Gameday: Can Kings' kitchen sink guard DeMarcus Cousins?

Share

The road is a lonely place. After a close loss in Cleveland on Wednesday evening, the Sacramento Kings venture to New Orleans where DeMarcus Cousins and his Pelicans teammates await.

Zach Randolph continues to be the driving force behind the Kings better play of late, but he had plenty of help against the Cavs. The young backcourt tandem of Frank Mason III and Buddy Hield came off the bench to drop in a combined 32 points for Sacramento. 

In addition to the strong bench play, two-way player JaKarr Sampson got a call-up and start against LeBron James and played huge for the Kings. His defense against James was about as good as it gets and he ripped down 16 rebounds in 32 minutes of action.

Cousins has his team sitting just a game over .500, but firmly planted in the playoff race. The former Kings star is stuffing the stat sheet in New Orleans, averaging 25.9 points, 12.6 rebounds, 5.1 assists and 1.7 blocks per game. He’s become the focal point of the Pelicans attack with All-Star Anthony Davis ailing.

OPENING LINE 

Kings by 8.5

MATCHUP TO WATCH

DeMarcus Cousins vs. The Kitchen Sink -- The Kings know Cousins better than any team in the league. They’ll try Zach Randolph and Kosta Koufos on the 6-foot-11 center to start, but don’t be shocked to see Jack Cooley come in the game to try and get under Cousins’ skin. Sampson worked against the Cavs, why not give Cooley a shot. 

WHERE THEY STAND 

Kings: 7-17, fifth place in Pacific

Pelicans: 13-12, third place in Southwest

INJURY REPORT 

Kings: C Willie Cauley-Stein (lower back strain) out, PF Harry Giles (bilateral knee rehab) out until January. Justin Jackson, Malachi Richardson and Skal Labissiere have been assigned to the Reno Bighorns. 

Pelicans: C/PF Anthony Davis (pelvis) game time decision, Alexis Ajinca (knee) out, Solomon Hill (hamstring) out, Frank Jackson (right foot) out. 

SERIES HISTORY 

The Pelicans own a 1-0 lead in the season series after defeating the Kings 114-106 at Golden 1 Center on Oct. 26. New Orleans holds a 43-39 lead in the all-time series between these two clubs.  

THREE THINGS TO WATCH

Who Guards Cousins? -- We asked this same question last time these two teams played and Cousins answered it loudly - no one. Cousins dropped 41 points, 23 rebounds and six assists against his former team in 44 minutes. He’s tough for any team to handle, but he plays angry against the team the traded him.   

Slowing the Supporting Cast -- With Cousins bombing away, the Kings' focus shifted to slowing the All-Star big last time these two teams played. Jrue Holliday and Jameer Nelson exploited the overplay. Nelson has a reduced role with the return of Rajon Rondo, but Sacramento has to find a way to keep the supporting cast quiet.

Continue the Strong Effort on the Road -- The Kings started the road trip with a win over the Chicago Bulls, but they’ve lost the last two against Eastern Conference playoff teams in Milwaukee and Cleveland. Showing improvement, Sacramento was in both contests and lost by a combined 11 points. That’s much better than the three-game trip earlier in the season when they were outscored by a 91 total points.

Contact Us