With just three weeks left to play, a lot has taken shape in the K1 League as we prepare to head into the playoff tournament. However, the final three games on Sunday could be as pivotal as any games this year in the race for divisional superiority. Catch up on all of the action as we head into Week 9 at K1 Sports!
12:30 pm - Suns @ Nets
The Nets are coming off a huge upset win against the Bucks in Week 8, and will look to ride that momentum into a matchup with the Suns on Sunday. Despite having a roster that fluctuates as much as any from week to week, the Nets have given themselves an outside shot at finishing in the top three in the East Division. A win on Sunday would get them back to the .500 mark for the first time since September 12th, and could at least allow them to control their own destiny, despite a challenging finish to their schedule with games against the Spurs, Bulls, and Warriors. The top scorers for the Nets have been incredibly efficient this season, led by Red Binion (23.3 ppg), Ronnie Jackson (16.0 ppg), TJ Wicks (14.7 ppg) and Mook Lawrence (14.6 ppg). As we have mentioned before, the Nets have yet to lose when all four of these players were on the court at the same time. On the other side of the aisle, the Suns have just four chances remaining to pick up their first win. In order to do it on Sunday, the Suns will need everyone present, and they will need to share the basketball. In their two single-digit losses this season, Devonte Barnes had 20+ points in both games, and both Michael Lonergan Jr. (12.4 ppg) and Ferra Johnson (9.4 ppg) had good games as well. These key three players will need to be at their best on Sunday for the Suns, if they want to pick up their first win of the season. Expect the Nets to score a lot in this one, especially if Red Binion or TJ Wicks is on top of their game. The Nets are 12.5 point favorites in the opening game of Week 9.
1:30 pm - Lakers @ Mavericks
The Lakers have continued to prove themselves as one of the top teams in the K1 League, as they enter this contest with a 7-3 record and a chance to still finish anywhere in the top three spots in the West Division. They will match up on Sunday for the second time this year with the Mavericks, as these two teams squared off all the way back in Week 3 in an 80-75 win for the Lakers. Although the Mavericks record sits at just 1-9, they have played several of the top teams in the K1 League competitively, including this Lakers team. In that matchup from the 29th of August, Braijon Thomas led all scorers with 30 points. If the Mavericks want to push the Lakers again this week, they will need Thomas to be at 100%, and they will also need to find a way to step up their defense. The Mavericks are giving up 78.2 ppg, and the Lakers have perhaps the most dynamic trio of scorers in the league, in Tone Brooks (19.5 ppg), LJ Harris (18.0 ppg), and Quon Shaw (15.3 ppg). These three players alone are averaging more than 50 points per game to lead this Lakers offense. So while the Mavericks certainly can play with a team like the Lakers, they imply will have to defend better if they want to stay close in this one. The dynamic offense of the Lakers gives them an edge in this one, as they open up as 10.5 point favorites.
2:30 pm - Celtics @ Spurs
The Celtics are coming off of their biggest win of the season on Sunday, as they knocked off the Mavericks by a score of 66-63 in a back and forth affair. As they take on the mighty Spurs in this one, the question has to be asked, which Spurs team will show up on Sunday? The Spurs have beaten all three of the Warriors, Lakers, and Bucks, but they have also had games in which their offense has completely disappeared. With just three weeks to go before a playoff push, one in which the Spurs will hope to defend their championship, they need to start playing better basketball, and Sunday is a great opportunity for them to do that. Despite their scoring woes at times against the top teams in the league, the Spurs still have five players averaging double figures, and are scoring more than 75 points per game. So while it may seem a bit silly to talk about their offensive woes, the reality is that they hold themselves to a high standard, one that they have fallen short of several times this season. In terms of this game on Sunday, the Celtics' biggest strength - their size on the interior - could be completely wiped out by the likes of big men Trey Johnson and Austin Halcomb. If that is the case, the Spurs could have their way in this one, as they have really beaten up on some of the younger teams in this league. The Celtics are going for win number four, as they are battling back and forth with the Nets for the fourth seed in the East Division. The Spurs are 9.5 point favorites in this one, as they look to keep pace with the Lakers in the West Division.
