Two teams riding two-game winning streaks, largely thanks to unheralded players, will clash on Friday night when the Los Angeles Clippers visit the Sacramento Kings.
The Clippers, who started their five-game homestand with a potentially disastrous outlook, finished strong with a pair of wins. This includes a decisive 110-98 victory on Wednesday night against the Philadelphia 76ers, marking Paul George’s return to Los Angeles.
Norman Powell continued his impressive start to the season, hitting six 3-pointers and scoring 26 points for the Clippers, who ended their homestand with a 2-3 record.
Powell, at 31, acknowledged after the win that seeing George reminded him of the opportunity he now has to take on a larger role with the Clippers, who are also currently without the injured Kawhi Leonard.
Powell has started all eight games this season, leading the Clippers with an average of 25.0 points per game. His 3-point shooting percentage (48.5) is an improvement over last year, when he set a career high at 43.5 percent.
Last season, with George, Leonard, and Russell Westbrook on the roster, Powell started just three games. Interestingly, two of those starts were against the Kings, where he scored 21 points in a February home loss and 17 points in an April road defeat.
Despite Powell contributing just 18 points off the bench, the Clippers won the first two meetings against the Kings last season, one at each site. None of the Clippers-Kings games last season were decided by fewer than 14 points.
The Kings have already experienced several close games this season, with four of their eight games decided by four or fewer points. This includes two consecutive tight games before their 122-107 home win over the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday.
The Kings’ stars shone bright against the Raptors, with Domantas Sabonis recording a triple-double while De’Aaron Fox and DeMar DeRozan each scored over 20 points.
A key contributor to the win was Keegan Murray, who chipped in 22 points and 12 rebounds for his fourth double-double of the season. Kings coach Mike Brown praised Murray after the team’s triumphant return from a four-game trip that produced three wins, including the finale in Miami on Monday.
Murray has grabbed at least one offensive rebound in all eight games, and at least two in each of his four double-doubles. His seven offensive rebounds against the Raptors were a career high.
In last year’s two wins over the Clippers, Murray showcased his skills under the hoop, grabbing a pair of offensive rebounds in each game and contributing a total of 30 points and 13 rebounds.
