Kings' DeMar DeRozan exits vs. Suns with concerning back injury
Today at 11:42 PM
The Sacramento Kings will have to hold off the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday night without one of their stars. DeMar DeRozan left the game due to lower back tightness and will not return, according to Sean Cunningham of FOX 40.
The Kings will certainly miss DeRozan down the stretch of this one, as the former Chicago Bulls star has become one of the most reliable late-game scorers in basketball. The Suns will be well aware of that after DeRozan and De’Aaron Fox went crazy in the fourth quarter to knock off the Suns in Phoenix on Sunday.
DeRozan wasn’t super involved in this one offensively before exiting after 17 minutes of action. He only took two shots from the floor, making one of them and scoring just two points. However, he was stuffing the stat sheet in other areas with five rebounds, three assists, two blocks and a steal.
The Kings will miss DeRozan’s mid-range prowess, especially when the game slows down at the end. Now, it will be up to Fox and Domantas Sabonis to get it done for the Kings down the stretch.
DeRozan put up excellent stats in the win over the Suns just a few nights ago., In that game, he scored 34 points on 14-for-25 shooting while making tough shot after tough shot in the closing minutes. Fox also added 21 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists in the win.
It’s currently unclear whether DeRozan will have to miss additional time due to this injury, but the Kings will sorely miss him if he does. He is currently the Kings’ leading scorer in his first season with the team and is off to a spectacular start in 2024-25. Entering Wednesday, DeRozan was averaging 24.8 points per game to lead the team, and was shooting 52.6% from the field despite his jumper-heavy shot diet.
The Kings are one of the few teams to have three players averaging 20 or more points per game, so losing one of those pieces would be a major blow to the offense. Mike Brown and company are hoping that this injury is nothing serious and that DeRozan will be back on the floor soon.
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