3:30 pm - Warriors @ Bucks
Coming into Week 8, these two teams were playing as well as any team in the K1 League. Following a loss to the Nets in which the Bucks gave up 34 points above their season average, the question must be asked, do they have the size or depth to play with a team like the Warriors? Both teams come into this one with 7-2 records, tied for the top spot in the K1 League. So while this game of the week matchup certainly has us excited in this East vs. West showdown, we are left wondering if the Bucks have what it takes to beat a team like the Warriors, especially without star center Kale Maupin. The Warriors flexed their muscles this past Sunday, as Tyree Mosley led the way with 36 points in a shooting clinic. As a team, the Warriors are averaging more than 77 points per game, which is good for the top offense in the K1 League. On the contrary, the Bucks are only giving up 57 points per game, which pits them as the top defense in the K1 League. The clash in styles, as well as playing philosophies, could be entertaining on Sunday, as both teams hope to hang on to the top spot in their respective divisions. If the Warriors can win out, they will clinch the West Division. The Bucks still have a full game lead in the East Division, but face a gauntlet of a schedule, with four winning teams remaining on their schedule, in the Warriors, Bulls, Heat, and Lakers. If the Bucks are to hang with Mosley and the Warriors, they will need guards Jaquan Boxley and Darien Bosby to be at their absolute best, and they may need to hit about a dozen three pointers to keep pace. The depth and size advantage of the Warriors gives them the edge in this one, as they are 7.5 point favorites in this game of the week matchup between two 7-2 teams.
4:30 pm - Bulls @ Bucks
No team has as much left to play for as the Bulls do. Not only do they still have both doubleheaders left, which means they'll have five games over the course of the next three weeks, but they control their own destiny in a crowded East Division. Coming into Week 9, the Bucks have two losses, the Bulls have three losses, and the Heat have four losses. Fortunately for the Bulls, they play both of these teams one final time on Sunday. Although the Bulls don't have the depth that some of the top teams in the K1 League do, they have one of the best trios in the league, alongside the Lakers, Warriors, and Spurs. Benito Munoz has been a wonderful surprise, taking the K1 League by storm and averaging 21 points per game, good for third in the league. Right behind him at 20.5 points per game is big man Seth Johnson, who is one of the most impactful players in the entire league. He is fourth in the league in scoring, and is first in rebounding by quite a wide margin. He is coming off a record-setting game against the Suns in which he scored 22 points and grabbed 26 rebounds. Bulls' captain Bobby Crivokapich has also picked things up as of late. He is fifth in the League in rebounding (8.9 rpg) and is averaging 20.5 ppg in his past two contests. When these two teams met back in Week 2, it was all Bucks, as they blew out the Bulls by a score of 72-51. The Bucks are a much different team though now, as stars Lou Griffith and Kale Maupin appear to no longer be with the team. Therefore we now may have to keep asking the same question of the Bucks, and that is, what is their ceiling without Maupin on the court? If this game goes anything like the Bucks game a week ago did against the Nets, they may be in trouble, as they only have one player on their roster above six feet and struggle big time rebounding against teams with a true center like Johnson. With this severe size disadvantage, and the fact that this will be the back end of a doubleheader for the Bucks, we like the Bulls to pull off the upset, and to create some serious chaos in the East Division. The Bulls are 4.5 point favorites in this massive matchup of East Division foes.
5:30 pm - Bulls @ Heat
In the third straight big time matchup on Sunday, the Heat will look to avenge a Week 4 loss to the Bulls, in which they fell by a score of 69-57. Up until that point, it looked like the Bulls were not going to be able to compete with the best teams in the league. But in that contest, they announced themselves to the league, as Benito Munoz had 22 points, and they only allowed two Heat players to score in double figures. As we prepare for this rematch, this Heat team reminds me a little bit of the Spurs, in that we have seen both their best and their worst in a matchup like this. The Heat have dropped two of their past three games, but have also faced three of the top teams in the league, in the Bucks, Nets, and Lakers. Aside from Terrell Hendrix, who is an automatic twenty points on game day (19.7 ppg), the Heat have received inconsistent contributions from their other key players. Octavius Jefferson (10.6 ppg), Blake Graham (10.0 ppg), and Alonzo King (10.0) are the other three Heat players averaging double-digits, but they have not shown the ability to score consistently. Jefferson is coming off of his best game in the K1 League, where he had 21 points a week ago against the Lakers; but just two games ago, he was limited to five points by the Bucks. Without Graham in the lineup - who has not played since a Week 4 loss to the Bulls, the Heat suffer from a similar problem that the Bucks do, and that is a severe lack of size. Although the Bulls should be pretty tired coming into this game, they will still have a an edge in the rebounding department. Therefore the Heat must decide how they want to best limit the Bulls. Perhaps they will return to their patented 2-3 zone and try to matchup that way. Another likely scenario is that they will look to run in transition and wear down the short-benched Bulls in a track meet. Either way, this is a must-win game for both teams if they want to win the East Division. With the Bulls being on the back end of a doubleheader, we are going to give the slightest of edges to the Heat, who will look to run for forty minutes. The Heat are 1.5 point favorites in this ever important East Division matchup, but they must find a way to hold their own on the glass, otherwise they could fall out of contention for the East Division title.