The Houston Rockets (43-25) will return to the court Sunday versus the Sacramento Kings (29-40), perhaps with an opportunity to clinch a third consecutive Southwest Division title and their fourth since 2015.
With Houston’s “magic number” down to one, they could clinch it before, if Milwaukee beats Dallas on Saturday night. Should that not occur, the Rockets will have the opportunity to do it themselves.
The division title would ensure that the Rockets cannot fall below No. 6 in the close race for Western Conference playoff seeding (standings), and it would also be helpful in many tiebreaker scenarios.
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The Rockets and Kings are 1-1 in two previous meetings this season, both coming way back in December 2019. The one Sacramento victory was a memorable one, when Nemanja Bjelica won it at the buzzer at Toyota Center on a shot more than 30 feet from the basket.
Great play design from Kings on this game winner. Elevator screen for Bogdanovic but the key is that he curls. Tucker tries to protect on a potential lob. 2nd key is Barnes backscreen for Hield. That engages Harden, no one to help on Bjelica's cut and Tucker can't recover in time pic.twitter.com/mwpfBu72wK
— Steve Jones Jr. (@stevejones20) December 10, 2019
The Kings are led in points (21.0) and assists (6.8) by 22-year-old rising star De’Aaron Fox, who grew up in Houston.
Sacramento, which is fighting for the last playoff spot in the West, is 1-4 in games at the NBA “bubble” in Florida. Outside of Fox, backcourt mate Bogdan Bogdanovic has also played well, averaging 31 points per game over his last two outings. Bogdanovic has hit 61.5% of his shots in that stretch, including a blistering 10-of-17 (58.8%) on 3-pointers.
But the undersized Rockets will counter with even more talent in the backcourt, starting with MVP candidate James Harden — who had 39 points and 12 assists in a win over the Lakers in his most recent game.
Houston is also hopeful that fellow All-Star guard and recent MVP Russell Westbrook could return Sunday after missing Thursday’s victory against the Lakers due to a right quad contusion.
D'Antoni says he thinks Russell Westbrook has a "real good shot" at being ready for #Rockets vs. Kings on Sunday. #OneMission
— Ben DuBose (@BenDuBose) August 7, 2020
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The pairing of Fox and Bogdanovic could be a good test for the Rockets, who have been encouraged by their defensive play during a 3-1 start to regular-season games at the NBA bubble. Though Houston ranks No. 16 in net defensive rating for the 2019-20 season as a whole, they’ve improved that to No. 8 over the most recent four games.
“Our goal is to defend at a high level, and I think we did that,” Harden said Thursday. “That’s going to win us a championship, on the defensive end. Laser focus is what it takes. The team effort is there.”
James Harden on the #Rockets defense: "That's going to win us a championship, on the defensive end. Laser focus is what it takes. The team effort is there." #OneMission https://t.co/3QZrVBSH39
— Ben DuBose (@BenDuBose) August 7, 2020
Sunday’s game tips off at 7:00 p.m. Central, and unlike Houston’s first four matchups at Disney World, it is not scheduled for national television.
The Rockets-Kings game can be watched via regional broadcast partner AT&T SportsNet Southwest (with Houston announcers), and it can also be streamed via NBA League Pass. Sacramento will have its own broadcast on NBC Sports California.
The Rockets will wear their “H-Town” white City jerseys for the first time in Florida, while the Kings will don their black Statement uniforms.
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