DeMar DeRozan put up 34 points against the Knicks - a number that jumps off the stat sheet. But dig a little deeper, and it tells a more complicated story, one that mirrors the broader struggles plaguing the Sacramento Kings this season.
Let’s start with what’s undeniable: DeRozan is a mid-range maestro. Few players in NBA history have made that area of the floor their personal canvas the way he has.
Even in his 17th season, he can still light it up, and on any given night, he can hang 30-plus on an opposing defense. That’s what he did in this game - and yet, it wasn’t nearly enough.
The Kings lost to a Knicks team that didn’t exactly blow the doors off, and despite DeRozan’s scoring outburst, Sacramento never really looked like a team ready to seize control. That’s the issue.
This isn’t about whether DeRozan can still get buckets - we know he can. The question is whether those buckets are coming within the flow of an offense that’s built to win.
Right now, the answer seems to be no.
Take a closer look at the numbers. DeRozan went 13-for-26 from the field - a clean 50%, which is solid on the surface.
But when you zoom in on the three-point shooting, things get rough. He was just 1-for-7 from deep.
That’s not a small sample size - that’s a pattern. And it’s one that raises eyebrows, especially for a player who’s never been known for his perimeter shooting.
Even more telling? DeRozan finished with zero assists.
None. That’s a glaring stat for a player who had the ball in his hands as much as he did.
It suggests a lot of isolation, a lot of shot creation for himself, and not much in the way of playmaking for others. That’s not necessarily selfishness - it might be desperation.
But either way, it’s not sustainable.
And this isn’t just a DeRozan problem. It’s a Kings problem.
Only two other players hit double figures in scoring, and neither came remotely close to DeRozan’s total. That kind of imbalance is tough to overcome in today’s NBA.
You can’t expect one player to carry the load every night, especially when the supporting cast isn’t consistently stepping up.
What we’re seeing from Sacramento is a team with talent, but not cohesion. There are flashes of individual brilliance - DeRozan’s 34 being the latest - but rarely does it translate to a collective effort that wins games. Too often, it feels like everyone’s playing their own game rather than working toward a common goal.
DeRozan played nearly 40 minutes and took more shots than the entire Kings bench combined. That’s a heavy workload for a veteran, and it speaks to just how much Sacramento is leaning on him. But when the team finishes with just 87 points, it’s clear something’s not clicking.
The Kings don’t lack firepower. They lack flow.
The kind of rhythm that comes from trust, ball movement, and shared responsibility. Until they find that, nights like DeRozan’s 34-point outing will keep feeling more like missed opportunities than milestones.