Kings Report – 3/12
A look at the Kings’ late-season surge, Devin Carter’s breakout, and upcoming March Madness action.
The Sacramento Kings have lost their title of worst team in the league; they can’t even tank right. After beating the Chicago Bulls fairly handily on Sunday, March 8, they came back from a 20-point deficit to beat the now-worst team in the league, the Indiana Pacers, on Tuesday, March 10.
Actually, it was last year’s first-round pick, point guard Devin Carter, who single-handedly lifted the Kings over the Pacers with a career-high 24 points, 22 of which came in the fourth quarter. Carter has had his ups and downs in his young career, mostly downs. Last season, he averaged 11 minutes per game and scored just 3.8 points with 2.1 rebounds. This season has been better for Carter, but there hasn’t been much consistency. He has, however, been making the most of the garbage time of a season like this one.
I know I joked about tanking, but I, and the Kings fans at the Pacers game the other night, clearly still like seeing a Kings win. And it looked like a fun time. All the rookies, wearing sunglasses, lit the beam after the game with 50 Cent, who has attended Kings games in the past, and Joey Fatone of *NSYNC, who performed the halftime show.
If Sacramento were a little bit closer, I would have been there, because I saw tickets were only $13 for the cheap seats. If you want to attend a game, there are only eight home games left this season, and they are getting more affordable by the day.
With the regular season winding down and the Kings well out of contention, I’m looking forward to March Madness more than usual. A few teams worth keeping an eye on during the tournament include Duke, where Cameron Boozer is expected to be one of the biggest stars; Kansas, led by guard Darryn Peterson; Michigan, featuring versatile forward Yaxel Lendeborg; and BYU, where top prospect AJ Dybantsa will likely draw plenty of attention. Even if your bracket falls apart after the first weekend, at least you’ll have a head start recognizing some of the names that could be popping up in NBA draft conversations this summer.
Selection Sunday, when the bracket will be revealed, is this Sunday, March 15. The First Four play-in games will take place on March 17 and 18, and the first round tips off on March 19 and 20. At the time I’m writing this, the odds have Michigan as the favorite to win the tournament, with Duke close behind. So while the Kings finish out a season that hasn’t exactly gone according to plan, at least March Madness is about to give basketball fans something new to cheer for.