Kings ready to ‘lock in’ vs. Mavs with play-in homecourt secured originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
Programming Note: Tune into “Kings Pregame Live” at 6:30 p.m. PT on Wednesday on NBC Sports California before the Kings and Mavericks tip-off. Immediately after the final buzzer, tune back in for “Kings Postgame Live.”
SACRAMENTO – Turns out the Kings will have at least one more opportunity to light the beam in the state’s capital this season.
Having already secured a place in the No. 9 vs. No. 10 matchup in the first round of the NBA play-in tournament bracket next week, the Kings were in position to make sure that game would be played at Golden 1 Center and did just that against the Phoenix Suns on Sunday.
“It’s huge from the standpoint of it’s a homecourt advantage,” Keon Ellis said following Sacramento’s 109-98 win over a short-handed Phoenix team. “You don’t have to travel or go anywhere else. Play in front of your home crowd, a familiar place [and] you got the fans behind you.”
That the Kings are even in the play-in bracket is commendable considering all the drama the team faced this season.
There was the early-season shake-up when Mike Brown was fired 31 games into the season, only a few months after the unanimous 2022-23 NBA Coach of the Year was rewarded with a hefty contract extension.
Point guard De’Aaron Fox, once thought to be the face of the franchise in Sacramento, was traded away to the San Antonio Spurs not long after that.
“Now we are, one at a time, two wins away from getting to the next step of our journey,” interim Kings coach Doug Christie said. “Very proud of the fight, the determination that they showed in the face of a lot of different adversity that went on this year. That’s a big credit to them. Congratulations to them, the organization and our city.”
Sunday’s win sent a loud G1C crowd home happy. Odds are that the place will be a lot more lively and raucous on Wednesday against the Dallas Mavericks.
For good reason, too.
The Kings are trying to get into the NBA playoffs for the second time in 19 years. Under Brown’s lead during the 2022-23 season, Sacramento was eliminated in a thrilling seven-game series with the four-time NBA champion Golden State Warriors.
Last season, the Kings flipped the script and beat the Warriors at home in the first round of the play-in bracket then lost to the Pelicans in New Orleans and were eliminated from the postseason.
Thus the importance of securing homecourt for Wednesday’s game against the Mavericks.
“It’s not over,” Christie said. “I think when it’s over, we’re headed home with the trophy and we can all celebrate. But now you can’t. You can’t breathe in these moments. This is a time to stay locked in. There’s going to be things that we need to lock in on.
“Mediocrity is not going to be effective in this moment. We got to step up our game.”
The Kings won all three games against the Mavericks this season, including twice in Dallas at American Airlines Center. The Kings went 2-2 against the Mavericks last season, losing twice to Dallas at Golden 1 Center and winning two on the road.
Ellis pointed out that facing a win-or-go-home situation in one game is a lot more daunting than a seven-game series.
“In the playoffs, you lose one you still have three more losses before you’re out,” Ellis said. “But in a game like Wednesday, that’s your one and only shot. Everything has to line up and connect for us because there’s no second chance after that.”
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Kings ready to ‘lock in’ vs. Mavs with play-in homecourt secured
Programming Note: Tune into “Kings Pregame Live” at 6:30 p.m. PT on Wednesday on NBC Sports California before the Kings and Mavericks tip-off. Immediately after the final buzzer, tune back in for “Kings Postgame Live.”
SACRAMENTO – Turns out the Kings will have at least one more opportunity to light the beam in the state’s capital this season.
Having already secured a place in the No. 9 vs. No. 10 matchup in the first round of the NBA play-in tournament bracket next week, the Kings were in position to make sure that game would be played at Golden 1 Center and did just that against the Phoenix Suns on Sunday.
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“It’s huge from the standpoint of it’s a homecourt advantage,” Keon Ellis said following Sacramento’s 109-98 win over a short-handed Phoenix team. “You don’t have to travel or go anywhere else. Play in front of your home crowd, a familiar place [and] you got the fans behind you.”
That the Kings are even in the play-in bracket is commendable considering all the drama the team faced this season.
There was the early-season shake-up when Mike Brown was fired 31 games into the season, only a few months after the unanimous 2022-23 NBA Coach of the Year was rewarded with a hefty contract extension.
Point guard De’Aaron Fox, once thought to be the face of the franchise in Sacramento, was traded away to the San Antonio Spurs not long after that.
NBA
“Now we are, one at a time, two wins away from getting to the next step of our journey,” interim Kings coach Doug Christie said. “Very proud of the fight, the determination that they showed in the face of a lot of different adversity that went on this year. That’s a big credit to them. Congratulations to them, the organization and our city.”
Sunday’s win sent a loud G1C crowd home happy. Odds are that the place will be a lot more lively and raucous on Wednesday against the Dallas Mavericks.
For good reason, too.
The Kings are trying to get into the NBA playoffs for the second time in 19 years. Under Brown’s lead during the 2022-23 season, Sacramento was eliminated in a thrilling seven-game series with the four-time NBA champion Golden State Warriors.
Last season, the Kings flipped the script and beat the Warriors at home in the first round of the play-in bracket then lost to the Pelicans in New Orleans and were eliminated from the postseason.
Thus the importance of securing homecourt for Wednesday’s game against the Mavericks.
“It’s not over,” Christie said. “I think when it’s over, we’re headed home with the trophy and we can all celebrate. But now you can’t. You can’t breathe in these moments. This is a time to stay locked in. There’s going to be things that we need to lock in on.
“Mediocrity is not going to be effective in this moment. We got to step up our game.”
The Kings won all three games against the Mavericks this season, including twice in Dallas at American Airlines Center. The Kings went 2-2 against the Mavericks last season, losing twice to Dallas at Golden 1 Center and winning two on the road.
Ellis pointed out that facing a win-or-go-home situation in one game is a lot more daunting than a seven-game series.
“In the playoffs, you lose one you still have three more losses before you’re out,” Ellis said. “But in a game like Wednesday, that’s your one and only shot. Everything has to line up and connect for us because there’s no second chance after that.”
