The Grizzlies playoff run fell short and they finished with a 40-42 record. More than 150 fans attended the signing ceremony, a show of the optimism for a Grizzlies team with five starters returning from last season. Gay on Thursday inked an $82 million US deal to stay with the only team the four-year NBA veteran has known. "I feel like I won an Oscar or something," Gay said. Conversely, the Kings’ 16 turnovers created 16 Knicks’ points.The Grizzlies serenaded Rudy Gay on Thursday even though he had already agreed to remain in Memphis.īut before he actually signed the five-year contract on Thursday at the FedExForum, he watched a video presentation of some of his highlight plays, a live band played and local politicians praised him for his charitable contributions in Memphis.
Coming into the game ranked as the fourth-most efficient team in the league in terms of turnover ratio, the Knicks coughed the ball up 18 times, leading to 21 Sacramento points. New York was uncharacteristically sloppy with the basketball, as well. The Kings had the advantage in transition, outscoring New York 14-6 on the fast break. The Knicks outrebounded the Kings 45-42 and outscored them in the paint 44-42. Smith, who sat out with a fractured left cheekbone. Sacramento was 40-for-85 (47.1 percent) overall, 10-for-23 (43.5 percent) from deep and 16-for-19 (84.2 percent) at the foul line. Felton notched 12 assists but was just 3-for-11 from the floor and finished with eight points, while Iman Shumpert had three steals. DeMarcus Cousins finished with 19 points and 14 rebounds, Williams scored 14 points and Thompson had 10 rebounds.Īmar’e Stoudemire played a season-high 37 minutes for the Knicks and scored 20 points, while Chandler finished with 17 points and 11 rebounds. The Knicks would never have possession in a one-possession game again.īesides Fredette’s big night, Gay and Thomas each scored 20 points for the Kings, with Thomas also chipping in with seven assists. Gay then stole the ball and got it to Derrick Williams for a dunk and a five-point lead. After Anthony blew the bunny on the opening possession, Gay knocked down a 3-pointer after Isaiah Thomas tracked down a long offensive rebound of his own missed 3. Anthony missed a jumper as time expired and the teams headed to overtime tied at 93-93. With 20.8 seconds to go, Gay knocked down a 16-foot pull-up jumper to tie the game. Jason Thompson rebounded the miss and the Kings took timeout with 37.5 seconds left. Gay missed from long range after a Fredette steal and Raymond Felton clanked a 3-ball at the other end. The teams then exchanged missed 3-pointers. Sacramento trailed by five after Tyson Chandler hit a layup with 1:41 left in regulation, but Fredette answered with a 3-pointer to make it 93-91. The Kings chipped away at the deficit in the third period, rallying after New York had reopened the lead to 12 points and cutting the Knicks’ advantage to 74-72 heading into the fourth quarter.įredette scored nine in the fourth quarter to help bring the Kings all the way back, again hitting 3-of-4 from long range.
Anthony faltered late, missing a potential game-winner in regulation and blowing a layup on the first possession of the extra session, where he was scoreless.įredette’s big night began in the second quarter, when he entered the game between periods and lit up MSG, scoring 15 points on 6-of-8 shooting, including 3-of-4 from 3-point range, as Sacramento closed a big early deficit to six points by halftime, 54-48. Jimmer Fredette scored a career-high 24 points for the Kings (18-35), who salvaged the final game of a four-game road trip heading into the All-Star breakĬarmelo Anthony had 36 points and 11 rebounds for the Knicks (20-32), who go into the All-Star festivities with two straight losses.