‘This is our kryptonite’: Kings suffer costly and perplexing loss to NBA-worst Wizards

There were two versions of the Sacramento Kings throughout Thursday’s game in the nation’s capital.

There was the sluggish version — a team playing on the second night of a back-to-back that arrived at its Washington D.C. hotel at roughly 2 a.m. after blowing out the Toronto Raptors the night before.

That version of the Kings struggled to make 3-pointers, slow Kyle Kuzma and control the glass against the lowly Washington Wizards, owners of the worst record in the NBA, in a 109-102 loss at Capital One Arena.

The Kings fell to seventh in the Western Conference playoff race with the type of setback that gets grouped with previous losses to Detroit, Charlotte and Portland. The Kings have now lost to four of the five worst teams in the NBA.

“This is our kryptonite this year, man,” Kings guard Malik Monk said after scoring 20 points off the Kings bench. “I don’t know. We got 13 games left. We got something to figure out before the playoff season gets here.”

Monk pointed out the Kings have beaten the defending champion Denver Nuggets three times, Oklahoma City Thunder twice and Minnesota Timberwolves twice. Those teams have the three best records in the Western Conference and the Kings are 7-3 combined against them.

Yet Sacramento hasn’t kicked the season-long trend of playing down to the competition. Thursday’s loss was more confounding given the Kings handled business against lowly Raptors on Wednesday as they were missing four starters.

“I don’t even know what to say about it,” Kings center Domantas Sabonis said. “It sucks. ... There’s nothing else we can say.”

In the defeat, however, there was a crisp version of the Kings, which made two appearances. They came at the end of the second quarter and late in the third to early in the fourth. There, Sacramento went on 18-0 and 15-0 runs, respectively, clawing back into it after falling behind by as many as 19.

Those runs were needed after Sacramento fell behind at the start of each half. The second half opened with a 17-7 Washington run after Mike Brown’s team clawed back in the second quarter.

“We just have to figure out a way to stay consistent,” Brown said. “A lot of that is doing what we do staple-wise, and believing in it, trusting in it.”

The Kings shot 42.5% from the floor and made 11 of 39 from 3-point range. The Kings fell to 7-12 when making fewer than 12 shots from distance.

“I thought we had some pretty good looks,” Brown said. “They got a guy that can go get it. Kuzma was 13 of 22 from the floor, and he basically went and won the game for them in a low scoring game. We have to do a better job in that situation or we have to have somebody that can step up and hypothetically get it for us.”

The Kings lost despite getting 25 points from De’Aaron Fox and Sabonis’ 52nd consecutive double-double. Sabonis had 14 points and 14 rebounds while reaching double digits in rebounding in the third quarter to extend his streak.

Fox had an inefficient night from the field, making just 10 of his 30 shots, but he didn’t shoot a single free throw. There were times in the second half he and the Kings were frustrated with the officiating.

“You have to be able to play through it,” Fox said. “Nothing really more about that. I shot 30 times, 16 inside the 3-point line, and apparently I don’t get fouled, so it is what it is.”

Compounding that was not having an answer for Kuzma, who was able to get to his spots on the floor, using quick footwork and pump fakes to find open looks. Former Kings center Richaun Holmes pestered Sacramento with 16 rebounds while the Wizards were plus-15 in his 29 minutes. Deni Avdija added 17 points on 7-of-14 shooting. Corey Kispert scored 15 points and Jordan Poole added 14 points with three steals.

The Kings got off to a sluggish start. They missed their first seven 3-pointers and were outrebounded 16-6 in the first quarter while falling behind 35-27. Holmes had eight rebounds in his first eight minutes while Kuzma had nine points after making all three of his field goals.

The Kings hit halftime trailing 56-54 thanks to a 18-2 run over the final 5:45 of the half. Fox had five first-half steals and finished with six, matching his career high.

Yet after all that work, the Wizards opened the second half on a 17-7 run to push their lead back to 12 thanks largely to Kuzma, who scored 24 points in his first 19:32. The third quarter finished with the Kings on an 8-0 run. They entered the fourth trailing by eight and lost despite outscoring Washington 26-25 in the final frame.

Kuzma was back after missing two games with left shoulder soreness. He signed a four-year, $90 million contract with Washington last summer after being linked to the Kings in free agency.

The Kings will complete their road trip Saturday against the Orlando Magic, who sit in the No. 5 seed in the Eastern Conference after winning five in a row.

With the loss, the Kings fell from sixth to seventh in the West, a half-game behind the Dallas Mavericks. The Phoenix Suns were playing the Atlanta Hawks later Thursday night with a chance to move ahead of Sacramento for seventh.

“It’s a tough loss, especially where we are right now in our race for a playoff spot,” Brown said. “But you got to give the Wizards credit, their coaching staff a lot of credit. They basically took it to us.”

How will Kings deal with Huerter’s injury?

The Kings announced before Thursday’s game guard Kevin Huerter sustained a torn labrum in addition to his dislocated left shoulder in Monday’s win against the Memphis Grizzlies.

The team did not offer a time frame for his return while Huerter and his camp are likely considering surgery versus letting it heal with physical therapy. Regardless of Huerter’s path, the Kings are looking at a long absence for their 25-year-old shooting guard.

Sacramento will rely heavily on second-year guard Keon Ellis, who was 7-0 as a starter going into Thursday’s game, and Chris Duarte, who’s been in and out of the rotation throughout his first season with the Kings.

“We talk to the guys all year in terms of, ‘Hey, be ready because anything could happen at any time,’” Brown said. “’And whether you get two minutes, 20 minutes or 20 seconds, you have to make the most of it. We’re pretty diligent in terms of trying to get that point across whether guys are in or out.”

Coming into Thursday, the Kings had been outscoring opponents by 21.9 points per 100 possessions in March with Ellis on the floor. Their defensive rating was an impressive 101.1, which would rank No. 1 in the NBA. The Minnesota Timberwolves lead the league with a 108.4 defensive rating on the season.

And while Ellis is known for his defensive acumen, the Kings are also playing well offensively with Ellis on the floor. In March they have a 122.8 offensive rating while Ellis made 12 of his 25 shots from 3-point range before Thursday.

Sabonis celebrates heritage night

The Wizards held their Lithuanian Heritage Night Thursday with Sabonis in town. The Kings center, of course, is Lithuanian by heritage while being born in the United States. He spends his summers in Lithuania, where he plays for the country’s national team.

After the tough loss, Sabonis signed autographs and took pictures with members of a 106-person group affiliated with a local Lithuanian school.

“It’s awesome,” Sabonis said. “There are only (a few) million Lithuanians in the world. Here or Chicago, New York, Brooklyn, there’s a lot of places where they come out. They do these Lithuanian heritage nights and I get to interact with fans.”