What we learned when Kings wasted big Fox games, Doma’s losing games against Lakers originally aired on NBC Sports Bay Area

SACRAMENTO – Domantas Sabonis recorded his NBA-best 25th^Th Double-double of the season, but the Kings’ offense fell flat in the final 60 seconds and Sacramento lost to the Los Angeles Lakers for the second time in three days, falling 103-99 on Saturday at the Golden 1 Center.

With 19 points, 19 rebounds and five assists, Sabonis moved past Arnie Risen with 179 career double-doubles and moved into seventh place on the Kings’ franchise charts.

De’Aaron Fox had 31 points, five rebounds and seven assists for the Kings, who fell to 13-16. DeMar DeRozan scored 12 points while Keegan Murray added 10.

Sacramento fell behind early and played catch-up most of the afternoon, but got within 101-99 on Sabonis’ three-point play with 1:11 left.

With the Golden 1 Center crowd on its feet, the Kings were unable to complete the comeback despite the Lakers missing three of four free throw attempts in the final 12 seconds.

Here are the takeaways from Saturday’s game:

FOx flows

The Kings point guard, whose name has appeared in recent trade rumors, continued to show why his popularity is increasing across the NBA. Fox was Sacramento’s leading scorer in each of the first three quarters, reaching deep into his bag of tricks to score against the bigger and more aggressive Lakers.

Fox, who had one of his better shooting games, knocking down 12 of 17 shots, scored 20 or more points in each of his last three games and nine of the last 11 games.

bannoyed by LeBron

James did as he pleased against the kings and met with little resistance. The NBA’s all-time leading scorer was particularly effective in the key, repeatedly lowering his shoulder and punching defenders to clear a path to the basket.

One observer said the Kings were too soft, but the problem goes beyond that. The defense was often too slow to rotate and help, which caught James in some ridiculous one-on-one duels. When Sacramento double-teamed him, LBJ was quick to pass the ball to an open shooter.

QTime for Keon

With Malik Monk now a regular in Mike Brown’s starting lineup, Keon Ellis has secured the title of the Kings’ most critical and effective player off the bench.

Ellis doesn’t offer many offensive players, but his willingness to play defense while doing whatever it takes is what sets him apart.

At some point in the third quarter, the 6-foot-2 guard made a clean steal and grabbed the ball from the 6-foot-2 Lakers forward Anthony Davis. Ellis finished the game with just five points, but two rebounds, one assist and two steals in 14 minutes.

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