What to Watch For: Utah Jazz at Sacramento Kings
Georges Niang (31) celebrates against the Sacramento Kings
The Utah Jazz fumbled a late lead to lose to the Minnesota Timberwolves, losing 104-105 on Monday. They will now take on the Sacramento Kings in hopes to get back to their winning ways on Wednesday night.
Jazz vs Kings Throwback:
The Jazz and Kings have taken each other on a total of 195 times in history, with the Jazz having the all-time lead 111-84.
The last time these two teams faced off was earlier this month at Vivint Smart Home Arena. In a game that included Joe Ingles and De'Aaron Fox trading smack talk, and Donovan Mitchell going off for 42 points, the Jazz beat the Kings 128-112.
Key Players:
Keep your eyes on Joe Ingles and Buddy Hield throughout this game. Their shooting capabilities could be the difference in tonight's matchup.
Joe Ingles (2) shoots a three pointer against the Sacramento Kings
Joe Ingles currently leads the Jazz in three-point field goal percentage (47.7%) and is in the hunt for the Sixth Man of the Year Award.
Buddy Hield is second on the Kings in points (16.7), and third on the team in three-points field goal percentage (39.2%).
Fun Facts:
The Jazz will break out their yellow uniforms for tonight's game against the Sacramento Kings. They are currently 7-0 in their statement uniforms and will look to continue their undefeated streak later this evening. Their last game in the J-Note yellow's came in a 126-110 win over the Memphis Grizzlies on March 27.
The top two frontrunners for Sixth-Man of the Year are Jordan Clarkson and Joe Ingles. You can read more about the race for that award here. The Jazz also have two other post season award frontrunners with Quin Snyder (NBA's Coach of the Year) and Rudy Gobert (Defensive Player of the Year).
Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid have been vocal in their pleadings to win Defensive Player of the Year Award over Jazzman Rudy Gobert. We have written a two-article series comparing the three players, which you can read here: (Ben Simmons vs Rudy Gobert) (Joel Embiid vs Rudy Gobert)
Donovan Mitchell's ankle was re-evaluated before the Jazz game against the Minnesota Timberwolves last Saturday. He remains "out" but will be re-evaluated next week.
Thanks to the Memphis Grizzlies topping the Portland Trail Blazers this past Sunday, the Utah Jazz are the first team to secure a spot in the 2021 NBA Playoffs. Utah is still in the race for the number one overall seed and are likely to have a few different teams that they could play in the first round of the playoffs. Read more here.
Jazz guard Mike Conley won an Oscar for Live Action Short Film on Sunday for his work as an executive producer of "Two Distant Strangers". Conley also broke the 5,000 career assist mark on Saturday against the Timberwolves. Read more here.
Charles Barkley is starting to believe that the Utah Jazz are contenders to win the NBA Finals. He made his comment on TNT two nights ago, and although his co-hosts weren't as quick to hop on the bandwagon, Barkley stood strong with his opinion. You can read more about it here.
The Jazz are coming off of two painful losses to the Minnesota Timberwolves and will look to get back to their winning ways against the Kings. The Jazz are 44-17 and remain in first place in the NBA. Utah leads the Phoenix Suns by one game and the Los Angeles Clippers by two games in the Western Conference. They also lead the Brooklyn Nets by two and a half games and the Philadelphia 76ers by four games in the Eastern Conference.
The Sacramento Kings are 25-36 this season and are in twelfth place in the Western Conference. They are 3-2 in their last five games, with wins against the Dallas Mavericks (x2) and Minnesota Timberwolves. Their losses during that stretch came against the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Golden State Warriors.
Donovan Mitchell (right ankle sprain) and Mike Conley (right hamstring) are out for tonight's game against the Sacramento Kings. Mitchell will be re-evaluated next week, giving him a better idea of when he might be able to return to the lineup. Conley re-aggravated the same hamstring injury that he suffered earlier this year against the Timberwolves a few nights ago. No word as of yet to when he might be able to return to the lineup.
Harrison Barnes (adductor tightness) is day-to-day, while Robert Woodard II (back), De'Aaron Fox (health and safety protocols), and Marvin Bagley III (hand) are listed as out on the Kings injury report.
How to Consume:
The Utah Jazz will face the Sacramento Kings tonight at 8pm MST. Jazz fans can watch the game on AT&T SportsNet, and can also tune into the game on 97.5FM or 1280AM.
Rudy Gobert (27) looks to block a shot against the Sacramento Kings
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