Kings deliver for fans against Pelicans: ‘We owe them something special’

All they want for Christmas is more of the same excitement their team has already given them, but Kings fans will gladly accept coach Dave Joerger’s newly unveiled five-year plan and the budding stardom of the franchise’s dynamic young backcourt.

Guards De’Aaron Fox, Buddy Hield and Bogdan Bogdanovic orchestrated another breathtaking comeback Sunday at Golden 1 Center, helping the Kings overcome a 19-point deficit for the second game in a row to beat the New Orleans Pelicans 122-117. With every rebound, basket and blocked shot, the decibel level inside the arena climbed until it reached a crescendo late in the fourth quarter.

“These fans do a great job of coming out each and every night and supporting us,” Hield said. “... We owe them something special, man, and our main goal is to try to get to the playoffs. ... They get loud and crazy, and I just can’t wait to see how much more crazy they can get.”

The Kings (18-15) will have a .500 record on Christmas Day for the first time since the 2004-05 season. They will visit the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday and play host to the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday before returning to Los Angeles to face the Lakers again Sunday.

Sacramento moved into seventh place in the Western Conference, one game behind the Lakers, Clippers and Portland Trail Blazers, who were tied for fourth.

“We’re in the race,” Willie Cauley-Stein said.

It’s true and it’s remarkable, considering this is a young team — thought to be in the early stages of another rebuild 12 years after its last playoff appearance — that was projected to win fewer than 30 games.

The latest entry in this surprising success story featured another stunning comeback and big-time performances from Fox, Hield, Bogdanovic and Cauley-Stein. Less than 48 hours after storming back from a 19-point deficit to beat the Memphis Grizzlies, the Kings did it again to race past the Pelicans (15-19).

Hield scored 19 of his 28 points in the second half. Bogdanovic had nine of his 24 in the fourth quarter. Cauley-Stein produced a monster effort, posting 22 points and a career-high 17 rebounds. And then there was Fox, the 21-year-old point guard who put up 19 points and 11 assists with one turnover.

The Kings missed 22 of their first 31 shots and looked lifeless until Fox made a highlight-reel play at the defensive end. New Orleans guard Tim Frazier had a clear path to the basket for a breakaway layup when Fox chased him down from behind for a well-timed block, spiking the ball off the backboard so hard it shot back to the 3-point line and started a transition layup for Hield.

The roar from the crowd included the voice of usually stoic Kings owner Vivek Ranadive, who sprang from his court-side seat and pointed at Fox while repeatedly shouting, “Good job.”

“Sometimes, it just takes one play,” Fox said.

The Kings trailed by 10 after three quarters but gradually chipped away at the Pelicans’ lead and eventually tied the score on another dramatic sequence in the fourth.

With the crowd chanting “DE-FENSE,” Sacramento forced a shot-clock violation. On the ensuing possession, Fox fired a cross-court pass that buzzed by the eyebrow of Pelicans star Anthony Davis and found Hield in the far corner. In one fluid motion, Hield pulled in the pass, rose and launched a high, arching shot over the outstretched arm of Jrue Holiday.

Holiday’s momentum caused him to crash into Hield, who was falling to the floor as his shot fell through the net, tying the score at 105. Hield popped up and pumped his fist. The crowd roared once more.

That basket highlighted a 14-0 run that put the Kings up 108-105 with 4:38 remaining. New Orleans briefly regained the lead moments later, but the Kings reclaimed it on a three-point play by Cauley-Stein and didn’t trail again.

“Sorry to the fans for putting you guys through all this stress,” Hield said.

Winning this way is fun, but Joerger said he hopes his team doesn’t make a habit of falling behind early.

“The identity that we’re never out of a game, we love,” he said. “The identity of starting slow because we’re going to catch you later is not what I’m looking for.”

As he wrapped up a jovial postgame news conference, Joerger, who has gone out of his way to temper expectations, finally revealed his growing optimism for the future of this team.

“We’ve got some young bodies, some young minds, and the best is in front of us,” Joerger said. “... We have the vision. We know where we’re going. We’re all on the same page. And I think that shows our fans and the rest of the nation that we’re so solid here, and the next five years are going to be really fun.”