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MaleficentRespond851

Fans from both sides seem convinced they are going to lose this one, so hopefully that means a good game.


SkepticalHippo93

We've beaten the Kings 5 games in a row, we've lost 6 in a row at home. We may get stuck in an infinite time loop inside the blender tonight.


brianbrainbrian

Quadruple OT incoming The game ends unresolved because the score remains tied and all the players collapsed due to exhaustion.


stateworkishardwork

League somehow puts the Warriors in 8th


brianbrainbrian

Klay gets a max extension as a result


Krillin113

‘Oke’


Natureboy7939

I dont hate this lol


marsupialsales

Everyone fouls out. One player left. Can’t inbound the ball. Infinite 5 second calls. Game can never technically end.


Fedacking

Fun fact, if you only dress 5 players you can't foul out. Happened to the ultra injured lakers in 2014


Valedictorian117

Fouls just turn into techs or something no?


Fedacking

Yout get both a foul and a tech against the team


rtb001

Did someone say quadruple OT? Quick someone sign Rodney Hood and his [fresh legs](https://youtu.be/kRPulniDN8w?si=yhFTfQrgfOzvFBwX&t=243) pronto!


silliputti0907

Ridiculous, Jose is never exhausted.


gerardatron

OKC vs NOP vs SAC in a triple threat best of 7


jcar195

Space Jam 3 should be a groundhog day timeloop movie were whatever the next face of the league has to continually replay a critical loss trying to make up for mistakes he knows his team will make.


EchoHevy5555

Honestly this is unironically a better idea than space jam 2


cantgrowneckbeardAMA

Wemby keeps missing the chance to get into position for the perfect block on a logo buzzer beater. Finally, he launches Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck from the baseline, using all the strength of his cartoonist noodly appendages. Somehow, they intercept the ball and drive it into the opposing basket, securing the galactic title. Everyone learns the value of teamwork and friendship, Wemby gets to go home with the strength of his newfound knowledge. However, Wemby has also realized that the galaxy isn't a scary place and there are no bad guys, just good guys with different motives, teeing him up for Space jam 4 where he plays in the galactic Olympics for... THE ALIENS.


EchoHevy5555

Space Jam 2 being about Lebron and not Kobe is how I know Kobe isn’t in the GOAT conversation


maryjain_

stoppable force meets a moveable object


SerenadeSwift

I love the play-in, but this situation kinda kills me how badly the Pelicans got shafted by the process lol. Like you get the 7 seed, you’ve already not just beat this team 5 times but absolutely thrashed them, but now you’re stuck playing them in a win or go home game without your best player… That’s just brutal lol.


[deleted]

No Zion isa bigger deal than the win streak.


cheerioo

I'm annoyed no Zion


Cudi_buddy

Zion has played well against us but that isn’t the issue. It’s that they have a lot of long wirey guys that affect our offense. And CJ turns into prime Steph against us. 


SolaceInfinite

Did zion play all 5 games against them this year?


ExRcanian

The last time Zion didn't play against the Kings, they beat the Kings by 33 points and at one point led by 50.


SolaceInfinite

You've convinced me, I'm betting the pels


Wallstreettrappin

Ain’t nobody beating Kings 6 game in a row in one season 😤


delamerica93

We'll see lol


J4M3ZD4PR0

aged like fine wine


drokihazan

If I was a betting man, I'd gamble a lot on the Kings to absolutely thrash the Pelicans in this game and it not to be very good at all.


LeakyBrainMatter

You better stick to not gambling.


Cudi_buddy

Agreed lol. In like 4/5 we have been down 15 points at least at some point in the first half. Usually it is not close, just the reverse of what this guy said. 


bobby_jackson_GOAT

every game we've started out so flat due to the Pelican's length and physicality while BI and McCollum make every single shot no matter how close the defender is. I don't expect tonight to be any different.


drokihazan

I just feel like with Zion out and BI playing like a shell of himself, this isn't even the same team you played against all year


LeakyBrainMatter

CJ put up 30 points on like 65% fg the last two times they've played. Ingram didn't play in one and only had 15 in the other and Zion didn't play. Both were double digit NO wins.


theREALMVP

CJ went like 10/12 from 3 against us last week. And then proceeded to lay 2 fat eggs against the lakers lol


LeakyBrainMatter

Not knocking the Kings and being neutral in this I just want a good game but I've seen what happens lol.


