Jordan Poole and the Wizards pull off rare win with victory over the Kings

WASHINGTON (AP) — Jordan Poole scored 23 points and the Washington Wizards beat the Sacramento Kings 116-111 Wednesday night to split the season series between the teams.

Bub Carrington and AJ Johnson each added 19 points for the Wizards, who entered Wednesday tied with Utah for the fewest wins in the NBA with 16. Tristan Vukcevic had 17 and Anthony Gill added 10.

DeMar DeRozan scored 20 of his 29 points in the fourth quarter trying to rally the Kings from a 14-point deficit after three quarters. The Kings outscored the Wizards 34-25 in the fourth, but never got closer than 111-109 inside the final minute.

Domantas Sabonis had 18 points and 16 rebounds for the Kings. Keegan Murray and Zach LaVine had 18 apiece.

Kings: They have lost three straight to start a six-game road swing that is their last of the season. The Kings needed this win trying to hold onto a spot for the play-in tournament. Sacramento came in at No. 10 with only two games left against teams either eliminated already or below the Kings in the Western Conference standings.

Wizards: They snapped a three-game skid to improve to 8-30 at home this season, which still is the fewest home wins in the NBA this season.

JT Thor made one basket when it mattered most. DeRozan had scored 18 points to pull the Kings to 111-109 with 55.6 seconds left. Thor, called up from the G League earlier Wednesday and playing his 16th game with the Wizards, made a 3-pointer with 40 seconds remaining. DeRozan missed a short layup, and Carrington added two free throws with 28.2 seconds to go.

The Wizards made 17 of 43 3-pointers while the Kings struggled outside the arc, making only 10 of 39.

Sacramento visits Charlotte on Friday night. Washington wraps up a homestand Thursday night agsinst Orlando.

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Washington Wizards guard Bub Carrington (8) passes the ball between Sacramento Kings center Jonas Valanciunas (17) and guard Keon Ellis (23) during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Washington, Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Terrance Williams)

Sacramento Kings guard Markelle Fultz (20) shoots the ball over Washington Wizards forward Tristan Vukcevic (00) during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Washington, Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Terrance Williams)

Sacramento Kings forward DeMar DeRozan shoots a three point basket as Washington Wizards forward Justin Champagnie (9) defends during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Washington, Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Terrance Williams)

Washington Wizards forward Anthony Gill (16) shoots a three point basket as Sacramento Kings guard Zach LaVine defends during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Washington, Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Terrance Williams)

Washington Wizards forward Alex Sarr (20) shoots the ball over Sacramento Kings forward Domantas Sabonis (11) during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Washington, Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Terrance Williams)

Sacramento Kings forward DeMar DeRozan (10) handles the ball against Washington Wizards forward Justin Champagnie during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Washington, Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Terrance Williams)

Sacramento Kings forward Domantas Sabonis (11) has his shot blocked by Washington Wizards forward Alex Sarr during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Washington, Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Terrance Williams)

Sacramento Kings guard Zach LaVine (8) goes to the basket for a lay up and is fouled by Washington Wizards forward Alex Sarr during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Washington, Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Terrance Williams)

Washington Wizards forward Alex Sarr (20) shoots the ball over Sacramento Kings guard Keon Ellis (23) during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Washington, Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Terrance Williams)

Washington Wizards guard AJ Johnson (5) dunks the ball as Sacramento Kings guard Malik Monk defends during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Washington, Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Terrance Williams)

BANGKOK (AP) — The impact of U.S. President Donald Trump’sblast of tariff hikes was reverberating across world markets Monday as America’s trading partners puzzled over whether there is room for negotiating better deals.

Several countries said they were sending trade officials to Washington to try to talk through the crisis, which has cast uncertainty over the global economic outlook, hammered markets and left U.S. allies wondering about the value of their ties with the world's largest economy.

However, Germany’s economy minister, Robert Habeck, was defiant as he arrived at a meeting of European Union trade ministers in Luxembourg, saying the premise of the wide-ranging tariffs was “nonsense” and that attempts by individual countries to win exemptions haven’t worked in the past.

It's important for the EU to stick together, he said. That “means being clear that we are in a strong position — America is in a position of weakness.”

China, which hit back Friday at Washington with 34% tariffs on U.S. products and other retaliatory moves, accused the U.S. of failing to play fair.

“Putting ‘America First’ over international rules is a typical act of unilateralism, protectionism and economic bullying,” Foreign Affairs spokesperson Lin Jian told reporters.

