He must have thought that it was starting to smell scorched. Seeing his team trailing by 11 points with less than 9 minutes remaining on the Suns floor, Demar DeRozan decided to take matters into his own hands.
His play in the post ended with one of his most complicated shots of the evening, with the board despite good defense from Josh Okogie. This shot was the first in a very long series that would allow the Kings to get back into the game.
Faithful to his almost anachronistic game in a league doped with 3-point shooting, the guard chained shots from his favorite zone: mid-distance, around the head of the racket. Bradley Beal or Royce O'Neale may have raised their arms as much as they could, the former Bulls player always found the solution.
A “clutch” doublet
Rather discreet in the previous three quarters, he scored 16 points at 6/7 in the last period of regulation time. And with him, Sacramento came back, but had to go through overtime to push back the Suns.
In the extra five minutes, the full-back continued his sequences in isolation: he scored his team's first eight points, with two “2+1” actions. Behind, De'Aaron Fox took over. “ DeRozan and Fox did a lot of things late in the game and in overtime. They went to their zones and took their shots “, can see Mike Budenholzer.
It will be recalled that Fox was winner of the first “Clutch Player of the Year” trophy in 2023, and that his new teammate finished runner-up to Stephen Curry last season (and 3rd the previous year). The association of the two men could therefore promise sparks in the “money time” for the Kings.
A forgotten awkwardness
“ That's what we had in mind. DeMar was in there so we turned to him. And then we turned to Fox. They both hit big shot, after big shot, after big shot. Having two guys like that makes everyone's job easier, especially in the final stretch of a match. », relishes Mike Brown.
His two strong men of the evening had combined for a weak 9/30 on shots at the end of the third quarter. What followed was on a whole new level: 36 points combined at 15/18 on shots! With a new record with the Kings at stake for DeMar DeRozan (34 points at 14/25) and an evening close to a triple-double for his leader (21 points at 10/23, 11 rebounds and 8 assists without losing the ball) .
“ DeMar really carried us for a good part of the fourth quarter and Fox rose to the occasion when we needed it in overtime. We hung in there and found a way to win », welcomes Kevin Huerter.
All in the lair of the most clutch player at the start of the season, but on the sidelines last night, Kevin Durant.
| DeMar DeRozan | Percentage | Rebounds | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | MJ | Min | Shots | 3pts | L.F. | Off | Def | Early | Pd | Party | Int | Bp | Ct | Pts |
| 2009-10 | TOR | 77 | 22 | 49.8 | 25.0 | 76.3 | 0.9 | 2.0 | 2.9 | 0.7 | 2.3 | 0.6 | 0.8 | 0.2 | 8.6 |
| 2010-11 | TOR | 82 | 35 | 46.7 | 9.6 | 81.3 | 0.9 | 2.9 | 3.8 | 1.8 | 2.6 | 1.0 | 1.8 | 0.4 | 17.2 |
| 2011-12 | TOR | 63 | 35 | 42.2 | 26.1 | 81.0 | 0.6 | 2.7 | 3.3 | 2.0 | 2.6 | 0.8 | 2.0 | 0.3 | 16.7 |
| 2012-13 | TOR | 82 | 37 | 44.5 | 28.3 | 83.1 | 0.6 | 3.3 | 3.9 | 2.5 | 2.1 | 0.9 | 1.8 | 0.3 | 18.1 |
| 2013-14 | TOR | 79 | 38 | 42.9 | 30.5 | 82.4 | 0.6 | 3.7 | 4.3 | 4.0 | 2.5 | 1.1 | 2.2 | 0.4 | 22.7 |
| 2014-15 | TOR | 60 | 35 | 41.3 | 28.4 | 83.2 | 0.7 | 3.9 | 4.6 | 3.5 | 2.0 | 1.2 | 2.3 | 0.2 | 20.1 |
| 2015-16 | TOR | 78 | 36 | 44.6 | 33.8 | 85.0 | 0.8 | 3.7 | 4.5 | 4.0 | 2.1 | 1.0 | 2.2 | 0.3 | 23.5 |
| 2016-17 | TOR | 74 | 35 | 46.7 | 26.6 | 84.2 | 0.9 | 4.3 | 5.2 | 3.9 | 1.8 | 1.1 | 2.4 | 0.2 | 27.3 |
| 2017-18 | TOR | 80 | 34 | 45.6 | 31.0 | 82.5 | 0.7 | 3.2 | 3.9 | 5.2 | 1.9 | 1.1 | 2.2 | 0.3 | 23.0 |
| 2018-19 | SAN | 77 | 35 | 48.1 | 15.6 | 83.0 | 0.7 | 5.3 | 6.0 | 6.2 | 2.3 | 1.1 | 2.6 | 0.5 | 21.2 |
| 2019-20 | SAN | 68 | 34 | 53.1 | 25.7 | 84.5 | 0.6 | 4.9 | 5.5 | 5.6 | 2.6 | 1.0 | 2.4 | 0.3 | 22.1 |
| 2020-21 | SAN | 61 | 34 | 49.5 | 25.7 | 88.0 | 0.7 | 3.6 | 4.2 | 6.9 | 2.1 | 0.9 | 2.0 | 0.2 | 21.6 |
| 2021-22 | CHI | 76 | 36 | 50.4 | 35.2 | 87.7 | 0.7 | 4.4 | 5.2 | 4.9 | 2.3 | 0.9 | 2.4 | 0.3 | 27.9 |
| 2022-23 | CHI | 74 | 36 | 50.4 | 32.4 | 87.2 | 0.5 | 4.2 | 4.6 | 5.1 | 2.5 | 1.1 | 2.1 | 0.5 | 24.5 |
| 2023-24 | CHI | 79 | 38 | 48.0 | 33.3 | 85.3 | 0.5 | 3.8 | 4.3 | 5.3 | 2.0 | 1.1 | 1.7 | 0.6 | 24.0 |
| 2024-25 | BAG | 9 | 38 | 52.0 | 34.8 | 86.7 | 0.6 | 3.1 | 3.7 | 4.1 | 1.4 | 1.9 | 2.1 | 0.4 | 24.2 |
| Total | 1119 | 35 | 46.9 | 29.7 | 84.1 | 0.7 | 3.7 | 4.4 | 4.1 | 2.3 | 1.0 | 2.0 | 0.3 | 21.3 | |
How to read the stats? MJ = matches played; Min = Minutes; Shots = Successful shots / Attempted shots; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; Off = offensive rebound; Def=defensive rebound; Tot = Total rebounds; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost balls; Ct: Against; Pts = Points.
