2024-04-15 23:03:54
No one in the US believes that “Sacramento” may exit the play-in tournament
2 matches with a bet on the final. If they lose one, the dream dies. This is the path of Alexander Vezenkov and his “Sacramento” to the cherished goal – participation in the NBA playoffs.
Even before the last game of the regular season in the alien league was played, the fate of the “Kings” was in foreign hands. And despite the success over the absolute weakling in the NBA “Portland” 121:82, the Bulgarian team found itself in an extremely difficult situation, and entering the 1/8 finals of the strongest basketball championship seems like a mirage.
Due to a series of poor results in the final part of the season, Vezenkov’s team finished 9th in the final standings of the Western Conference. Thus, “Sacramento” will have to win its participation in the playoff scheme through the play-in tournament introduced during the pandemic season. The teams that finished from 7th to 10th place take part in it. Entering the top 8 in the conference, however, only 2 of them win.
Experts from across the ocean write off the chances of the “Kings” to reach the playoffs. The reasons – the injured main players such as Malik Monk and Kevin Hurton, as well as the short rotation of coach Mike Brown, who used only 8 basketball players in his last meetings and did not rely on help from the bench, including the native basketball ace.
The road for Vezenkov and his teammates to the playoffs begins on Wednesday morning. The opponent is the 2022 champion Golden State, in whose ranks plays the best long-range shooter of all time, Steph Curry. The team from San Francisco also includes Klay Thompson and Chris Paul – world-class stars. “Sacramento” has a home advantage in the match due to its higher ranking.
If the Kings win the game with Golden State, they will argue for the last place in the Western Conference playoffs (that is, the 8th) against the loser of the New Orleans – LA Lakers clash, who finished 7th and 8th respectively. and.
The Pelicans are the real nightmare for Sacramento this season. Vezenkov’s team lost all 5 games against New Orleans. Twice during the campaign, the Bulgarian and his teammates were humiliated and fell by more than 25 points.
The leader of the “Lakers” is the living icon in the NBA – LeBron James, known for his many successes as the King.
Should Sacramento advance through the playoffs, its first-game playoff opponent will be Western Conference regular-season leader Ohlakoma.