NBA Gameday: Westbrook Not Only Thunder Player Kings Need to Slow Down

SACRAMENTO -- After dropping another game Friday night, the Sacramento Kings are now 1-4 on their season-long seven-game homestand. They'll need a team effort on Sunday evening if they hope to slow down superstar Russell Westbrook and his Oklahoma City Thunder team.

Ty Lawson continues to pay dividends for the Kings. The 29-year-old point guard came off the bench to drop in 17 points and hand out four assists in 26 minutes of action. Over his last five contests, Lawson is averaging 14.4 points per game on 52 percent shooting.

The Thunder stumbled Friday night in Minnesota, losing to the Timberwolves by a final of 96-86 to kick off their six-game road trip. Westbrook posted his 19th triple-double of the season, but also turned the ball over 10 times. The five-time All-Star leads the league in scoring at 30.8 points a night, but he's also posting 10.5 assists and 10.7 rebounds per game.

OPENING LINE:
Thunder by 1.5

MATCHUP TO WATCH:
DeMarcus Cousins vs. Steven Adams -- Cousins is fresh off a 26-point, 11-assist, eight-rebound night against the Cavs on Friday night, but he turned the ball over six times in the loss. The last time these two teams met, Cousins dropped 36 points and 13 rebounds on Adams as the Kings came away with the 15-point win. Adams, 23, is one of the strongest players in the NBA. He's posting career-highs across the board and he's an exceptional post defender. The contrast in style between these two bigs is enormous, but they are both major cogs in their team's game plan.

WHERE THEY STAND:
Kings: 16-23, third place in Pacific

Thunder: 24-17, second place in Northwest

INJURY REPORT:
Kings: No injuries to report.

Thunder: No injuries to report.

SERIES HISTORY:
The Kings lead the season series 1-0 after beating the Thunder 116-101 at the Golden 1 Center on Nov. 23. The Thunder hold a 140-85 all-time lead over the Kings and an 83-49 advantage in the Sacramento-era.

QUOTE:
"Turnovers killed us. When you play a team of this caliber, you just can't spot them points like we did tonight. We have to be as disciplined and fundamental as we can be when you play a team this good." -DeMarcus Cousins on Sacramento's loss to the Cavs on Friday night

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