Knicks at Kings
The Sacramento Kings are slipping away from the top eight in the Western Conference and need to take advantage of a visit from the struggling New York Knicks on Monday. The Kings have lost three in a row and five of their last six to sink three games out of a playoff spot in the West, and 11 of their final 18 games are on the road.
They had a golden opportunity to gain ground on one of their chief competitors in the race but dropped a 116-109 decision to the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday at home. "We've got 20 more games," guard Buddy Hield told reporters after the loss. "It's not like it's the end of the world. We could go off and win five or six in a row and make this thing fun again. We're not done yet." The Knicks enjoyed a recent 3-1 stretch but they've followed it up with losses to Cleveland and the Clippers. Noah Vonleh finished with 17 points and 12 rebounds in Sunday's 128-107 setback at Los Angeles as New York dropped to 7-25 on the road.
TV: 10 p.m. ET, MSG (New York), NBCS California (Sacramento)
ABOUT THE KNICKS (13-50): Vonleh, center Mitchell Robinson and guard Allonzo Trier combined to make 18-of-23 shots against the Clippers, but their teammates were a woeful 17-of-65. Robinson finished with 16 points and 13 rebounds for his third double-double in the last four games, and the 20-year-old rookie has 17 blocked shots in that span. "He continues to protect us and cover up for us, have amazing blocks, defensive possessions," coach David Fizdale told reporters of Robinson.
ABOUT THE KINGS (31-31): Hield scored 23 points Friday but needed 19 shots to get there and is 23-of-64 from the floor during the losing streak. Fellow guard Bogdan Bogdanovic has also hit a cold stretch, making just 32 percent of his shots in the same three-game stretch despite a 28-point effort in Wednesday's overtime loss to Milwaukee. Rookie forward Harry Giles has been a bright spot, posting 33 points in 34 minutes over the last two games.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The teams meet again Saturday at Madison Square Garden.
2. Robinson is 23-for-29 from the field during his four-game surge.
3. Kings PG De'Aaron Fox has 21 assists and two turnovers over his last two games.