A calf injury prevented Tyrese Haliburton from suiting up for a much-anticipated showdown with LaMelo Ball in the race for Rookie of the Year, so P.J. Washington and Buddy Hield put on a show instead.
Washington scored a career-high 42 points, spoiling a special night for Hield while leading the Hornets to a stunning 127-126 comeback victory over the Kings on Sunday night at Golden 1 Center.
The Kings led 121-112 with 2:19 remaining, but the Hornets ended the game with a 15-5 run and escaped with the win after Malik Monk converted a three-point play with 1.4 seconds remaining. The Kings missed six of eight free throws over the final 2:47.
“That’s a painful loss,” Kings coach Luke Walton said. “I feel for our guys. They really left it out there tonight other than being able to close out the game.”
Ball had 24 points and 12 assists for the Hornets (13-21). Monk came off the bench to score 21.
Hield scored a season-high 30 points for the Kings (13-21) and surpassed Stephen Curry as the fastest player in NBA history to make 1,000 career 3-pointers. Hield made 10 of 17 from the field and 8 of 15 from 3-point range.
Harrison Barnes had 28 points, six rebounds and six assists for Sacramento. Marvin Bagley III had a big game, too, posting his 10th double-double of the season with 24 points and 10 rebounds. De’Aaron Fox had 20 points and a season-high 14 assists.
Hield went into the game shooting career lows of 36.9% from the field and 36.1% from 3-point range, but he could hardly miss against the Hornets. He scored 11 points in the first 2:46 and finished the first quarter with 17 points on 6-of-8 shooting from the field and 5-of-7 shooting from beyond the arc.
Hield helped the Kings open up an early 24-10 lead, but the Hornets stormed back to cut the deficit to three at the end of the first quarter. The Kings carried a 67-66 advantage into the halftime break.
Hield reached a big milestone early in the third quarter when he made his 1,000th 3-pointer in the 350th game of his career. Hield reached that mark faster than any player in league history, including Curry (369), Klay Thompson (372) and Damian Lillard (385).
Sacramento gradually extended its lead to eight late in the third quarter. The Kings were still up by eight with under a minute remaining, but Terry Rozier buried a big 3-pointer and then made three free throws after Fox fouled him on a 3-point attempt, cutting the deficit to two.
After briefly leaving the game with an ankle injury, Hield returned to make the second of two free throws to put the Kings up 126-124 with 10.7 seconds remaining. The missed free throws proved costly.
On Charlotte’s final possession, Monk went to the basket for a driving layup and drew a foul on Kings center Richaun Holmes. Monk made the free throw to give his team the lead. Hield had a chance to win the game at the buzzer, but his half-court heave hit the front of the rim as time expired.
HALIBURTON UPDATE
Kings owner Vivek Ranadivé and general manager Monte McNair presented Haliburton with his Rookie of the Month trophy during a pregame ceremony, but Haliburton was held out due to injury on his 21st birthday.
Haliburton missed his third game in a row with left calf soreness. Walton said Haliburton is considered day-to-day, but it’s unknown if the rookie guard will return before the All-Star break.
“We’ll just keep evaluating him every day,” Walton said.
Kings center Hassan Whiteside and forward Jabari Parker were still out due to NBA health and safety protocols. Chimezie Metu remains out with a broken right wrist.
HORNETS’ INJURIES
The Hornets were hurting, too, with several players sidelined due to injuries.
Most notably, Gordon Hayward, the team’s leading scorer, was ruled out with a right hand contusion. Hayward is averaging 21.5 points, 5.4 rebounds and 3.7 assists.
Devonte’ Graham remained out with a left knee injury. Graham, Charlotte’s fourth-leading scorer, is averaging 13.7 points and 5.7 assists.
The Hornets were also missing center Cody Zeller (left hip contusion), who averages 9.7 points and a team-high 7.6 rebounds.
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