The Toronto Raptors dealt Sacramento its only loss on a four-game road trip, and the host Kings will be seeking swift payback when the teams clash Wednesday on the West Coast.
Swingman RJ Barrett scored 31 points and was stellar down the stretch on Saturday as Toronto edged Sacramento 131-128 in overtime.
Barrett couldn’t replicate those same heroics two nights later in Denver, missing a 27-footer over Russell Westbrook at the horn, which allowed the Nuggets to escape with a 121-119 victory.
Gradey Dick scored 26 points to stamp himself as an early contender for the league’s Most Improved Player, having bumped his scoring average from 8.5 points last season to 21.6 points across the Raptors’ first eight games of 2024-25.
For all his fine work, though, the second-year guard will rue three costly turnovers inside the last four minutes.
“We talked a lot and addressed the problem of turnovers,” Toronto coach Darko Rajakovic said. “In the fourth quarter, I felt we got a little bit rattled. We did not handle that pressure of what you need to do on the road to win a game like this.”
The Raptors led Denver by 11 points inside the last six minutes and were still up by six just before center Jakob Poeltl picked up his fifth and sixth fouls in a span of 23 seconds.
Until then, the Austrian 7-footer had put 24 points and 11 rebounds on the great Nikola Jokic.
“(Poeltl) was doing a really good job playing in a pocket, connecting with his teammates and being active on the boards,” Rajakovic said.
“I thought overall he played a really good game against the best player in the world.”
Poeltl will need to bring more of the same against Kings big man Domantas Sabonis, who recorded his 60th career triple-double when the sides last met, passing Larry Bird for 10th on the all-time list. Sabonis’ successful tip-in sent that contest into overtime.
Then, in Miami on Monday, his putback off an offensive board with 0.7 seconds on the clock sealed Sacramento’s 111-110 victory over the Heat.
The Kings trailed for much of the contest — by as many as 15 points early in the third quarter — before some open honesty at halftime helped them turn things around and finish the road swing 3-1.
“Things got heated there in the locker room,” Sabonis said. “We knew we could play better. We came out in that third quarter and made a big run. Emotions are high … last game of a road trip, everyone just wants to get home and get this win.”
De’Aaron Fox had a game-high 28 points and DeMar DeRozan added 26 for the Kings.
“We challenged our guys, they challenged each other, and instances like this, that’s what great teams do,” Sacramento coach Mike Brown said. “Everybody wants to hold everybody accountable. I shouldn’t be the only guy holding people accountable.
“To get a win like that just continues to add to the belief and confidence.”
