Why Stephen A believes Kings would beat Lakers in playoff series
Why Stephen A believes Kings would beat Lakers in playoff series originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
If it were to happen, Stephen A. Smith sees the Los Angeles Lakers struggling against the Kings in an NBA playoff series this season.
Discussing with Shannon Sharpe on Monday morning’s “First Take," ESPN’s Smith, mentioning a neighbor up north, countered Sharpe’s idea that only the Denver Nuggets pose a threat for LeBron James and Co. in a playoff scenario.
“By the way, you bring up Denver," Smith told Sharpe. “So, Sacramento ain’t nothing to be worried about? Sacramento ain’t nothing to be worried about.
“I’m talking about Sacramento against [the Lakers], against y’all.”
Sharpe responded swiftly.
“Not in a seven-game series,” Sharpe said.
This season, Sacramento has won all of its three bouts against Los Angeles, including a March 6 130-120 win at Crypto.com Arena in which De’Aaron Fox tied a career-high 44 points.
Expanding on his argument, Smith elaborated on the Lakers’ dependency on Anthony Davis, who has failed to demonstrate consistency against possible playoff competitors, including Kings big man Domantas Sabonis.
“So, Anthony Davis drops 40 against Washington,” Smith added. “The next game he goes up against [Nikola Jokić] [and drops] 17 when Jokić got a damn near 35-point triple-double.
"He sits up there, he goes up against Sacramento. [Sabonis] has a field day. He only drops 14 that game.”
With the Kings and Lakers currently sitting as Nos. 7 and 9, respectively, in the Western Conference standings, the possibility of a playoff matchup between both remains very much alive.
And now we know that if it were to happen, one of ESPN’s most prominent figures would pick Sacramento.
