Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
SALT LAKE CITY -- Welcome to the State of Jimmer.
That’s right, Jimmer baby, Jimmer. The real King James is making his return to the Beehive state tonight as the Jazz (10-7) host Jimmer Fredette and the Sacramento Kings (6-13) at EnergySolutiuons Arena.
Fredette about the previous lackluster Jazz-Kings matchups in recent history, tonight’s game will have a frenzy surrounding it that would even make rock stars jealous.
Kings rookie Isaiah Thomas, who witnessed “Jimmermania” personally during the lockout when he came to Utah to play with Fredette in a charity basketball game told the Sacramento Bee that Utah was the “State of Jimmer” and that he had never seen anything like it.
"It's unreal," Thomas said. "He's like a god out there, he really is. I've seen people cry over him, being right next to him. That's like some Michael Jackson stuff."
While Fredette has experienced the highs and lows of being a rookie and adjusting to the NBA, he seems to be finding his groove. In the Kings’ last three games, Fredette, who is starting in the place of the injured Marcus Thornton, has been smoother than the smooth criminal himself. Fredette is averaging 17.3 points in those three starts, going 16-of-33 from the field including 11-of-18 in three-point attempts.
"I think it's starting to slow down a bit for me, for sure," Fredette said to The Sacramento Bee’s Kings Blog. "I'm starting to get used to everything and seeing the ball go in, you gain confidence automatically. If you continue to try to play well it will get easier as you play. I still have a lot of things to work on and that keeps me driven but it's getting a little bit better."
The Kings may be just what the Jazz need to get back into the win column. The Jazz, despite losing to the Raptors on Wednesday, are good at home boasting an 8-3 record. The Jazz won the season series with the Kings last year 3-1, and is 25-13 against the Kings at EnergySolutions Arena.
Utah is coming off a 116-101 loss to the Mavs in Dallas on Friday. Dallas’ Rodrique Beaubois scored a season- high 22 points, grabbed six boards, and dished seven assists. Former Laker and current reality TV star Lamar Odom had one of his best games of the season by scoring 19 points while going 3-of-4 from behind the three-point line.
Paul Millsap and Al Jefferson led the Jazz effort by scoring 20 and 19 points respectively, but it wasn’t enough as Utah lost for the third time in four games.
Tonight's game starts at 7 p.m at EnergySolutions Arena and can be seen on Root Sports.
