Category: NBA

Buzzer Beater For Nuggets Defeats Warriors 117-116

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Denver Nuggets guard Bryn Forbes (6) expands to take a shot against the Golden State Warriors forward Jonathan Kuminga (00) at the Chase Center in San Francisco on Wed Feb 16, 2022 (AP News photo)

Buzzer Beater For Nuggets Defeats Warriors 117-116

By Barbara Mason

Monday night the Warriors were on the losing end of a beat down by the Los Angeles Clippers. Tonight the Warriors (42-17) were back at Chase Center to take on the Denver Nuggets (33-15) in their last game before the All-Star break. This is their second meeting this year.

The Warriors have struggled on the defensive side of the ball. They have fallen to a shocking 23rd in the league and are capable of so much more.

They are missing Draymond Green but they are looking forward to the return of James Wiseman which is scheduled soon after the All-Star game. He has taken part in five on five drills and with the vast improvement of rookie Jonathan Kuminga there is a bright spot on the horizon for Golden State.

Draymond has begun light activity on the court so good news there. With the return of Wiseman and the play of Kuminga the Warriors will hopefully have some big defensive players on the court next week.

The Warriors got a fast start leading mid-way through the first quarter 17-8. The Nuggets who got a slow start began to heat up as the quarter began to wind down, After the first 12 minutes the Warriors led 33-25 in an impressive defensive quarter forcing four Nugget turnovers.

The Warriors kept up a fast pace in the second quarter shooting an efficient 56 %. The one sore spot in this game were the missed open shots attempted by the Warriors. With under two minutes left in the half Golden State wanted to finish strong. Kuminga and Stephen Curry each had 12 points in the half with Golden State leading 63-54.

The turnovers were 16-3 in favor of the Warriors so they were doing a great job protecting the ball. Golden State had led for the entire half in this game. The team had 17 assists with 20 rebounds. The Warriors had 30 points in the paint so they were getting inside successfully.

The Warriors started the third quarter shooting 55% and taking a 74-61 lead in the opening minutes. After three quarters the Warriors led 86-78.

The fourth quarter saw the Nuggets back in this game trailing by four points in the early minutes of the final quarter. The Warriors did not want to go into the break losing four out of five and so this game was an important one. With three minutes left in the game seven players for Golden State had double digits trying to finish this game strong.

With 45 seconds left in this game the Warriors held a one possession lead 113-110 and the Nuggets had the ball. Denver had never led in this game and with 14.9 left in the game the Nuggets took their first lead 114-113. In a shocker the Nuggets won this game at the buzzer 117-116. After leading the entire game the Warriors just could not close it out.

This had one of the toughest losses for the Warriors this season. The Warriors were great defending the three point line and had seven players shooting double digits. Gary Payton II had six steals in the game. Curry finished with 25 points and the bench was amazing with Jordan Poole the high shooting 15 points.

The Warriors next game will be next Thursday at Portland taking on the Trail Blazers. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:00.

DeRozan breaks record set by Wilt, Bulls hold off Kings 125-118

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Chicago Bulls’ Javonte Green (24) throws down against the Sacramento Kings’ Harrison Barnes (right) at the United Center in Chicago on Wed Feb 16, 2022 (AP News photo)

By Daniel Dullum
Wednesday, February 16, 2022

DeMar DeRozan, Coby White and Nikola Vucevic combined for 80 points Wednesday, as the Chicago Bulls defeated the visiting Sacramento Kings 125-118 in front of 19,166 at United Center.

DeRozan scored a game-high 38 points, White – starting in place of Zach LaVine – had 31 points, including six 3-pointers, and Vucevic was next with 21 points and 10 rebounds for his 34th double-double of the season.

Javonte Green and Ayo Dosunmu added 15 and 12 points, respectively, for the Bulls. Dosunmu also had six rebounds, six assists and two steals.

