The Sacramento Kings hit the road following another tough loss to the Golden State Warriors on Friday at Golden 1 Center. They'll face a surprising Dallas Mavericks team that is off to a fast start and boasts a 13-2 record at home this season.
Buddy Hield and De'Aaron Fox combined to score 52 points against the Warriors, and Willie Cauley-Stein added a big 22-point, 11-rebound double-double. Sacramento led by 10 with just over four minutes remaining, but Golden State finished on with a 17-2 run to drop the Kings to 15-13 on the season.
Rookie Luka Doncic has impressed early for Dallas. Rick Carlisle moves him all over the court, playing him at positions 1 through 4. The third overall selection in the 2018 NBA Draft is averaging 17.8 points, 6.8 rebounds and 4.5 assists in 32.3 minutes per game.
Kings Pregame Live on NBC Sports California begins at 3:30 p.m., with tipoff scheduled for 4. All coverage can be seen on the MyTeams app.
After battling Dallas, the Kings will hop a flight to Minnesota where they'll play Monday on the second night of a back-to-back. The Kings will return to Golden 1 Center on Wednesday to face Russell Westbrook and the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Line
Mavs by 6
Sports
Projected Lineups
Kings
PG De'Aaron Fox
SG Buddy Hield
SF Bogdan Bogdanovic
PF Nemanja Bjelica
C Willie Cauley-Stein
Mavs
PG Luka Doncic
SG Dennis Smith
SF Wes Matthews
PF Harrison Barnes
C DeAndre Jordan
Injury Report
Kings
PF Marvin Bagley III (left knee) out, SF Iman Shumpert (hip) out.
Mavs
PG J.J. Barea (ankle) is questionable.
Rotation Outlook
Kings: Dave Joerger will need to get creative Sunday against the Mavs. With Bagley on the shelf and Shumpert ruled out with a hip contusion, expect heavy minutes for Bogdanovic, Bjelica and Justin Jackson.
Dallas likes to go small, which should help Sacramento. Although losing Bagley and potentially Bodganovic from the second unit creates an issue for the Kings, Joerger and his team needs Yogi Ferrell to step up and make an impact against his former club.
Mavs: Carlisle has his team playing well early in the season. The Mavs don't blow you away with their offense, which ranks 18th in the NBA, but they rank eighth in points allowed and ninth in defensive rating.
The veteran coach relies on a 10-man rotation, but future Hall of Famer Dirk Nowitzki made his first appearance Thursday against the Suns, playing six minutes in the loss.
