Ellis answers his own call with career performance in Kings’ loss

Ellis answers his own call with career performance in Kings’ loss originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SACRAMENTO – About eight hours before tip-off against the Atlanta Hawks on Monday, Keon Ellis was asked about players stepping up to fill the void left by several injured Kings.

“It’s just room for everybody to come in and step up and show what they can do,” Ellis said after the Kings’ shootaround Monday morning. “So with guys out, I mean, we’re a team for a reason. One guy goes down. , it’s the next guy up.”

Little did he – or the rest of the world – know it would be him.

Ellis went from an undrafted two-way player to an impact starter for Sacramento last season after turning heads with his defense and locking down big-name superstars like Steph Curry.

He has always been effective from 3-point range and shooting almost 44 percent from beyond the arc during his time with Sacramento’s G League affiliate, the Stockton Kings. But playing alongside players like De’Aaron Fox and DeMar DeRozan, who demand the ball so much, and shooters like Kevin Huerter and Keegan Murray, Ellis has always been of the mindset that he never “does too much” and plays his role as whatever the team asks of him and needs.

Monday night with DeRozan, Domantas Sabonis and Malik Monk all out due to injuriesThe Kings needed Ellis to be aggressive on the offensive end of the floor. He took up the challenge.

“Hell of a job by Keon,” Kings coach Mike Brown said after Sacramento’s down-to-the-wire 109-108 loss to Atlanta. “We’ve been on him about, if you’re open, to let that thing go. And tonight he let it go. He’s a good shooter.

“He shot (44 percent) from the 3 when he was in the G League. Last year he was around 40. So we know he can shoot the basketball. And it was great to see him step into it and let the flight tonight.”

Ellis let it fly six times without missing before finally seeing a 3-ball rim out midway through the second quarter. He was 6 of 8 from beyond the arc at halftime.

Three minutes and 32 seconds after checking in in the third quarter, he surpassed his career high in points after knocking down three more triples. His previous high was 26 against the Oklahoma City Thunder late last season.

During his heater, several of Ellis’ teammates, such as Monk and Trey Lyles, were seen on the NBC Sports California game broadcast with big reactions to his 3-pointer.

Ellis revealed after the game what his teammates and coaches told him in the midst of it all.

“Guys just kept saying let it fly. Same with the coaches,” he said. “I think Kevin said to me during a timeout, ‘That’s the way you have to chase shots and kind of step into it, just let it fly. Don’t really think about it. If you feel it, especially at the time you feel it a bit, just keep trying to chase shots.’ Everyone just kept saying keep shooting it.

“So I think everybody kind of knew I was on fire. So they just didn’t want me to hit three threes or whatever and then try to go out there and pump fake the next one and try to play or whatever. They just wanted me to go out and try to be aggressive still.”

Ellis finished with 33 points on 9-of-17 shooting from the field and 9-of-15 from beyond the arc, with six rebounds, an assist, a steal and a block in 33 minutes off the bench. He tied Doug McDermott for a team-high plus-15 in plus/minus rating.

“It was great,” Fox said postgame of Ellis’ performance. “I mean, even though he looks over the course of his career, he’s a 40 percent 3-point shooter. I don’t think people gave him the credit he deserves. I think if we start winning at a high level then I think guys or I guess national people will start to see that.

“But the way he shot the ball tonight was definitely unbelievable for us and kept us in the game. He had big moments for us, even getting to the (free throw) line down the stretch. He was big for us today.”

The 24-year-old entered Monday’s contest averaging 5.3 points while shooting 34.4 percent from 3-point range on 2.5 attempts per game this season.

Sacramento wants, and often needs, Ellis to attempt more threes than he has — especially when he’s open. But he has passed on more opportunities in previous games, leading to missed opportunities and some frustrating turnovers.

For him, though, he says he’s always more focused on making the right play rather than looking for his shot. After Monday’s performance, he finally realized that maybe sometimes it was the right play is the one who shoots the ball.

“Probably a little bit always trying to make the right right play,” Ellis said of his hesitation to shoot this season. “Sometimes the right play is just for you to step in and shoot it, even if there’s a guy open on a one-more (pass). Especially with the start we had, just trying to get out there and every opportunity I have to try to make the aggressive play, instead of always trying to do one-more or whatever, but still try to play the right way.

The Kings don’t need Ellis to drop over 30 every night, especially after getting their reinforcements back in DeRozan, Sabonis and Monk.

But his offensive aggressiveness could be just as impactful as his defensive aggressiveness moving forward for Sacramento, even with its big three back intact.

“With everybody coming back, we know the type of talent we have on this team,” Ellis said. “So I think if you add half the shots I made tonight when everybody comes back, I think it just takes us to a whole other level as a team. So just trying to keep that aggression and try to get in where I can.”

Ellis is one of the more reserved, straight keel players on the team.

Even after having his two-way contract converted to a standard NBA contract at the end of last season, he remained poised and laser-focused on trying to help the Kings keep their playoff hopes alive.

His response after Monday’s career performance? Giving credit to his teammates for helping make it all happen.

“I think it just goes to the talent we have on the floor,” Ellis said. “You’re kind of going to force the role players to beat you. So if I make a couple of 3s, I’m pretty sure (the Hawks) will adjust a little bit. But I’m not like a Fox type of player where teams would just double me or try to blow me or something.

“They’re going to continue to try to see if I can keep it going. So I think Fox is still putting pressure where they really have to focus on him and he’s creating the open looks. We still have other guys, that you have to pay attention to. And then the shots just come where they come from the flow of the game. So I think that’s how it ends up happening most of the time.

He’s not wrong, but the humble response perfectly embodied the player and person Ellis is.

And that’s why Brown, walking out of his postgame press conference, not content with the loss his team just suffered, gave one final shoutout to the young guard.

“What Keon did was amazing,” Brown expressed as he exited the press room, making sure a disappointing loss didn’t overshadow the impressive performance.

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