‘It sucks’: Kings lose another heart-breaker to Celtics, but they can learn from it
Someday, the Kings will look back on losses like this and realize they had to endure some growing pains in order to grow into whatever they will become. That day could come next year or next month, but right here, right now?
“It sucks,” guard Buddy Hield said.
The Kings suffered another heartbreaking loss, and another big blow to their playoff hopes, falling 111-109 to the Boston Celtics on Wednesday night at Golden 1 Center.
Forward Harrison Barnes posted 24 points and eight rebounds for the Kings (32-32), who have lost six of eight to fall four games behind the San Antonio Spurs for the eighth spot in the Western Conference playoff race. Hield had 23 points and eight rebounds. Center Willie Cauley-Stein finished with 19 points and seven rebounds.
Jayson Tatum scored 24 points for the Celtics (40-26), who were coming off a 33-point win over the Golden State Warriors. Al Horford had 21 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists.
Hield made three free throws to tie the score with 7.6 seconds to play before the Celtics regained the lead on a one-legged, fade-away jumper by Gordon Hayward with 2 seconds remaining. The Kings had a chance to win at buzzer, but a 30-foot 3-pointer by Barnes was off the mark.
“I was able to get a look — a clear look — but unfortunately, it didn’t drop,” Barnes said.
Four of the Kings’ last six losses have been decided by fewer than three points, and they’ve come against four of the top 10 teams in the NBA.
“It’s always tough to lose a close game like that,” point guard De’Aaron Fox said. “Sometimes, it just comes down to a few key possessions.”
The Kings have learned that lesson the hard way over the past three weeks. They suffered a 120-118 loss to the Denver Nuggets, a 125-123 loss to the Warriors and a 141-140 overtime loss to the Milwaukee Bucks, coming oh-so-close against NBA championship contenders who boast three of the four best records in the NBA.
“Every game we’re playing, we’re playing top teams in each division,” Barnes said. “We’re playing teams that are hungry. Everyone’s trying to climb up for position whether they’ve already made the playoffs or they’re trying to make the playoffs. So, for us, we’re right there in that hunt. We’ve just got to be a little better down the stretch.”
Everything is magnified in a playoff race, particularly when games are so closely contested.
“Those kinds of games come down to very small things,” Kings coach Dave Joerger said.
Cauley-Stein’s missed free throw in the first quarter. A bad pass by Bogdan Bogdanovic in the second. The shot that left Hield’s hand a tenth of a second too late at the end of the third. The unforced turnover in the fourth. Everything matters.
“It’s all the little things that come with trying to make the playoffs,” Barnes said. “That’s what playoff basketball is about, the little details. The margin between wins and losses is very close.”
As frustrating as it can be, this is how young teams grow up and good teams become great.
“It’s good that we’re in a spot to make plays to win the game,” Cauley-Stein said. “In the past, it was not like that. We’re coming down to the last possessions and those are key possessions and we’re executing, so it’s just learning. It’s just a learning curve. Each game like this, you learn a little bit more, and that’s really all you can ask for besides the win.”
This story was originally published March 7, 2019 at 1:56 AM.
