The New York Knicks and Sacramento Kings are set to face each other in what should be an interesting game on Friday night. Currently, the Kings are the favorite at -8.5.
In their last 10 games against each other, Sacramento has the edge with a 7-3 record. Both teams are 5-5 ATS, while Sacramento holds a scoring advantage by a 103.20-98.30 margin.
Sacramento also has a better field goal percentage at 42.12%. New York leads in the rebounds category, however, as they have recorded an average of 49.20 rebounds per game.
Sacramento has had better success hitting the three-point shot. The Kings are 94-271 from behind the arc when these two teams play against each other. The numbers certainly favor the Sacramento Kings in this one. The Kings have a 6-4 home record and a 4-3 mark as the favorite.
The Kings also have a 15-9 record ATS while New York has fallen below 500 at 12-13. However, the Kings have done respectably on the road as they come into Friday’s game with a 6-6 mark.
Scoring Numbers
The New York Knicks are led by Julius Randle in the scoring department. The 25 year old from Dallas was a first round pick by the Lakers in the 2014 draft following his career at Kentucky. Randle is leading the team with 1 7 points per game, and nearly 9 rebounds.
For the Sacramento Kings, the pride of Oklahoma – Buddy Hield is anchoring the offense. Hield is scoring 21.5 points per game, and also averaging 5 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game.
The Knicks are 24th in the league with 98.4 points per game, while the Kings are even worse with 97.5 per game. New York is THE worst shooting team in the league, making just 42% of their shots, including 35% from behind the line. The Knicks are the best at something though – as they lead all of the NBA with 12 rebounds per game on the offensive side. The Kings, on the other hand, get 10 per game.
Last time out
The Kings were able to squeak by the Oklahoma City Thunder by a 94-93 margin on Wednesday. Buddy Hield led Sacramento with 23 points and six assists on the evening.
The Knicks were able to defeat the Golden State Warriors by a 124-122 score. Marcus Morris Sr. led all scorers with 26 points on the evening. Julius Randle and RJ Barrett also did their part. They had 24 and 22 points respectively. Randle led all New York players with 13 rebounds.
Prediction
Given how Sacramento has played over the last couple of games, I would take Sacramento -8.5 in this one. New York has a lot of youth and players who are still learning to play with each other.
Also, with how Sacramento has dominated the head-to-head series I would expect nothing different in this matchup. The numbers show us that the Sacramento Kings are the play here. Buddy Hield may score 30 in this game, and the Kings win by double digits over the Knicks. The bet to make in this game is Sacramento -8.5 in this matchup.
