Rockets Aim to Dethrone Kings in Final Matchup of Season
Quarterback’s Return. Whole Again. Avoiding the Brooms.
Houston wraps up their three-game home-stand by hosting the Sacramento Kings for the first and only time this season. This contest is the final matchup between these squads, and the Rockets are 0-2 against the Kings this season, with both losses coming in Sac-Town. And for the first time in two months, Houston is finally fully healthy and whole again entering tonight’s matchup. Fred VanVleet will be making his return from an ankle injury after missing the last eleven games for the Rockets. Houston has sorely missed their floor leader and quarterback, as the Rockets went 5-6 without FVV in the lineup.
Despite beginning the season off the bench, Amen Thompson will remain in the starting lineup, as Twin has more than earned his spot with the first unit. Jabari Smith Jr. has no problem coming off the bench, and expect him to still play around the same amount of minutes, in the mid to high thirties.
Sacramento is a new look squad since the last time they faced Houston. The Kings dealt their star point guard De’Aaron Fox to the San Antonio Spurs in a three-team deal at the trade deadline. In exchange they received star swingman Zach LaVine form the Chicago Bulls, who reunites with his former Bulls teammate DeMar DeRozan in Sacramento. How do these changes affect the Kings? So far, they’ve actually played better since the deal, so it will be interesting to see how they finish the season as they battle for playoff and play-in position down the stretch.
After a slow offensive performance in their previous game, expect Alperen Sengun to have a bounce back performance tonight against the Kings. Sengun has had memorable battles with both Domantas Sabonis and Jonas Valanciunas in the past, so Houston’s All-Star center should be prepared to put on another impressive performance.
Saturday night’s matchup is the finale of a three-game home-stand at Toyota Center. After tonight, the Rockets will hit the road for a three-game road trip beginning Monday night in Oklahoma City against the daunting Thunder. If Houston wants to stay in the hunt for the second seed in the Western Conference, they’ll need to close out the Kings, and avoid their first sweep of the season.
Toyota Center: Houston, Texas
Jersey Colors:
Sacramento Kings (30-28): Black
Houston Rockets (37-22): Red
Tip-Off: 7:00 PM CT
TV: Space City Home Network, NBA League Pass