NBA: Sacramento Kings vs Dallas Mavericks Preview, Odds, Prediction

To be direct right away, the Sacramento Kings are out of the playoffs, and they are going to experience another devastating season. Their rivals on Sunday night, the Dallas Mavericks, are sitting seventh in the West, trying to reach Portland one spot ahead and avoid the play-in tournament. Mavs are absolute favorites coming into this event, even though they, too, aren’t playing well right now. The only reason for that is because Sacramento plays awful, and is one among the worst teams in the NBA when looking at the current shape.

Preview

Sacramento Kings (22-34, +300) have nine consecutive defeats in a row, losing their composure and focus in the worst possible moment. Once again, the franchise from the capital of California won’t participate in the postseason, which pretty much diminishes all the talks about their talent and bright future. We’ve heard many such stories in the past, and we’re fed up with the same.

The people need to realize that the Kings are a mediocre team with an average organization and that they won’t be able to enter the playoffs any time soon without some cardinal changes. Yes, De’Aaron Fox is an excellent player, but he is not among the top 20 in the league, maybe even top 30.

Their defense is one of the worst in the league, allowing 119 points per game. In three of the last four losses, the rivals scored more than that, and we need to say that there is no way of describing our disappointment with the way Luke Walton led this unit over the past two months. He did nothing to improve the defense, which eventually came back like a boomerang.

Dallas Mavericks (30-25, -400) started slipping in the worst possible time when the playoff race reaches its final stage. The Mavs lost three of the previous four, four in six, and what is worse, those three latest defeats were all at home.

It is something that allowed the Trail Blazers to move away to No.6 in the West, capturing the spot that leads directly to the postseason. Dallas is now two games behind the rivals from Oregon but has a chance to cut the gap in the next few games. Luka and the crew play the upcoming four at the American Airlines Center.

Doncic had 19 assists against the Knicks in a match that saw the guests from the Big Apple winning, 117-109, but that wasn’t enough for his Mavs to win. Porzingis scored 23 with 12 boards.

Head to Head Games

This is the first time for these two teams to meet during the 2020/21 campaign.

Prediction

The Mavericks are huge favorites, and then spread on them is -8 points. Now, this is a risky suggestion, but we are going with them to cover this margin, because Sacramento plays terribly. The Kings are demotivated, and apart from Fox, who is chasing personal stats, other players aren’t that interested in giving their maximum on the court. What we just said maybe is harsh, but it is the way things currently stand.

Free Pick: Mavericks -8