Brown states Kings fans ‘deserve better’ after loss to Pacers

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Brown states Kings fans ‘deserve better’ after loss to Pacers originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SACRAMENTO – Ten days ago the Kings were riding a three-game winning streak and appeared ready to stamp themselves as contenders in the NBA’s Western Conference.

Four consecutive losses later – all of them at Golden 1 Center – the vibe in the state’s capital is a lot different.

Rather than proving to be a contender, the Kings now are looking more realistically like a team that will struggle just to make it to the NBA play-in tournament, similar to the situation they faced last season.

Sunday’s 122-95 home loss to the Indiana Pacers was just the latest setback.

The Pacers entered the day with a sub-.500 record and were the Eastern Conference’s No. 8 seed, yet they handled the Kings fairly easily.

“Their pace, whether it be in the full court or half court, was at a high level,” Kings coach Mike Brown said. “We were always a step or at least half a step behind them when it came to trying to defend them in the second half.”

Even though it came three days before Christmas, it was hardly the type of effort and production expected from a team that still views itself a legitimate playoff contender.

After a somewhat sluggish, see-saw first half, the Kings simply stopped playing in the second half. The Pacers poured in 70 points over the final two quarters and strolled to a 27-point victory, Sacramento’s most lopsided loss of the season.

That came on the heels of the Kings’ one-point loss to the Denver Nuggets followed by back-to-back losses to the Los Angeles Lakers.

Had they pulled off the win against the Nuggets, split the two games with the Lakers then held serve at home against the Pacers, the outlook for the Kings would have been a lot more optimistic and bright than it is now.

The play got so bad Sunday that fans at Golden 1 Center repeatedly rained down boos on the Kings throughout the second half.

“The fans definitely deserved better than what we showed today,” Brown said. “When you look in the mirror you want to say that you left it all on the floor and you’re trying to play the right…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/brown-states-kings-fans-deserve-033022724.html

Author : NBC Sports BayArea

Publish date : 2024-12-23 03:30:00

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