The Sacramento Kings dropped two of their four contests last week and are hanging by a thread for a play-in spot.
The Kings came out victorious in their 132-122 battle with the Memphis Grizzlies on Monday and their 123-119 bout with the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday.
Third-year forward Keegan Murray logged a 16-point, nine-rebound, two-steal, one assist outing against the Grizzlies and followed it up with a 13-point, four-rebound, three-assist performance on the Cavs.
Sacramento took the 128-116 loss to the Chicago Bulls on Thursday, in which Murray furnished 10 points, nine rebounds, three assists, and two blocks. He logged a near double-double of 13 points, nine rebounds, two blocks, and one assist too, but it wasn’t enough to help the Kings overcome the 114-108 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday.
The ninth-seeded Kings are an even 35-35 and sit a game ahead of the Phoenix Suns and the Dallas Mavericks, who are both tied at the 10th- and 11th-seeds, in the Western Conference standings with only 11 games left to play.
Kris Murray
Portland Trail Blazers forward Kris Murray’s minutes fluctuated throughout the team’s 3-1 stretch last week.
He got 37 minutes of action in the 112-97 blowout victory over the Washington Wizards, in which he produced five points, 10 rebounds, four steals, and three assists. His time dipped to 18 minutes in Wednesday’s 115-99 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies that translated to two points and four rebounds.
Kris got a slight increase with 21 minutes on Friday that led to a three-point, three-rebound, two-assist, one block game to help the Trail Blazers steal the win over the Denver Nuggets, 128-109. And in the 129-116 loss to the Boston Celtics on Sunday, he grabbed one rebound and was held scoreless in a five-minute outing.
Portland hasn’t been eliminated yet from playoff contention but sits three games behind the Mavs and Suns at the 12th seed in the West with a 32-40 record. The Blazers have 10 games remaining on their regular season schedule, giving limited time to catch up if they choose to.
Luka Garza
The Minnesota Timberwolves, a game behind the Golden State Warriors for the final playoff spot, secured just one win of the three games played last week.
The one win they secured was against the New Orleans Pelicans with a 134-93 routing on Friday, and fourth-year center Luka Garza got some action as a result. He recorded nine points and one rebound in eight minutes.
The Timberwolves boast a 41-31 record and sit at the eighth spot in the West, tied with the Los Angeles Clippers, though they possess the seventh seed.