The Washington Wizards‘ five game winning streak ended on Friday night against the Los Angeles Clippers. They’ll continue their west coast road trip this afternoon against the Sacramento Kings. Tip-off is at 6:00pm EST.

Key Match Up:

In their last match up, I focused on the Marcin Gortat vs. DeMarcus Cousins front-court duel. However, Cousins has missed the past two games with a strained right calf and might not be ready to go against Washington. Even with Cousins, the Sacramento Kings have been miserable.

So, with that said, we’ll focus on Rudy Gay.

Despite all of the criticism he’s received over the past several seasons, Gay has played very solid basketball since arriving to Sacramento. He didn’t play against Washington in their last meeting and Gay has dealt with a knee strain recently.

Gay scored 33 points against the Charlotte Hornets en route to a victory on Friday. Even though he’s struggled with his efficiency in the past, Gay has shot nearly 46 percent from the field this season.

On the flip side, Paul Pierce has given the Washington Wizards a huge lift on the offensive side of the floor during their recent winning streak.

Pierce scored 16+ points in four straight games, and in three of those games he shot over 60 percent. When Pierce is knocking down the three point shot, the Wizards are tough to beat. He’s made nearly three 3-point shots per game in the past five games.

But stats aside, Pierce can’t allow Rudy Gay to dictate the game tomorrow night.

Although he’s been better defensively than expected, Pierce will inevitably struggle against more athletic forwards. Gay is capable of getting to the basket, hitting the outside shot and creating his own looks. While he’s been criticized, Gay is getting to the point of becoming underrated.

If Cousins does end up missing another game, Rudy Gay will have an even greater opportunity to get his own shot. That could either end well for Washington or it could end miserably.

Prediction:

The reverse jinx streak has finally come to an end.

George Karl was supposed to help the Sacramento Kings close out the season on a high note, but in fact, it’s been the complete opposite so far. Sacramento allows over 105 points per game and they’re dead last in assists.

Although they do have a number of offensive weapons, their inability to defend or distribute the ball has stopped their progression.

In their last meeting, the Kings gained a 20 point advantage against the Washington Wizards and collapsed late in the game.

Washington went on to dominate in the second half and DeMarcus Cousins fouled out.

If Cousins ends up missing another game, the Kings are going to have a very tough time against Washington.

With or without Cousins, I’ll still pick the Washington Wizards to get another road win this afternoon.

Nene and Marcin Gortat match up well against Sacramento’s front court and Washington’s back court should have a significant advantage.

With Darren Collison still sidelined, John Wall should be able to torch Ray McCallum and Prof. Andre Miller. Bradley Beal is also coming off a great game against the Clippers, so the momentum should carry over.

The Kings are dangerous, though. Sacramento might be 20+ games below .500, but they have a few players that are capable of putting up big numbers. If the Washington Wizards come prepared, they should be able to take care of business.