The Kings try to pick up one win out East before returning home.
The Kings' four-game Eastern road trip has ... not gone as planned. The defense has been awful, and the Kings are 0-3 in the Southeast. The last chance for a win before returning home comes Saturday night in Orlando. The game's scheduled for 4 p.m. Pacific.
Let's preview.
MATCHUP OF THE GAME
Arron Afflalo vs. Rudy Gay.
The Magic offense is pretty bad (No. 25), and Afflalo is the best scorer on the roster. He missed Orlando's last game but is probable for Saturday. He's had a fine bounceback season, scoring efficienctly (.590 True Shooting) and frequently (20.7 points per 36 minutes). He'll be a handful for Gay, especially if he lines up behind the arc.
On the other end, Gay continues to play well on offense, but Afflalo is a good defender. Let's hope Gay continues to rely on Isaiah Thomas and DeMarcus Cousins heavily to relieve defensive pressure.
3 THINGS
1. Despite a poor overall offense, the Magic shoot decently from beyond the arc (.358, No. 14 in the NBA). As we know, the Kings defend the three awfully. Afflalo, Victor Oladipo, Jameer Nelson and -- stretch big alert! -- Andrew Nicholson are the Magic shooters to watch.
2. DeMarcus Cousins is now above 50 percent shooting on the season. But Nik Vucevic is a fair defender, and Orlando rebounds really well defensively, so it might not be an easy victory for Boogie in the paint.
3. For real, defense, guys.
START FOUR
Don't forget to fill in your lineup if you're anywhere near me on the leaderboard!
PREGAME HAIKU
Will the road trip end
magically? (Is that word
three syllables? Four?)
PREDICTION
Magic 2,050, Kings 105.
