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After the Sacramento Kings blowout home loss to the Golden State Warriors on Friday, interim head coach Doug Christie called a meeting with his starters to address some concerns.

Chief among Christie’s issues was making sure his team understood the gravity of their situation. The Kings are battling for a spot in the Western Conference Play-In Tournament with several team.

Christie also addressed the team’s commitment to defense and their need to improve their communication. Included in this meeting were Domantas Sabonis, Keegan Murray, DeMar DeRozan, Malik Monk and trade deadline acquisition Zach LaVine. Christie hoped that my addressing his five starters that the message would filter down to the rest of the team, as well.

Ja Morant played in his first game since receiving an eight-game suspension on Wednesday. Morant came off the bench and checked in with 3:05 left in the first quarter.

The Memphis Grizzlies’ crowd cheered loudly for Morant when he brought the ball up the court for the first time and again after his first basket.

“It meant a lot, man,” said Morant. “Obviously, I’m thankful and grateful for everybody who’s been supporting me during this time. It definitely helped me a lot, definitely made me feel a little better. Eased everything that was going on. Felt good to be back. Super excited. Glad we was able to get the win.”

Morant said he meditated before the game to attempt to calm his nerves.