Kings: 5 Worst Losses From First Half Of 2019-20

#2. December 13th vs Knicks

The Kings came into their matchup with the Knicks winners of three straight, having beaten the Mavericks, Rockets, and Thunder in the previous week.

New York was in the middle of a West Coast road trip and had lost 10 games in a row before their overtime victory over the Warriors in a battle for the NBA’s worst record. Their next game would come in Sacramento, against a Kings team that had already dealt them a 21-point beat down in Madison Square Garden just a month and a half prior.

The Kings were feeling confident after their mini-win streak, and because their schedule was about to ease up with games against New York, Golden State, and Charlotte on the horizon.

But once again, the Kings overlooked an inferior opponent and paid the price in the loss column.

Sacramento got off to another hot start, leading by as many as 14 in the first quarter and by 9 at halftime. Their advantage would balloon back up to 16 with five minutes left in the third, but the Knicks began chipping away.

The Knicks took the lead for the first time since the opening minutes of the game on an Elfrid Payton basket with 4:30 left in regulation. They never looked back. Sacramento missed every one of their 5 field goal attempts in the final three minutes, the only two makes coming by the time New York had the game in hand.

Another blown lead and another loss to a supposedly inferior opponent for the Kings, who have seemed to have two bad losses for every good victory.