A Royal Pain
Fansided

Preview: Sacramento Kings Look to Avoid Sweep by Blazers

By Spencer Ault

Dec 27, 2015; Sacramento, CA, USA; Sacramento Kings guard Rajon Rondo (9) drives to the basket against Portland Trail Blazers guard Gerald Henderson (9) during the fourth quarter at Sleep Train Arena. The Portland Trail Blazers defeated the Sacramento Kings 98-94. Mandatory Credit: Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 27, 2015; Sacramento, CA, USA; Sacramento Kings guard Rajon Rondo (9) drives to the basket against Portland Trail Blazers guard Gerald Henderson (9) during the fourth quarter at Sleep Train Arena. The Portland Trail Blazers defeated the Sacramento Kings 98-94. Mandatory Credit: Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit

It’s something that would have been hard to imagine at the beginning of the season, but the Portland Trailblazers have had the Sacramento Kings’ number this year.

Portland has defeated Sacramento every time the two teams have met so far this season, and come into Sleep Train Arena on Tuesday looking for the season sweep.

Most other teams in the Kings’ situation (eliminated from the playoffs, in danger of losing their draft pick) would be tanking in aggressive fashion, all but ensuring the sweep for Portland.

More from Kings News

Those are normal teams, however, not the Kings, who are actually playing some of their best ball of the season as winners of four of their last six games.

Sacramento will need to keep playing their best ball in order to counter the hot-shooting Portland backcourt duo of Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum. Averaging a combined 56 points per game, the pair has propelled the Trail Blazers to a surprising 41-37 mark, and sixth place in the Western Conference.

Mar 28, 2016; Portland, OR, USA; Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard (0) shoots over Sacramento Kings guard Darren Collison (7) during the third quarter at the Moda Center. Mandatory Credit: Craig Mitchelldyer-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 28, 2016; Portland, OR, USA; Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard (0) shoots over Sacramento Kings guard Darren Collison (7) during the third quarter at the Moda Center. Mandatory Credit: Craig Mitchelldyer-USA TODAY Sports /

Lillard has yet to actually have a good game against Sacramento this year, so the Kings may be in for an overdue eruption from the Weber State product on tonight.

Sacramento’s young guns – Seth Curry and Willie Cauley-Stein – have played massive roles in the recent hot streak.

Curry is averaging over 13 points in the last ten games, including career highs of 21 points against both Miami and Portland. Cauley-Stein is averaging almost 11 points over that same timeframe, as well as 6.4 rebounds a game.

Strong performances by both Curry and Cauley-Stein weren’t enough to overcome the Trail Blazers when the two teams met just over a week ago in a 105-93 Portland win. The Kings, however, were without Rudy Gay, Rajon Rondo and DeMarcus Cousins, all of whom return to action on Tuesday night.

More from A Royal Pain

Cousins last played on March 30th against the Washington Wizards, so he comes into Tuesday’s game as rested as he’s been since the All-Star Break.

Rondo also returns after taking Saturday’s game off against the Nuggets, providing the Kings with a fully-loaded, well-rested starting lineup to try and stave off a season sweep.

A Sacramento win has the potential to mire Portland in a muck of the back of the Western playoff picture. That spoiler potential, plus the ignominy of a season sweep, is all the Kings have as motivation, although recent results seem to indicate that it’s all the motivation this Sacramento team needs.

Home/Kings News