by Chuck Sommers
Sunday, Jan 15, 2023
Time: 7 p.m. ET
Venue: AT&T Center, San Antonio, TX
Where to watch: BSSW-SA, NBCSCA
Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks
DraftKings: Kings -7; O/U 246.5
FanDuel: Kings -6.5; O/U 246.5
BetMGM: Kings -6.5; O/U 246.5
Caesars: Kings -7; O/U 246.5
Season record
Kings: 23-18
Spurs: 13-30
We’re nearing the halfway mark of the season in the NBA and it’s been quite the ride so far. Al McMordie is cashing hard at 22-15-0 in the last 30 days, while Doc’s Sports has also had a strong run of form as of late at 14-10-0 (+$3,000). If they’ve been killing it as much as they were in the first half, what does the second half have in store? The only way you’re going to find out is by staying locked on bigal.com and following what our champion handicappers are up to heading into the final 41 games. Trust us, you want to know.
Kings - Spurs preview, prediction and analysis
Recent form
Kings: won 139-114 vs. Rockets
Spurs: lost 144-113 vs. Warriors
We have officially reached the Twilight Zone where the Sacramento Kings are playing better basketball than the San Antonio Spurs. The two teams will meet up on Sunday in San Antonio for a matchup of the passing of the torch.
The Kings are coming into this one winners of three in a row and recently completing a two-game home sweep of the Houston Rockets. The latest was a 139-114 win on Friday in which the Kings were favored by 9.5 for the second straight game. The Kings wrapped up a five-game homestand at 3-2 with the other win being a 25-point victory over the Orlando Magic.
Harrison Barnes led the way with 27 points and seven rebounds on Friday, and De’Aaron Fox had 24 points and five assists to pace the offense. Domantas Sabonis, probably one of the bigger All-Star snubs at the moment, finished with 19 points and 16 rebounds (and two blocks) against the young Rockets. Those young Rockets also tried to start something against the Kings when they were getting run out of the building down 30. Not a smart business decision.
"We had no issue with it," Barnes said afterward about the players exchanging words. "At the end of the day, that's the fight that we need as a team. That's the fight we need for this season, and that's the fight we're going to need for the playoffs, so I'm all for it."
The Kings are running on a 6-4 clip over their last 10 and have covered four of their last six against the spread. The last three wins were dominant showings in covering the spread, with the over also hitting four straight times.
The complete opposite can be said about the Spurs. They’ve lost seven of their last eight and are coming off a 31-point loss to the Golden State Warriors in front of nearly 70,000 people in the Alamodome. Even as 9-point underdogs, we called this one the other night given the large discrepancy in talent and the return of Steph Curry to destroy worlds.
Tre Jones led the way with 21 points and five assists, and Keldon Johnson added 17 points of his own, but the forward was a minus-40 (!!!) on the court in the loss, while Jones was a minus-27. This is life in San Antonio right now, but having that many people for a regular season game was incredible to watch from TV.
"It was really incredible to see the way the crowd got into the game and they seemed like they were into the game despite the fact we were getting our butts kicked," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said afterward. "It was a great opportunity for our guys to learn."
While the Spurs might not be the popular pick straight up, they’ve been tremendous when getting the points. Prior to the loss on Friday, the Spurs covered the last five. Albeit four of those games came when they were double-digit underdogs, but they kept those games close. Not feeling quite as confident on this one.
Prediction
If you have yet to watch the Kings this year, I’d suggest you do so. They are fun, Mike Brown has them in the right direction, and they’re halfway there to making the playoffs. Quite incredible, if you ask me. Looking forward to seeing what this team can do against more established competition as the year rolls on. Kings 128, Spurs 100
Betting trends
Kings are 15-5 ATS after an over this season.
Kings are 15-7 ATS after a home game this season.
Spurs are 0-9 ATS against Pacific Division opponents this season.
Spurs are 12-25 ATS at home when playing 8 games or more in 14 days the last 3 seasons.
Projected starting lineup
Kings:
PG: De’Aaron Fox
SG: Kevin Huerter
SF: Harrison Barnes
PF: Keegan Murray
C: Domantas Sabonis
Spurs:
PG: Tre Jones
SG: Romeo Langford
SF: Keldon Johnson
PF: Jeremy Sochan
C: Jakob Poeltl
Injury report
Kings: None
Spurs: Devin Vassell (knee, out), Doug McDermott (back, questionable)
Don't miss our champion handicappers' free picks and expert basketball picks today. And if you enjoyed this Sacramento Kings - San Antonio Spurs prediction, be sure to drop by every day for our daily NBA projections and previews.
Chuck Sommers
About the Author:
Chuck Sommers has camped outside of sportsbooks since he can remember, learning the tricks and nuances of the trade. He still has nightmares of betting $5,000 on the Raiders in the Tuck Rule game but has since turned that to 25 years of veteran handicapping greatness. You can find him mostly in the shadows at the Red Rock or Aliante casinos wondering if the over is cashing on any given Sunday.
