Sacramento Kings vs Los Angeles Clippers Prediction: Kings to win a high-scoring match

Another game day in the NBA will end with a showdown between two California teams, as Sacramento will host the Los Angeles Clippers. The Kings lost their last 2 games against their current opponent, can they break their losing streak?

The Kings are betting big on the current championship: the team hasn't played in the postseason in a very long time, and Sacramento is absolutely the worst in the NBA in terms of non-playoff streaks. The club did a good job in the summer, trading Kevin Huerter and signing Malik Monk, and the selection of Keegan Murray in the draft can be considered a big deal. De'Aaron Fox continues to make progress, but the same can't be said about Domantas Sabonis. The Lithuanian big man faltered at EuroBasket and still does not have a big shot in his arsenal. Sabonis frequently loses the ball and cannot find his teammates in tough situations, and he will surely need to improve in order to help the Kings make at least a top-10 finish in the Western Conference. Until recently only Keegan Murray was on injured reserve, now the young forward is healthy and ready to make his regular season debut.

Mike Brown's team lost to Portland at the start of the regular season with a score of 108-115. There was a hard-fought game for a long time, but in the final quarter Sacramento shot a lot from beyond the arc, which cost them the game. Overall, the Kings' shooters looked decent: Huerter hit 6 three-pointers and Monk, Davis and Lyles each had 2 shots. The Kings missed a lot from the paint, and their quick breakaway defense also left a lot to be desired. De'Aaron Fox did his best and made 5 three-pointers, but even that wasn't enough. Sabonis wasn't very visible, failing to put pressure on Nurkic. The Lithuanian scored 13 points.

With their current roster, the Clippers can rest their leaders comfortably. Kawhi Leonard is being saved for the start of the season, while John Wall is also unlikely to play back-to-back games. Both will miss the meeting with Sacramento. Norman Powell, Marcus Morris and Robert Covington should make up for Kawhi's absence, while Reggie Jackson will get full 30+35 game minutes in Wall's absence.

Paul George was not very impressive in the opening game, but that didn't stop the Clippers from beating the Lakers, 103-97. Tyronn Lue's team shot a lot from beyond the arc, and only Luke Kennard allowed an acceptable percentage of his shots. Reggie Jackson shot frequently from midrange, but Ivica Zubac made 6 of 6 field-goal attempts in the paint.

The Kings and Clippers have had a poor record in recent head-to-head meetings, but Fox has not played for the Kings in both of those games. Sabonis will have more open space in the paint now, and it will obviously be easier to play against Zubac than the well-defended Nurkic and Grant. The home team has good role players, with Barnes and Monk capable of performing better. The Clippers, though, have an even stronger bench; the absence of Wall and Leonard should not be a problem. Los Angeles can shoot better from beyond the arc, Paul George is bound to add. Here are the betting options for you to consider:

• TO (221.5) for 1.625;
• H1 (+4.5) for 1.72;
• W1 (incl. OT) for 2.20.

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