Zach LaVine breaks out of shooting slump, but Kings lose to Jazz in NBA Cup
Zach LaVine finally snapped out of his shooting slump, but a big game by the two-time All-Star wasn’t enough for the struggling Sacramento Kings to beat the Utah Jazz.
Keyonte George scored 31 points to lead the Jazz to a 128-119 victory over the Kings in an NBA Cup game Friday night at Delta Center in Salt Lake City.
LaVine scored 34 points on 12-of-22 shooting while going 4 of 9 from 3-point range with six assists for the Kings (5-15), who have lost 10 of their last 12 games.
LaVine admitted that losing has taken a toll on the team.
“It sucks,” LaVine said. “You’ve got to stick together. Everybody in here is very encouraging. Player wise, guys talk each other up through good and bad and constructive criticism. You’ve got to rely on your guys in your locker room. I think that’s how you get through it and go out there and just try to break down some stuff that you’re not doing well. Hopefully catch a rhythm, catch a run as a team, not just individually, and you never know where that can go.”
LaVine averaged over 30.0 points over the first six games of the season, but he has been plagued by inconsistency in recent weeks. In the six games leading up to Friday’s contest, LaVine averaged 12.8 points while going 31 of 72 (.430) from the field and 8 of 34 (.235) from 3-point range.
Kings coach Doug Christie maintained that he had little concern over LaVine’s recent slump.
“When Zach is shooting the basketball, I think they’re going in even when he wasn’t in a good rhythm,” Christie said. “He’s an incredible shooter and scorer.”
Keegan Murray had 23 points and nine rebounds for the Kings, who finished 0-4 in NBA Cup pool play. Rookie Maxime Raynaud scored 16 of his career-high 19 points in the fourth quarter.
Russell Westbrook recorded a triple-double with 16 points, 12 rebounds, 14 assists and four steals. DeMar DeRozan also scored 16 points.
Lauri Markkanen scored 28 points for the Jazz (6-12). Brice Sensabaugh came off the bench to score 20 points. Kevin Love added nine points and seven rebounds.
Halftime report
Christie wanted to see his team get off to a much stronger start 48 hours after trailing by 25 points in the first quarter of their loss to the Phoenix Suns. The Kings answered their coach’s call with LaVine attacking the basket and Murray doing it at both ends of the floor with six points and two steals in the first 4:36.
LaVine said there was no conscious effort to drive to the basket for a couple of easy buckets before he started shooting the ball.
“I just try to read the game,” LaVine said. “I was able to get the ball in my hand, and I was able to attack a little bit and create, so just playing the game.”
The Kings led 16-10 following a dunk by LaVine midway through the first quarter. The Jazz led 30-27 at the end of the opening period. The Kings got to the free throw line 11 times, but they missed five of them.
Markkanen scored seven points in a span of 1:21 to fuel a 9-0 run as Utah opened up a 39-27 lead early in the second quarter. The Kings came back to cut a 13-point deficit to four when LaVine got his first 3-pointer to fall after missing 18 of his previous 21 attempts, but the Jazz closed with a 7-0 run to take a 62-51 lead into the halftime break.
Second-half summary
The Kings staged a 12-3 run to get within two on a 3-pointer by Murray early in the second half, but the Jazz pushed the lead back up to 10 on a basket by George with 3:44 to play in the third quarter.
Utah created more separation when Kings rookie Nique Clifford was called for a reckless closeout on a 3-pointer by Kyle Filipowski, resulting in a flagrant foul. Filipowski made all three free throws and Brice Sensabaugh made two more after being fouled by Precious Achiuwa three seconds later.
A subsequent basket by Jusuf Nurkic put the Jazz up 90-73 at the end of the third quarter. Two 3-pointers by LaVine helped the Kings get within 10 early in the fourth, but they couldn’t get any closer until the final minute.
Westbrook said the Kings have to keep fighting.
“You’ve got to keep going,” Westbrook said. “You’ve got no choice. No complaining. Nobody feels sorry for you in this league. The league is good. People compete every night, so you’ve got to move forward. It’s a long year. We’ve got to be able to find a way to create some rhythm. Even though we’ve lost some, I think we’re trending in the right direction. We’ve just got to find a way to put a 48-mintue game together.”
Up next
The Kings will return to Sacramento to face the Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday at Golden 1 Center before embarking on a three-game road trip that will take them to Houston, Miami and Indiana.
The Kings will be looking to avenge one of their worst losses of the season after being embarrassed in a 137-96 loss to the shorthanded Grizzlies on Nov. 20 in Memphis.
This story was originally published November 28, 2025 at 9:19 PM.
