Can the Kings get revenge?
The Sacramento Kings receive a visit from the Memphis Grizzlies. The game in the NBA starts at 04:00 on 18/12/2021 and the visitors are hoping for their fifth win in a row!
Sacramento Kings – Statistics & current form
The last time the Kings qualified for the play-offs was 15 years ago and there is no sign of an end to this long drought. Instead, interim coach Alvin Gentry’s hoopsters are only eleventh in the Western Conference.
The 1951 champions can be quite convincing on the offensive end, but regularly lose their games because of sloppy defensive work. Only Orlando and Charlotte are behind the five-time Pacific Division winners in the NBA’s defensive rating. However, Buddy Hield is reliable when it comes to three-pointers.
He delivers an average of 3.5 per game and only Stephen Curry tops this value in a league-wide comparison. However, in December his throwing skills from outside left him for the time being, because in the first four games of the current calendar month Hield only made four successful threes.
Recently, however, he showed his old strength again at his core competence: Thus, Hield exceeded his average value of 3.5 in the three past games against Cleveland, Toronto and Washington with four in each case.
However, in the last head-to-head duel with Memphis last November, he was not accurate: only one of his nine attempts from outside found its target.
Memphis Grizzlies – Statistics & current form
Coach Taylor Jenkins’ selection has been without Ja Morant of late. The best rookie of 2020 and currently the highest-scoring player in the Tennessee squad is in quarantine, but had already suffered a knee injury that will keep him out of action in the coming weeks.
Despite this painful absence, the Grizzlies have been very stable: Eight of the ten league games without Morant have been won! The continued strong performance of the visitors is partly due to the convincing performances of Desmond Bane.
Last year, the sophomore was nominated for the All-Rookie 2nd Team and this season, the youngster is already performing very efficiently. Around 16 points per game are a very appealing output so far.
Sacramento Kings – Memphis Grizzlies Tip
For the clash between the Sacramento Kings and Memphis Grizzlies, the prediction includes an away win. The visitors are playing strong even without Ja Morant and are looking for their fifth win in a row. The prediction is also supported by the fact that Desmond Bane can play for the Grizzlies.
The shooting guard was injured in the penultimate game against the Sixers, but it was nothing more than a minor injury, as he already delivered 23 points in the most recent game against Portland.
