Preview: Kings, Jazz meet again following Friday’s thriller

Jan 3, 2023, 10:12 AM | Updated: 10:20 am

Upcoming Sacramento Kings Schedule Tuesday, January 3rd – Sacramento Kings @ Utah Jazz – 6:00 P...

(Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images)

Editor & Kings Beat Writer

Just a few days removed from an absolute classic of a game at Golden 1 Center, the Sacramento Kings and Utah Jazz will meet again on Tuesday night.

Sacramento (19-16) pulled out a nail-biting 126-125 win over the Jazz (19-20) on Friday night as Kevin Huerter’s career-high 30 points and late triple propelled the Kings to a narrow victory in front of a loud crowd at Golden 1 Center.

On the first night of a back-to-back, Sacramento will hope to defeat Utah for the second time over five days, but Tuesday’s game could be challenging as guards Kevin Huerter (back) and Malik Monk (shoulder) are currently listed as questionable.

Utah holds a 12-6 record on their home floor, meaning that the Kings will need to bring it if they want to secure their 20th win of the season.

On the heels of a sluggish offensive performance against the Memphis Grizzlies, Sacramento’s high-powered offense will go head-to-head with a fellow top-five scoring force in the Jazz (117.3 points per game).

Kevin Huerter is a bad, bad man.

30 PTS (career-high)
12/18 FG
6/10 3PT
30 MIN

Game-winner.
Red Velvet.
Clutch.pic.twitter.com/vpCMV2rzjr

— Frankie Cartoscelli (@FCartoscelli3) December 31, 2022

Sacramento Kings vs. Utah Jazz Game Info

When: 6:00 PM PST

Where: Vivint Arena – Salt Lake City, UT

TV: NBC Sports California

Radio: Sactown Sports 1140 AM – Pregame coverage starts at 4:30 PM PST on Game Night

Line: Jazz -3.5, O/U: 242.5

What To Watch For

Put A Mark On Markkanen

Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen acted as a thorn in the sides of Sacramento defenders on Friday night.

The 25-year-old finished the night with 36 points on 16-of-24 shooting from the field over 35 minutes with 11 points coming during the fourth quarter.

Markkanen was the driving force behind Utah’s late comeback, as the Finnish product scored seven points over the final 90 seconds to put the Jazz in front by two points with less than 10 seconds to go. Huerter’s go-ahead triple saved the Kings as a final game-winning attempt from Markkanen missed everything, but Sacramento can’t let the Jazz star get hot again on Tuesday.

Keeping Markkanen in check should be at the top of head coach Mike Brown’s to-do list for this one. Whether that means more minutes for KZ Okpala or double-teaming the seven-footer, the Kings need to throw a lot more pressure at Markkanen tonight.

Let Sabonis Work

Speaking on containing bigs, the Utah Jazz might want to have a different approach to Domantas Sabonis during Tuesday’s rematch.

Sabonis dominated the Jazz’s interior defense during Friday night’s win, as the center scored 28 points on a perfect 12-for-12 shooting performance while also pulling down 11 rebounds and handing out eight assists (all with a broken thumb, mind you).

Domas is too big 😤 pic.twitter.com/typKLoZf6y

— Kings on NBCS (@NBCSKings) December 31, 2022

Utah’s frontline of Kelly Olynk, Jarred Vanderbilt, and Walker Kessler struggled to stop Sabonis–and the Kings should continue to hammer that aspect of the game until Sabonis runs into trouble.

If the big man is rolling, let him roll.

Sabonis is playing like an All-Star this season, meaning that the next time we see him take the floor in Salt Lake City could be during February 19th’s NBA All-Star game.

Changing Of The Guard(s)?

With the statuses of Huerter and Monk currently up in the air, Sacramento might need to get creative with its guard rotation on Tuesday.

Terence Davis, who has fallen out of the rotation since the Kings’ win over the Los Angeles Lakers on December 21st, would be in line for significant minutes if both players cannot suit up. If Huerter is ruled out, Brown could look to start Davis in order to keep Monk with the second unit.

Two-way guard Keon Ellis is with the Kings in Salt Lake City to provide Sacramento with some depth if both Huerter and Monk are ruled out, creating a Davis–Ellis rotation at the two-guard spot.

More information on Huerter and Monk is expected during the hours leading into Tuesday’s 6:00 PM PST tip-off.

Injury Report

Sacramento

Kevin Huerter – QUESTIONABLE (upper back soreness)
Malik Monk – QUESTIONABLE (right shoulder soreness)

Utah

Collin Sexton – OUT (right hamstring injury maintenance)
Johnny Juzang & Micah Potter are on assignment with G-League affiliate Salt Lake City.