English
Español
The Lakers (35-24) will face another opponent in their division on Sunday when they take on the Sacramento Kings (14-47) at home. This is the last time these two teams will square off this season.
Start time and TV schedule
Who: Los Angeles Lakers vs. Sacramento Kings
When: 6:30 p.m. PT, Mar 1
Where: Crypto.com Arena
Watch: Spectrum Sportsnet
The Lakers snapped what felt like their worst losing streak of the season on Saturday in the best way possible by putting together a dominant performance against Golden State. Sure, the Warriors were down two of their best players, but this win felt like a much-needed morale boost. It was also a reminder of what this Lakers team looks like when it’s playing like its best self.
Now, the question is: was the victory simply an anomaly or are the Lakers back to their winning ways? Because the team that we saw prior to this victory over the Warriors was the worst version we’ve seen all season and it’s important that they don’t appear again, especially at this time of the year. We could get our answer as early as Sunday’s game against the Kings, who will enter this contest with the rest advantage.
The Kings are currently the worst team in the league. Not only have they lost eight out of their last 10 games, but they recently snapped a 16-game losing streak, the worst in franchise history. They’re so down bad that they currently rank 28th in the league on both offense and defense.
Frankly speaking, losing to the Kings would be such a shame simply because they’ve only won 14 games this season and have already defeated the Lakers once. Yes, Los Angeles will be on the second night of a back-to-back, but this is a game they must get, especially since they dropped multiple winnable games over the last week.
For that to happen, it would be nice to see another team-effort performance from the purple and gold. There’s no need for Luka Dončić and LeBron James to go above and beyond for this one considering the Kings’ putrid defense. It would be ideal to see everyone contribute in the scoring department. The Lakers should feast inside the paint, which the Kings don’t really defend well.
Speaking of defense, the L.A. will not have to worry about containing Sacramento’s best scorer in Zach LaVine since he won’t be playing in this one due to injury. The same goes with Domantas Sabonis. So it’s really about making sure DeMar DeRozan, Malik Monk and Russell Westbrook don’t play extraordinarily well.
After a horrible week that saw them lose three straight games, the Lakers have the chance to bounce back by winning two in a row. A win on Sunday will also improve their record against a Pacific Division opponent, which could come in handy when playoff seedings get sorted a month from now. Let’s see if the Lakers can capitalize against the Kings on Sunday.
Notes and Updates
- Since the Lakers are on a back-to-back, the injury report for this game has yet to be released.
- For the Kings, expect Zach LaVine (finger surgery), Domantas Sabonis (left knee meniscus repair), Keegan Murray (left ankle sprain), De’Andre Hunter (left eye repair), Dylan Cardwell (left ankle sprain) to be out.
- The Lakers are currently 7-7 against Pacific Division teams this season.
You can follow Nicole on Twitter at @nicoleganglani.