DeRozan also broke an obscure NBA record with his seventh straight game of 35 or more points on 50 percent or better shooting. Wilt Chamberlain set the previous mark in 1960-61 and 1962-63 with the Warriors.

Chicago shot 50 percent on field goals for a league-leading 23rd time this season, while committing only eight turnovers. The Kings kept it close by shooting 51 percent, including 12 of 30 from behind the arc.

But DeRozan was up to the task, scoring 12 of his points in the fourth quarter, finishing with a 15-for-27 shooting night for the Bulls (38-21), who are first in the Eastern Conference standings.
DeAaron Fox led the Kings with 33 points, nine assists and six rebounds.

Recently acquired Domantas Sabonis scored 22 points while pulling down 12 rebounds to go with eight assists. Justin Holiday scored 18 points, followed by Harrison Barnes with 17 points, and Chimezie Metu added 11 points off the Kings’ bench.

The Kings return to action after the All-Star break when they host Denver on Feb. 24.

Curry brings up the rear for Nets in 109-85 defeat of Kings

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Sacramento Kings guard De’Aaron Fox (5) is defended by Brooklyn Nets guard Patty Mills at the Barclay Center in Brooklyn on Mon Feb 14, 2022 (AP News photo)

Mon, Feb 14 at 7:52 PM

By Jessica Kwong

BROOKLYN, NY. — The Brooklyn Nets handed the Sacramento Kings a 109-85 Valentine’s Day loss at Barclays Center despite missing three of their stars.

Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and Ben Simmons were absent on Monday but Seth Curry on his first night as a member of the Nets scored 23 points to snap Brooklyn’s 11-game losing streak and end the Kings’ modest two-game winning streak.

De’Aaron Fox had a game-high 26 points, Davion Mitchell scored 13 points and Donte DiVincenzo contributed 12 points. But the Kings as a team shot just 34.4% from the field.

The Kings never led and the Nets had 19-point leads in the first, third and final quarters.

Domantas Sabonis, who recently joined the Kings after a six-player trade with the Indiana Pacers, failed to impress as he did in his first two games wearing purple. Sabronis scored just 9 points on four-of-11 shooting in 26 minutes.

Still, Kings interim coach Alvin Gentry thinks Sabonis — who went into Monday’s game averaging 18.9 points, 12.1 rebounds and 5.1 assists in 46 games — has boosted the team.

“We have played a lot of our offense through him,” Gentry said. “I think our guys have really enjoyed playing with him on the floor. I think our cuts have been much better because I think they anticipate getting the ball on the scoring cuts that they make. He’s just been a real stabilizer for us, really.”

After beating the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Washington Wizards to improve to 4-2 in the six games before Brooklyn, Gentry had high hopes for the matchup against the short-handed Nets.

“These were games that we were losing early on and all the way up until this week really,” Gentry said. “I hope this is a sign of good things to come.”

It didn’t turn out that way on Monday. The Kings were limited to 25.7% (9-for-35) from the three-point line. Meanwhile, the Nets shot 51.2% from the field and 34.6% from 3.

The Kings (22-37) are 13th in the western conference. They continue their road trip on Wednesday against the Chicago Bulls in the last game of the first half of the season. Tipoff is at 5 p.m.

Golden State Warriors podcast with Barbara Mason: Warriors host Clippers tonight; Both Golden State and Los Angeles coming off wins

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Golden State Warriors forward Jonathan Kuminga (00) defends against Los Angeles Lakers guard Talen Horton-Tucker (5) at the Chase Center in San Francisco on Sat Feb 12, 2022 (AP News photo)

On the Warriors podcast with Barbara:

#1 The Golden State Warriors Klay Thompson had himself a ball game against the visiting Los Angeles Lakers at Chase Center on Saturday night scoring a team leading 33 points.

#2 Thompson kept the good times rolling with 16 points in the fourth quarter and the Lakers defense had a tough time shutting him down.