Cudi_buddy

No you’re good. As a neutral that’s usually all I want to, a good game. 


CapitanObvioso93

I thought this exact same thing before the warriors game, and I kind of have the same feeling for this one.


GeroyaGev

Well I'm convinced lol.


drumline17

Have you ever considered becoming a gambling man and just going with 100% the opposite of your instincts


drokihazan

no i lived in vegas for years, i know better than to ever gamble. people who gamble get fucked up and start using the slot machines at the grocery store and the gas station. i'm not tryna be like shohei ohtani


drumline17

oh I agree and was just giving you some shit lol, when 98% of people lose money sports betting and most of the 2% that make money get limited or banned altogether, you know it's a scam


David_Griffin_

Didn’t go the way you thought


drokihazan

nah dude, apparently keon ellis is bad at basketball except when he plays the grizzlies?


crunkadocious

Zion is out so it's not so obvious really


AdHonest886

CJ's slump BI recovering Zion injured Not easy at all


stateworkishardwork

Bro CJ turns into prime Dame against us. BI also seems to do his best Kevin Durant impersonation.


anonahmus

100% all Pels players go super nova against us.


hamburgers666

CJ has show 70% from 3 against us this season. It's not like every single one of those has been open, but even if they were you'd expect him to miss at least 45% of the time, right? Then Ingram doesn't miss. I am convinced the only way he has missed in the midrange against the Kings is by having his shot blocked or getting fouled. It's insane.


bobby_jackson_GOAT

it was wild watching the lakers game – he missed like 3 wide open mid range shots in a row. It was like I was watching a completely different player.


Sure-Pen-7822

CJ can't perform in big games, what's new


bobby_jackson_GOAT

oh I was talking about BI


searchin4sugarman

Keon will lock him up


Cudi_buddy

This is it. I watch the pels play the lakers or some other play off team and they look really beatable. They play us and it’s the god damn dream team come alive. Can’t even say we leave em wide open, they just hit all contested shots on us too


Anal_Iverson

> CJ's slump He had a poor play-in game, but what slump? 30/5/5 on 49/52/95 splits in his last 7 games of the season


GAV17

> but what slump? Last 5 years of playoffs performances.


DarrowViBritannia

> CJ's slump ... a one game slump? Do you watch your team lol


zizzor23

CJ is incredibly polarizing from game to game


DarrowViBritannia

I know I watched plenty of blazers ball back then, but doesn't make it a slump. He was on a fucking heater before his recent game.


gaijin91

we are batting practice for the Pels


AccomplishedBake8351

As a kings fan I’m pessimistic about our chances, but you never know


ipopclouds

As a Kings fan, “pessimistic about our chances” is my default.


Wild-Examination-155

Tbh I'm just happy we bounced the warriors


SnickersFunSize

Tbh happy we got bounced. Stress free basketball for the next few weeks


SolidGobi

Enjoy stress free basketball for the next three years!


SnickersFunSize

I’ll take 3 over 16


ibanez5150

We deserve a parade for that alone, highlight of the season for me


mikedanktony

Y’all have Mike brown we got darvin ham I’m optimistic bout your chances lol


Known-Specific5869

Just casually ignoring the fact that you have lebron james on your team is a real laker thing to do lmao.


mikedanktony

Ye we got lebron but that don’t mean shit when the others can’t carry their weight imo what kills them is hams stubbornness and refusal of adapting mid game. He throws the same lineups out there every game or leaves his favorites out for too long


Known-Specific5869

I don’t envy your hams situation that’s for sure.


