The Denver Nuggets (21-11) are set to face the Sacramento Kings (17-14) later tonight and will try to prove they are the true Kings of Sacramento. They are finishing arguably their best game of the year after defeating the Phoenix Suns on Christmas Day and taking sole control as the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference. With most injuries healed, the Nuggets have no excuse not to keep their vibes high. They have his four-game winning streak, all of which are quality wins (except his one for the Hornets, which was a bit of a stinger). .
The Kings, on the other hand, got off to a good start to the year. They are the 7th best offense in the league and pose many strong offensive threats to players like De’Aaron Fox, Domantas Sabonis and Kevin Harter. As you can see, this is going to be a challenging matchup.
essentials
Who: Denver Nuggets (21-11, 9-8) vs. Sacramento Kings (17-14, 9-6 at home)
When: 8:00 PM (MST)
Location: Golden 1 Center, Sacramento, CA
How to watch: League Pass if outside Denver, AltitudeTV if available, 92.5 FM KKSE Altitude Sports Radio in Sacramento
Rival blog: Sakuto Town Royal Family
Expected starting line-up:
PHX: PG De’Aaron Fox, SG Kevin Harter, SF Keegan Murray, PF Harrison Barnes, C Domantas Sabonis
DEN: PG Jamal Murray, SG Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, SF Michael Porter Jr., PF Aaron Gordon, C Nikola Jokic
Injured: Colin Gillespie (leg), Jeff Green (fingers/hands), Domantas Sabonis (thumb)
3 things to watch
Contain Dearon Fox
De’Aaron Fox is one of the most explosive guards in the league, and Denver has had problems involving quick guards. These days, they’ve had more success on the defensive side, and they’ve been doing a good job of containing the Foxes. If Malone plays him tonight, we’ll end up with KCP, Bruce Brown, Aaron Gordon, and possibly Christian Brown’s defensive chops. Those three are good these days, but they need to excel against fast opponents like Fox.
Aaron Gordon’s All-Star Bid
Aaron Gordon has been a powerhouse all season and people are starting to notice it. He was a potential Dunk of the Year on Christmas, establishing himself as a contributor to high-level teams. He will have to continue this quality play to get the votes he needs and will have the opportunity to contribute to a struggling team. He is his second best nugget and an All-Star he could be the first nugget to join Nikolajokic in the game.
bone struggle
Recently, Bones Hyland has struggled to get the ball into the hoop — averaging 10.6 points 38% from the field and only 32.8% from over the 3-point line over the last 11 games. Defensively, he hasn’t been there all season, but the Nuggets bench needs him working well as a unit, and he seems to be on his mind lately, and this shooting slump in his It takes a big match to get out of. When Malik Monk comes off the Kings’ bench, he’ll have someone to face.
