Domantas Sabonis wasn’t supposed to return on Friday night–not yet. But the Sacramento Kings are sure glad he did.
Sabonis, who was thought to be unavailable until Sunday’s game against Los Angeles, was cleared from a hamstring strain early on Friday that resulted in him becoming available against the Utah Jazz.
In what was Sacramento’s home-opener, Sabonis’ clutch put-back basket during the final seconds of regulation delivered the Kings a 105-104 win–their first of the 2025-26 season.
Sabonis’ late-game heroics went hand-in-hand with a clutch final stop by veteran guard Dennis Schroder, who put the clamps on Jazz guard Keyonte George’s game-winning attempt that came up empty to finish off the winning effort.
It wasn’t a beautiful game from Sacramento, but they did enough in crunch time to come away with a win that–even in game two of 82–they felt like they needed.
The upcoming schedule is daunting, and the Kings need to stack wins when they can. Friday’s home-opener sent fans home with smiles on their faces, and that’s the most important thing for Sacramento (1-1).
Big stop for the Kings, and the Beam is back.
Look at the reaction from Sacramento following this one. pic.twitter.com/pkjObMmUrI
— Frankie Cartoscelli (@FCartoscelli3) October 25, 2025
Kings vs. Jazz recap & takeaways
After a sluggish start that included falling into an immediate six-point hole, Sacramento bounced back thanks to a red-hot start from Zach LaVine.
LaVine, who scored 30 points on 13-of-24 shooting from the field during Wednesday’s season-opening loss in Phoenix, scored 15 points on five-of-eight shooting (two-of-four from three-point range) over just seven minutes in the first quarter to ignite the Kings’ offense.
Ball movement was crisp early, as Sacramento handed out nine assists on the first 11 made baskets to take control heading into the second quarter.
After shooting 55 percent from the field and 50 percent from deep during the first quarter, the Kings’ offense struggled in the second, allowing Utah to stop the bleeding and keep things close. Sacramento shot just 32 percent from the field in the second, while LaVine went scoreless in the period.
The Sacramento Kings’ offense still appears to be a work in progress, as the ball-movement from the first quarter disappeared in the second (two assists and three turnovers). Still, Sacramento took a three-point lead into the second half as they looked to secure their first win of the 2025-26 season.
Malik on one end ➡️ Zach on the other pic.twitter.com/FnD7Xd8ii2
— Kings on NBCS (@NBCSKings) October 25, 2025
After going scoreless in the second quarter, LaVine got involved in the offense again as play entered the second half.
A sputtering Kings offense leaned on the star guard as LaVine scored nine points in the period to help Sacramento re-establish a lead, with Malik Monk continuing his strong start following Wednesday’s 19-point outing in Phoenix by scoring nine points of his own in the third to aid his teammate.
Monk and Russell Westbrook brought energy off the bench to breathe life into the Kings’ offense, with Monk’s buzzer-beating, step-back triple sending a packed crowd into a frenzy as Sacramento took a two-point lead into the fourth quarter.
While Utah’s three-point shooting was abysmal for the majority of the night, things shifted the other direction during the second half for the Jazz.
After going six-for-21 (28%) from downtown during the first half, Utah opened up the fourth quarter by knocking down three of its first six attempts to keep Sacramento close.
All-Star big Lauri Markkanen was a problem for an undersized Kings defense, and while he punished the Kings’ interior defense, supporting cast members Kyle Filipowski, Bryce Sensabaugh, and rookie Walter Clayton Jr. applied pressure from the perimeter to regain the lead with less than eight minutes to go.
LaVine, Westbrook, and Dennis Schroder all had big plays in crunch time, but Utah wouldn’t go away.
Westbrook’s foul on Markkanen with 28.1 to go allowed the Jazz to take a 104-103 lead, but Sacramento would answer in thrilling fashion as Domantas Sabonis corralled his own miss and went back up to give the Kings a one-point lead with 5.2 seconds remaining.
DOMANTAS SABONIS AND-1 FOR THE LEAD 🤯 pic.twitter.com/Fc7d15nH9D
— Kings on NBCS (@NBCSKings) October 25, 2025
Sabonis missed his and-one free-throw, giving Utah a chance to win on the final possession. Schroder did a solid job contesting Utah guard Keyonte George’s game-winning attempt, and the shot missed everything as Golden 1 Center erupted simultaneously as the final horn sounded.
It wasn’t pretty, but a gritty finish that culminated with timely baskets and stops on the defensive end gave Sacramento its first Beam of the 2025-26 season.
The Kings were able to hold off a late push from the Jazz offense, as Utah went five-of-12 (41%) from three-point range in the fourth quarter.