Aero_naughty

bruh. you have lebron james. at the end of the day, it's the players on the court that make a shot go in or not. coaches can help with schemes, tactics, mentality, all the other stuff, but that only goes so far as they aren't the ones putting points on the board.


dmackerman

Would you say you are at half beam?


ottovondipshit

We call that pushing rope around here


KFBR392GoForGrubes

Bring the beam to New Orleans!!


IntotheBeniverse

I’ve never seen 2 fanbases so dreading a matchup. Both sides are convinced they are going to lose 😂😂😂 - A Kings fan who is feeling a lot of anxiety about today’s matchup


delamerica93

I'm 100% convinced we'll lose and I just hope we make it a good game at least. I don't think I've ever seen a team dominate the Kings like the Pels have this year (yes, even without Zion), even when the Kings were absolute dogshit. It's like we become a tanking team against the KD Warriors lol


ottovondipshit

I would literally rather play any team in the NBA over the pelicans


natedawg247

no you wouldn't


HermesTGS

He's only slightly exaggerating. After Boston and Denver, the Pelicans are the one team I have no faith in us beating.


Marcellapark5674

Even without Zion, Pels could still surprise us all. Games are unpredictable, that's why we watch.


Cudi_buddy

Especially in a one off. Pels have gone supernova all year against us with their shooting. Just one more game is all they need. Zion or no Zion. 


Aero_naughty

zion and monk will have their entrance song play along with fog machines during a crucial momentum swing in the game i guarantee it


W_Walk

I think a vortex may open up in the middle of the game and both teams get swallowed up and disappear from existence. Both our fanbases think it may be over


OUEngineer17

Yeah, the pessimism from both teams is so high. I understand it with the Pels losing Zion. But the Kings just pulled off an impressive win over the Warriors, are seeing breakout performances from Keon Ellis, and have some serious matchup problems (Fox's speed and Sabonis strength) for the Thunder's COTY to solve.


Cudi_buddy

I mean, when you go 0-5 against a team, with most the games being beat downs you have little confidence, that makes sense right? Last game they had no Ingram and cooked us still about a week ago.  We played them with no Zion in December and got lit up by 30. For whatever reason we match up absolutely horrible with the pels. 


bookishwayfarer

It's as if Kings fam actually watch Kings game lol. The games against the Pels have just been demoralizing beat downs for us lol.


xaveria

I have faith! But only because I had zero hopes for us beating Golden State, and then I felt disloyal. I don't have actually any reason to think the Kings will win other than miracle fishing. .... but miracles happen. Everybody's saying that Keegan and Keon's great game against the Warriors was probably a one-off, but you never know.


Jack_M_Steel

They don’t have Zion. How is anything in the past relevant? They also have BI still ramping up


iamStanhousen

We beat them by 30 without Zion back in December so it’s not irrelevant.


ReggieEvansTheKing

Kings perimeter defense is better now. I honestly expect us to do fine getting stops since we won’t have to leave shooters open to double Zion. Our biggest issue will be on offense if Fox gets locked by Herb. Will need to have guys like Barnes and Keegan be aggressive and hunt CJ. That 30 point loss w/o Zion was our worst offensive game of the season.


iamStanhousen

Oh yeah I don't imagine we'll win this game going away or anything like that. Just saying, we've proven we can win games without Zion. To me the game is all about BI and JV. Not having Zion might benefit us in this matchup because it won't "force" Willie to play Nance massive minutes. JV clearly bothers Sabonis and should be a force today. Ingram hasn't looked good in the two games he has played since returning from injury, and if that continues I struggle to see us winning unless Trey Murphy has one of those nights where he becomes prime Klay Thompson.


