There are few teams with worse records than the Kings. Seattle is one of those teams.
Let's get to business:
STARTERS:
PG - Mike Bibby does not want to be traded to a team who could very well end up in the NBA Finals. Right...
SG - Kevin Martin has went for 28+ ten times this season, including three out of the last four games.
SF - This is about the point in which Ron Artest's dog problem starts fading away and Ron-Ron to Miami chatter heats back up.
PF - Even Maurice Taylor scored more points per 40 minutes than Kenny Thomas. Maurice Taylor? Waived. Kenny Thomas? Starting over the vastly more potent Shareef Abdur-Rahim and Corliss Williamson.
C - Brad Miller has blocked shots this regularly since high school.
SEATTLE
PG - Luke Ridnour was a Team USA pick, but then got benched behind Earl Watson this season. So strange, the NBA. (Ridnour's back in the starting lineup, though, which means Bibby has zero excuse.)
SG - Ray Allen could make a serious case to be in the All-Star game over Tony Parker.
SF - Rashard Lewis will be back in the starting lineup tonight after missing 22 games with a strained hand tendon. One would guess his name will be whispered far and wide over the next two weeks.
PF - Chris Wilcox has been good for Seattle, which makes the team's record a bit more puzzling.
C - Kevin Pelton tells us Nick Collison is thriving in his starting role, averaging 20 and 13 in his last six games. He could score 30 tonight.
THE LINE:
The Kings are four-point underdogs. With Seattle's defense, it will likely be a quick-paced, high-scoring game. That would seem to favor the Sonics, but the Kings defense of late has shown it might be able to slow down Ray-Ray. I'll take the Kings with the points.
INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT NOTE:
Instead of the usual call to arms, I'll just point out the most sentient comments on the John Amaechi story, which come from Kevin Arnovitz at ClipperBlog. If you're at all interested in this story, you have to read Kevin's post.
PREGAME HAIKU:
The wins are raining
as our heros go north. Will
the road dampen things?
A five-game winning streak would sure look nice... Go Kings!