Kings vs. Wizards gameday: Keon Ellis, Devin Carter injury updates and 3 things to watch
The Kings will try to keep the good times rolling when they play host to the Washington Wizards on Sunday at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento.
The Kings are one of the hottest teams in the NBA. The Wizards are the worst.
The Kings (21-20) have won eight of 10 while going 5-0 at home under interim coach Doug Christie. They picked up another impressive win Thursday, holding on for a 132-127 victory over the Houston Rockets. Keon Ellis is listed as questionable after suffering an ankle injury in the win over Houston. Rookie Devin Carter is out with right wrist soreness.
The Kings are ninth in the Western Conference playoff race, two games behind the Los Angeles Lakers for the No. 6 seed. The West is tightly bunched with only 2 ½ games separating the No. 5 Los Angeles Clippers from the No. 11 Phoenix Suns.
The Wizards (6-34) have the worst record in the NBA and the longest losing streak in the league after dropping nine in a row. They will face the Kings on the second night of a back-to-back after opening a six-game road trip with a 122-114 loss to the Golden State Warriors on Saturday.
The Wizards won’t submit an injury report until Sunday because they played Saturday night, but they will likely be without point guard Malcolm Brogdon and power forward Marvin Bagley III.
Brogdon, who averages 13.8 points, 4.1 rebounds and 3.9 assists, has missed the past seven games with a right foot injury. Bagley has missed the past 13 games with a right knee sprain. Bagley, who the Kings selected over Luka Doncic with the No. 2 pick in the 2018 NBA draft, is averaging 4.9 points and 2.9 rebounds.
Here are three things to watch in Sunday’s game.
Keon Ellis’ injury
Ellis rolled his right ankle when he stepped on Sabonis’ foot in the third quarter of Thursday’s game against the Rockets. He limped back to the locker room with the team’s medical staff before being ruled out for the rest of the game a short time later.
Ellis is averaging 7.4 points, 2.4 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 1.4 steals while shooting 46.7% from the field and 42.9% from 3-point range in 21.5 minutes per game this season. Ellis has taken on a bigger role since Christie took over, starting six of the past 10 games with De’Aaron Fox, Malik Monk and Murray all missing games due to injuries.
Over that stretch, Ellis has averaged 10.6 points, 3.0 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 2.0 steals while shooting 47.9% from the field and 46.9% from beyond the arc in 26.2 minutes per game.
Sabonis’ 3-point shooting
Kings center Domantas Sabonis is having a career year in terms of 3-point shooting, opening up new and exciting possibilities for Sacramento’s offense.
Sabonis is averaging 20.6 points, 14.1 rebounds and 6.3 assists while shooting 60% from the field and a career-high 47.8% from 3-point range, well above his career average of 34.8%. Sabonis has improved his 3-point efficiency dramatically while increasing his volume, from 1.1 attempts per game last season to a career-high 2.4 attempts this season.
Sabonis has gone 15 of 23 from 3-point range over the past 10 games, shooting a sizzling 65.2% from beyond the arc. He went 3 of 4 from long distance in a win over the Boston Celtics and 3 of 6 in a win over the Memphis Grizzlies.
Keegan Murray heating up
Kings forward Keegan Murray has caught fire since missing two games with an ankle injury in early January.
Murray is averaging a career-low 12.1 points per game while shooting career lows of 42.4% from the field and 32.4% from 3-point range. He has been much better over the past six games after taking time off let the ankle heal, averaging 14.5 points on 48.5% shooting from the field and 47.7% shooting from long distance.
Wizards at Kings
When: 6 p.m.
Where: Golden 1 Center
TV: TNT
Radio: Sactown Sports 1140
Odds: Kings -16.5
Over/under: 234.5
Injury report
Wizards: Not yet submitted.
Kings: QUESTIONABLE — Keon Ellis (ankle). OUT — Devin Carter (wrist).
Upcoming schedule
Jan. 19 vs. Washington Wizards
Jan. 22 vs. Golden State Warriors
Jan. 23 at Denver Nuggets
Jan. 25 at New York Knicks
Jan. 27 at Brooklyn Nets
