Golden State Warriors at Sacramento Kings
Time: 10:05 PM ET
Spread: GSW -10.5
Total: 218
Betting odds c/o Bovada
It’s strange when a 17-29 record constitutes a great improvement, but the Sacramento Kings look better and much more competitive this year. That will be fully put to test tonight in hosting the red hot Golden State Warriors.
Golden State is favored by 10.5 points at Bovada while the total is set high at 218, a reflection of these teams abilities to score en masse.
The Kings have struggled badly of late. Sacto has lost eight of its past 10 games and is just 10-15 at home this season, while the Warriors are 15-6 on the road. Golden State has won seven of its past 10 and has the best point differential but a substantial margin in the West, at plus-11.2.
The Warriors have discovered that Draymond Green is an even better option at the 4-spot than David West, and he’s sure to get a big contractual reward this offseason, somewhere. Green averages 11.5 points per game but is one of three Warriors with a PER above 20.0.
Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson remain the league’s deadliest backcourt duo, averaging 45.7 points between them. Thompson is coming off a game which featured a 37 point quarter in a 52 point effort over Sacto on Jan 23.
Can the Kings prevent this from happening again? Prior to the last two contests against Phoenix and Utah, Thompson had connected on 11 made field goals or more in his previous four games. Thompson had 22 points, four assists, three rebounds and two steals in the 106-87 win over the Phoenix Suns on Jan 31.
The Warriors have a lot of niche component players like Marreese Speights (quick scoring), Harrison Barnes (tough wing defense and athleticism), Andre Iguodala (another defender) and starting center Andrew Bogut, yet another strong defender. The Warriors are just as tough defensively under Steve Kerr as they were under Mark Jackson, and there is a good reason to believe the tough play carries them through the West in the postseason.
Thus far, no team has exhibited a stronger propensity to put teams away once a lead is built. It helps that Curry and Thompson are both strong offensive to the point that if one has a bad game, the other isn’t. That makes the Warriors the formidable contender they are.
The Kings are coming off a 99-94 win over the Indiana Pacers, due largely in part to Rudy Gay’s 31 point effort. DeMarcus Cousins also grabbed 19 boards (to go with 20 points) as the Kings held a plus-6 advantage on the boards. The Kings shot just 42.5 percent from the floor but got to the line to hit 26 of 29 while also scoring 20 points off 14 Pacers’ turnovers. Those faults won’t be there against a tough team that takes care of the ball tonight, but Sacramento could come out hot and get a good enough start to prevent the Warriors from covering the double-digit spread.
Cousins is battling an ankle issue but should be ready to go for this contest. The fourth year center from Kentucky is having his best pro year yet, averaging 23.6 points and 12.6 rebounds per game while also blocking 1.6 shots per contest. His career averages are about four points and two rebounds lower, so the improvement has been substantial. Part of it may be due to the strengths of Darren Collison in the backcourt, though, too. Collision has returned to the level of play he exhibited his rookie season behind Chris Paul in New Orleans.
Collison’s speed and passing acumen should help the Kings eventually ascend the standings. The team badly lacks depth and could bear great improvement defensively, but the Kings are coming together on the offensive end of the ball and at least look like a team that no longer should really be in the lottery. The problem is that the Kings are in the West, of course.