#3 The Warriors who won by two points saw Stephen Curry score a game winning lay up with 46 seconds left for the 117-115 win.

#4 For Thompson it was a special night it was his first game playing in front his father who is a Los Angeles Lakers radio announcer Mychal Thompson. Klay said it was special to do it in front of his dad and it he was proud to do it in front of him. It has been a few years since Mychal has seen Klay play.

#5 The Warriors face the Los Angeles Clippers tonight. The Clippers have lost four of their last seven games and got a win against the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday night 99-97. The Clippers Reggie Jackson led the Clippers on Saturday with 24 points. How do you see the Clippers and Warriors matching up tonight at Staples Center?

Join Barbara Mason for the Warriors podcasts each Monday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Warriors Top Lakers In Epic Victory 117-115

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The Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson (11) takes a jump shot against the Los Angles Lakers forward Anthony Davis (3) at the Chase Center in San Francisco on Sat Feb 12, 2022 (AP News photo)

Warriors Top Lakers In Epic Victory 117-115

By Barbara Mason

Saturday night the Golden State Warriors (42-15) met the Los Angeles Lakers (26-31) at Chase Center in an effort to avoid their third loss in a row, something that has not happened this season.

Starting for the Warriors tonight will be Wiggins, Curry. Thompson, Looney and Kuminga. The Lakers come into this game with a lot of fire power led by LeBron James, Russell Westbrook and Anthony Davis. While nowhere near the bench that the Warriors have, the Lakers do have Talen Horton- Tucker in reserve. The Warriors avoided being defeated a third straight time with a two point win over the Lakers 117-115.

After one quarter the Warriors had a 32-26 lead in a very competitive game. As expected LeBron James dominated the game for his team. The problem for the Lakers was that they had James dominating but Golden State was getting great offense from Stephen Curry, Andrew Wiggins, Klay Thompson and Jonathan Kuminga. It was just to much for the Lakers to handle.

The Warriors had a fourteen point lead in the second quarter but the lakers fought back to cut that lead to two points with a single minute left in the half. At halftime the Warrios held a slim lead 65-62.

Curry had 17 points in the half followed by 16 points in 16 minutes for rookie Jonathan Kuminga. In his last game against the Knicks Kuminga had 17 points for the game and at the half in this game with 16 he was a good bet to have his highest scoring performance this season. At one point in the first quarter after a crazy Kuminga shot Juan Toscano-Anderson shouted out to him “Your a bad dud”. This team just loves their rookie.

As expected James had a nice first half with 18 points followed by Westbrook with 10 points.

A hotly contested third quarter saw the Lakers take the lead after the Warriors led by as much as fifteen with under two minutes left 88-87. As the quarter came to an end the lead by the Warriors remained slim 95-94 and going into the fourth quarter this was anyone’s game.

One of the craziest 12 minutes of basketball got underway in the fourth quarter as Thompson recorded his first 30 plus points since his return. With 46 ticks left on the clock Curry gave the Warriors a three-point lead in an absolute barn burner 117-114. It came down to 7.3 seconds and the ball in the hands of the Lakers. There was one last chance for the Lakers as LeBron was fouled by Curry outside.

He missed the first free throw and that was the game. “The grit was exceptional tonight” said former Warrior Adonal Foyle after the game. Especially since Golden State did not score in the first four minutes of the fourth quarter.

The Warriors had five players with double digits. Thompson had the high score for both teams with 33 points. Curry finished with 24 points and Jordan Poole had 11 points off the bench.

The Warriors go back on the road for their Monday night match-up with the Clippers. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 PM PT.

Kings big second half overtake Wizards 123-110

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Washington Wizards forward Corey Kispert (24) drives to the net against Sacramento Kings guard Donte DiVincenzo (0) at the Capital One Arena in Washington on Sat Feb 12, 2022 (AP News photo)

by Marko Ukalovic

WASHINGTON, DC. — Two games after their big blockbuster trade, Cap City is looking to have the last laugh.

