Will the Kings get the primetime stage? And who's the favorite here following both teams making notable trade moves?
The Sacramento Kings managed to maintain some of their star power past the NBA Trade Deadline.
DeMar DeRozan, Domantas Sabonis and Malik Monk all went from becoming last minute trade ideas to staying put. No deals fell through for all three (although Sabonis is already considered a possible NBA Draft night trade idea for the Toronto Raptors).
All three can help fuel the viewership of Friday's night's contest against the Los Angeles Clippers.
This time NBC Sports California won't be airing this home contest. Fans don't need to turn to NBA League Pass either.
Where can fans watch? All they need to do is upload their Amazon Prime account and watch from there -- as Clippers at Kings is part of the primetime Friday lineup for the streaming service during its first season of NBA action.
Unfortunately for Amazon Prime, they must air a game involving two sub .500 teams. Plus franchises undergoing drastic roster changes.
The Kings were still proactive in the trade market -- dealing away Keon Ellis and Dennis Schroeder to the Cleveland Cavaliers and landing De'Andre Hunter in return. Hunter now earns his first-ever Kings primetime game on the national stage.
The Clippers also tweaked up their roster. Notably dealing away fan favorite and NBA legend Chris Paul to the Toronto Raptors. And that's not all -- as center Ivica Zubac was dealt to the Indiana Pacers for Bennedict Mathurin and future draft picks.
Los Angeles didn't stop with those moves. Prized star James Harden ended up joining the former Kings Ellis and Schroeder, with LAC making its own deal with the Cavs.
Once again, Kings-Clippers features their share of rearranged star power on the Golden 1 Center floor for this game.
So with both teams remodeling and rebuilding for the future, which one is the favorite?
The Clippers hold the edge as of Friday afternoon -- only favored by 4.5-points according to FanDuel Sportsbook. Los Angeles isn't officially out of the playoff race just yet, as it nears the NBA All-Star break at 23-27 overall.
This is not the Clippers-Kings games of old with a loud arena and the duo of Harden/Kawhi Leonard running the floor on LAC's side. Leonard now must work with new faces who are likely to make their debuts on this night.
If anything, this game is more for fans who want to see which newcomers build the better court chemistry first. L.A. looks like the one with the stronger chance here, as it surpasses the spread.
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