Auburn fans became well aware of Bryce Brown's ability to help provide an offensive spark during his four years on The Plains, and now the Sacramento Kings and their fans got a sample of Brown's ability last night in an 89-88 loss against the Miami Heat.
The Kings fell to 1-1 in the California Classic and will play their final game against the Los Angeles Lakers today at 4 p.m. CST. Following the game against the Lakers, Sacramento will head to Las Vegas on July 5 and will play its next Summer League game on July 6.
Brown did not play in Sacramento's first game on July 1 against former Auburn teammate Malik Dunbar – who also did not play in the affair – and the Golden State Warriors.
In Brown's NBA Summer League debut against the Heat, he contributed eight points on 50 percent shooting and two rebounds in 13 minutes.
The 2018-19 SEC Tournament MVP played roughly the final three minutes of the 2nd quarter but did not get a chance to do anything offensively. Brown went into halftime with a rebound and a foul.
His second chance to try and impress would come following a Sacramento shooting foul with 2:32 left in the third quarter.
Following the Miami free throws, Brown hit a 16-foot jumper for two and followed it up on the next possession with his first NBA three-pointer.
Sacramento was now back on top after Brown's quick five points with a 66-58 lead.
The Kings did not need to worry for the remainder of the third quarter as Brown, and his teammates off the bench, would help push Sacramento's lead up to eight at the end of the third quarter.
Brown's final basket of the night would come with 8:09 left in the fourth, a second three-pointer this time from the corner off an assist from Alex Robinson to give Sacramento a 78-66 lead.
The Georgia native came out of the game with 5:02 left in the game and with an 80-76 Sacramento lead.
Auburn's former three-point specialist, Brown, was just that for the Kings against Miami going 2-for-3 from beyond the arc and shooting 3-of-6 from the field in his 13 minutes on the court.
He had one glaring defensive mistake where he gave up a wide-open three-pointer in the fourth quarter, but Brown played well enough on both sides of the ball especially for this being his summer league debut.
Overall, Brown's debut was a solid start for a player looking to make it on an NBA roster once the regular season rolls around.
The Kings will look to finish the California Classic strong as they take on the Los Angeles Lakers today at 4 p.m. CST on NBA TV.
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