Kings, Hornets to play for NBA Summer League title — PHOTOS

Even after a dominant performance in an NBA Summer League semifinal on Saturday, Sacramento Kings forward Isaac Jones was quick to point out some areas of improvement.

“Too many missed free throws, too many turnovers and not enough rebounds,” Jones said as he ran through the box score.

Still, Jones did more than enough to lift Sacramento to the Summer League championship game.

The 6-foot-9-inch forward posted his best performance of the Summer League, scoring a game-high 36 points and hitting several key baskets late as No. 4 seed Sacramento fended off top-seeded Toronto 98-88 in the first semifinal Saturday at the Thomas &Mack Center.

Jones was “unbelievable,” Kings Summer League coach Dipesh Mistry said. “I said (to him), ‘Welcome to the party.’ We know he has that in him, that kind of potential, and he was all over the floor. When he was at (power forward) and (center), he was just attacking the rim and making the right play.”

Sacramento (5-0) will face No. 3 Charlotte — which defeated No. 2 Oklahoma City 109-80 in the other semifinal — at 7 p.m. Sunday at the Thomas &Mack Center for the Summer League title. The Kings are seeking their third Summer League title; Charlotte will play for its first Summer League title.

‘Staying aggressive’

The Kings have showcased stellar guard play throughout the Las Vegas Summer League, led by their 2024 first-round pick Devin Carter and former Colorado State guard Nique Clifford, who was selected 24th overall in the first round last month.

On Saturday, Jones came up clutch late as Toronto (4-1) got within one point in the final minutes. Toronto’s Alijah Martin hit a layup with 3:15 left to cut Sacramento’s lead to 83-82.

Then Jones took over. He answered on the ensuing possession by backing down his defender for a layup and hit a free throw to complete the three-point play. He posted a personal 7-0 run the next minute to give Sacramento some breathing room as the Kings held on for the win.

“I felt good,” Jones said. “They have a lot of faith in me and my teammates were giving me the ball in the right spot and I got comfortable early and I just knew it was going to be a good game.”

Jones grabbed six rebounds and dished out two assists on a 13-of-17 shooting effort.

He got help from starting center Maxime Raynaud’s 12 points and seven rebounds, and Mason Jones, who scored 17 points off the bench.

Jones was undrafted out of Washington State last year. He signed a two-way contract with Sacramento last summer and spent the entire season with the Kings organization. He helped their G-League affiliate, the Stockton Kings, win the G-League title early this year.

“I wanted to make quicker decisions than I used to and staying aggressive because I feel that’s the biggest part of my game, and I continue to work on that and my 3-point shot,” Jones said of what he wanted to showcase this Summer League.

Sacramento raced to an early 18-4 lead in the first quarter, and it appeared to be a runaway. Then Toronto cut into the deficit and used an 11-2 run near the end of the first half to trail 48-42 at the break.

The Kings started to pull away again in the third quarter, using a 17-1 run to take a 75-60 lead entering the fourth quarter. The Raptors turned up the pressure on defense and forced 19 Sacramento turnovers to get it close late.

“It was good. We attacked the pressure well in the first half and then it got a little bit messy in the fourth,” Mistry said. “Those were the keys, take care of the ball and make them feel us. We wanted to try to get them to turn over the ball as well, but in the fourth quarter, we got to look back at the film and get better at taking care of the ball.”

Jamal Shead scored 24 points to pace Toronto and Ja’Kobe Walter added 19.

Charlotte rolls Thunder

While Sacramento’s large lead nearly evaporated twice, Charlotte (5-0) didn’t let Oklahoma City (4-1) get back into the second semifinal.

Jaylen Sims scored 25 points on a 10-of-14 shooting effort to lead the way for Charlotte.

“It’s really impressive,” Charlotte Summer League coach Chris Jent said. “We talked about it earlier, being the most competitive, together team we could possibly be throughout this tournament and they showed up every game. For being together for a short period of time, they’re really a close-knit group.”

Kon Knueppel, the fourth overall pick in this year’s draft, added 17 points for Charlotte.

Knueppel has improved throughout the Hornets’ Summer League games after scoring just five points in their Vegas opener on July 11.

“He’s just playing more comfortable,” Jent said. “He’s comfortable, the first game a little nervous. It’s our first game of Summer League, that’s to be anticipated. Now he just found a little bit of a rhythm and flow and he’s only going to get better.”

Branden Carlson scored 12 points to pace Oklahoma City, and Malevy Leons and Brooks Barnhizer both added 10 points each. The Thunder shot 31.8 percent (27 of 85) from the floor.

Contact Alex Wright at awright@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AlexWright1028 on X.