Sources: These Kings players have cleared COVID-19 protocols; will return vs. Grizzlies
The NBA’s COVID-19 outbreak has hit the Kings hard over the past 10 days, but help is on the way.
League sources told The Sacramento Bee on Saturday that interim coach Alvin Gentry and forwards Marvin Bagley III and Louis King have cleared NBA health and safety protocols. All three are expected to return when the Kings (13-20) play host to the Memphis Grizzlies (19-14) on Sunday at Golden 1 Center.
The Kings went 2-3 under acting coach Doug Christie after Gentry tested positive for COVID-19 on Dec. 15. Gentry, 67, was the first known member of the organization to enter health and safety protocols during the largest COVID-19 outbreak the team has faced since the start of the pandemic.
De’Aaron Fox, Davion Mitchell, Terence Davis, Alex Len, Bagley and King missed the past four games due to protocols. Rookie Neemias Queta missed Wednesday’s game against the Los Angeles Clippers after entering protocols on Tuesday. Sources said other players are progressing toward a return, suggesting additional reinforcements could arrive for Tuesday’s game against the Oklahoma City Thunder or Wednesday’s game against the Dallas Mavericks.
Bagley, 22, is averaging 8.1 points and 6.7 rebounds in his fourth season since coming out of Duke as the No. 2 pick in the 2018 NBA draft. Bagley was playing well before going into the league’s protocol system, averaging 10.8 points and 8.0 rebounds while shooting 53.2% from the field and 36.8% from 3-point range over his last eight games.
King, 22, has appeared in four games for the Kings this season, averaging 6.0 points and 1.8 rebounds in 13.0 minutes per game. King had his best game of the season in a 128-101 loss to the Grizzlies on Nov. 28 in Memphis, finishing with 12 points, four rebounds and two steals in 21 minutes.
This story was originally published December 25, 2021 at 4:13 PM.