The ruling Communist Party struck a note of confidence even as markets in Hong Kong and Shanghai crumpled. “The sky won't fall,” declared The People’s Daily, the party's official mouthpiece. “Faced with the indiscriminate punches of U.S. taxes, we know what we are doing and we have tools at our disposal.”

Leading big drops in many markets, Hong Kong’s stock benchmark, the Hang Seng, plunged 13.2%. The Shanghai Composite index, meanwhile, lost 7.3% despite reported moves by regulators to staunch the losses.

China’s Commerce Ministry said officials met with representatives of 20 American businesses including Tesla and GE Healthcare over the weekend and urged them to take “concrete actions” to address the tariffs issue.

During the meeting, Ling Ji, a vice minister of commerce, promised that China will remain open to foreign investment, according to the readout by the ministry.

South Korea’s Trade Ministry said its top negotiator, Inkyo Cheong, will visit Washington this week to express Seoul’s concerns over the 25% tariffs on Korean goods and discuss ways to mitigate the damage to South Korean businesses, which include major automakers and steel makers.

Pakistan also planned to send a delegation to Washington this month to try negotiate over the 29% tariffs on its exports to the U.S., officials said. The prime minister ordered Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb to assess the tariff's potential impact on Pakistan's fragile economy and draw up recommendations.

The U.S. imports around $5 billion worth of textiles and other products each year from Pakistan, which heavily relies on loans from the International Monetary Fund and other lenders.

In Southeast Asia, Malaysia’s Trade Minister Zafrul Abdul Aziz said his country will seek to forge a united response from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to Trump's sweeping tariffs.

As chair of the 10-nation body this year, Malaysia will lead a meeting Thursday in its capital Kuala Lumpur to discuss broader implications of the trade war on regional trade and investment, Zafrul told reporters.

“We are looking at the investment flows, macroeconomic stability and ASEAN's coordinated response to this tariff issue,” Zafrul said. He denied reports Malaysia had imposed a 47% tariff on imports from the U.S., saying the actual average Malaysian tariff on American exports is 5.6%.

He said that he had met with the U.S. ambassador to Malaysia to try to clarify how the U.S. came up with its 24% tariff.

Indonesia, one of the region's biggest economies, said it would work with businesses to increase its imports of U.S. wheat, cotton, oil and gas to help reduce its trade surplus, which was $18 billion in 2024.

Coordinating Economic Affairs Minister Airlangga Hartarto told a news conference that Indonesia will not retaliate against the new 32% tariff on Indonesian exports, but would use diplomacy to seek mutually beneficial solutions.

Some Southeast Asian neighbors, including Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar, face tariffs of over 40%, giving Indonesia a slight advantage, he noted.

“For Indonesia, it is also another opportunity as its market is huge in America,” Hartoto said. He said Indonesia would buy U.S.-made components for several national strategic projects, including refineries.

Associated Press journalists from around the world contributed to this report.

People walk by an electronic board displaying Shanghai shares trading index at a brokerage house, in Beijing, Monday, April 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)

Containers are stored in the small harbor in Frankfurt, Germany, Sunday, April 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)

Shipping containers are stacked at Port Botany in Sydney, Australia, Monday, April 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft)

Vehicles make their way on a street at the main business district in Jakarta, Indonesia, Monday, April 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana)

A man walks on a pedestrian bridge as tall buildings are seen in the background at the main business district in Jakarta, Indonesia, Monday, April 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana)

New cars sit at Tilbury Port in Essex, Britain, Monday April 7, 2025. (Jamie Lashma/PA via AP)

People watch a live screen on the facade of Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) building in Mumbai, India, Monday, April 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Rajanish Kakade)

While a stock exchange trader sits in front of his monitors on the trading floor of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, Germany, the display board with the Dax curve shows a value of less than 20,000 points. (Arne Dedert/dpa via AP)

Indonesian Coordinating Minister for Economics Airlangga Hartarto, right, speaks during a press conference in Jakarta, Indonesia, Monday, April 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana)

A dejected investor waits to restart trading, suspended for an hour following a 5% drop in in its main index at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSE), in Karachi, Pakistan, Monday, April 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan)

Pedestrian are reflected on a brokerage house's window as an electronic board displays shares trading index, in Beijing, Monday, April 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)

A dejected investor waits to restart trading, suspended for an hour following a 5% drop in in its main index, at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSE), in Karachi, Pakistan, Monday, April 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan)