SACRAMENTO -- After a 17,000-mile round-trip adventure to India, the Kings returned to their home court Thursday night to face the Phoenix Suns.
With a few days of practice under their belt, the Kings looked fresh and focused. They cleaned up some of their issues that cost them in back-to-back losses to the Indiana Pacers, and throttled the Suns 105-88 at Golden 1 Center.
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Devin Booker led Phoenix with 18 points and seven rebounds. Rookie Jevon Carter added 16 points off the bench, but it wasn’t nearly enough for the Suns.
Here are three takeaways as the Kings improved to 1-2 on their 2019-20 preseason schedule.
Two-Way
De’Aaron Fox is the head of the snake when it comes to the Kings’ offense, but he also has tremendous potential on the defensive end.
NBA
Fox pestered the Phoenix’s guards all night, picking up three steals and a pair of blocks while limiting Ricky Rubio to just four points and four turnovers in 20 minutes of action.
In addition to wreaking havoc on the defensive end, the third-year guard pushed the tempo to finish the game with 18 points and six assists to lead the Kings in both categories.
Glass Crashers
Sacramento was dominated on the glass in their first two preseason games in India. That was not the case in their preseason home opener against the Suns.
Marvin Bagley dominated the Suns early, grabbing 12 rebounds before the two teams could get to the intermission. The second-year big only grabbed one rebound after the half to finish with a 12-point, 13-rebound double-double.
Playing alongside Bagley, Dewayne Dedmon added 11 rebounds in 20 minutes, giving the Kings a pair of double-figure rebounders.
Overall, the Kings buried the Suns on the glass, coming away with a 59-43 advantage.
Bogi and Richaun
Fresh off an excellent showing at the FIBA World Cup, Bogdan Bogdanovic is in mid-season form and he’s found a new running mate with the second unit. Bogdanovic carved up the Suns defense and when the defense collapsed, he just flipped the ball up near the rim for Richaun Holmes to go get.
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Bogdanovic had a similar on-court relationship with Willie Cauley-Stein over the last two seasons in Sacramento, but it’s surprising to see the type of chemistry he has with Holmes after just three games.
Holmes finished the night with 11 points on 5-for-5 shooting to go with six rebounds. Bogdanovic dropped in 12 points and added three assists to help pace the Kings’ bench in the win.