A day after the Kings’ epic overtime win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday, Keon Ellis and De’Aaron Fox revealed what happened in the game. meeting reserved for players which happened before the match.
Speaking to reporters after Sunday’s practice, Ellis and Fox said the meeting allowed Kings players to express their opinions in a safe environment.
Ellis was asked what he thought about the players-only meetings, explaining why it was a positive experience for the team.
“I think it’s good that everyone expresses their opinion and says things that they think could help the team, things that we need to fix, etc.,” Ellis said. “They’re really helpful in bringing teams together and trying to realign everyone’s attention.”
Fox echoed those statements, telling the assembled media that the meeting was great for team morale because it allowed players who normally never speak when coaches are present to speak out.
“It was awesome,” Fox said. “I think if you’ve ever played a sport, you’ve been around guys who don’t talk openly when there are coaches around. I think that’s the good thing about player meetings, nothing has to leave the meeting, obviously we let the coaches know what our point of view was.
“You have to find a happy medium, obviously there are certain things you want to do that coaches don’t want to do [or vice versa] and you have to find that happy medium. Everyone talks to each other and communicates, and you go out there and make it work.
After a tough loss to the Denver Nuggets and without Fox, the Kings faced an uphill battle against the Timberwolves, ultimately securing the victory thanks to Malik Monk’s 39 points offensive explosion.
The win was a big confidence boost for the Kings, who have been mired in mediocrity during a recent stretch of the 2023024 NBA season, currently sitting just outside the top six in the Western Conference standings and at half a Phoenix Suns game.
Sacramento is 5-5 in its last 10 games and will need to keep winning to climb back up the standings and avoid a potential NBA play-in tournament matchup against the likes of the Dallas Mavericks, Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Angeles Lakers, all of whom are currently in play-in position.
