With the season series and seeding implications on the line, this is one of the biggest games for the Lakers and Kings both.
The Lakers will host the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday, the team they’ve been trying to catch in the Western Conference standings all year. These two teams will see each other twice in the next week and there are many seeding implications on the line.
Start time and TV schedule
Who: Los Angeles Lakers vs. Sacramento Kings
When: 7:30 p.m. PT, Mar.6
Where: Crypto.com Arena
Watch: Spectrum Sportsnet
The Lakers and Kings are both in the play-in spots in the Western Conference standings. With the Kings up by just 1.5 games, Los Angeles will be looking to close the gap and prevent Sacramento from winning the season series. To say that this game is huge for the Lakers is an understatement.
To win on Wednesday, the Lakers can start by playing like they did in their win against the Oklahoma City Thunder after being down 13-2 early in the first quarter. Sacramento is another undersized team that’s had a fair share of problems against big and good defensive teams this season, which the Lakers can be. But make no mistake: De’Aaron Fox and Malik Monk also have what it takes to give the Lakers problems.
This game will boil down to who wins their corresponding matchups against each other. It’s going to be an interesting backcourt and front court battle between both teams.
D’Angelo Russell and Austin Reaves vs. Fox and Monk
Fox and Monk have cooked the Lakers this season, specifically in their first two matchups in October and November. At that time, the Lakers’ current starting backcourt wasn’t playing the way it is now.
Russell, in particular, wasn’t averaging more than 20 points and 3.3 threes made per game in the first two months of the season as he has been more recently. Meanwhile Reaves has contributed consistent offensive production all year but his defense has stepped up since the All-Star break.
These two, along with their fellow Lakers guards, will be tested on Wednesday and it’s going to be up to them to not only keep up with Sacramento’s shotmaking abilities but also play really good defense.
Fox (26.8) and Monk (15.4) are two of the top three scorers of this Kings team, who have the 14th-best offense in the league and average the eight-most points per game (118.1) this season. They haven’t shot the three ball as well as last season, and their defense still has flaws. The Lakers are fully capable of exposing the weakness of this team.
Anthony Davis vs. Domantas Sabonis
Davis has faced Sabonis eight times in his career and has yet to win a game against the Lithuanian-American big man. It’s about time AD changed this, especially since there was a lot of talk amongst the media about why Sabonis should’ve gotten the All-Star nod this year instead of Davis. Going up against Sabonis won’t be a walk in the park for AD, but he’s clearly the better player and it’ll be nice to see him limit Sabonis on offense.
This frontcourt matchup is going to be instrumental to the success of both teams, as the Kings depend on Sabonis as much as the Lakers rely on Davis. The Lakers’ frontcourt of LeBron James and Rui Hachimura also needs to outplay Harrison Barnes and Keegan Murray, who aren’t as physical as they are. It’ll also be nice if the Lakers bench shows up in this game like they did against OKC, led by Taurean Prince’s 14 points.
Note that this Kings team is coming off a disappointing loss to the Chicago Bulls last Monday and is most likely going to enter this game with the goal of rebounding. They may have slipped this season but this young team is very much capable of outplaying any opponent every night.
It won’t be surprising to see this Kings team come out motivated to win this one, knowing that they have the chance to claim the season series advantage against the Lakers, who are lurking behind them in the standings. It’s L.A.’s responsibility to make a statement once again and capitalize on the opportunity to climb up the standings.
Let’s see if the Lakers can do that on Wednesday.
Notes and Updates:
- With a win on Wednesday, the Lakers could improve to 8-6 against Pacific Division opponents this season.
- The Kings have lost five out of their last ten games and are a mediocre team (18-15) on the road. Meanwhile, the Lakers have done a good job protecting their home court this season, as they’re 22-10.
- For the Lakers’ injury report, Anthony Davis (bilateral Achilles tendinopathy) and Cam Reddish (right ankle sprain) are probable.
- LeBron James (left ankle peroneal tendinopathy) is listed as questionable while Jarred Vanderbilt (right foot soreness), Christian Wood (left knee effusion) and Gabe Vincent (left knee surgery) and Collin Castleton (right wrist fracture) are all out.
- As for the Kings, only Sasha Vezenkov (right ankle sprain) is out.