Kings Vow to Intimidate

The Sydney Kings will embrace the "target on their backs" moving into the Championship Series, coach Chase Buford says. 

Speaking on the latest episode of The Huddle Podcast, Buford declared the Kings have found their “edge” again, after a minor hiccup late in the regular season.

“We lost a little bit of that edge ... we saw a little bit of that in Game 3 especially on the defensive side of the ball, it was probably our best defensive game in a month and a half which was good to see,” he said. 

The Kings lost three of their last five games in the regular season, with Buford admitting they lost their intimidation factor. 

“For a while our group was thriving off of that, there was a part in the middle of the season where we felt we intimidated people, we felt like we really came in with presence,” he said.

“Right around the time where we clinched finals, we lost a little bit of that spark and went into coast mode or whatever you want to call it.

“They’ve struggled to find that rhythm or drive or juice. At the same time not only people wanted to knock us off, but everyone at the end of the season we played was playing for their lives.”

Game 1 of the best-of-five Championship Series against the New Zealand Breakers tips off on Friday March 3, with Buford all too wary of the challenge Mody Maor's team presents. 

“Defensively, they’re going to make you play their style of basketball in a lot of ways,” he said. 

“They’re going to slow you down as much as you can and for us playing a different style, we obviously want to ramp up the pace and counteracting that balance or pressure will be important. 

“When people are going to be aggressive and get up in you like that, there should be some space behind so we can be ready to exploit that and get in and play behind them.”

The Kings host Game 1 at Qudos Bank Arena on Friday, March 3 at 7:30pm AEDT. Watch the game live and free on ESPN via Kayo Freebies.