Onward and upward
Sacramento Kings jump to No. 2 seed in West
Kings coach Mike Brown joked that he was given a couch and a remote control for his 53rd birthday. That might be where he watched the Los Angeles Lakers stage a 17-4 fourth-quarter run to beat the Memphis Grizzlies on Tuesday at Crypto.com Arena.
The outcome of that game put the Kings in command of the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference as they move closer to their first NBA playoff appearance since 2006. The Kings haven’t finished second in the West since 2002-03, when they went 59-23, advancing to the conference semifinals as a title contender before Chris Webber went down with a devastating knee injury in Game 2 against the Dallas Mavericks.
The Kings and Grizzlies are tied for second in the West with identical 38-26 records. They went 2-2 against each other to split the season series. The Kings currently hold the tiebreaker by virtue of their conference record — and by a wide margin. The Kings are 2614 against Western Conference foes. The Grizzlies are 20-18.
The Grizzlies played their last two games without Ja Morant. The All-star point guard is away from the team following a string of reported gun-related incidents, including an Instagram Live video in which he appeared to brandish a firearm. The NBA and Colorado police are now investigating Morant’s actions in the Instagram video, which was broadcast live from Shotgun Willie’s, a bar near Denver that bills itself as a “gentleman’s club.”
The Grizzlies initially said Morant would be away from the team for a minimum of two games. The organization has not provided a definitive timeline for his return.
The Denver Nuggets lead the West by 7 ½ games. The Nuggets won’t be caught, but the Kings and Grizzlies are battling for the No. 2 seed with the Phoenix Suns, Mavericks, Golden State Warriors, Minnesota Timberwolves and Los Angeles Clippers within striking distance.
The Suns are fourth in the West, just 2 ½ games behind Sacramento and Memphis. The Mavericks and Warriors are tied for fifth, another 2 ½ games behind the Suns. There are seven teams vying for four play-in spots with the Timberwolves, Clippers, Los Angeles Lakers, New Orleans Pelicans, Oklahoma City Thunder, Portland Trail Blazers and Utah Jazz separated by only 2 ½ games.
The Kings are entering a particularly difficult stretch in their schedule. They will play host to the New York Knicks (39-28) on Thursday in a TNT game. Then they will visit the Suns (36-29) on Saturday before coming home to entertain the Milwaukee Bucks (47-18) on Monday.
The Grizzlies won’t have it easy either. They will face the Warriors on Thursday, the Mavericks on Saturday and Monday, and the Miami Heat on March 15 with additional games to follow against the Warriors and Mavericks. The Warriors pose an increasing threat following Stephen Curry’s return from injury. The Mavericks could be dangerous after making a move at the trade deadline to team Luka Doncic with Kyrie Irving.