GameDay Notebook: Kings (16-21) vs. Mavericks (26-12)
These Sacramento Kings, man. How is anyone supposed to predict how this team is going to play from game to game? The only thing consistent about them is their inconsistency.
And yet, they manage to rope me right back in after every impressive win. They demolished the Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday night. Yes, the Cavaliers haven’t been playing well, and yes, LeBron James didn’t play, but if you are going to discount this win then you haven’t been watching the Kings play over the last few weeks. Every win is an important win for this team, and I couldn’t care less about how banged up the Cavaliers are. A near-twenty point win against a team with Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love has to count for something.
If you’re feeling optimistic, you could argue that the Kings have only played one bad quarter over their last three games. They are 2-1 in that stretch, and had it not have been for that horrific third quarter against Denver they could have been 3-0.
You can read more about Sunday Nights win here.
What does any of this mean? It’s hard to say. I feel compelled to suggest that the worst is over, and at the very least this team in no longer horrible (like they have been since Cousins went down and Malone was fired), but I’m not even sure of that. I just know that I’m intrigued again. I don’t want to say they ever lost my attention, because I love writing these GameDay Notebooks, and I love watching the team, but they’ve done enough to sort of bring people back on board. At least it feels that way to me.
The Kings are now 5-8 under Tyrone Corbin. Not good, certainly, but it’s a little more respectable. And DeMarcus Cousins looks like he’s almost back to where he was before Viral Meningitis wiped him out. The Kings are frisky again, and that’s better than nothing.
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The Dallas Mavericks are in Sacramento tonight. If nothing else, this game should be a pretty good indicator of where the Kings are.
The Mavericks have a dangerous team. They play smart, they play fast, and unlike a lot of teams who have a high-powered offense, they have Tyson Chandler in the middle defending the paint at about as high a level as you can defend it.
They just propose so many matchup issues. Both Rudy Gay and Ben McLemore have a tendency to lose their man off the ball, and they just cannot do that tonight defending both Chandler Parsons and Monta Ellis. And as we talked about in Sunday night’s GameDay Notebook, Jason Thompson isn’t an ideal defender around the perimeter, which is where Dirk Nowitzki does a lot of his damage.
So how do the Kings win tonight? They are probably going to need some help. DeMarcus Cousins is an amazing equalizer. When he’s on the floor, the Kings always have a chance. If he can get Tyson Chandler into early foul trouble, the Mavericks really don’t have the necessary size on their bench to stop Cousins inside.
On a similar note, Dallas really gutted a lot of their depth when they traded for Rajon Rondo a few weeks ago. Brandan Wright was very effective off the bench when the Mavericks defeated the Kings 106-98 earlier in the season. He was also responsible for keeping their defense together when Chandler was on the bench. They don’t have anyone to fill that role now. Getting Tyson Chandler out of this game as soon as possible should be Corbin’s top priority.
I have very little confidence in the Kings bench unit, but tonight’s game is an excellent opportunity for them to contribute, because that Mavericks bench is still a major work in progress.
The Mavericks have lost two-straight games coming into Sacramento tonight. You could look at that as either a negative or a positive. They may not be at the top of their game right now, but they could be highly motivated to get back on track.
We have a few hours before tipoff, why not take a few seconds to vote DeMarcus Cousins into the All-Star game? You can do that by tweeting something like this.
DeMarcus Cousins. #NBABallot #SacramentoProud https://t.co/uIdh9PGBDT
— Tony Xypteras (@TonyXypteras) January 13, 2015
Or you can just text COUSINS to 69622 (MYNBA).
As always, check back in to A Royal Pain after tonight’s game for our postgame coverage.
Sacramento Kings vs. Dallas Mavericks
Where: Sleep Train Arena – Sacramento, CA
When: 7:00 PM Pacific, 10:00 PM Eastern
Broadcast: Comcast Sportsnet California
Radio: KHTK Sports 1140 AM