Although the Jazz found the bottom of the net from deep, a collective effort from a closing lineup that included Westbrook, Sabonis, Schroder, LaVine, and Monk got the job done.
Sacramento’s defense forced 19 turnovers on Friday, scoring 15 points off those turnovers.
The Kings also won the battle of the bench, with Monk (20 points), Westbrook (seven points), and Keon Ellis (five points) making a difference in that category.
As good as Monk and the bench were against Utah, LaVine is arguably the most impressive aspect of Sacramento’s first two games. The star guard scored 31 points in an encore performance from a 30-point effort in Wednesday’s season-opener.
Zach to the RACK 😤 pic.twitter.com/oUjvxJHTYc
— Kings on NBCS (@NBCSKings) October 25, 2025
LaVine finished the night with an efficient 10-of-18 showing from the field (four-of-nine from three-point range), adding seven of those points in the final period.
With De’Aaron Fox–Sacramento’s longtime leading scorer for most of the past decade–gone, the Kings are in need of someone to step up and be penciled in for 25-plus points a night. LaVine fits that bill with his ability to get hot from the perimeter and knock down tough, contested looks in the midrange.
Back-to-back 30-point efforts are quite a way to start the season for LaVine, who has picked up right where he left off at the end of last season when he averaged 22.4 points per game on 51/44/87 shooting splits over 32 games with Sacramento.
Sabonis Makes His Debut
While he was originally scheduled to be re-evaluated on Saturday, Domantas Sabonis (hamstring strain) made his season debut on Friday night.
Sabonis, who is known for playing through injuries, sat during Wednesday’s season-opening loss in Phoenix. After missing just one game, the three-time defending NBA rebound champion logged a practice session on Thursday before being cleared to return to the hardwood against Utah.
Sabonis throws it down AGAIN 🔨 pic.twitter.com/5zinkskw6I
— Kings on NBCS (@NBCSKings) October 25, 2025
The double-double machine continued his multi-tasking ways on Friday, scoring 12 points (including the game-winner) and grabbing 12 boards over 36 minutes of action.
“I can’t say enough about what Domas brings,” head coach Doug Christie said postgame of his center. “Really excited to see the big fella back in the building.”
Westbrook Lights The Beam
Russell Westbrook is already on his way to becoming a fan-favorite among Sacramento Kings fans.
Westbrook, who made his home debut on Friday, was a sparkplug during the win, scoring seven points and handing out four assists to go along with one steal over 17 minutes.
The future Hall of Famer was tasked with defending the seven-footer Markkanen at times, and his hustle plays didn’t go unnoticed–especially his triple in the fourth quarter that kept Utah from expanding on a four-point lead with less than five minutes to go.
Westbrook told reporters after the game that until joining Sacramento last week, he hadn’t played five-on-five since May, when he was playing for Denver in the NBA Playoffs.
Following the game, Westbrook made his way over to the scorer’s table, where he lit the first beam of the 2025-26 season.
“Been looking forward to doing that since I’ve been here,” Westbrook said of the beam lighting.
Russell Westbrook lights the first beam of the 25-26 Sacramento Kings season. pic.twitter.com/7PgxqrpSCi
— Brenden Nunes (@BrendenNunesNBA) October 25, 2025
Quick Hits
Sacramento was outrebounded 50-33 on Friday. The Kings were out-rebounded 51-37 against Phoenix.
The Jazz beat the Kings in paint scoring (48-36), fast break points (15-6), and second chance points (12-9), but still lost.
Dennis Schroder added 17 points on 8/16 shooting to go along with five rebounds and two steals over 33 minutes.
Sacramento Kings Injury Report
Keegan Murray (left thumb surgery recovery) is still three to five weeks from being re-evaluated.
Nique Clifford (right hamstring strain) will be re-evaluated in one week.
When is the next Sacramento Kings game?
The Sacramento Kings will conclude its brief two-game home stand on Sunday afternoon when it faces Luka Doncic and the LeBron James-less Los Angeles Lakers at Golden 1 Center.
Be sure to catch all of the Kings vs. Lakers action right here on Sactown Sports 1140 AM, with pregame coverage beginning at 4:30 PM PT on Game Night before a 6:00 pm PT tip-off from downtown Sacramento.
Upcoming Sacramento Kings schedule for the 2025-26 season
Sunday, October 26th – vs. Los Angeles Lakers – 6 PM PT
Tuesday, October 28th – @ Oklahoma City Thunder – 5 PM PT
Wednesday, October 29th – @ Chicago Bulls – 5 PM PT
Saturday, November 1st – @ Milwaukee Bucks – 2:00 PM PT
Monday, November 3rd – @ Denver Nuggets – 6:00 PM PT
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