by Jérôme Lebreton
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In
Pronostic NBA
100% Western Conference shock in the NBA between the Sacramento Kings and the Los Angeles Lakers. The meeting will be held at the Golden 1 Center this Monday at 3:00 a.m. Sacramento is not having the best preparation in its history, but is gradually gaining strength. Indeed, the Kings had a complicated start, illustrated by their 124-123 defeats at the Portland Trail Blazers, then 91-109 at home against the Los Angeles Clippers. Doug Christie’s men narrowly won their first victory on the Lakers floor (116-117). Unfortunately, the absence of Domantas Sabonis in the first official game of the season played a role in the narrow 120-116 loss to the Phoenix Suns. His return during the 2nd day against the Utah Jazz was crucial in the 105-104 victory. Indeed, he compiled 12 points, 12 rebounds and 1 assist. He perfectly supported Zach LaVine, author of 31 points, as well as Malik Monk, who scored 20.
For its part, Los Angeles finds itself in a worrying situation, despite a bench depth supposed to make more than one team pale. The franchise has been without its leader LeBron James since last season, leaving Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves to carry the full weight of the attack. The Lakers tried to limit the damage, but could not avoid defeats 113-104 during their trip to the Phoenix Suns, then 116-117 when receiving the Kings. However, JJ Redick’s men sank against the Dallas Mavericks (94-121). Far from approaching the start of the competition with positive signals, they were logically beaten 109-119 by the Golden State Warriors, a direct competitor in the race for the playoffs. However, Marcus Smart and his teammates finally ended their negative spiral by crushing the Minnesota Timberwolves 128-110. Both teams focused everything on the attack, but it was ultimately the free throws that decided them. Doncić was once again impressive, with 49 points, 11 rebounds and 8 assists.
