The Sacramento Kings are having one of their worst starts in franchise history, and the hits just keep on coming.
Although Sacramento took a lead into the fourth quarter of Sunday night’s game against the Memphis Grizzlies, they couldn’t hold on as they dropped a 115-107 contest at Golden 1 Center.
The Kings (5-16) are now in 14th place in the Western Conference standings — just one spot above last place — as they continue to search for answers in establishing an identity.
21 games in, it’s becoming clearer that this is this team’s identity, which bodes well for draft position watchers and poorly for those who are grading this team on wins.
If you’re grading the 2025-26 Sacramento Kings on the number of wins they end up with, it’s easy to guess where that is heading, as this team maintains a win-loss pace that would currently result in a final record of 20-62.
FIRST-CAREER 30-PT GAME FOR ZACH EDEY 😤
Catch the finish of MEM-SAC: https://t.co/RPauFCBp3o pic.twitter.com/Jv4zrOXs1Z
— NBA (@NBA) December 1, 2025
Sacramento Kings vs. Memphis Grizzlies takeaways
The Kings were forced to call two quick timeouts during the first quarter as Memphis opened up the evening by drilling its first five attempts from beyond the arc to start the game.
Russell Westbrook, who handed out five assists in the first period, was very vocal during an early timeout as Sacramento attempted to plug the holes in its perimeter defense before allowing an eight-point deficit to balloon to double-digits–a trend that the Kings have gotten all too familiar with during this rough start to the season.
After falling behind 29-21, Sacramento made adjustments out of the timeout by containing the perimeter and riding the bench’s momentum (18 bench points in the first quarter), ending the period on a 14-2 run that put the Kings in front following a rocky start.
Sacramento’s run to end the first came to a screeching halt as play entered the second period, as the Kings’ midrange-heavy offense reared its ugly head. After going three-for-five from three-point range in the first quarter, Sacramento missed all three attempts from long distance in the second, ending the first half three-of-eight (Memphis went seven-of-15 from three-point range).
The Kings entered play on Sunday ranked dead last in made three-point field goals and 29th in attempts. The average NBA team attempts 18.6 three-point field goals per half, and Sacramento was well below that mark through the first half.
MALIK TRIPLE FOR THE LEAD 🔥 pic.twitter.com/i7Fehf3e6E
— Kings on NBCS (@NBCSKings) December 1, 2025
Once play entered the second half, the Grizzlies took the wind out of Golden 1 Center by opening up a 10-0 run that put Sacramento in a double-digit hole for the first time all night.
The Kings’ offense looked stagnant, with awkward spacing and poor shot selection causing the deficit to swell as things began to slip away from Sacramento in familiar fashion.
With the Kings’ starters struggling, Christie turned to Malik Monk and the second unit to keep themselves afloat. Monk, who hasn’t had many opportunities to initiate the offense when backup point guard Dennis Schroder is available, did a good job of creating offense–either by attacking on his own or finding the open man.
Monk scored nine points in the third quarter to help lead a 19-5 run that lifted Sacramento out of a 13-point hole and put them in the driver’s seat heading into crunch time, but that’s where things would shift for the Kings.
A rollercoaster night ended on a low note for Sacramento as Memphis went on to outscore the Kings 32-20 in the final frame. The Grizzlies held Sacramento scoreless from the 4:50 mark until there was 1:39 remaining, going on a 6-0 run in the process that all but cemented the final result.
Second-year center Zach Edey dominated the Kings’ thin front line on Sunday by scoring a career-high 32 points on 16-of-20 shooting to go along with 17 rebounds and five blocks, making the 23-year-old the first NBA player to post a 30+ points, 15+ rebounds, 5+ blocks stat line on 80% shooting or better since Shaquille O’Neal.
On a night that the Grizzlies turned the ball over 23 times versus Sacramento’s eight, Memphis still managed to depart with an eight-point win, thanks to Edey’s dominance and an ice-cold night for the Kings’ perimeter shooting (eight-of-27; 29%).
go to work big zamboni 🤝
📺: https://t.co/WUUZfFGj9B pic.twitter.com/zrXksOYbUb
— Grind City Media (@grindcitymedia) December 1, 2025
At 5-16, we can say with a high level of certainty that this Sacramento Kings team isn’t good. They have talent, but it’s a collection of players that don’t mesh. The chemistry that made the inaugural Beam Team in 2022-23 is long gone. Even the teams that followed in 2023-24 and 2024-25 could win on any given night.
Aside from last week’s back-to-back wins over Denver and Minnesota, this team looks overmatched in every game they play, as was the case on Friday night against the 5-11 Utah Jazz and in Sunday’s loss to the 8-12 Grizzlies.
Sacramento has yet to highlight an area of play that can help them win games. On offense, they are ranked 25th in points per game this season. They’re worse on defense, coming in with the third-most points allowed in the NBA (123.3 points allowed per game).
This team is on the fast track to being out of the postseason race early, possibly as soon as Christmas, which could bode well for roster turnover and the potential to see more young players, like June’s 24th overall pick, Nique Clifford, and 42nd pick, Maxime Raynaud, get more playing time.
At this point, that’s all that you can really hope to see from this group–roster turnover and more run for the young talent.
Notes
Keegan Murray ended the night with a career-high five steals.
Malik Monk scored 21 points off the bench to go along with six rebounds and six assists.
Keon Ellis logged just six minutes of playing time, marking the fourth time over the past five games that the guard logged under ten minutes of action.
Sacramento Kings Injury Report
Point guard Dennis Schroder missed a second-straight game due to right hip soreness and is considered day-to-day. (Estimated Return: Early December)
All-NBA center Domantas Sabonis will be sidelined for at least the next three weeks as he recovers from a partially torn meniscus in his left knee. (Estimated Return: Mid-late December)
When is the next Sacramento Kings game?
The Sacramento Kings will hit the road for a three-stop road trip that begins Wednesday night in Houston.
Sacramento will face the Rockets for the first time this season, a team that is off to a strong start as they enter play against the Kings in possession of a top-five seed in the loaded Western Conference.
Last season, Sacramento swept the season series (3-0) against Houston, winning the lone matchup at Toyota Center by a final of 113-103 on March 1st behind 21 points from DeMar DeRozan.
Be sure to catch all of the Sacramento Kings vs. Houston Rockets action right here on Sactown Sports 1140 AM, with pregame coverage beginning at 2:00 PM PT on The Drive Guys before a 5:00 pm PT tip-off from Houston, Texas.
YouTube video
Upcoming Sacramento Kings schedule for the 2025-26 season
Wednesday, December 3rd – @ Houston Rockets – 5:00 PM PT
Saturday, December 6th – @ Miami Heat – 5:00 PM PT
Monday, December 8th – @ Indiana Pacers – 4:00 PM PT
Thursday, December 11th – vs. Denver Nuggets – 7:00 PM PT
Sunday, December 14th – @ Minnesota Timberwolves – 4:00 PM PT
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