Preview Details: Who: (17-15) vs (24-8) Where: Key Arena When: Wed, Jan 7th, 7pm TV: KONG, NBALP Projected Lineups: PG: Brent Barry/Antonio Daniels/Luke Ridnour SG: Ray Allen/Ronald Murray/Richie Frahm SF: Rashard Lewis/Vladimir Radmanovic PF: Vladimir Radmanovic/Reggie Evans/Vitaly Potapenko C: Jerome James/Calvin Booth/Vitaly Potapenko Coached by Nate McMillan PG: Mike Bibby/Bobby Jackson SG: Doug Christie/Anthony Peeler SF: Predrag Stojakovic/Gerald Wallace PF: Brad Miller/Lawrence Funderburke/Darius Songaila C: Vlade Divac/Brad Miller/Tony Massenburg Coached by Rick Adelman Injury List: Nick Collison: shoulder, season. Ansu Sesay: left ring finger sprain, on IL. King Injury List Chris Webber:left achilles surgery, on IL. Analysis: Seattle will be looking for revenge here, after a 31 point thrashing in Sacramento on Sunday. They come in with confidence, after coming back from 19 points down after three quarters to beat Portland in overtime by 11. Ray Allen scored his highest output as a Sonic, 42, including 20 last quarter points and 7 in overtime. For the Kings, they are looking fantastic right now, and are boosted by the news that superstar Chris Webber could be back in full training within a fortnight. The best record in the NBA, they are still not a great road team, and this will give Seattle some hope that they can reverse Sunday's result. Homecoming: Sacramento shooting guard Doug Christie hails from Ranier Beach High School in Seattle. He joins Jason Terry and Jamal Crawford as notable opposition NBA guards who reign from the area. [quoteright]"I used to sit on the basketball court by myself, and I used to countdown 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 and shoot it, the ball goes in, make the crowd noise. I did that when I was 10, and I said to myself, 'Tonight, my dreams came true. I did that tonight.' " Ray Allen after scoring 27 points in the 4th period and OT to help erase a 21 point deficit against Portland.[/QUOTERIGHT] Key Factor: Last time I said it was defensive rotations, and Seattle duly went out and conceeded 130. However, it still remains the key to beating the Kings. They have so many weapons on the offensive end, they regularly have five or six players in double figures, and their ball movement is still impeccable. Last time these two teams met, the Sonics were absolutely static on defense, and Sacrmento went beserk, racking up 37 assists. Like Sunday, Seattle are coming off an inspiring win, and won't want to suffer another hangover so to speak. They need to be wide awake defensively, and they need to make sure they don't leave shooters like Peja Stojakovic and Mike Bibby open, as Sacramento's big men will find them. Last time out, Stojakovic nailed five treys, many a result of slack defending. Key Matchup: Ray Allen vs Doug Christie A player underrated in terms of the elite shooting guards going head to head with a player underrated in terms of perimeter defenders, this promises to be worth the admission alone. Allen will be determined to bounce back from his performance against the Kings last time, where he registered only 8 points, but he could not be in better form going into this one. Christie will make him earn every touch he gets, and will relish a return to Seattle where he will be eager to play well. Allen's shot is dropping, going 16-27 against the Blazers, and if he does get hot then he is capable of scoring on any defense. Christie's job will be to make sure Allen doesn't get any easy shots early on, or his confidence will build. At the other end, Christie is also an underrated offensive talent, and will mean that Allen can't focus too much on doubling Stojakovic. X-Factors: Antonio Daniels - a big contributor in Seattle's comeback against the Blazers, Daniels has earnt his playing time this season through efficient shooting and hard-nosed defense. He will likely play 20-25 minutes against the Kings, with a view to trying to slow down Mike Bibby and Bobby Jackson, which is where Sacramento's offense starts. Bobby Jackson - the reigning 6th man of the year, Jackson is a livewire who can shoot, pass and get to the hole equally well. Will ensure that Sonic defenders can't rest when the second unit comes out to play. He had 21 last time around, and will really test Seattle's weak defense. <font size="1">Player photos and logo images courtesy of NBA.com </font>
The Kings don't lose at home, simple as that. They won't go on any scoring droughts that would allow Seattle to come back. Kings by 8
The game is in Seattle, KJ. I don't think the Sonics have enough fire power to keep up with the Kings. I'll predict Kings by 6
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting King James:</div><div class="quote_post">The Kings don't lose at home, simple as that. They won't go on any scoring droughts that would allow Seattle to come back. Kings by 8</div> This is in Seattle,they played at arco last sunday Sonics won't play that badly again,Sonics by 5 BUT Ray Allen will need to be on top form to get this game.If Sonics shoot the ball the way they did in the 2nd half of the Blazers game then the Kings could get a taste of what they dished out on sunday.
Halftime, Sonics up 61-54 in a very fast, exciting game. Radmanovic and Daniels have 14 each, Ray Allen has 17, 4 and 4.
Seattle 104 Sacramento 93 Ray Allen and the Seattle Sonics wanted revenge on Sacramento, and they did it in style. Allen led five Sonics in double figures with 22 points, and added 7 rebounds and 9 assists to lead Seattle to an 11 point victory over the team with the league's best record, 104-93. The Sonics' advantage blew out to over 20 midway through the last, before they emptied the bench and allowed the Kings to make the score more respectable. Seattle overcame a fast start to the Kings mainly through Vladimir Radmanovic, who hit four first quarter treys on his way to 21 points. After a tied game at 35 apiece, the Sonics went on a 16-9 run to establish a 7 point lead, and kept this margin at halftime. In the third they stretched their lead into double figures, before blowing out Sacramento in the middle stages of the last period. The Sonics recieved a huge boost from their bench, led by hardworking Antonio Daniels. Daniels scored 14 first half points on his way to a season high 19, and added 5 boards and 5 assists. Ronald Murray showed he's not afraid to shoot the rock either, finishing with 15 points on 7-21 shooting, while Reggie Evans claimed 12 rebounds and brought his usual toughness and hustle onto the floor. Overall it was a super performance from a Seattle team rapidly gaining confidence with superstar Ray Allen back. The team moves to 6-2 with Allen in the line-up, and to 18-15 overall. The Sonics managed to hound Sacramento into 37% shooting, and matched them in rebounding and assists, two areas the Kings dominated in their previous match-up. They also outscored the Kings 38-28 in the paint, and showed their transition game is running smoothly with 20 fast break points. <font size="1">Box Score courtesy of NBA.com.</font> Next game: vs Grizzlies, Fri Jan 9, 7:30pm
Listening to the interviews it was clear the Sonics players were out for revenge.Their pride was hurt in Sacramento.Allen and co weren't going to let the Kings come in and embarass them again.Allen had his shot back after a bad game at arco....Meanwhile Peja Stojakovic struggled,which was the difference.
Man, the Sonics take it my 11. I guess Ray Allen is having a huge impact already. But look at Rashard Lewis, now...
The Sonics played great. I didnt expect them to win. I am actually interested them now, so I watcht there games. Everyone stepped up. Daniels, Radmonivich(spelling error) and of course ray played well. The sonics are on a role. Ill be watchin them closely.
