The shot heard 'round the Motor City. On the brink of an 0-2 start to their six-game road trip, the Kings found a way to turn a disappointing loss into a momentum-building victory Saturday night at Little Caesars Arena.
Blake Griffin punished the Kings with one isolation play after another to build multiple double-digit leads. Sacramento trailed by as many as 13 in the fourth quarter, but in classic Kings fashion, they never gave in.
Marvin Bagley showed some fight. De'Aaron Fox delivered dimes. Willie Cauley-Stein crashed the glass at the right time, and Buddy Hield turned into a flamethrower to put the Kings over the top for a stunning 103-101 win.
Hield's game-winner pushed Sacramento back to two games over the .500 mark at 24-22. Here are the positives and the negatives from the win.
POSITIVE
Big Shot Buddy
Everyone gets a shot to hit a game winner with the Kings. De'Aaron Fox, Skal Labissiere, Bogdan Bogdanovic and Willie Cauley-Stein have all finished off a game with last-second shot over the past two seasons. You can now add Hield to the list.
Sports
Pack 'em up and send 'em home, @buddyhield pic.twitter.com/Qv8v4QOjiM— Kings on NBCS (@NBCSKings) January 20, 2019
The Kings' leading scorer finished off an incredible evening with a magical moment. After scoring 20 points in the first half, Hield went dormant in the the third quarter. When Dave Joerger released him on the Pistons with 6:53 remaining and the Kings trailing by 10, it was game on.
It wasn't just one basket. Hield almost singlehandedly shot the Kings back into the game. He scored 15 of his team-high 35 points in the final 3:26 of the game.
[RELATED: How Kings actually came out ahead after Cousins trade]
POSITIVE
Bagley's Ready
Griffin put the entire Kings' front line on skates. He forced the action, got the calls and looked every bit the player that made five All-Star appearances early in his career.
First Griffin tore through Nemanja Bjelica. When Cauley-Stein tried to help out, he picked up two quick fouls. Harry Giles met the same fate, as Joerger searched for answers.
Marvin Bagley stepped up to the challenge. He wasn't perfect and Griffin continued his scoring barrage, but there was a fight in Bagley that the Kings need.
A better look at why Bagley and Griffin exchanged heated words 👀 pic.twitter.com/3sdJ3vPTCK— Kings on NBCS (@NBCSKings) January 20, 2019
After taking a few shots from Griffin on a loose ball, the 19-year-old stepped up and had words with the Pistons star. Fox was there to pull him away, but that fact that he was willing to engage is a sign of competitive fire.
Joerger started Bagley in the second half and for a while, Griffin cooled off. The Kings' prized rookie finished the night with 14 points on 6-of-9 shooting. He didn't rebound like you would expect, but it was a solid outing against a big time opponent.
NEGATIVE
The Disappearance of Bjelica
Bjelica was an impact player for Sacramento early in the season, but he's in a major-league slump. In 10 games in January, the 30-year-old forward is averaging 7.2 points, 5.7 rebounds and 2.7 assists in 23.6 minutes per game. He's shooting just 39.1 percent from the field, and 28.1 percent from behind the arc over that stretch.
Against the Pistons, he struggled to stay with Griffin, which is to be expected. On the offensive end, he missed a few wide-open looks early and finished with five points on 2-of-5 shooting in 15 minutes of action.
Bjelica's lone make from behind the arc came early in the fourth, and it was from 30-feet out.
Whether teams have adjusted to his play style or he's getting fewer opportunities, the Kings need Bjelica. If he doesn't snap out of his slumber, expect Bagley to start picking up more time.
POSITIVE
Fighting Fox
We've reached that point in the season when the toll of an 82-game schedule starts to wear on players. Fox is playing major minutes in his sophomore year, and his numbers have fallen off a bit in January.
Joerger has been mindful of the impact the minutes have had on Fox and others. The 21-year-old is the driving force behind the team's pace of play and he's been a target for the opposition.
Against the Pistons, he struggled with his shot, but still managed to post 14 points on 4-of-13 shooting in 35 minutes of play. With his shot not falling, he set up his teammates, dishing 10 assists without turning the ball over.
The All-Star break is just around the corner, which will give Fox some time to rest up for the stretch run.
