Preview: Fox, Kings hope to increase gap between Suns in standings

Mar 11, 2023, 10:26 AM | Updated: 10:40 am

SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA - NOVEMBER 08: De'Aaron Fox #5 of the Sacramento Kings drives to the basket ...

(Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images)

Editor & Kings Beat Writer

At this point in the NBA season, each game is more significant than the last, and Saturday night’s matchup between the Sacramento Kings and Phoenix Suns will be each team’s most important 48 minutes of the season thus far.

The second-seed Kings (39-26) will enter Footprint Center with a 2.5-game lead over the fourth-seed Suns (37-29) in the Western Conference, meaning that one team will end the night feeling confident after picking up an entire game in the standings.

Phoenix is the only West team that Sacramento has failed to defeat this season, as the Suns will look to secure the season series with a third-straight win over the Kings on Saturday.

Recently-acquired All-Star forward Kevin Durant (ankle) will not play against the Kings after slipping and spraining his ankle during pregame warmups on Wednesday night. Although Phoenix will be without Durant, they didn’t need the future Hall of Fame scorer on Valentine’s Day when they handed Sacramento a 120-109 loss.

These two Pacific Division foes will face two more times this season–Saturday night and March 24th–and each game will likely hold significance as the playoffs approach.

Looking at De’Aaron Fox’s season thus far really puts things into perspective.

25.5 PTS | 4.2 REB | 6.3 AST | 1.2 STL | 51% FG

Fox is one of three players this season to average 25+ points and 6+ assists per game while shooting 50%:

De’Aaron Fox
Luka Doncic
LeBron James

🦊 pic.twitter.com/XwepPHyDc0

— Frankie Cartoscelli (@FCartoscelli3) March 10, 2023

Sacramento Kings vs. Phoenix Suns Game Info

When: 6:00 PM PST

Where: Footprint Center – Phoenix, AZ

TV: NBC Sports California

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

Line: Suns -4.0, O/U: 240

What’s At Stake?

A lot.

Whoever comes out of Saturday night’s matchup will be in a considerably better spot than before:

A Kings win gives them a 3.5-game lead over the Suns (four games in the loss column) with 16 games to go
A Suns win cuts Sacramento’s lead to 1.5 games in the standings with another head-to-head matchup taking place in two weeks
Phoenix can secure the season series (3-0) with a win

Most importantly, this game is essential for the Kings as they have yet to defeat the Suns this season.

The playoffs are quickly approaching, and while Sacramento has proven that they can get up for notable tests against formidable opponents, a win over Phoenix would significantly add to this team’s confidence.

Throw the Book at Booker

Devin Booker has absolutely torched the Sacramento Kings this season.

The three-time All-Star is averaging 38.0 points and 6.5 rebounds per game on 62 percent shooting from the field during Phoenix’s two wins over the Kings this season. Booker has arguably been the difference in each game against Sacramento this season, as the Kings’ infamous defense has struggled to slow the high-scoring guard.

Late in February 14th’s game at Footprint Center, Kings head coach Mike Brown sent lengthy forward Kessler Edwards into the game to try and slow Booker down in the second half.

Edwards did a solid job of contesting Booker’s attempts down the stretch, but too much damage had already been done. Booker finished the night with 32 points while doing a lot of his damage in the paint (seven-for-nine around the rim).

Sacramento hasn’t been able to slow Booker for over a year now, as the guard has scored 30+ points in four of his last five games against the Kings.

Until Durant returns, Booker is the head of the snake and the X-Factor for Phoenix. If the Kings can finally slow him down, they’ll have a solid chance to get out of the desert with a win.

Protect The Paint

While Booker remains the number-one priority for the Kings’ defense, protecting the paint is also something to keep an eye on Saturday.

Deandre Ayton had a field day in the paint back on February 14th, as the big man scored 29 points on 13-of-17 shooting and grabbed 11 rebounds over 37 minutes. With Ayton locked in, the Suns attacked the Kings’ interior defense and ended the night with a 62-40 advantage in the paint.

The battle of the paint was noteworthy during Phoenix’s 11-point win, as the Kings held the Suns to seven-of-22 (31%) shooting from beyond the three-point line. Point in the paint put the Suns over the top, and that can’t happen this time around.

Sacramento has been one of the best teams in the NBA this season, but you wouldn’t know that by looking at its place on the paint defense leaderboards. The Kings rank 28th in points allowed in the paint this season, with only Detroit (last place in the East) and San Antonio (14th in the West) beneath them.

Kings head coach Mike Brown sounded off following Thursday’s win over the New York Knicks as the Coach of the Year candidate challenged his team to challenge opponents on the glass and around the rim.

Saturday’s matchup will be another test for Sacramento’s defense as they will look to battle Ayton on the glass and keep the Suns out of the paint.

Injury Report

After appearing to show discomfort during Thursday’s win over the New York Knicks, De’Aaron Fox fully participated in practice and is not listed on the injury report vs. Phoenix. The All-Star guard missed Monday’s win over New Orleans due to hamstring soreness, but he is good to go on Saturday.

Sacramento

Neemias Queta – OUT (G-League)
Keon Ellis – OUT (G-League)

Phoenix

Kevin Durant – OUT (left ankle sprain)
Landry Shamet – OUT (right foot soreness)

Recent History

The Suns hold a 6-2 record vs. Sacramento over the past eight matchups between the two teams
Sacramento hasn’t defeated Phoenix on the road since October 27, 2021–the Harrison Barnes buzzer-beater game

Be sure to get all of your Kings vs. Suns coverage right here on Sactown Sports 1140 beginning at 4:30 PM PST on Game Night with Scott Marsh and Henry ‘The High Flyer’ Turner before a 6:00 PM PST tip-off from downtown Phoenix.