Kings at Spurs
The San Antonio Spurs have clinched a playoff berth for the 22nd straight season but still have plenty for which to play in terms of positioning in the Western Conference. They will try to keep pace in the tightly packed postseason race when they host the Sacramento Kings on Sunday.
The Kings' 119-108 loss at Houston on Saturday locked up the playoff spot for the Spurs, who are in seventh place in the West but just 1 1/2 games behind the Los Angeles Clippers for sixth and trail fifth-place Utah by two. San Antonio opened its current three-game homestand with a 116-110 victory over Cleveland on Thursday, riding DeMar DeRozan's 25 points to its 11th win in 14 contests. Sacramento was the last remaining team in the West with a mathematical chance of catching the Spurs or Oklahoma City for a postseason berth but had no answer on Saturday for James Harden, who scored 50 points for the Rockets. Bogdan Bogdanovic recorded 24 points to lead the Kings, who still can avoid a 13th straight losing season with a strong finish.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, NBCS California (Sacramento), FS Southwest (San Antonio)
ABOUT THE KINGS (37-39): Bogdanovic also registered a career-high nine rebounds and eight assists to flirt with his first career triple-double in the loss at Houston. He was 5-for-7 from beyond the arc to lead Sacramento's 51.7 percent showing, which is tied for the team's second-highest 3-point percentage this season. The Kings also made 24-of-56 attempts from long distance while shooting 52.8 percent overall in their two wins over the Spurs in 2018-19.
ABOUT THE SPURS (44-32): DeRozan made 10-of-12 shots and handed out a team-high eight assists in Thursday's victory as San Antonio rebounded from a 1-2 road trip. "Being more aggressive," DeRozan told reporters of the team's effort. "We just came out with a more conscious effort of being aggressive. That's what we did, and we can't wait to do that. We waited and made it tough on ourselves, but we pulled it through." Bryn Forbes chipped in 19 points and has played 63 turnover-free minutes over his last two games.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. San Antonio has won 11 straight home meetings with Sacramento.
2. Kings PF Marvin Bagley III has reached the 20-point mark in five of his last eight games.
3. Spurs coach Gregg Popovich has registered 1,408 wins - including playoffs - and is five shy of matching Lenny Wilkens' all-time record.