The Sacramento Kings and New York Knicks square off this evening in a match up featuring two teams fighting for favorable positioning in the playoffs.
Going into tonight’s showdown, both teams have 44-31 records.
Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m. ET at Madison Square Garden in Manhattan, N.Y.
The Kings are coming off back-to-back wins against the Utah Jazz and Los Angeles Clippers.
The Knicks are trending in the other direction. They have lost three straight games.
The Knicks are also dealing with the demoralizing news that power forward Julius Randle has to undergo season-ending shoulder surgery. Randle is a three-time NBA All-Star.
Sacramento Kings Look to Avenge Home Loss to the Knicks on March 16
On March 16, 2024, at Golden One Arena in Sacramento, the Knicks defeated the Kings 98-91. In that game point guard Jalen Brunson led the way for the Knicks with an impressive 42-point effort. Domantas Sabonis scored 21 points for the Kings.
The Associated Press reports:
“The Knicks have gone 24-14 at home. New York is second in the NBA allowing just 107.9 points per game while holding opponents to 46.9% shooting.
“The Kings are 21-16 in road games. Sacramento scores 117.1 points and has outscored opponents by 1.4 points per game….
“Sabonis is scoring 19.8 points per game and averaging 13.7 rebounds for the Kings. Keegan Murray is averaging 2.7 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games.”
As reported by TheSportRush.com, Brunson has “efficiently carried the [Knicks] through [much of] this regular season.”
The Kings’ second-year guard, Keon Ellis, will likely draw the assignment of guarding Brunson, as he did in Sacramento on March 16. And, we can expect Davion Mitchell to assist Ellis in trying to keep the Knicks star in check. Ellis and Mitchell are both defensive stalwarts. Ellis was named to the SEC All-Defensive team during his senior year (2022) at Alabama. And, Mitchell was twice named to the Big 12 All-Defensive team during his college days at Baylor.
The Knicks Are Dealing with Bad News
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported today (April 4, 2024) that the Knicks have announced Julius Randle “will undergo will season-ending right shoulder surgery….”
“This is a significant blow to a Knicks team that has shown promise of making a postseason run. New York (44-31) was 12-2 with Randle and OG Anunoby in the lineup together and had the league’s No. 1 defense during those 14 games. The Knicks have largely played the past two months without Anunoby and Randle but are in fifth in the East and only one game out of the third seed.”
BREAKING: After two months of rehabilitation to attempt a return to the New York Knicks, All-NBA forward Julius Randle will undergo season-ending right shoulder surgery, sources tell ESPN. pic.twitter.com/Yc6FJAPgp7
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) April 4, 2024
As noted above, Randle is a three-time NBA All-Star.
Die-hard Knicks fan and ESPN personality, Stephen A. Smith, was heartbroken when he learned the new about Randle on the set of First Take early in the morning on April 4, 2024:
“Being a New Yorker, SAS is a die-hard New York Knicks fan. He has rooted with this team throughout his life and was extremely happy to see them as the dark horses of the Eastern Conference this season. However, Julius Randle’s season-ending surgery seems to have left Smith heartbroken ahead of the postseason. Smith believed the Knicks had a genuine chance to contend for the title this season. However, the chances of that happening now seem bleak.”
For continuing coverage of the Sacramento Kings and their playoff run, stay tuned to Hardcourt Heroics.
For more related sports news, focused primarily on the Sacramento Kings, USC Trojans, SMU Mustangs, and Los Angeles Rams, please follow me at @vshjah_Victor.
