Zach LaVine scores 38 to lead Bulls over Kings despite big game from Marvin Bagley III
There’s no telling how Zach LaVine’s career would have unfolded if he had left Chicago to join the Kings in the summer of 2018, but it was easy to see he would have a big game Saturday night in the Windy City.
LaVine scored 38 points to lead the Chicago Bulls to a 122-114 victory over the Kings at the United Center. LaVine made 15 of 20 field-goal attempts and scored 11 points in the fourth quarter.
The Kings signed LaVine to a four-year, $78 million offer sheet when he became a restricted free agent in 2018, but the Bulls matched the offer. That was a smart move.
LaVine’s scoring average jumped from 16.7 points in 2017-18 to 23.7 points in 2018-19. He took it to another level last season and now ranks sixth in the NBA in scoring, averaging 28.5 points per game.
“To me, he’s probably the frontrunner right now for Most Improved (Player) and that’s saying something because he was a really good player last year,” Kings coach Luke Walton said. “And to me, he’s playing at an All-Star level.”
Coby White added 19 points for the Bulls (13-16). Thaddeus Young came off the bench to score 18. Rookie Patrick Williams had 11 points and 11 rebounds.
Marvin Bagley III recorded his eighth double-double of the season for the Kings (12-17), who lost their sixth in a row to start a five-game road trip. Bagley finished with 26 points and 11 rebounds, tying his season high in scoring.
Bagley went into the game with a minutes restriction because he has been experiencing some left calf soreness, but Walton played him a season-high 35 minutes after giving him 21 and 24 minutes in the past two games.
“Yeah, I went over the minutes restriction, but I asked him how he was feeling. He said he was feeling great,” Walton said. “When we’re out there, and we’ve got a certain group that’s competing that hard, and if a player tells me he feels good, I’m going to trust that player. He was very good from start to finish.”
Buddy Hield scored 23 points but made just 3 of 11 from 3-point range and committed a costly turnover in the fourth quarter. De’Aaron Fox had 20 points and nine assists. Rookie Tyrese Haliburton came off the bench to post 16 points and five assists.
With Harrison Barnes and Richaun Holmes sidelined due to injuries for the second game in a row, Walton chose to start Fox, Hield and Cory Joseph with Bagley and Hassan Whiteside.
Sacramento fell behind by 14 in the first half and trailed by 12 going into the fourth quarter. The Kings cut the deficit to two with eight minutes remaining, but LaVine dominated down the stretch, hitting one shot after another to close out the Kings.
“His offense was better than our defense and we threw everything at him,” Walton said. “Some of those shots he hit, there’s nothing anybody’s going to do to stop those.”
Six players scored in double figures for the Bulls, who shot 59.8% from the field and made 11 of 23 (.478) from 3-point range.
“We’ve just got to be better defensively,” Haliburton said. “We get tired of talking about it every game, but we’ve got to improve there.”
Injury updates
Barnes, Holmes and Glenn Robinson III were all ruled out due to injuries after being listed as questionable going into the game.
Barnes missed his second game in a row with a left foot strain. He had played 127 consecutive games before missing Thursday’s 118-110 loss to the Miami Heat.
Holmes was also held out for the second game in a row due to right knee soreness. Walton said Holmes went through a pregame warmup to test the knee, but he was ruled out shortly before gametime.
Robinson was also experiencing soreness in his right knee.
Jabari Parker sighting
With Barnes and Holmes both out of the lineup, Chicago native Jabari Parker got an opportunity to make his season debut in his hometown.
Parker checked in for the first time at the start of the second quarter and immediately knocked down a long jumper to demonstrate that he can still get buckets. Parker finished with two points and three rebounds in nine minutes.
Walton has previously explained Parker didn’t have a chance to establish a spot in the rotation because he missed time early in the season due to an injury and a personal matter. Walton has praised Parker for his readiness and recently hinted he could make an appearance in light of the team’s recent injuries.
“We’ve talked to Jabari,” Walton said. “Jabari’s done a great job of staying ready. He hasn’t gotten a fair shot with it, but it was tough with him. He came in not playing in the training camp and then had the injury, but he’s done a nice job of staying ready and we’re looking into that.”
Up Next
Haliburton will play in his home state for the first time as a pro when the Kings visit the Milwaukee Bucks on Sunday at Fiserv Forum. The arena is located about 90 miles south of Oshkosh, Haliburton’s hometown.
“I’m excited. I’ve wanted to play in Milwaukee in the NBA my whole life,” Haliburton said. “Sadly, they don’t play at the Bradley Center anymore. I remember going to so many games, watching Brandon Jennings. I would always go to the Heat game when they played ‘Bron (LeBron James) and go to the Thunder game when they played KD (Kevin Durant) and those guys.
“So it’s going to be a dream come true, and it’ll probably be the most Kings fans at a Bucks game ever. So I’m really excited, just excited to see my family, see my moms, see my pops and stuff. But you know, we’re still playing basketball. At the end of the day, that’s going to be cool, but I just want to win a game. That’s the biggest task at hand.”
The Bucks (17-13) snapped a five-game losing streak with a 98-85 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Friday. Giannis Antetokounmpo, the two-two reigning MVP, had 29 points, 19 rebounds and eight assists with three blocked shots.
Antetokounmpo is averaging 28.0 points, 11.4 rebounds and 5.9 assists this season. He is shooting just 63.7% from the free-throw line, but he has converted at a more respectable 73.3% rate over the past 11 games.
Two-time All-Star Khris Middleton is having another stellar campaign, averaging 20.1 points, 5.9 rebounds and a career-high 5.8 assists while shooting career bests of 50.6% from the field and 43.3% from 3-point range. Donte DiVincenzo, who was nearly acquired by the Kings in a trade for Bogdan Bogdanovic, is shooting 39.9% from beyond the arc.
Injury report
Kings: OUT — Harrison Barnes (foot); Richaun Holmes (knee); Glenn Robinson III (knee); Chimezie Metu (wrist); Robert Woodard II (G League); Jahmi’us Ramsey (G League).
Bulls: OUT — Devon Dotson (G League); Chandler Hutchison (leg); Lauri Markkanen (shoulder); Otto Porter Jr. (back).
Kings upcoming schedule
Feb. 21 at Milwaukee Bucks, 6 p.m.
Feb. 23 at Brooklyn Nets, 4:30 p.m.
Feb. 25 at New York Knicks, 4:30 p.m.
Feb. 26 at Detroit Pistons, 5 p.m.
Feb. 28 vs. Charlotte Hornets, 7 p.m.
This story was originally published February 20, 2021 at 8:40 PM.
