Tough test at the Garden for the Knicks after a few days rest.
The New York Knicks (29-16) will host the Sacramento Kings (23-21) tonight at Madison Square Garden. Tip-off at 7:30 pm EST. New York has won two straight and five of their last ten games, while their guests will be playing the second game of a six-game road trip. The Kings dropped the first one on Thursday, a 132-123 loss in Denver. That’s understandable.
What a weird season it has been for Sacramento. The Royals were on a six game losing streak when they fired head Mike Brown, temporarily replacing him with Doug Christie. Since then, they’ve righted the ship and won 10 of their last 13 games, including wins against the Mavs, Celtics, Bucks, and Warriors.
Tonight will be the first of two regular season games against New York. Sacramento boasts the league’s seventh-ranked offense, the eighth-fasted pace, and average 117 points per game. With a 113.6 defensive rating, ranking around the middle of the league, they boast a +2.6 Net Rating.
Takeaway: trifle with the Kings at your peril.
Injury-wise, the Knicks list Josh Hart (shoulder) is a game-time decision, while the Kings have listed De’Aaron Fox as a game-time decision with a sprained thumb. We expect both to play tonight.
Fox leads Sacramento at the point with 25.4 points per game. With him in the backcourt, Malik Monk is averaging 17.6 points and 5.6 assists. Veteran DeMar DeRozan, always lethal with the mid-range J, is scoring 21.9 points per game. Their frontcourt is anchored by Keegan Murray, 11.9 PPG and 7.2 RPG, and superman center Domantas Sabonis has averaged 21 points, 14.4 rebounds, and 6.2 assists.
Prediction
ESPN.com favors the Knicks by 61%. Huh?? Tonight, the Kings will score a bunch in the paint and from the mid-range, zip up the floor, and challenge the Knicks on the glass. They are one of the league’s best at protecting the ball, which makes them a real test for our wings (Anunoby, Bridges, and Hart), and Sac Town make most of their free-throws, so the Knicks will have to be careful with their fouls. If Karl-Anthony Towns can stay out of foul trouble and wrangle Sabonis, and Brunson can match Fox for points and dishes, sure, ESPN—the Knicks will win. Unfortunately, a speedy team that scores a lot and makes opponents work up a sweat in the paint sounds like a bad matchup for the ‘Bockers as currently constructed. Weekend starts with a bummer: New York by -5.
Game Details
Teams: New York Knicks (29-16) vs Sacramento Kings (23-21)
Location: Madison Square Garden, NYC
Start Time: 7:30 PM ET
Broadcast: TNT
Follow: @ptknicksblog and bsky