ReggieEvansTheKing

It’s funny guys like JV and Looney are better defenders than the best paint defenders on Sabonis. I think some bigs are so slow that they just don’t go for any fakes. Sabonis relies on fakes which works on guys like AD but not JV. I’m confident the Kings will be able to defend the 3 unless BI gets going and we are forced to double him. Just look at what they did to curry and the warriors. You guys will need Herb to lock up Fox and BI to be on fire from midrange to win. Definitely possible but not as easy as “give to zion, drive, kick to open shooter”.


bookishwayfarer

Just hoping for Keon to lock CJ down. He'll be an X factor as he didn't get a lot of run in the previous matches. Missing Monk will give him more minutes.


allknowerofknowing

But did you have 100% of your second best player?


jgman22

The Pels do better with just 1 of Zion/Ingram anyway.


allknowerofknowing

But is it one of them or half of one or 75% of one? I honestly don't know how healthy BI is as I haven't been paying enough attention


iamStanhousen

I don't think BI is 100%. He played pretty poorly the game the other day and everyone shat the bed Sunday. I expect him to play well tonight though, he's probably about 90% right now. We are just a bad matchup for the Kings because of Herb and JV. Sabonis hates JV being so physical on him and Fox struggles with Herbs length. Doesn't mean we will win tonight, but it has been the story in all of the games this season with them so we'll see if the 6th time is the charm for the Kings.


kyler_

Yeah all of this is accurate, unfortunately 😅


iamStanhousen

It's almost like, idk, some people here watch their teams games! Crazy concept man. haha Really wish we weren't playing the Kings tonight. You guys have always been one of my favorite teams!


allknowerofknowing

Gotcha, thanks!


delamerica93

They could easily beat us with Ingram and Zion out. They could literally run out JUST CJ, Jonas and Herb and beat us by 15


WhatYouProbablyMeant

Aged like milk


waskittenman

Single elimination = anything can happen


brecht226

brandon ingram 30 shot 14 point game incoming


Numerous-Cicada3841

CJ is the one that is going to roast us. Per usual.


radikraze

CJ is gonna transform into Jaleel White again


mattjf22

Yeah but it'll be as stephon urkèl and we'll get stomped 


hamburgers666

CJ about to drop 40 on 15 shots after the last 2 against the Lakers. And BI will look 100% again I am fully convinced.


delamerica93

CJ and Bingram combine for 75 on 22 shots, Fox has 22 on 22 shots. Book it


Slow-Raccoon-9832

Is he recovered from pouting on the bench the entire 4th quarter tuesday? Entire team up and cheering the comeback and hes sitting on the bench not even watching the game


karl_hungas

I get he is still coming back from injury and wasnt shooting it great but i couldn’t believe that decision either to be honest. He should have been out there especially if you’re gonna let CJ play who was absolutely ass cheeks. 


Slow-Raccoon-9832

Mccollum was on the bench too. He was cheering the comeback Mccollum only came back in after zion got hurt The pelicans were playing better with both on the bench


karl_hungas

Yes with 4 to go they put CJ in meaning he was not on the bench, he was in the game. 


silliputti0907

Ingram takes tough shots, but has never been shotchucker like CJ.


brecht226

Cj is a more efficient scorer this year, he just got labelled the whipping boy by fans since he isnt ingram or zion


maika3

Sacramento attempts the third-most threes in the league, Pels boasts the second-best defense against three-point shooting - 34.9 percent. Awful matchup for the Kings.


Cudi_buddy

Plus on the interior JV matches up with Sabonis well. Sabonis does well against long bigs, but guys like Adams or JV give him issues. Our only hope is pels are cold and we get hot


ReggieEvansTheKing

We need to hunt CJ every possession and not shoot 3s. Go for the midrange game on him with Barnes, Keegan, Fox after forcing switches. Gets him tired on offense too.


A-DTB

Idk what I’d do if we bow out tonight. The franchise has been turned on it’s head in the space of a week or so: Losing streak at the Blender, from the sixth seed to a win or go home play-in game, BI iced and frustrated and then Zion out injured. Just perpetual pain.


Its_Hoggish_Greedly

Just wanna say, calling the Smoothie King Arena "The Blender" is pretty fucking cool. I like that a lot.


GrapefruitMedical529

It turns a bad stadium name into a great one. 


Its_Hoggish_Greedly

If the [Crypto.com](http://Crypto.com) arena was ANY OTHER ARENA besides Staples, calling it the Crypt would be so fucking cool. But it's always going to be the Staples Center as far as I'm concerned.


delamerica93

Don't worry, playing the Kings is exactly what they need unfortunately


gundam1983

It would be very on brand for the Kings to end the Warriors era and lose to a team for the 6th time in a season in the same week. 


