SACRAMENTO – Winning basketball is more than just making shots.
Winning basketball is Keon Ellis, and what the young Kings guard did for nearly 50 minutes on the second night of a back-to-back in Sacramento’s 123-118 double-overtime win against the Miami Heat on Monday night at Golden 1 Center.
Ellis made, what felt like, 150 winning plays Monday night.
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The Kings led the way for most of the first half, with a 50-47 lead entering the midway break. But Miami outscored Sacramento 31-18 in the third quarter and took a 78-68 lead into the final frame.
Ellis had five points and was a minus-12 in plus/minus rating entering the final frame of regulation. And with Miami up by as many as 17 in the fourth, Ellis was doing everything he possibly could to help revive his team.
In about 11 minutes, Ellis had nine points on three made 3-pointers, including two huge back-to-back treys that forced Miami to call a timeout, along with two kick-ball violations, three assists, two rebounds (one offensive) and one steal.
His energy sparked a 24-7 Kings run to end the fourth and ultimately force overtime.
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“Young kid, man. He’s amazing,” Kings veteran star DeMar DeRozan said postgame. “The knack that he has defensively is incredible. A lot of things he do, I kind of just look at him. He don't even realize how much better he’s going to get at the things he’s already great at.
“So it's fun to see it – how incredible he is, the confidence he had when he shoots, when he’s shooting 3s and now making plays. We encourage him just to go out there and play. So it's big. He’s a key part, especially in our success these last five games.”
In the first overtime, the Kings were 0.2 seconds away from ending their win streak down by one point against the Heat. But Ellis drew a foul on Miami big man Bam Adebayo for a trip to the free-throw line.
Ellis had an opportunity to win the game for his team, but he missed the first free throw. He made the second to tie the game and ultimately send it to, yes, a second overtime.
The impact plays continued in yet another five minutes of basketball.
The Kings had a 117-112 lead with 3:16 remaining, but Heat forward Haywood Highsmith's 3-pointer brought the game within two before Ellis turned the ball over and Adebayo's layup tied the game at 117 a piece.
Rather than put his head down, though, Ellis responded the only way he knows how. As Jaime Jaquez Jr. powered through the paint and tried to lay the ball in and re-gain the lead for Miami, Ellis came flying in to block his shot. Malik Monk secured the rebound for the Kings and DeRozan scored on the other end.
Defense turning into offense.
Derozan took over from there, scoring nine points in the five minutes of double overtime. But it was all the little things – and a little confidence from his coach and teammates – that helped Ellis put on a two-way masterclass for the Kings.
“Keon is a special player,” Kings interim head coach Doug Christie said after the win. “He does a lot of things that you don't teach. It's timing, it's being slithery through screens, it's the timely shots, it's the willingness to do what I'm asking him to do, which I know is exhausting.
“And when he's five feet away from me, squatting down and I'm talking to him and he doesn't respond, I know that he's emptied the tank, and that is what everything is all about. So hats off to him. He’s big time.”
Ellis admitted after the game that he was tired, but he knew he had to stay in the game to help his team, playing without star point guard De’Aaron Fox, pull out a victory.
The patience Christie has had with Ellis to allow him to make mistakes and learn from them – something former Kings coach Mike Brown didn’t always do – has helped the young guard physically and mentally. Ellis spoke about some of the biggest differences he’s noticed thus far with the coaching change.
“It’s definitely been different in that aspect. [Christie’s] giving me a little bit more rope,” Ellis said. “Also late, when I had that turnover, those are crucial, but he’s like, ‘Don’t worry about it. You’ll get it back, just go get it on the other end.’ So things like that just ease your mind a little bit. And he’s out there telling me, if I pass up a shot, ‘Keon shoot it.’ So those are some of the differences with him out there.”
He also noted he “for sure” feels like he has a bit of a longer leash under Christie than Brown, and he appreciates the opportunities for growth with his new coach.
“We’re all pros so we know when you mess up you know what you did wrong and what you actually should’ve did,” he explained. “So whenever I do something wrong, I immediately know what should’ve been done or could’ve been done. I’m learning right there in the moment.
“But I know there’s times where you could make a mistake and it’s crucial, so you want to put more experienced guys in for you. But the faith that he has in me to play through it and correct myself is huge.”
In 29 games with Brown this season, Ellis averaged 6.3 points in 19.9 minutes with two DNPs (Did Not Play). Since Christie took over, Ellis has played 13, 20, 38, 24 and 49 minutes, respectively, through six games and is averaging 11.4 points in 33 minutes over that stretch.
In Monday’s win, Ellis finished with 17 points on 6-of-11 shooting and 3 of 7 from beyond the arc, with eight rebounds, three assists, three steals and one block in more than 48 minutes. Oh, not to mention 14 deflections. Yes, fourteen. The next player closest to that number was Adebayo with eight.
“He’s been amazing,” Kings star center Domantas Sabonis said postgame. “On top of that, he just stays cool. He’s calm. He stays level-headed. Talking back to the other team on defense. He’s big.
“Without him, we basically can’t win these games. When he’s locked in like that it makes life so much easier for everybody.”
After losing six in a row, the Kings have managed to turn things around with a five-game win streak. Ellis has played a major role in that, his teammates know it and the numbers show it.
“It means a lot,” Ellis said when asked what the support from his team means to him. “Especially for the amount of minutes I’m playing. You definitely want your teammates to have some confidence in you. So with them feeling that way, it just gives me more confidence when I’m out there to not second-guess myself or anything.
“I’m honestly out there just doing what I do and trying to show that I play better defense than Doug did.”
He laughed, and stated he was joking. But he likely wasn’t. Ellis, an undrafted free agent-turned-two-way player-turned impact NBA starter, already has proven a lot of people wrong in a short amount of time.
And at just 24 years old, he’s just getting started.