Kings use 19th different starting lineup in last-second loss to Mavericks
Sacramento Kings coach Doug Christie deployed his 19th different lineup of the season in Tuesday’s game against the Dallas Mavericks after learning Keegan Murray will miss at least three weeks with a left ankle sprain.
Christie chose to start Russell Westbrook and Zach LaVine in the backcourt with DeMar DeRozan, Precious Achiuwa and rookie Maxime Raynaud in the frontcourt.
The starters played well and a number of players contributed off the bench, but the Kings came up short, falling 100-98 before a crowd of 15,058 at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento.
Sacramento led 98-97 following a clutch stepback jumper by DeRozan, but Williams hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 33.3 seconds remaining and the Kings missed three 3-pointers in the last 21 .6 seconds.
The Kings were held to 20 points in the third and fourth quarters after scoring 35 in the first.
“Holding them to 100 points, defensively, solid enough to win the game, but I have to figure out a way to help them offensively,” Christie said. “The ball has to move. We came out the third quarter and that just wasn’t it. We have to make sure we’re finding the way to move the ball and move bodies. That means the ball has to go from one side of the floor to the other side, guys have to cut, cut with pace and put pressure on the defense.”
Rookie Cooper Flagg had 20 points, eight rebounds and six assists for the Mavericks (14-23), who overcame a 12-point third-quarter deficit.
Anthony Davis recorded a double-double with 19 points and 16 rebounds. Brandon Williams came off the bench to score 18 points. Naji Marshall scored nine of his 15 points in the fourth quarter.
DeRozan scored 21 points to lead the Kings (8-29), who have lost six in a row. LaVine scored 20 points. Westbrook and Dennis Schroder had 11 points apiece.
“I think we showed some really good things at times,” Raynaud said. “Obviously, you want to be consistent for 48 minutes and be able to pull out the win in the end, but it’s hard to win in the league. You have to put in a full game. Not just 30 minutes or 35. It takes a full team effort to do it, and hopefully we’re getting closer and closer to it every day.”
Halftime report
The Mavericks led by one following a 3-pointer by Klay Thompson midway through the first quarter. The Kings later staged a 12-2 run to open up an 11-point lead. They shot 52% in the opening period while going 6 of 10 from 3-point range with nine assists on 13 made baskets.
Sacramento led 35-25 at the end of the first quarter. Dallas cut the deficit to three when Flagg scored seven consecutive points to start the second quarter. The Kings pushed the lead up to 12 when Achiuwa threw down an emphatic dunk over Flagg.
The Kings went into the halftime break with a 58-46 lead and a 22-5 advantage in fastbreak points. They shot 46.8% in the first half while holding the Mavericks to 39.1% shooting.
Second-half summary
Dallas cut the deficit to five early in the second half. The Kings responded with a 9-2 run to reestablish a 12-point lead.
There was a scary moment when Flagg went down under the basket after taking knee-to-knee contact from Achiuwa. Flagg went down clutching his left knee. He was helped to the bench and then went to the tunnel to ride an exercise bike before returning to the game moments later.
The Mavericks mounted a 9-0 run to get within one on a 3-pointer by Thompson. They tied the game moments later on a three-point play by Williams.
The Kings led 78-76 at the end of the third quarter. They went up by five early in the fourth.
The Mavericks went ahead 88-87 when Marshall came up with a steal and a transition layup with 4:20 to play. The Mavericks led 95-93 following a 3-pointer by Marshall and a jumper by Williams.
DeRozan answered with a 3-pointer to put the Kings up by one. The Mavericks reclaimed the lead on a basket by Flagg. The Kings went up on a midrange jumper by DeRozan, but they found themselves trailing 100-98 after Williams hit a 3-pointer with 33.3 seconds remaining.
The Kings had multiple chances to win the game, but Schroder, Westbrook and DeRozan all missed 3-pointers in the final 21 seconds.
Up next
The Kings will make a quick trip to the Bay Area to play the Golden State Warriors on Friday at Chase Center in San Francisco.
The Warriors (19-18) had won three of four and six of nine before suffering a 103-102 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Monday. They will play host to the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday before entertaining the Kings.
The Warriors are led by Steph Curry and Jimmy Butler. Curry is averaging 28.7 points, 3.9 rebounds and 4.4 assists. Butler averages 19.7 points, 5.5 rebounds and 4.9 assists.
This story was originally published January 6, 2026 at 10:58 PM.
