Sacramento earns the primetime spotlight across the league. Here's where to watch and the betting side of things.
There are four teams out west riding on winning streaks heading into St. Patrick's Day. Even the last place Western Conference team the Sacramento Kings are among the quartet.
Yes, Sacramento has momentum on its side. The Kings pulled the upset of the Los Angeles Clippers Friday before taking down the Utah Jazz. They head to the Golden 1 Center on a roll.
But so is their opponent the San Antonio Spurs...who look more superior and established compared to Sacramento.
FanDuel Sportsbook plugs the Kings as a 13.5-point underdog ahead of the Thursday night showdown aired in front of an NBC audience. FanDuel Sports Southwest also has coverage of the contest but for the Spurs fans.
So can the Spurs cover? Or will Sacramento continue stunning folks?
Already they've done the latter...by showing they're refusing to tank the season to boost their chances of landing the top overall pick in the NBA Draft Lottery.
Head coach Doug Christie addressed the "tanking" rhetoric and sent this message after beating the Jazz.
"We go out there to play and we go out there to win," Christie said to reporters. "Now if they beat you, they beat you."
Then he dropped a reminder of what really happens in the lottery: The team with the worst record isn't a lock to land the top pick. Just ask the Dallas Mavericks of last season.
"And I think last year there's a shining example of a team that was supposed to get the number one pick and did not," Christie said, as the Mavs landed Cooper Flagg out of Duke after surprising everyone and landing the No. 1 selection in last year's lottery.
And for the Kings fan who hope to see Christie improve the teams' draft positioning, the head coach will likely upset those fans with these next words.
"Just my personal opinion, it hurts [tanking]. And I'm not here to hurt our team. I'm here to help our young men," Christie said.
So Sacramento is playing to win. Unfortunately, the Spurs are a far different animal compared to the Kings.
Victor Wembanyama is rising as a Most Valuable Player contender in just his second season in the league. San Antonio also has impactful rookie Dylan Harper. Of course there's a familiar face on the Spurs in De'Aaron Fox.
Sacramento gets the bright lights of primetime. But this could get one-sided quick...and reignite top pick of the draft chatter.
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