Winning 10 games in a row is nothing new for a Celtics team that accomplished the feat just two seasons ago, but for one of Boston’s newest players, the streak has been nothing short of a revelation.
“I’ve never won this many games in a row,” said point guard Kemba Walker after the team’s latest triumph Friday. “I’ve never had a start like this. I’m just loving the way I’m feeling after games.”
Walker will try to recapture that feeling for an 11th straight game when his Celtics visit the Sacramento Kings on Sunday afternoon. Long a punching bag for many throughout the sport, these Kings are not to be overlooked, having won four of six since an 0-5 start.
In fact, while the Celtics narrowly closed out a 105-100 win over the Western Conference’s worst team, the Golden State Warriors, on Friday night, the Kings were giving the top team in the West, the Los Angeles Lakers, a serious run for their money. Late heroics from LeBron James and Anthony Davis ultimately resulted in a 99-97 Sacramento loss, but the positives from the outing were clear.
“We had some open looks we didn’t knock down, but that is a big, talented team, and I thought our guys were light on numbers,” said Kings coach Luke Walton, who didn’t have De’Aaron Fox (ankle, no timetable) or Trevor Ariza (groin, day-to-day) available. “We had to put guys in that hadn’t played much at all, and everyone that checked in fought and competed.”
Buddy Hield led Sacramento with 21 points but lamented a no-call on the game-sealing block from Davis that followed a tiebreaking pair of James free throws with 5.5 seconds left.
“We’ve got something good going here, but this game, we should have won. I think we just got it stolen away from us,” Hield said.
Boston had its streak nearly stolen away by Golden State, which led by five with 2:37 left on the clock. The Celtics responded with an 11-0 run to put the game away, Walker sealing a 14-point fourth quarter and the victory with a pair of free throws with 2.7 seconds to go.
Jaylen Brown scored 22 points, his fourth straight game with more than 20, and Jayson Tatum led all scorers with 24, including a thunderous dunk that put Boston up for good with 1:36 remaining.
“Relentless group,” Tatum said. “Just always on to next play.”
The Celtics’ streak is their longest since winning 16 straight early in the 2017-18 season. Boston’s game against Golden State kicked off a five-game West Coast swing that will wrap up with tough contests against the Los Angeles Clippers and Denver Nuggets.
The Kings will host the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday before setting off on a four-game East Coast trip of their own that includes a rematch against the Celtics on Nov. 25.
Boston has won seven of its past eight meetings with Sacramento, though the three most recent victories have been by single digits.
-Field Level Media
