Programming note: Cavs-Kings coverage starts tonight at 7pm with Kings Pregame Live on CSN California, and streaming live right here.
The Sacramento Kings return home licking their wounds after a 1-3 road trip. They currently sit 12 games under .500, their lowest point of the season. Waiting for them Wednesday night at Sleep Train Arena are the Cleveland Cavaliers, the team with the best record in the Eastern Conference.
Turnovers continue to plague the Kings like they have all season long. After handing the ball over 24 times in Monday night’s loss to the Pelicans, the Kings currently rank 28th in the NBA in turnovers per game at 16.7.
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The Cavs are prepping for another long playoff run. They rely heavily on their big three of LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love, but J.R. Smith has provided a spark and the deadline addition of Channing Frye could pay huge dividends down the stretch.
LINE
Cavs by 6.5
WHERE THEY STAND
NBA
Kings: 25-37, third place in Pacific
Cavs: 44-18, first place in Central
MATCHUP TO WATCH
Rudy Gay vs. LeBron James -- Gay did a nice job of defending big man Anthony Davis on Monday, but guarding the great LeBron James is completely different task. James may not be the MVP, but he’s still one of the best players in the league. Gay will need to slow him on one end and make him work on the other if the Kings have any shot of shocking the Cavs.
INJURY REPORT
Kings: Marco Belinelli (back spasms), SG Ben McLemore (right ring finger) and G Seth Curry (sprained right foot) are out.
Cavs: G Mo Williams (knee) and C Timofey Mozgov (illness) are out.
SERIES HISTORY
This is the second of two meetings between the Kings and Cavs this season, with Cleveland coming away with a 120-100 win on Feb. 8. These two teams are all knotted up at 56-56 in the all-time series, but the Cavs hold a 36-22 lead during the Sacramento-era.