The Miami Heat (24-23) try to put a stop to a seven-game losing streak on Wednesday in a clash against the surging Sacramento Kings (27-18).
A tight game is expected at the Kaseya Center, with bookmaker Pinnacle offering odds at -108 for Miami to win and -102 for Sacramento to triumph.
※ Current Odds Date & Time: January 30th, 9:30 P.M. (EST)
The Heat have struggled defensively in recent outings, and most of their losses during the seven-game slide have been blowouts as well, which must be very worrying for head coach Erik Spoelstra. The team is still in a battle for a top-six finish in the Eastern Conference but has to start clicking again soon to remain in the race.
Spoelstra will hope to see everybody squeeze a little bit of extra out of them, and newly acquired Terry Rozier clearly has to do better. He’s averaged a lowly 11.8 points per game through his first four outings with Miami. With the defensive levels dropping, the Heat need to get something extra offensive, and Rozier can provide it, but he appears to have trouble adjusting to his new surroundings.
The Kings head to Miami with a four-game winning streak, and they can be a good example for the Heat, as Mike Brown saw his team suffer four consecutive defeats before heating up. De’Aaron Fox has ended a mini-slump with some very good performances, and Domantas Sabonis has shown why he’s become one of the elite bigs in the league.
Sabonis has just set a new career high for rebounding, having pulled down 26 boards in Monday’s 103-94 win over the Grizzlies. He’s tied with Nikola Jokic for the most double-doubles this season and only two behind the reigning Finals MVP on the triple-doubles list. Bam Adebayo and the rest of the Heat frontcourt will have a big part to play in Wednesday’s game, as a lot will depend on their ability to limit Sabonis’ effect on the game.
The two sides meet for a 70th all-time regular-season contest. Miami has been dominant throughout the years in the match-up, recording 45 wins. However, the most recent clashes have been close affairs, and it should be another nail-biter on Wednesday. Combining the two head-to-head meetings from last season, only three points ended up separating the Heat and Kings in 2022-23, with both teams winning their home games.
