Devin Carter has career night to lead Sacramento Kings to win over Warriors
Devin Carter had to bide his time and wait his turn during his first two seasons with the Sacramento Kings. When his time arrived, he was ready.
Carter erupted for a career-high 29 points with nine rebounds, four assists and two steals, leading the Kings to a 124-118 victory over the Golden State Warriors in their home finale Friday night at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento.
Carter, who appeared in only 27 of Sacramento’s first 71 games this season, went 11 of 18 from the field and 6 of 11 from 3-point range, torching a Golden State squad that didn’t want him last summer when the Kings and Warriors discussed a trade for Jonathan Kuminga.
Carter admitted that it was difficult when he wasn’t playing after shoulder surgery stunted his rookie season.
“It was challenging, but I pray all the time, so I think that just being strong in that aspect and knowing that my time will come eventually,” Carter said. “Toward the end of the year, obviously, I got an opportunity, and I’m trying to make the best of it.”
Kings coach Doug Christie was pleased with the way his young players responded in an intense and physical game with three technical fouls, two flagrant fouls and one ejection.
“We always want to be the aggressor,” Christie said. “We want to be physical and play the right way, grab, hold and control on screens and make sure we’re playing the right way for each other, protecting each other, and that type of intensity and competitiveness is what it’s all about.”
Maxime Raynaud had 23 points and nine rebounds for the Kings (22-59), who have won eight of their last 16 games. Daeqwon Plowden had 20 points and nine rebounds. Nique Clifford had 20 points, six rebounds and six assists.
Brandin Podziemski scored 30 points to lead the Warriors (37-44). De’Anthony Melton scored 17 points. Stephen Curry scored 11 points on 3-of-8 shooting.
The Kings remained tied with the Utah Jazz for the fourth-worst record in the NBA after Utah beat the Memphis Grizzlies. Both teams have one game remaining.
The Kings set the tone in the first half. In the first quarter, Malik Monk came off the bench to score 11 points in 6:40 and Dylan Cardwell hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to put Sacramento up 32-27. In the second quarter, Carter and Clifford scored 10 points apiece to help the Kings run out to a 15-point lead.
Sacramento led 63-51 at the halftime break. The Kings shot 53.5% from the field and went 10 of 19 (.526) from 3-point range while the Warriors shot just 41.9%.
Golden State got hot while Sacramento went cold in the third quarter. The Warriors went 14 of 21 (.667) from the field while the Kings went 5 of 23 (.217). The Warriors outscored the Kings 38-19 in the third period and led 89-82 going into the fourth.
The Warriors went up by 11 early in the fourth quarter, but the Kings responded with a 15-3 run to take a 99-98 lead with 6:48 to play. The Kings quickly regained the lead on a basket by Raynaud and never trailed again.
Honoring DeMar DeRozan
DeMar DeRozan sat out due to right hamstring soreness, but the Kings honored his legacy with a series of video montages celebrating his storied career. The videos featured highlights from DeRozan’s career and messages from friends, former teammates and family members, including his children.
“I’m always appreciative of being honored any type of way,” DeRozan said. “It’s always a cool thing. That’s why I always make it a thing to be available, go out there and play, not just for myself but for the organization and the fans because I owe it to them.”
DeRozan has appeared in 77 games this season, averaging 18.4 points per game. He recently moved up to 16th on the NBA’s career scoring list. He has passed several of the game’s all-time greats this season, including Vince Carter, Kevin Garnett, John Havlicek, Paul Pierce, Tim Duncan, Dominique Wilkins and Oscar Robertson.
One of the tribute videos included a message from Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard, who said: “It’s an honor to see such a quality person, a solid father and an all-time great player be so successful this far into his career.”
Up next
The Kings will travel to Portland to play the Blazers in Sunday’s season finale at Moda Center.
The Blazers (40-40) suffered back-to-back losses to the Denver Nuggets and San Antonio Spurs before beating the Los Angeles Clippers 116-97 on Friday. The Blazers and Clippers are now tied for eighth in the Western Conference with one game remaining.
This story was originally published April 10, 2026 at 11:11 PM.
