The hit was going to come, the Lakers and JJ Redick sure of it.
Sacramento had been thrown into complete chaos, the Lakers taking two straight from the Kings in their building last week — links in the chain of events that led to the Kings firing coach Mike Brown on his way to board the flight for L.A.
Beating the Kings for the fourth time this season was already going to be hard; a shakeup like a coaching change was sure to have Sacramento flying around the court like the turbo button was stuck.