The West is as brutal as it gets. A single game can swing teams from 6th to 8th and back again. Tiebreakers are likely to play a big factor in the final seeding for the playoffs, and determining who avoids the play-in tournament. The Kings hold a 2-1 season lead over the Mavericks. The Kings sit in 8th, 1 game behind the 6th place Mavericks. Every game matters, but this one really matters.
Let’s talk Kings basketball!
When: Friday, March 29th, 7:00 PM PT
Where: Golden 1 Center, Sacramento, CA
TV: NBC Sports California, NBA TV
Radio: Sactown Sports 1140
Last Time
The Kings got demolished by the Mavericks on Tuesday in Golden 1 Center. The Kings missed open looks, while the Mavericks couldn’t seem to miss even when well-guarded. Sometimes it’s just not your night, but more alarmingly the Mavs simply looked like the better team. I don’t particularly feel like reliving the whole event again, but you can refer to Mirann’s excellent recap for the gritty details.
Three in the Key
Fresh Legs: Last game, the Kings were playing their 5th game in 7 nights, and they were on a back-to-back. The Mavericks were also on a back to back, having traveled from Utah the night before, so this isn’t me making excuses. But the reality is that the Kings looked like they did not have their legs. Both teams have had the last two days to rest and recover in Sacramento (great job, schedule makers, zero notes), so both teams enter this game fresh. No excuses, time to go run them off the floor.
Stars shine bright it in the heart of Sacramento: De’Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis both need to be better than they were on Tuesday. Domas finished with 12/11/9, which feels kind of silly to be complaining about, but the Mavs really did a good job of taking him out of his flow. Some of that may have been back to back games where Domas took more headshots than Rocky, but Domas needs to dominate. Fox also needs to be better. 18 points on 18 shots just doesn’t cut it. I want to see Fox fully engaged on both ends of the floor tonight.
Go Out And Take It: The Kings tend to play their best against good teams and in big moments. Well this is it. For all the talk from the Kings coaches and players about how they need to be better, how they need to be consistent, now is the time to do it. Go out there and give the Mavs 48 minutes of hell. The tiebreaker is there. The 6 seed is there. Now is the time.
Prediction
The Kings continue their season-long trend of making us wonder “why can’t they do this all the time?” and absolutely destroy Dallas.
Kings 122, Mavericks 103
Fan Predictions
Link to Leaderboard (Updated 2/21/24)