The Sacramento Kings outscored the Washington Wizards 64-45 in the second half to cruise to a 123-110 victory on Saturday evening at Capital One Arena.

Sacramento has won two out of its last three games and sit one and a half games back of 10th place in the Western Conference, the final spot for the play in game. Washington has lost three out of its past four games.

De’Aaron Fox opened up the game with six straight points. Newly acquired Domantas Sabonis also had three easy dunks in the first quarter for the Kings.

Washington (25-30) went on a six-zero run to end the first quarter as the led 29-24 at the end of the opening 12 minutes.

Kyle Kuzma scored 11 of his 17 first half points in the second quarter as Washington jumped out to their biggest lead of the half 50-37 on an 8-0 run with 5:32 remaining in the second quarter.

The Wizards had 17 points off of nine Kings turnovers in the first half.

Sacramento (22-36) closed out the quarter on a 21-15 run to close the gap to 65-59 at halftime. Maurice Harkless led the charge for the Kings with 15 first half points, including three for three from three-point range.

It was all Kings in the third quarter as they dominated the Wizards as they outscored them by 10, 33-23 to erase a six-point deficit. Sparked by a 16-4 run in just under five minutes late in the quarter, Sacramento had its biggest lead at 90-84 with two minutes remaining when Chimezie Metu hit a three pointer. Harrison Barnes paced the Kings with 11 points in the quarter.

Sacramento opened up the fourth quarter on 15-8 run in the first three minutes as they extended to its biggest lead at 11 points at 107-96. Fox took charge as he scored seven points in a row for the Kings.

The Kings closed out the game on 17-12 in the final four minutes.

Fox led all scorers with 26 points to go along with four assists and two rebounds. Barnes finished with 21 and Sabonis with 16 points respectively. Harkless also had 17 points as all five starters finished in double digits.

Kuzma led the Wizards in scoring with 22 points to go along with his eight rebounds and seven assists. Corey Kispert chipped in with 20 points.

GAME NOTES: Sacramento finished 12-for-28 from beyond the arc. Washington was 13-for-38.

UP NEXT: Sacramento continues its three-game road trip on Monday 2/14 as they take on the Brooklyn Nets at 4:30pm at Barclay’s Center.

That’s Amaury News and Commentary: Outspoken Celtics Center traded and then Waived

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Enes Kanter Freedom as he appeared on the cover of the New Yorker was vocal about China and it’s politics was traded from the Boston Celtics to the Houston Rockets later to be released by Houston and is now out of the NBA (photo by the New Yorker)

Outspoken Celtics Center traded and then Waived

That’s Amaury News and Commentary

By Amaury Pi-Gonzalez

Enes Kanter Freedom is a good solid pro-basketball player, but we are living during days when free speech has become a liability and not something that should be cherish and respected. Kanter Freedom was traded to the Houston Rockets and soon immediately waived by the Rockets, ahead of the NBA trade deadline.

He has been a critic of China and their abuses of human rights (something that is also part of the narrative of the current Winter Olympics) in Beijing, China, which many are calling the “Genocide Olympics” where US imposed a diplomatic boycott).

The trade, which includes other players aside from Enes Freedom, could just be a coincidence? Or does it makes more sense to come to the simplest of conclusions that the very lucrative NBA associate with the Chinese market was the main reason he got this treatment.

Last month co-owner minority billionaire of the Golden State Warriors Chamath Palihapitiya during an interview said “nobody cares about the Uyghur genocide in China”, then later apologized after being widely slammed for his remarks. Who knows, maybe the NBA now considers Freedom toxic?

The trade was made between the Houston Rockets, going nowhere this year with a 15-40 record and the Boston Celtics positioned to be in the postseason with a 31-25 record. The trade was made official as Houston traded center Daniel Theis to Boston in exchange for guard Dennis Schroeder, center Bruno Fernando, and center Enes Kanter Freedom. Theis spent his first 3 years in the NBA with the Boston Celtics.