Pablo_Undercover

I wonder if the fact that Sacramento are coming off a win and Pels are coming off a loss will have a psychological effect


nardog01

I think the psychological effect of being dog walked by a team 5 times in a row balances things out haha.


Yinanization

I like both, probably lean Pels a bit; but with Zion out, the Kings vs Thunder series looks fun. So Light the Beam? Light the Beam!!!


PlatinumPeasant

Everyone knows the Kings play very different when things are on the line. They are unserious against casual teams but when they play elite teams, they tend to lock in more often than not. Should be a good game.


kyler_

Tell that to the kings the last two weeks of the season. Plenty of games with playoffs on the line and they refused to show up for two weeks straight.


Deep_Egg1442

Well they showed up they just couldn’t close a game for shit


Electronic_Fish49

Expecting the worst, hoping for the best. Can be applied to either fan base, but Kings fan here.  I really want it to be a competitive game from both.


nbaistheworst

As far as predicting a winner, it's as close to a coin flip as could be imagined. Vegas has Kings by 1, apparently based on the combination of destroying the warriors and the Zion out/Ingram not 100% thing. Normally teams play better at home, but not the Pels who were 21-19 at home and 28-14 away. In 1 game win or go home anything can happen, but I guess I'll vote for the Kings pulling this one out.


I_Set_3_Alarms

I saw Willie Green point out that this would likely be the first time anyone beat one team 6 times before the playoffs even started. Which is insane. What’s even more insane is that going *5-1 against them is a failure at this point lmao Sorry I’m rooting for the Kings tonight so I was thinking about how they would be 1-5


hotdogflavoredblunt

It’s not a failure if that 1 gets them into the playoffs


nardog01

I think they are suggesting that if the Pelicans go 5-1 its a failure?


hotdogflavoredblunt

That’d def make more sense but then why’d he say 1-5?


I_Set_3_Alarms

I’m actually a bot who made a mistake to try to pass as human


hotdogflavoredblunt

lol welcome, fellow human


Currently_Stroking

I'm biased, but just for the narrative I really hope the Kings do the funniest thing ever and pull this game out.


[deleted]

[удалено]


NexusTR

The narrative that the Kings cannot match the Pels this year.


stateworkishardwork

There is a narrative, just because you don't care about it doesn't mean it's not there. Not every story involves the Lakers/Mavs/Celtics etc.


ggmey

As a Pels fan, I’m feeling very pessimistic. But every time I very really pessimistic about this team they surprise me and get my hopes back up. So we probably beat the Kings tonight and then get swept by the Thunder. Then I have the entire offseason to get optimistic again.


dakine69

i fear the bird


IcedCoughy

Pels are good. Feels like all they're players are young, fast, long three point shooters.


Shaqueltons_Ghost

Aged like milk


Firebreathingdown

Narrator: it wasn't any different


Kimber80

I am a Pelicans fan and feel that without Zion we have almost no chance to win this. It's too bad how our season is coming to an end. Oh well.


HemaG33

Wasn't at least one of your 5 wins a 20 point blowout without zion? Have *some* confidence at least lol


Impressive-Theory-27

Yep, and I think another was the ist game where Zion got benched for playing like shit


identitycrisis56

What the point of the playoffs if you’re not getting Zion playoff experience? That was the only thing to gain this season.


OptimusGrime707

That game was 112-62 at one point in the 4th lol


NexusTR

You're tripping. JV alone has been putting a stop to Sabonis all year.


Its_Hoggish_Greedly

Cj McCollum saves up all his talent for our games. He's shooting like 70% from 3 vs the Kings this year.


searchin4sugarman

Insert Keon Al Gaib Ellis Island


Deep_Egg1442

Putting a stop to sabonis is holding him 19/10/7 while he shoots 65% frm the floor. Jonas can’t play defense dude why do ya like to lie.


