Pelicans plus 5 1/2 at Kings
Sacramento has a better coach this season and a new state-of-the-art arena, but don’t get ahead of yourself with this team. The Kings are still the Kings, which means they are overpriced here.
If there is a big man better than DeMarcus Cousins it’s Anthony Davis. Davis is averaging 30.4 points, 11.9 rebounds and leads the NBA in blocked shots at 2.8.
New Orleans played last night covering against Golden State. The Pelicans are 0-7, but are better than their record. They’ve lost twice in overtime and suffered two other losses by a combined nine points. They shouldn’t be fatigued playing without rest this early in the season.
Yes, the Pelicans are a lottery team. They’re missing a couple of key cogs with Jrue Holiday and Tyreke Evans sidelined. But the Kings aren’t any better.
The Kings are trying to find their identity under new coach Dave Joerger. This is a bad spot, too, for Sacramento traveling home after concluding a five-game, eight-day road trip that finished up Sunday. with a 96-91 upset win against Toronto.
The Kings are a work in progress. Their dynamics are going to be different here as starting point guard Darren Collison makes his season debut after sitting out an eight-game suspension. There’s going to be an adjustment period for the Kings going from Ty Lawson to Collison, who figures to be rusty. Collison is an upgrade. Lawson can’t shoot, or make free throws. But that difference might not show up for a while at least not in Collison’s first game back.
Sacramento was the worst defensive team in the league last season giving up 109.1 points a game. Joerger is working on that. The Pelicans have surrendered six more points per game than the Kings so far this season – but have also played Golden State twice. The Warriors averaged 119 points against the Pelicans in those two games. Discount those two games and New Orleans would be surrendering an average of 98.8 points in regulation, which would rank as the 10th best in the league.
New Orleans is desperate for a victory. The Pelicans have beaten the Kings six straight times, including all four meetings last season.
