Sacramento Kings vs. Phoenix Suns preview, odds: Kings laser-focused on Suns
The staff with the NBA’s largest home-to-road discrepancy will look to shut that hole when the Phoenix Suns go to the Sacramento Kings on Monday evening.
The Suns have gained 4 straight, all at house, to enhance their report in Phoenix to 11-1. They are the winningest house staff within the NBA.
But Phoenix additionally has one of many worst highway information within the NBA at 2-5, having misplaced its final three away from house. Their solely highway wins have come towards the Los Angeles Clippers in October and the Minnesota Timberwolves nearly three weeks in the past.
Trips to Sacramento had been usually nice for the Suns final season, although their 2-0 highway sweep did not come simple, with the wins coming by a complete of eight factors, together with one in extra time.
But that was when the Kings had been on their technique to their sixteenth straight season with no playoff look. They may very well be on a unique path this 12 months, having opened 10-8 and simply 2 1/2 video games behind West-best tempo Phoenix.
The Kings have misplaced two straight, which got here on the finish of a troublesome three-game highway journey in Memphis, Atlanta and Boston that started with a win over the Grizzlies. Sacramento has gained its final six house video games after an 0-3 begin.
The scorching begin at house has introduced Sacramento’s consideration far. Team proprietor Vivek Ranadive has overseen what he hopes will likely be a longtime Sacramento custom: Purple laser beams shot into the sky from the highest of the sector after each house win.
“We played around with different ideas,” Ranadive mentioned. “Do we gentle up the Capitol constructing? Do we gentle up (the Tower Bridge)? What will we do? But we actually needed it to come back out of our constructing. So there you’ve it. Now we now have the purple lights within the form of a beam that shoots in outer house.
“It goes further than the human eye can see. As a tech guy, having four lasers beaming into outer space is pretty cool. I want the aliens to see it.”
The Kings have already lit up the Sacramento sky after spectacular wins over the Miami Heat, Golden State Warriors and Brooklyn Nets, the latter when Sacramento scored an environment friendly 153 factors.
The Suns proceed to be with out Cam Johnson, with a torn meniscus in his proper knee, however they had been completely happy to welcome again key reserve Landry Shamet of their 113-112 house win over the Utah Jazz on Saturday evening.
Shameti had missed seven straight video games with a concussion.
“You can have a lot of surgery after you’re done playing on your knees, ankles, wrists, bones, whatever,” Shamet mentioned. “But you’ve a mind and a coronary heart. You have to carry again (typically).
Shameti performed quarter-hour off the bench in his return, hitting one in every of his two photographs. He celebrated with the Kings final season, scoring 21 factors in a win at Sacramento in March earlier than matching that with a season-high 27 in a house loss in April.
