The Sacramento Kings will face off against the Toronto Raptors this afternoon. But the purple and white will be shorthanded along the way.
The news has been released that both George Hill and Willie Cauley-Stein will be ruled out for today’s matchup against the Toronto Raptors.
Listed down below are tweets by James Ham, Sacramento Kings Insider for NBC Sports Bay Area, confirming the news for both players.
Willie Cauley-Stein will miss his third straight game today with a lower back strain.
— James Ham (@James_HamNBA) December 10, 2017
George Hill is out today due to personal reasons.
— James Ham (@James_HamNBA) December 10, 2017
For Hill, the reason for today’s absence is due to a personal reason that is not open to the public. For Cauley-Stein, it seems like the Kings’ big man is still nursing a lower back strain he experienced when the Kings faced off against the Milwaukee Bucks last week.
The Raptors, with a record of 16-7, is already a formidable opponent for the Kings. But now with Sacramento having two of their main rotation players out, it will be extremely difficult for the Kings to come out with the win, even on their home court.
The good news, however, is that the Kings have been playing good basketball as of late. If the purple and white are able to continue playing physical and vigorous basketball, they should be competitive.
Opportunities Open?
The absences also open up the opportunities for other players on the Kings to receive more playing time. With Hill being out, players like Buddy Hield and Bogdan Bogdanovic should receive more minutes. With Cauley-Stein’s injury, guys JaKarr Sampson, Georgios Papagiannis, and Skal Labissiere could see more time on the court also.
Final Thoughts
Overall, not an ideal situation for the Kings to have two rotation players out for them with a solid opponent in the Raptors playing against them. But it is part of the game and we shall see whether the Kings are able to give their fans a good performance today.