Breakout performances from Marvin Bagley III, Tyrese Haliburton lead Kings over Bulls
Marvin Bagley III needed a night like this and the Kings apparently needed Tyrese Haliburton, the promising young rookie who returned from a wrist injury to help them get back to their winning ways.
Haliburton came off the bench to post a career-high 17 points, seven rebounds and six assists, helping the Kings open a seven-game homestand with a 128-124 victory over the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday night at Golden 1 Center. Haliburton, who missed the two previous games with a bone bruise in his left wrist, scored 15 points in the fourth quarter, including a clutch 3-pointer with 12 seconds remaining.
“It’s the intangibles that really make him a special player,” Kings coach Luke Walton said. “I think as the game goes on and the pressure comes of the fourth quarter, it just heightens his skill set. ... It feels like the later in the game, the more confidence he gets.”
Richaun Holmes had a team-high 24 points on 10-of-11 shooting with eight rebounds and a career-high-tying five assists for the Kings (4-4), who had lost three in a row after going 3-1 to start the season. Bagley recorded a double-double with season highs of 21 points and 12 rebounds in addition to two steals and two blocked shots.
Harrison Barnes scored 20 points for the Kings, who tallied 30 assists while committing just seven turnovers. Glenn Robinson III added 14 points. Nemanja Bjelica had 12 points, five assists and four rebounds.
Coby White had a career-high 36 points and seven assists for the Bulls (4-5). Zach Lavine scored 32 points but made just 3 of 11 from 3-point range while committing six turnovers.
Kings point guard De’Aaron Fox left the game in the first quarter and did not return due to right hamstring tightness. He finished with three points and one assist in five minutes.
“I don’t have an update yet,” Walton said after the game. “We’ll probably know much more later tonight and tomorrow. ... Hopefully it’s not too bad and we can get him back on the court soon.”
Bagley had nine points and seven rebounds in the first quarter to help the Kings take a 28-22 lead. Barnes made back-to-back 3-pointers to push Sacramento’s lead to 10 early in the second.
The Kings led 62-59 at the half and went up by nine midway through the third, but the Bulls came back to take an 85-84 lead on a 3-pointer by rookie Patrick Williams. The teams exchanged leads several times until the Kings took control during a key sequence midway through the fourth quarter.
Haliburton made a 3-pointer to tie the game, Holmes locked up Lavine to force a shot-clock violation and then Haliburton dished to Holmes for a dunk, putting Sacramento up 110-108. The Bulls briefly tied the game on a basket by Wendell Carter Jr., but Robinson answered with a 3-pointer, Barnes and Holmes went inside for two big buckets, and Buddy Hield converted a four-point play with 38.3 seconds remaining.
Twitter drama
Kings forward Chimezie Metu said the social media drama surrounding the team has not created any dissension in the locker room. The controversy started when Bagley’s father, Marvin Bagley Jr., demanded a trade on Twitter, and Fox’s father, Aaron Fox, offered his approval, tweeting: “Trade him.”
“The guys are still hanging out with one another, talking to each other,” Metu said before Wednesday’s game. “It’s not like the locker room is divided or anything. Everybody’s still how they were when we first got here for training camp. Everybody’s cool with each other. We’re just focused on what it’s going to take to win today and win the games coming up to try to protect home court.”
Status of Jabari Parker
After missing Monday’s game against the Golden State Warriors due to personal reasons, Kings forward Jabari Parker was ruled out for Wednesday’s game due to health and safety protocols.
Parker has not appeared in a game this season. He appeared in only six games for the Kings last season after being acquired in a trade with the Atlanta Hawks, averaging 8.5 points, 3.8 rebounds and 1.7 assists in 13.3 minutes per contest.
“He had some personal things that he had to take care of,” Kings coach Luke Walton said. “So, with the world we live in now, as he reenters the group, there’s a protocol that needs to take place.”
Up next
The Kings will get their first look at the struggling Toronto Raptors on Friday at Golden 1 Center.
The Raptors (1-6) opened the season with losses to the New Orleans Pelicans, San Antonio Spurs and Philadelphia 76ers. They finally earned a victory over the New York Knicks on New Year’s Eve before suffering back-to-back losses to the Pelicans and Boston Celtics.
Point guard Kyle Lowry recently said the Raptors “have no swagger.” Going into Wednesday’s game against the Phoenix Suns, the Raptors were 25th in 3-point shooting (.314), 26th in scoring (106 ppg), 28th in offensive rating (102.9) and 30th in field-goal percentage (.412). Pascal Siakam, the NBA’s Most Improved Player in 2019 and an All-Star in 2020, was shooting a career-low 40.7% from the field and 30% from 3-point range.
Injury report
Bulls: OUT — Lauri Markkanen (health and safety protocols), Tomas Satoransky (self isolating), Ryan Arcidiacono (health and safety protocols) and Chandler Hutchinson (self isolating).
Kings: QUESTIONABLE — Tyrese Haliburton (wrist). OUT — DaQuan Jeffries (ankle).
Upcoming Kings schedule
Jan. 8 vs. Toronto Raptors, 7 p.m.
Jan. 9 vs. Portland Trail Blazers, 7 p.m.
Jan. 11 vs. Indiana Pacers, 7 p.m.
Jan. 13 vs. Portland Trail Blazers, 7 p.m.
Jan. 15 vs. Los Angeles Lakers, 7 p.m.
This story was originally published January 6, 2021 at 10:45 PM.
