Nicely, the Fox is again within the…er…hen-house? De’Aaron Fox and the Spurs are set to tackle his former workforce in a what’s more likely to be considerably of an amped showdown after Fox put the Kings in between a rock and a tough place with the specifics of his commerce request.
It’s been a season of changes for San Antonio, nonetheless reeling from the lack of Victor Wembanyama to a season-ending blood clot, however they haven’t thrown within the towel simply but — managing to maintain their report near .500 over the past ten video games, and coming in off of a win after giving the Rockets, Grizzlies, and Thunder all they may deal with.
In the meantime, the Kings proceed their push for playoff positioning, making this a vital check for each groups. They’ve needed to cope with their very own adjustments in panorama, however have kind of managed to take care of equilibrium, with Chicago castoffs Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan making up for the Fox’s exit scoring-wise, and now having to do much more with Sacramento additionally down a proficient large man in Domantas Sabonis.
Thankfully for the Kings (and never a lot for the Spurs), Sacramento had the great sense to rescue Jonas Valančiūnas from the wasteland that’s Washington’s District of Columbia, and he’s given them their first true heart in a while and confirmed to be a well timed acquisition. Given the state of San Antonio’s front-court (and Valančiūnas’ knack for going off in opposition to the Spurs), that’s not the perfect state of affairs that Sabonis’ harm would usually have supplied.
Sacramento stays a harmful offensive workforce (seventh in offensive score, eighth in scoring) and so they play stable basic basketball (sixth greatest turnover proportion, sixth greatest rebounding proportion, 2nd greatest free-throw proportion), so the Spurs must thread the needle with a purpose to create benefits in opposition to them.
Nonetheless, there’s vulnerability there, as their offensive scores have declined barely because the commerce deadline, at the same time as their protection has improved. With two of their high 5 scorers out, the Spurs have an actual shot to place a damper on their postseason ambitions; particularly if Devin Vassell has a repeat efficiency of his onslaught in opposition to the Nets.
Whether or not it finally ends up being a revenge recreation for Fox or simply one other night time of hard-fought basketball, one factor’s for positive — the Spurs aren’t going away simply but.
San Antonio Spurs at Sacramento Kings
March seventh, 2025 | 9:00 CT
Watch: KENS 5 | Hear: WOAI (1200 AM)
Spurs Accidents: Charles Bassey – Questionable (Knee), Victor Wembanyama – Out (Incurable Badass)
Kings Accidents: Domantas Sabonis – Out (Leg), Malik Monk – Questionable (Foot)
For the Kings’ fan’s perspective, please go to Kings Herald.
PtR’s Sport thread will likely be up this night for individuals who need to chat by means of the sport. You may also comply with together with the motion by means of PtR’s Twitter feed.
