A Royal Pain
Fansided

Harry Giles Impresses In Loss To Lakers

By Anthony Cardenas

SACRAMENTO, CA - FEBRUARY 1: Harry Giles III #20 of the Sacramento Kings drives to the basket against the Los Angeles Lakers on February 1, 2020 at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2020 NBAE (Photo by Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty Images)
SACRAMENTO, CA - FEBRUARY 1: Harry Giles III #20 of the Sacramento Kings drives to the basket against the Los Angeles Lakers on February 1, 2020 at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2020 NBAE (Photo by Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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There wasn’t much praise to go around the Kings’ locker room after their game on Saturday, but Harry Giles enjoyed arguably his best game of the season.

The Sacramento Kings were beaten down by the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday night in a game in which they stood little chance. Emotions were running high for LA after enduring almost a full week of grief and endless tributes, and were primed for a victory after having one game postponed and then losing to the Trail Blazers upon returning to the court. But one bright spot for Sacramento was the play of Harry Giles.

The Sacramento frontcourt was almost set up for failure in this game, with three regular-rotation centers absent with various different injuries and ailments. The Kings were left with Nemanja Bjelica and Giles as the only available players that stood taller than 6’8″. But they made a roster move before the game in order to add simply another healthy body, signing G-Leaguer Eric Mika to a ten-day contract.

Alas, it would be Giles and Mika who were tasked with matching up against Anthony Davis, Dwight Howard, and Javale McGee.

Giles Improves On A Weak Spot

Mika scored 6 points and pulled down 7 rebounds, but it was Giles who was the most impressive King of the night. He put up a season-high 16 points and tied a season-high with 8 rebounds in just 19 minutes of play. He showed a little flash in the third quarter, taking McGee off of the dribble and beating him to the basket for a nice layup. While many of his buckets were easy dunks and layins that came from crisp passes from his teammates, it was his improvement in his weakest area that was most notable.

One of the biggest knocks on Giles is his tendency to get himself in to foul trouble, which could be one of the reasons why the Kings have been reluctant to give him minutes in the regular rotation.

Before the game, Tim Maxwell of Sactown Royalty fired off a tweet that called Giles one of the most foul-prone players in the league, and highlighted his eye-opening per-36 numbers.

Giles ended up committing just two fouls despite him receiving his second-highest minutes total on the season. While it would be erroneous to say that any King played solid defense, Giles was at least able to stay on the floor and keep the roster from stretching any thinner.

When asked about his solid night in the foul column, Giles mentioned that he had seen Maxwell’s criticism, and added that he wasn’t exactly sure who the Royalty writer is.

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With the status of both Dewayne Dedmon and Richaun Holmes being uncertain, Giles will likely see more opportunities and minutes until they return.

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