Pelicans at Kings
Two teams familiar with blowing leads will try to end that trend Tuesday night when the Sacramento Kings host the New Orleans Pelicans. The Kings gave away leads of 24 and 26 points last week in losses to the Dallas Mavericks and Memphis Grizzlies but bounced back with a 94-91 win Saturday night against the defending NBA champion San Antonio Spurs. The Pelicans let a 15-point fourth-quarter lead slip away in a nine-point loss at the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday night.
Pelicans small forward Tyreke Evans was drafted fourth overall by Sacramento in 2009 and spent his first four years with the Kings, and New Orleans reserve forward Ryan Anderson was born in Sacramento and grew up about 30 miles away in El Dorado Hills. Evans had 25 points and 12 assists in his first game back last season, a 113-110 win by New Orleans, and came back with 27 points, 10 rebounds and eight assist in his second game in March. New Orleans will need to find an answer for Rudy Gay and DeMarcus Cousins, who come in averaging 22.5 and 22.4 points, respectively, joining the Golden State Warriors as the only team with two of the top 10 scorers in the league.
TV: 10 p.m. ET, NBATV, CSN-CA (Sacramento), FS NOLA (New Orleans)
ABOUT THE PELICANS (5-3): The Pelicans did not have Omer Asik available Monday night against the Trail Blazers because of a sore lower back, but they’ll need him against Cousins. If he’s unavailable, Anthony Davis could be called upon to defend Cousins, his offseason workout partner who also played for Kentucky. Davis matched his season high with 31 points against Portland, while also grabbing 11 rebounds and blocking three shots.
ABOUT THE KINGS (6-4): Darren Collison, who broke into the league as first-round pick of New Orleans in 2009, has been a pleasant surprise for the Kings, averaging 15.8 points and six assists, both of which would be career highs if he can maintain that pace. He has bettered his season scoring average in each of the last two games, putting up 20 against the Grizzlies and 19 on the Spurs. Probably most reflective of Collison’s value to the team is the team’s plus-12.9 net rating when he’s on the floor, compared to negative-22.3 when he’s not.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Kings filed a protest with the NBA on Monday, claiming the Memphis Grizzlies did not get off the game-winning shot in time in the 111-110 loss Thursday.
2. Gay, who signed a three-year, $40-million contract extension Sunday, matched his career high of 41 points against New Orleans in January.
3. The Kings came into Monday leading the NBA in free-throw attempts per game (35.1) and third in free-throw percentage (81.2).