Top 10 Buzzer-Beaters In Sacramento Kings History

#8. 2/8/15 – DeMarcus Cousins vs. Phoenix

Our next entry comes from DeMarcus Cousins, who had plenty of big shots as a Sacramento King, but the one against Phoenix in 2015 was his only true buzzer-beater.

The again-struggling Kings were hosting Isaiah Thomas and the Phoenix Suns. Phoenix had a solid 29-24 record at the time and had beaten Sacramento in three of their previous four meetings.

The Kings entered the fourth quarter with a 14 point lead, which was gone when Thomas sunk two free throws to tie the game with two minutes left. After trading baskets and a subsequent empty possession for the Suns, Sacramento called timeout with three seconds left. The score was tied at 83.

Ben McLemore inbounded to Cousins at the top of the arc. The big man took two steps, a dribble, and then a pivot to shake free from Markieff Morris, then elevated for an off-balance jump shot a couple of steps behind the free-throw line. The buzzer sounded and the ball hung in the air, but not as long as it hung on the rim. After hitting the back iron, the ball bounced on the rim somewhere between three and five times before finally falling through the net.

How bad was that season? Cousins was the leading scorer that night with 28 points, but he committed 6 turnovers. The second and third-leading scorers for the Kings were McLemore and Ramon Sessions, who scored 13 and 10 respectively.