As a player (who recently became a Naturalized American citizens and added Freedom to his name) Enes Kanter Freedom, has become an outspoken critic of China and Turkey and has voiced his opinions on several other social issues.

He was not a superstar player and was not getting a lot play recently, but as any American citizen he is entitled to his opinion. He told the Boston Globe, how much he has learned as an American. Nobody knows if he will be picked up by another NBA team. I can only hope and pray we always honor and respect the First Amendment, a key component of our democracy. Where I was born such thing doesn’t exist.

Join Amaury Pi Gonzalez for News and Commentary podcasts Tuesdays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Knicks Edge Warriors For a Second Loss In a Row 116-114

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It’s written all over Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry’s face how could this happen as the Warriors lose their second straight game to the New York Knicks at the Chase Center in San Francisco on Thu Feb 10, 2022 (AP News photo)

Knicks Edge Warriors For a Second Loss In a Row 116-114

By Barbara Mason

The Golden State Warriors (41-15) were back at Chase Center tonight taking on the Knicks (25-31) after getting shellacked by the Utah Jazz last night. The Warriors who dropped their second straight game this time to the Knicks in a close contest 116-114.

The good news for Golden State is that Klay Thompson was in Thursday’s lineup. The team badly needed him Wednesday night although it might have not been enough to get past the Jazz. The Warriors just ran out of steam in the third and fourth quarters in a very uncharacteristic level of play. Empty possessions, turnovers and lackadaisical play was the order of the day in that game. They couldn’t buy a basket.

Starters Thursday night alongside Thompson will be Stephen Curry, Andrew Wiggins, Kevon Looney and wonderkid Jonathan Kuminga.

Tonight the Warriors will try to get back on track against New York. The Knicks are coming off loses to the Lakers, the Jazz and the Nuggets last tuesday night so they are having a rough road trip. They are struggling offensively.

The Warriors fell behind in the opening quarter and trailed 33-28 as it came to an end. The Knicks had a great offensive effort in the first quarter and it looked like Golden State might have a struggle on their hands. New York is a great rebounding team with their size. Julius Randle had 11 rebounds in the first half.

After trailing in the second quarter by seven points the Warriors took a slim lead in the final minutes of the quarter extra possessions and second chance points by the Knicks were a huge reason for the Knicks success and was having a big impact on the game.

The final minutes of the half were all Warriors. With only one turnover in the quarter Golden State was taking more shots and at the half had a 62-57 lead. The best news of all for the Warriors was no points on turnovers which has been an issue for them in the past.

The halftime lead slipped away in the third quarter as the Knicks scored 11 unanswered points. After losing three road games this was a hungry Knicks team that was having a huge game so far. The Knicks outscored the Warriors in the quarter 31-20 taking a lead into the fourth quarter.

The Warriors were struggling from deep going 14 of 44 trailing 102-94 with under seven minutes left in the game. This game would go down to the wire. With 6.2 seconds left in the game the Warriors had the ball but trailed 116-114. Thompson had a good look in the paint but came up short and the Knicks held off the Warriors for their second loss in a row. This is only the second time this year that the Warriors have lost two games in a row.

The Knicks had a great offensive and defensive game. Randle had a tremendous game with 28 points and 16 rebounds.

Curry had a great game with 35 points but was five of 16 from outside. Kuminga and Thompson both finished with 17 points.

Saturday night Golden State will meet the Lakers. They are hoping to avoid three losses in a row which would be a first this season. Tipoff is scheduled for 5:30.

Sacramento Kings podcast with Jeremiah Salmonson: Kings in Washington Saturday looking for second straight win

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Sacramento Kings players Domantas Sabonis, right, and Jeremy Lamb, left go over plays with Kings assistant coach Lindsey Harding before the game on Thu Feb 10, 2022 at Golden One in Sacramento (AP News photo)

On the Sacramento Kings podcast with Jeremiah:

#1 The Sacramento Kings (20-35) have won three of their last five games and picked up a win over the Oklahoma City Thunder (17-35) 113-110 on Wednesday.

