After a spirited, but losing effort to the San Antonio Spurs Thursday night in the inaugural game at the Golden 1 Center, the Sacramento Kings look to snap their four game losing streak to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday.
DeMarcus Cousins and Rudy Gay are both off to hot starts, but coach Dave Joerger will need help from his entire roster as they try to slow down the young athletic T'Wolves. Through two games, the Kings have unveiled their new identity as a defensive-minded squad, but they have had issues guarding the longer, more athletic teams in the past.
After landing the top player coming into the NBA Draft in consecutive years and coming away with back-to-back Rookie of the Year trophies, Minnesota selected point guard Kris Dunn with the fifth overall selection this summer. The rookie is coming off the bench behind veteran Ricky Rubio, but that might not last long.
Dunn was a target of the Kings on draft night and he looks like another stellar young piece for head coach Tom Thibodeau as he looks to build the Timberwolves into a long-term contender.
LINE
T-Wolves by 1.5
WHERE THEY STAND
Sports
Kings: 1-1, second place in the Pacific
T-Wolves: 0-1, last place in the Northwest
MATCHUP TO WATCH
DeMarcus Cousins vs. Karl-Anthony Towns -- Cousins is off to a fast start, averaging 30.5 points and 11.5 rebounds through the Kings’ first two contests. He’s beating teams inside and outside while playing stellar defense. Towns is one of the best young centers in the league and there might come a time when he challenges Cousins for the title of best big in the game.
INJURY REPORT
Kings: G Darren Collison (league suspension) out.
T-Wolves: C Nikola Pekovic (Achilles) out.
SERIES HISTORY
Minnesota swept Sacramento 4-0 last the season including a 105-97 win at Arco Arena in on April 7. With their four game win streak, the Timberwolves now lead the Kings 53-50 all-time.
QUOTABLE
“As competitors, you never want to say, ‘You played hard but you lost.’ But I liked a lot of the things I saw tonight. It thought we ran out of gas a bit.” -Dave Joerger following the Kings’ loss to the Spurs on Thursday
