SACRAMENTO -- Can the Kings catch a break? Can they finally get healthy after 35 games of watching one player after another sit out due to injury?
It doesn’t appear so.
Sacramento is 0-5 on the season without shooting guard Bogdan Bogdanovic, and it looks like the Kings might not have him Saturday against the New Orleans Pelicans at Golden 1 Center.
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After tweaking his left hamstring early in the year, Bogdanovic has struggled with right knee and now right ankle issues. The 27-year-old told NBC Sports California on Friday that the medical staff said that he has the opposite of a hyperextension in his right ankle.
Bogdanovic came out of the Kings’ win over the Memphis Grizzlies on Thursday late in the fourth quarter and was in noticeable discomfort. He was not able to return to the game as it went down to the wire.
“I just shot the ball and I felt some pinching in the back of the ankle,” Bogdanovic said. “It was like I was playing through this all the time. Today’s was a little bit harder pain, and I had to go out.”
An integral part of the second unit, Bogdanovic is averaging 14.5 points, 3.6 assists and 3.0 rebounds per game. He’s shooting over 38 percent on just under seven 3-point attempts a night.
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If Bogdanovic, who is listed as doubtful, can’t suit up, expect coach Luke Walton to heavily rely on starters De’Aaron Fox and Buddy Hield to play extended minutes, with veteran Cory Joseph supporting the duo.
Bogdanovic isn’t the only King struggling to get his body right.
Marvin Bagley is set to miss his fifth straight game with a left midfoot sprain. This is the second injury this season for the talented 20-year-old, who missed 22 games earlier in the year with a broken right thumb.
Bagley was at shootaround on Thursday and made an appearance following Friday's practice, but he has yet to get clearance for the training staff and his floor time has been limited to individual shooting drills.
The talented big man out of Duke has played a total of nine games for the Kings this season coming into Saturday’s matchup with the Pelicans, posting 13.7 points and 6.9 rebounds in 23.6 minutes per game.
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Walton has had a full roster of 15 healthy bodies just twice this season. In the second of those games, both Fox and Bagley went down with injuries.
New Orleans is dealing with injuries, too. Zion Williamson, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, is getting closer to a return, but he will not suit up Saturday.