The skies were clear Monday night in Sacramento, but it was raining 3s inside Golden 1 Center during the Kings' 131-118 win over the Brooklyn Nets.
Sacramento drained 25 3-pointers in the contest, setting a new franchise record for most triples made in a single game.
Kings All-NBA guard De'Aaron Fox set the tone early, knocking down Sacramento's first two triples of the game within the opening five minutes. The reigning NBA Clutch Player of the Year had an efficient shooting night from behind the arc, making five of his 10 3-point attempts and finishing with a game-high 29 points, three rebounds, eight assists and a plus-31 in plus/minus rating in 33 minutes.
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Fox drastically has improved his shot from deep this season. Before the start of the 2023-24 NBA season, Fox averaged just 3.8 3s a game and shot the 3-ball at a 32.1-percent clip over six seasons.
Through 15 games this season, Fox is averaging 8.1 3-point attempts per game and is shooting 36.9 percent from the mark. It's a small sample size, but Fox worked on his shooting all season with Kings assistant coach Luke Loucks -- and the results certainly are beginning to show.
Fox's game-high five made 3s was matched by Kings forward Trey Lyles, who finished with 17 points, six rebounds, one assist and one block in 23 minutes off the bench.
Lyles' 3-point flurry took over the start of the second quarter as he sank back-to-back 3s in less than 30 seconds. The 3-point explosion forced the Nets to call a timeout to reset -- but that didn't work. On the next Kings possession, Lyles made yet another triple.
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Shortly after, Lyles handed the 3-point baton over to Malik Monk, who sank his third 3 of the night. Monk made one more shot from deep and was 4 of 7 from 3-point range, finishing with 21 points, two rebounds, nine assists and one steal in 28 minutes off the the bench.
Keegan Murray also contributed four treys, shooting a perfect 4 of 4 from beyond the arc. After shooting 41.1 percent from 3-point range last season and breaking the all-time rookie 3-point record, Murray has struggled with his shot in his sophomore season. He entered Monday's game shooting just 29.8 percent from deep, but he didn't let that discourage him in the slightest as he couldn't miss a 3 against the Nets.
Harrison Barnes added three 3s, Kevin Huerter added two and Domantas Sabonis and Keon Ellis each contributed one triple.
The Kings wound up having an efficient shooting night altogether, shooting 51.1 percent from the field and 55.6 percent from deep. It was reminiscent of their historic offense last season, and while they haven't lived up to their offensive expectations consistently this season, Monday's showing was a good sign that they are on the right track.
"A lot like last year, that's exactly what it feels like," Monk said postgame on the historic 3-point shooting night. "The best offense in the NBA. So we got to continue to do things like this but also lock in on the defensive end because we knew the offense would get going at some point."