Russell Westbrook breaks NBA record for most career points by a point guard

6 days ago 2

Sacramento Kings guard Russell Westbrook continued to etch his name in history as one of the best point guards of all time.

Westbrook passed Oscar Robertson for most points scored by a point guard in NBA history when he scored his 26,711th career point on a driving layup with 4:23 left in the Kings' 129-102 loss to the Phoenix Suns on Friday night at the Mortgage Matchup Center in Phoenix.

He ended the game with 17 points on 50% shooting from the field.

Growing pains continue to loom for Sacramento, which suffered its fourth consecutive loss after another second-half slump. The Suns managed to outscore the Kings 65-46 in the second half.

Phoenix took advantage of careless turnovers Sacramento committed, scoring 23 points off the Kings’ 21 giveaways.

Devin Booker ended the game with 33 points to lead the Suns. Dillon Brooks added 18 and Mark Williams, Collin Gillespie and Oso Ighodaro each had 15.

Royce O’Neale was menacing on the defensive end with three blocks and two steals.

Keegan Murray led the way for Sacramento with 23 points and nine rebounds. DeMar DeRozan had 13 points on 4-of-8 shooting from the field and two steals. Dennis Schroder had 12 points off the bench and Keon Ellis had 14.

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Recap: Kings keys

Don't feed into Dillon Brooks' antics: Suns guard Dillon Brooks has made a name for himself as an NBA "villain." He antagonizes opponents with various antics and mental gymnastics, along with his scoring at 21.4 points per game. Whatever the Kings do, don't allow Brooks to get in your head and off your game. Brooks scored 18 points on 8-of-14 shooting.
Honor Collin Gillespie's shooting: Collin Gillespie is in his third year out of Villanova but the 6-foot-1 guard is proving that he can shoot the lights out, especially when he gets the hot hand. He averages 14 points per game and shoots 44% from deep. He has made five 3-pointers in each of the previous three games. Gillespie had 15 points but was held to 3-of-9 shooting from deep.
Get physical with Mark Williams: Mark Williams has been a gem for Phoenix; it's needed a center who can rebound, defend the rim and cause havoc in the paint. Williams averages 12.8 points and 8.2 rebounds per game, but he is someone who likes to play physical and Sacramento will need to match that energy for a chance to win. Williams tallied 15 points, nine rebounds, a steal and a block in 22 minutes.
Focus for 48 minutes: Obviously, Devin Booker is someone for the Kings to key on defensively, but none of that matters if Sacramento doesn't stay locked in and knock down shots for the full duration of the game. In their last game, the Kings remained neck-and-neck with the Celtics before a fourth-quarter dismantling. The Kings give themselves a better chance to win when they're competing at a high level all game, and not having spurts of letdowns. Sacramento had moments in the second half when it didn't show up offensively and was outscored 65-46.