• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers

Thunder hope to build off momentum against reeling Kings

Feb 1, 2009 - 12:05 PM Oklahoma City (11-36) at Sacramento (10-38), 3:00 p.m. EST

SACRAMENTO, California (Ticker) -- The Oklahoma City Thunder have at least made it this far - they're no longer the worst team in the league. While that distinction belongs to the 9-37 Washington Wizards, the Thunder's next opponent is giving Washington a run for its money.

The Thunder kick off the month of February looking to build off the momentum they garnered throughout January as they visit the struggling Sacramento Kings on Sunday. The Kings lead the NBA in losses and are just percentage points ahead of the Wizards for the league's official bottom spot.

Eight consecutive losses certainly haven't helped their cause. Their most recent setback came Friday night, as they were dominated at home by the Chicago Bulls, 109-88. They got 27 points from Kevin Martin and 16 from John Salmons, but a porous defensive effort gave up a 56-percent shooting performance to Chicago - hardly an offensive heavyweight.

The Thunder, meanwhile, are coming off their best month of the season with seven wins. They closed their January slate on Friday with a 110-90 blowout at the hands of the Utah Jazz - a team they beat by 21 earlier in the month.

Kevin Durant missed out on his first All-Star appearance when the Western Conference reserves were announced earlier this week, but he's certainly been playing like an All-Star. The 6-9 swingman averaged 27.8 points in January on 49 percent shooting from the floor, 40 percent from 3-point range and 88.5 percent from the foul line.