence, and all credit goes to point guard De’Aaron Fox for his outstanding performance.
The Kings faced the Warriors at Golden 1 Center, and the home fans had been anticipating this moment for a lifetime, it seems. The Kings didn’t leave any room for the reigning champion, though the first half ended with the host being four points behind.
SACRAMENTO IS ROCKIN' FOR WARRIORS-KINGS 👑 🟣
đź“ş ABC pic.twitter.com/q3ExsMWX5G
— ESPN (@espn) April 16, 2023
The rejuvenated Kings pumped up the heat in the second half as they managed to get a one-point lead after the third quarter. At that moment, the majority of the NBA community was favoring the Warriors to bring the game out in the last quarter, but fate had other plans.
The visitors played superbly, but the face of De’Aaron’s sharpshooting, their defense crumbled, and the Kings snatched their first playoff victory since 2006. The game ended in a nail-biting, twisting way with a score of 126–123.
How good was De’Aaron Fox?
The 25-year-old was indomitable on the hardwood last night as he scored the most, 38 points with 1 rebound, 5 assists, and 3 steals in 40 minutes of play. Besides him, the Kings center Domantas Sabonis raked in a whopping 16 rebounds and shooting guard Malik Monk scored 32 points in just 29 minutes coming off the bench.
The Warriors star Stephen Curry‘s performance shadowed the all-star’s performance; Curry scored 30 points with 6 rebounds and 2 assists. Every time the two MVPs scored, Fox was there to surpass him, not letting him build up any confidence.
STEPH CORNER THREE.
FOX WITH THE ANSWER.Trading buckets late in the fourth! 🍿 pic.twitter.com/Bs6vrzd03p
— NBA TV (@NBATV) April 16, 2023
The Kings’ overall team performance really garnered a lot of praise this season; they finished third in the Western Conference, whereas they couldn’t even get into the top ten for over a decade.
How would you rate De’Aaron Fox’s performance last night? Can the kings stretch their fairy tale to the next round? Don’t forget to comment on your predictions.
