Keegan Murray, Zach LaVine Shine as Kings Continue Their Winning Ways

Another day, another impressive win for the suddenly upstart Sacramento Kings.

The team, who seemed to have all-but thrown in the towel after trading away star point guard De’Aaron Fox, are holding firm in the Western Conference playoff race.

The squad currently sits in the tenth seed, but just a few games separate them from the sixth. The postseason hunt is incredibly tight right now, and it only takes one streak for a team to either pull away from, or slip behind, the pack.

(Photo by Melissa Majchrzak/NBAE via Getty Images)

The Kings know that, and their recent wins show just how hard they need to fight if they want to keep pace. Even without a true number one, they have a deep roster that can play well as long as somebody steps up to lead.

Zach LaVine has embodied that role as of late

The lanky guard is putting up great numbers over his past few games and seems to have found his stride. Even so, the Kings are a win-by-committee style of team. They need production wherever they can get it.

Sometimes that’s LaVine, sometimes it’s veteran forward DeMar DeRozan, and, in their most recent contest, it was Keegan Murray.

All Hands on Deck

The Kings traveled to Utah to play the Jazz on Wednesday night in a game that went largely as expected.

Sacramento easily handled the lowly team, knocking down shots, playing strong defense, and winning the final three quarters before cruising to a relatively easy 118-101 victory.

Winning in the NBA is never easy, but the Kings took care of business in almost every facet of the game

That wasn’t the focus, however. What mattered about the victory wasn’t that they ended up with a win, but rather how they got that win.

Sacramento succeeded by utilizing a well-rounded offense

The starters all played well, the bench made their shots, and everyone stepped up to contribute to the victory. That’s how the Kings need to play if they want to be taken seriously in the playoffs.

LaVine, who put up 22 points, 8 rebounds, and 3 assists, continues to be the leader, but he’s far from a true superstar like Nikola Jocic, Luka Doncic, or even De’Aaron Fox.

He’ll put up stats, but it’s rare for him to win games on his own

As such, Sacramento’s winning recipe involves them finding the hot hand on any given night. That’s what they did against the Jazz, and it’s what they need to do going forward.

An Unexpected Contribution

Utah is not a terribly tough opponent, but the Kings still needed to hit their shots. Beyond LaVine’s expected contribution, Keegan Murray also stepped up in a big way.

The small forward knocked down five three pointers, and ended with a season-high 26 points.

That’s well above his 12 point average

He also had six rebounds, two assists, and two blocks in his stellar night. He did a great job of attacking the rim, dunking, driving, and hitting a series of tough buckets.

It was the first 20+ point game since November 24th, and shows how he can be a focal point on offense if the team needs him to be.

“It’s been a different kind of year for sort of my role on the team,” Murray said when discussing his big game

“Like today, the ball started coming in more on pin downs and things like that. I was able to take advantage of that. So that’s just kinda been my thing so far this year.”

Knowing How to Succeed

The Kings played great team basketball. Murray wasn’t the only hot hand. Keon Ellis made three deep shots and the team as a whole knocked down 15 of 36 attempts from beyond the arc.

When they’re working like that, they can beat just about anybody

That’s important for them to remember, as the schedule is only going to get tougher from here on out.

If the Kings want to secure a playoff spot that’s above the play-in games, they’re going to need everyone to contribute.

The Jazz game will quickly be forgotten, but it’s still a good blueprint on what they need to make happen

Lean on their talent, be that Domantas Sabonis, DeMar DeRozan, or Zach LaVine, and then work the ball around so everyone gets involved on the offense.

Defensively, the Kings have a tough squad

Most of their losses, especially their close matches, have come down to them being unable to find any shooting rhythm.

If the bench can put up points and take pressure off the stars, everyone can get into their groove.

It’s too early to tell if that brand of basketball will work in a seven game series, but the recent win does show it’s enough to get into the playoffs. For the Kings, that’s what they’re focused on right now.