Kings' Isaiah Thomas Heaves Prayer of Shot Against Warriors; It's Answered

The start of the NBA season can't get here soon enough.

Pro Basketball Talk's Kurt Helin spotted this video featuring the Sacramento Kings' Isaiah Thomas heaving an audacious shot in an exhibition game and getting rewarded because of it.

Consider this video the one gift you can open before Christmas, because it's that good.

With a little more than two minutes to go in the fourth quarter, the Kings trailed the Golden State Warriors in Wednesday's preseason game, 87-86.

Thomas moved to his right and eventually tumbled to the ground but maintained his dribble, albeit a bit tenuously. The 24-year-old heading into his third year in the league launched a desperation attempt with the shot clock about to hit zero.

From there, we are to assume that he called bank before the shot drained through.

If you are wondering, this is just the kind of thing that Thomas does. So goes the thinking of his Kings teammate DeMarcus Cousins, who offered the following, via The Sacramento Bee:

"

That's what Isaiah does. He brings energy to the game regardless if he's starting or coming off the bench. He's done it first year, second year and I'm sure he'll continue to do it.

"

Coach Michael Malone got a tad more sentimental in his assessment, via a report from The Sacramento Bee's Jason Jones:

"

(Thomas is) like that guy with the Eveready battery on his shoulder. You've got to knock it off. He's got a chip on his shoulder, he's got a huge heart, and I'll never bet against Isaiah.

"

Now Helin notes that the video credits him with a three-pointer. However, referees reviewed the play after the shot and credited the Kings guard with a two when they noticed his toes on the line.

As Helin says, that is hardly the point. The fact that the Kings would win a tight one, 91-90, is also of little consequence.

The real aspect of crucial import to take away from all of this is the NBA season is just around the corner. Soon ridiculous shots like this will come during games that actually matter.

Wednesday featured a sick Blake Griffin dunk, a slam from a resurgent Greg Oden and this last-second heave from an exciting player.

While the wins and losses don't count just yet, the highlights are doing their job in making us crave the regular season.

Things are about to get mighty entertaining.

Hit me up on Twitter: 

Follow @gabezal