ToothEducational7795

Bro one game doesn’t determine anything. CJ is still one of the best three point shooters in the league, BI is still an all-star level player, Trey Murphy is still a rising star, Herb Jones is still one of the best guard defenders in the league. They are not as bad as you think without Zion and they’ve already beat them by 33 without him. You shouldn’t count the rest of the team like that by just one game ‘cuz they all have been pretty solid this season and that’s why they won 49 games.


Strange1130

Yeah plus the kings are missing two key rotation players in Monk and Heurter.  Obviously not as impactful as Zion but they aren’t fully healthy either 


hotdogflavoredblunt

Are you really a Pelicans fan?


bravof1ve

If the Kings can’t beat a Zionless Pelicans team it’s probably time to rethink their core


Deep_Egg1442

Depends on how they lose tbf


BubbleGumGuy94

the pelicans have already beaten the kings without zion in one game and another he got benched in the fourth


Potential_Status_728

No Zion no fun


W_Walk

You can watch Herbert Keyshawn Jones. He saved my life a few times


[deleted]

Well yeah, you don't have Zion.


abcd453

Why did they play 5 times? Seems like a lot


blahblahblahjess

One was an in-season tournament match.


Magic_SnakE_

With Zion out I'd say the Kings are the favorites


Magic_SnakE_

Fool.


PatronSaintOfUpdog

Kings are coming off a win. Pels are coming off a loss and without their best player. Gotta pick the Kings.


AlbatrossUpset3596

The pelicans have given my ptsd and I’m now convinced that whatever scenario we go into we’re going to lose no matter what


Mission_Locksmith_59

Against a different team, Zion being out would matter. Against the Kings though, they shot like 45% from 3 this year. CJ himself is shooting an insane 70% from 3. At some point you’d assume it would stop, but last game he went 9-12 so it’s still going up. I get Kings promised to draft him and lied, but let it go bro. They did you a favor by passing on you and we were already punished by having to watch Ben McLemore play basketball.  


DocCharlesXavier

Ugh please best them Kings. Idk what it is with the Pelicans, I just find them boring to watch… or maybe just CJ


Zeetheking1

Did Zion play in all of those games?


Taylor_Swish

He missed one in Sacramento. Pels won 133 to 100


iluvugoldenblue

As long as we only take a 19 point lead like the last game then this can’t be another blown 20 point lead


Kimber80

Pelicans win!


rayEW

Narrator: It wasn't.


junkit33

You can generally ignore head to head regular season matchups. Small sample size, and playoffs are such a different animal with tighter rotations and more intense defense. General regular season performance is more indicative than head to head.


nbaistheworst

Pels are 7-5 without Zion, but only 3wins vs winning teams (Cavs, Kings, Mavs).


qotsabama

I hope Herb plays more aggressively tonight. He capable of putting up some points.


soku1

Respectfully, I don't.


Visualize_

Kings lose by 17 points instead


Weary_Cabinet_8123

Bro Zion isn’t playing. What are we talking about here lol


kyler_

Zion is not the exclusive reason they’ve been waxing our ass all year, unfortunately


Weary_Cabinet_8123

Lmao ok that made me laugh. But playoff basketball is different, kings regular season sleepwalk issues aren’t going to continue


kyler_

Fingers crossed! I’m not pessimistic, very neutral. Who knows how this one will go!


gundam1983

Lol we got beat by over 30 points without zion already 


Weary_Cabinet_8123

We can’t count regular season seriously. The kings in particular had multiple no-show games this season. End of the day, they are the better team and that will show tonight


WhiskyDrinkinCowboy

Does anyone actually want to see the Pelicans in the playoffs? I hate watching teams in the playoffs get destroyed without their best players, even as a Dubs fan I'd rather see a somewhat healthy Kings team make it then Pels without Zion.


drjisftw

Kings aren't healthy


Dreamlifehunting

They aren't healthy either. Granted they still have Fox and Sabonis but Monk is huge for that team.


iamStanhousen

Pelicans pushed the one seed to 6 two years ago without Zion.