Kings’ Sasha Vezenkov seeking ‘best version of myself’ after preseason loss to Lakers
Kings coach Mike Brown touched off a bit of an international incident Tuesday when he said he didn’t know if reigning EuroLeague MVP Sasha Vezenkov would be part of the team’s rotation to begin the season.
Kings fans took to social media to debate the subject while Olympiacos fans joined the fray, some urging the Kings to send Vezenkov back to Greece if they aren’t going to give him a prominent role in Sacramento.
Brown got people talking again Wednesday when he chose to start Vezenkov in place of Keegan Murray in a preseason game against the Los Angeles Lakers at Honda Center in Anaheim. Vezenkov received extended minutes with Murray out of the lineup, but his role remains in question.
The 28-year-old forward scored seven points in 22 minutes in a 109-101 loss to the Lakers, going 3 of 11 from the field and 1 of 4 from 3-point range. Afterwards, Vezenkov acknowledged he is still adjusting to the NBA game.
“Here, you’re playing faster and the speed is different, but day by day, I’m studying the game and I’m trying to be the best version of myself,” he said.
D’Angelo Russell scored a game-high 21 points on 8-of-12 shooting with eight assists for the Lakers. Gabe Vincent, who starred at St. Mary’s High School of Stockton and spent time with the G League Stockton Kings, scored 18 points.
De’Aaron Fox led the Kings with 18 points on 6-of-12 shooting. Harrison Barnes scored 15 points. Domantas Sabonis had 10 points, 16 rebounds and five assists.
Fox was asked if there was cause for concern following preseason losses to the Toronto Raptors and Lakers.
“We were 4-0 in preseason last year and then we started off 0-4 (in the regular season), so obviously you’re trying to work on things, but if what you’re looking for doesn’t happen, you’re not too concerned,” Fox said. “Obviously, you still want to fix it, but winning games in the preseason doesn’t equate to anything.”
Murray, who was an All-Rookie First Team selection last season, was out due to right thumb soreness. The Lakers chose to sit LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Austin Reaves, Jarred Vanderbilt and Cam Reddish.
Brown said Murray was held out as a precaution after hurting his thumb in practice Tuesday. Murray participated in the morning shootaround and pregame warmups with a protective wrap on the thumb, but he was ruled out less than three hours before tipoff.
“Based on what our medical staff told me, there’s not much concern,” Brown said. “He just hit it in practice and they’re just doing it as a precautionary measure.”
Brown elected to start Vezenkov in place of Murray. That came as a surprise one day after Brown created a stir among Kings fans when he said he wasn’t sure if Vezenkov would be part of the rotation when the regular season begins Oct. 25.
Brown has said he prefers a nine- or 10-man rotation, saying “9 ½” would be ideal. Fox, Kevin Huerter, Murray, Barnes and Sabonis will start. Davion Mitchell, Malik Monk, Trey Lyles and JaVale McGee will play key roles off the bench to begin the season. The competition for the last rotation spot could come down to Vezenkov or Chris Duarte, who had 10 points against the Lakers, going 4 of 4 from the field and 2 of 2 from 3-point range.
Brown was also impressed with Duarte’s defense.
“I thought Chris, you could feel him defensively,” Brown said. “He was pretty good. He was pretty active defensively. He got a couple of deflections. I don’t think he allowed the ball to be blown by him at all.”
Before the game, Brown talked about his decision to start Vezenkov in light of his remarks a day earlier.
“The discussion was just the truth,” Brown said. “I think you asked me if Sasha is in the rotation right now. I don’t know. I think that’s a fair question, but I don’t know. I know Davion will be. I know Malik will be (and) JaVale and Trey to start (the season). Will Sasha? I don’t know. We’ve played one preseason game.”
Vezenkov signed a three-year, $20 million contract with the Kings over the summer. The former Olympiacos star came to Sacramento as a three-time Greek League MVP and the 2023 EuroLeague MVP. He scored 12 points in 11 minutes in his preseason debut against the Raptors on Sunday, showing off the world-class shooting ability coaches and teammates have raved about, but the Kings are asking him to be better defensively.
“I’m not the type of coach that’s just going to say, ‘OK, because he did this here, he’s going to come in and start or he’s going to get 30 minutes a game,’” Brown said. “You’ve got to let it play out. When we were trying to get him to come here, that was one of the discussions we had. I said, ‘Hey, you’ve got to earn it.’”
This story was originally published October 12, 2023 at 12:50 AM.
