SACRAMENTO – On a night when the Kings got big-time production from several players, Doug McDermott found a way to stand out from everyone else.
And it took him about six minutes to do so.
McDermott, who has been a healthy scratch in six games during the 2024-25 NBA season, came off the bench and poured in a season-high 18 points while knocking down six 3-pointers as the Kings smoked the slumping Utah Jazz 141-97 on Sunday night.
“Once the first couple went in I figured I might as well keep shooting,” McDermott said. “It was a good win for us. Our group came out really happy with the way we closed the game, everyone one on the bench was ready to play.”
No one was more ready than McDermott, who spent the first three quarters watching before Kings coach Mike Brown went deep into his bench.
Granted, McDermott’s outstanding shooting night came during mop-up time. But it was easily the most exciting thing to happen at Golden 1 Center and slightly overshadowed a spectacular night by Kevin Huerter (season-high 26 points), another double-double from Domantas Sabonis (19 points, 12 rebounds) and a steady outing by point guard De’Aaron Fox (21 points, 9 rebounds).
The No. 11 overall pick by the Denver Nuggets in the 2014 NBA Draft, McDermott spent most of his first 10 seasons in the league making minimal noise, playing primarily as a reserve.
When he signed with the Kings in the offseason, it was seen as Sacramento's way of trying to add some perimeter shooting.
McDermott has remained in a back-up role all season, but he definitely made a case for additional playing time after showing out against the Jazz.
He made his first six shots – all 3-point attempts – over a six-minute span. His only miss came on an open look that clanged off the front of the rim with about 90 seconds left to play.
During his time on the court, McDermott was seranaded with chants of ‘Dougie, Dougie’ by the Golden 1 Center crowd. And the song ‘Teach Me How to Dougie’ blared over loudspeakers with each 3-point shot that he made, something that’s been happening at G1C every time McDermott nails a shot behind the arc.
“I definitely heard that,” McDermott said. “That was cool. Great fans here. They’ve always been really good even as a road player. Just good to be on their side.”
McDermott was definitely locked in. Despite everything dropping for him, at no point did he look up at the scoreboard to see what was happening.
“I was just kind of in a rhythm, in a zone,” McDermott said. (Alex Len) and (Jordan McLaughlin) and all those guys were doing a good job of finding me. I wasn’t really caught up in the numbers or how much time was left. I was just shooting.”
When it was all over, McDermott got the opportunity to light the beam. When he did, the Golden 1 Center crowd roared.
Whether his night leads to more minutes or opportunities remains to be seen, but for one night at least, McDermott had fans cheering much like they did when he was a star shooter at Creighton.
“I wouldn’t say I needed it but it just felt good to contribute and contribute to a win,” McDermott said. “Our guys set the tone early and we were able to get some good run there at the end. Just a good feeling getting that win.
“Everyone was shooting it well tonight. Everyone was hitting. It is contagious. You don’t want to be the one that’s missing so you come in there and be ultra aggressive and the ball finds the right guy every time.”
In the fourth quarter Sunday, McDermott definitely was the right guy to find.
Download and follow The Deuce & Mo Podcast