On April 8, Beijing time, the Kings challenged the Nets away, and the outcome of the game was very important, as the Kings and Lakers competed for the 8th position in the West. At present, the Suns and Pelicans are ranked 6th and 7th in the West with 46 wins and 32 losses, and the Lakers are temporarily ahead of the Kings by 0.5 wins, but if the Kings win today, they will temporarily surpass the Lakers in 8th, and the Lakers also have a game today, the opponent is the Timberwolves, the second in the West, the Lakers' James is absent due to illness, and it is very difficult to win, for the Kings, this is a good opportunity to overtake the Lakers. Kings starting lineup: Fox + Ellis + Barnes + Murray + Sabonis, Nets starting lineup: Schroder + Thomas + Bridges + Wilson + Cloney.
In the first quarter, the Kings exploded 29-19 in a single quarter, with a lead of 10 points, showing the belief that they must win, and the performance of the game was very good. In the second quarter, the Kings went completely crazy, scoring 36 points in a single quarter, while the Nets scored only 21 points, and by halftime, the Kings had a 25-point lead. Considering the Nets' limited scoring ability and the margin of more than 20 points, the game went into garbage time two quarters early. Sabonis had 12 points and 11 rebounds in the half, and Fox also had 11 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists.
In the third quarter, the Nets played 24-13 to chase the difference to only 14 points, and the game was in suspense again. In fact, the Nets are not considered fish belly, ranking 11th in the East, and previously competed with the Hawks and Bulls for playoff spots, but the follow-up was weak and slowly fell behind. In the fourth quarter, the difference came to more than 20 points again, and in the end, the Kings defeated the Nets 107-77, ending a two-game losing streak, and the Kings temporarily ranked 8th in the West with a record of 45 wins and 33 losses.
The Kings' Fox chipped in 20 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists, and Sabonis had 18 points, 20 rebounds and 9 assists, and he may be the most underrated star in the league, at least a top 5 center in the league, and his practicality is more than that of the thick eyebrows. Murray had 19 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 4 blocks, Barnes had a poor performance with 2 points, 0 rebounds and 0 assists, and Ellis had 6 points, 2 rebounds and 1 assist. For the Nets, Schroder had four points, seven rebounds and six assists, Bridges had eight points, five rebounds and two assists, and Thomas had 21 points and four rebounds.
The Kings beat the Nets, ending a two-game losing streak, with a 45-33 record, temporarily beating the Lakers in 8th place, if the Lakers win today, they will overtake the Kings again, and if they lose, they will be 0.5 wins behind the Kings and ranked 9th in the West. Since the Warriors will basically finish 10th, neither the Lakers nor the Kings want to be ranked 9th, if so, they will have to face the experienced Warriors in the play-offs, and the certainty of winning is not great.
The pattern of the West is gradually becoming clear, the top 3 teams have been determined, the Clippers and Mavericks are firmly in the 4th and 5th place in the West, the 6th place is more fiercely contested, the Suns and Pelicans are both possible, and the Lakers and Kings are competing for 8th place in the West, and the Warriors are 10th. The Rockets have already decided to miss the top 10 after losing to the Mavericks today, and the next few games can give young players such as Jalen Green and Jabari Smith Jr. a rest, and next season is worth looking forward to. The Jazz, Grizzlies, Trail Blazers, and Spurs are all strong contenders for the top pick, depending on who loses more.