PHOENIX _ Buddy Hield scored 28 points days after agreeing to an $86 million contract extension, but the Sacramento Kings were blown out in their first game under coach Luke Walton, falling 124-95 to the Phoenix Suns in the season opener Wednesday at Talking Stick Resort Arena in Phoenix.
The Kings led 29-25 at the end of the first quarter and carried a 59-54 lead into the halftime break. They went up by six early in the second half, but the Suns staged an 11-2 run to take an 84-73 lead late in the third period. Sacramento cut the deficit to single digits early in the fourth, but Phoenix pulled away with a 12-1 run.
Hield scored 22 points in the first half, making 8 of 12 field-goal attempts and 5 of 8 from 3-point range. He became the first Kings player to score 20 points in the first half of a season opener since Kevin Martin did it against the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2009, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
The Kings got a fresh look at Phoenix's dynamic young duo of Devin Booker and DeAndre Ayton. The Suns added Ricky Rubio in free agency, which might make Booker even more dangerous as a scorer and Ayton more of a force inside.
Booker, who averaged 26.6 points per game last season, finished with 22 points and 10 assists. Ayton, the No. 1 pick in the 2018 NBA Draft, had 18 points and 11 rebounds.