#2 The Kings Harrison Barnes played a big role in the win leading the Kings with 30 points.

#3 The Kings were in that terrible ten game losing streak and worked hard and figured a way out how much of that was head coach Alvin Gentry?

#4 De’Aaron Fox finished second in scoring with 27 points how important has Fox been in the role of contributing on offense for the Kings.

#5 The Kings are in Washington to take on the Wizards (24-29) the Wizards got a big win over the Brooklyn Nets 113-112 on Thursday night in Washington. Tell us how you see the Kings chances in Washington on Saturday.

Join Jeremiah Salmonson for the Kings podcasts Fridays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Kings win third in five games defeat Timberwolves 132-119

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Minnesota Timberwolves forward Anthony Edwards (1) shoots over Sacramento Kings forward Harrison Barnes (40) at the Golden One Center in Sacramento on Wed Feb 9, 2022 (AP News photo)

By Jeremiah Salmonson

SACRAMENTO–The Sacramento Kings were back in action on Wednesday night at Golden One Center. The Kings were fresh off their biggest acquisition since they landed Harrison Barnes in free agency.

On Monday, The Sacramento Kings (21-26) traded away Tyrese Haliburton, Buddy Hield, and Triston Thompson to the Indiana Pacers in a deal headlined by Domantas Sabonis coming to Sacramento Kings (29-26). It was bitter sweet for the Kings who were excited to get a game changer like Sabonis who is also a two time all star.

On the other hand, the Kings will miss young up and coming Tyrese as well as Sacramento main stay Buddy Hield. Only time will tell how the trade works out. In the Kings last game they lost to the Minnesota Timberwolves in Sacramento 134-114.

On Wednesday the Kings would look to flip the script and beat the Timberwolves in the second night of a back to back. The Kings on Wednesday beat the Timberwolves by the final of 132-119.

In the first quarter, the Kings came out looking flat. The Kings offense appeared a bit scattered. The new additions to the Kings lineup didn’t looked a bit disjointed in the first quarter. The Timberwolves outscored the Kings 37-31 in the first quarter.

In the second quarter, it was a different story for the Kings. The Kings had a fire lit under theme after the first quarter.

The Kings exploded in the second quarter on the offensive end. The Kings scored an impressive 42 points in the second quarter to go from behind to take the lead going into halftime. The Timberwolves offense cooled from their first quarter start and only scored 27 points in the second half.

The Kings took a 71-64 lead into halftime as they looked to get back in the win column. Harrison Barnes led the way for the Kings with 18 points as Anthony Edwards scored 20 for the Timberwolves.

In the third quarter, it was all Minnesota again. The Kings didn’t completely meltdown but they didn’t play any defense. The Timberwolves manage to regain the lead after outscoring the Kings 37-28 in the third quarter.

The Timberwolves couldn’t miss in the quarter as the Kings defense seemed to regress a bit. If the Kings wanted to win the game they would need to tighten up the defensive end of the floor. The Kings entered the final quarter down 101-99.

In the fourth quarter, the Kings sealed their comeback by defeating the Timberwolves by the final of 132-119. The Kings showed great heart on the defensive end as they held the Timberwolves to only 18 points.

It wasn’t a great defensive game for the kings but they managed to put the clamps down when it mattered. Harrison Barnes led the Kings with 30 points in the game.

Newcomer Domantas Sabonis scored 22 points in his debut for the Kings. The Timberwolves were led by Di’Angelo Russell who dropped 29 points. It was a great feel good win for the Kings who are entering a new era of Kings basketball.

Up Next: The Kings head out in the road to take on the Washington Wizards on Saturday at 4 PM PST. The Kings will only play one more game at home for the next nearly four weeks.