23-year-old Kings forward boldly claims he'd 'bust Larry Bird's a**' in a 1v1

Modified Mar 31, 2025 13:49 GMT

NBA: Chicago Bulls at Sacramento Kings - Source: Imagn

Today's NBA has evolved into an offense-heavy game, with many teams prioritizing the 3-point shot, including the Sacramento Kings. Sacramento has battled back into the playoff conversation, overtaking the Phoenix Suns for the 10th seed in the Western Conference, giving the Kings a shot at postseason contention.

Boasting a top-10 scoring offense in the league, the Kings have plenty of scorers throughout their rotation, including Jake LaRavia, a third-year forward. LaRavia is one of Sacramento's underrated young players, who offers solid versatility as a defender and playmaker to pair with his scoring prowess.

LaRavia has no shortage of confidence, which he displayed during a recent team-wide interview for social media on Sunday. Kings players and coaches were asked which NBA legend they'd play one-on-one, to which LaRavia responded with a Boston Celtics legend.

"(I'd play) Larry Bird," LaRavia said, exiting the team's facility. "I'd bust his a**."

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Jake LaRavia has appeared in 19 games for the Kings this season after being traded from the Memphis Grizzlies ahead of the NBA trade deadline. Over those 19 games, he's averaging 6.1 points, 2.8 rebounds and 1.3 assists.

Jake LaRavia ruled out for Kings-Pacers matchup

Jake LaRavia has missed each of Sacramento's last two games after suffering a bone contusion on his left thumb. LaRavia took a fall during the Kings' 121-105 loss against the OKC Thunder on Tuesday.

The third-year forward was given a timetable of 7-10 days for a return and has been ruled out of Sacramento's matchup versus the Indiana Pacers on Monday night. Set to miss his third consecutive game, Jake LaRavia is joined by Devin Carter on the Kings' injury report.

Carter has also been ruled out ahead of tonight's game against Indiana. He suffered a shoulder contusion late in the second quarter of Sacramento's 121-91 loss against the Orlando Magic on Saturday night.

Entering their matchup versus the Pacers, the Kings are 36-38 on the season and hold the 10th seed in the Western Conference. Sacramento is 1.5 games ahead of Phoenix in the standings and is growing closer to clinching a spot in the play-in tournament.

About the author

Ethen Hutton is an analyst who works for Sportskeeda, covering College Football, the NFL, the NBA and the WNBA. Ethen graduated high school with academic and athletic honors and is a member of the National High School Honors Society. After a gap year, Ethen jumped into sports writing and has over two years of experience in the field.

Ethen was raised in Ohio and is a Cleveland Cavaliers fan. His favorite all-time player is Pete Maravich as his shooting and ball-handling abilities were way ahead of his time. His favorite player in today’s NBA is Nikola Jokic due to his fascinating skillset as a big man.

Ethen loves the storylines around the NBA and the chaos that the offseason and trade deadlines bring. He enjoys technical deep dives with strong statistical analysis as well as stories where he's able to take a stance as an analyst. He is very prideful in the correctness of his work and will do extensive research to ensure all facts and evidence are 100% accurate.

When not working, Ethen enjoys recording his sports podcast, Wide Right. He is also a very invested fantasy football player.

Know More

Sacramento Kings Nation! You can check out the latest Sacramento Kings Schedule and dive into the Kings Depth Chart for NBA Season 2024-25.

Edited by R. Elahi