SACRAMENTO -- After a rough game Wednesday in Los Angeles against the Clippers, the Sacramento Kings flew home where they'll take on a shorthanded Lakers club Thursday evening at Golden 1 Center.
Over their last five games, the Kings have made a habit of falling behind big, early. They've come back to make it a game in a few of those contests and even won two, but it's not a good trend for a young team to continue.
The Lakers are beat up. They'll be without LeBron James, Rajon Rondo and JaVale McGee on Thursday evening and their's a possibility that James will miss Sunday's rematch between these two clubs.
Kings Pregame Live on NBC Sports California begins at 6:30 p.m., with tipoff scheduled for 7:30. All coverage can be seen on the MyTeams app.
Line
No Line
Projected Lineups
Sports
Kings
PG De'Aaron Fox
SG Buddy Hield
SF Iman Shumpert
PF Nemanja Bjelica
C Willie Cauley-Stein
Lakers
PG Lonzo Ball
SG Josh Hart
SF Brandon Ingram
PF Kyle Kuzma
C Ivica Zubac
Injury Report
Kings
PF Marvin Bagley III (left knee) out.
Lakers
F LeBron James (groin) out, PG Rajon Rondo (hand) out, C JaVale McGee (illness) out, Michael Beasley (personal) out.
Rotation Outlook
Kings: Dave Joerger continues to search for answers to why his team gets off to slow starts. His reserves did a nice job against the Clippers, using a 24-1 run in the fourth quarter to make the game respectable, but the team has fallen behind big consistently for the last six games.
Buddy Hield missed all six of his 3-point attempts against the Clippers on Wednesday. It's only the second time this season the Kings' leading scorer has failed to make a 3-pointer, both times it was against the Clippers.
Marvin Bagley continues to miss time with a bone bruise in his left knee. The team will update his status on Friday, but he is still expected to miss more time as he heals.
Lakers: Without James in the lineup, the Lakers will have to make major adjustments. Hart is expected to start in his place, pushing Ingram to his natural small forward position.
Luke Walton has had to tinker with veterans missing time all season long, but James is the central component on both ends of the floor.
Zubac is averaging 17.7 points and 8.7 rebounds over his last three games as a starter.
