Jan 20, 2021; Los Angeles, California, USA; Sacramento Kings center Richaun Holmes (22) guards Los Angeles Clippers guard Paul George (13) in the first half of the game at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports — Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

LA Clippers vs. Sacramento Kings: Preview, How to Watch, and Betting Info

The Clippers are looking to avoid a three-game losing streak

Author:
Joey Linn
Publish date:
Dec 22, 2021 10:00 AM EST

In this story:

After consecutive losses to the OKC Thunder and San Antonio Spurs, the LA Clippers are looking to avoid a disastrous three-game skid on Wednesday night against the Sacramento Kings. Without context, a three-game skid at the end of December would be a relatively insignificant development; however, for the Clippers, that is not the case.

Coming into this game against the Kings, the Clippers have had the 4th easiest schedule in the NBA by Power Ranking Guru’s strength of schedule metric. Some sites have the Clippers as high as 2nd in that category, with nearly every outlet’s strength of schedule metric ranking the Lakers’ schedule as the league’s easiest so far.

With 20 of their 31 games coming at home so far this season, no team in the NBA has played more home games than the Clippers. What this means, is that a difficult, road-heavy schedule, lies ahead for them. After this game against the Sacramento Kings, this journey really starts to begin.

The Clippers, having played one of the easiest schedules in basketball up until this point, have the 2nd most difficult remaining strength of schedule in the NBA. Falling to an even .500 before embarking on this stretch would be disappointing at best. Injury context is of course important, as the Clippers have been decimated by injuries from Kawhi Leonard on down; however, the standings don’t factor in that context.

All of this sets the stage for a pre-Christmas game against the Sacramento Kings that would feel relatively insignificant most years, but holds increased relevance for this Clippers team. After falling to OKC and San Antonio, getting back on track against a Kings team that has given the Clippers trouble this season, would be the right way to enter Christmas.

The Clippers are 0-2 against the Kings so far this season, and have played extremely poorly in both losses. The obvious difference in this game, is that several of Sacramento’s key contributors will be sidelined. De’Aaron Fox, Davion Mitchell, Marvin Bagley, Alex Len, Louis King, Terence Davis, and Neemias Queta are all in the league’s health and safety protocols.

For the Clippers, Isaiah Hartenstein will remain out with an ankle sprain, while Marcus Morris will also be sidelined in the league’s health and safety protocols. Led by Paul George, this is a game the Clippers should win. There’s no such thing as a “must-win” in December, but games like these are the ones that teams fighting for playoff positioning will look back on in May. With just one game separating seeds 5-9 in the Western Conference, every win matters, and likely will matter even more come season’s end.