Category: NBA

NBA Christmas Day special: Bucks crush the Warriors 138-99

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Golden State Warrior rookie center James Wiseman (33) goes for the throw down against the Milwaukee Bucks on Fri Dec 25, 2020 in Milwaukee (@warriors photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Golden State Warriors met the Milwaukee Bucks on Christmas Day at the FiServe Arena in Milwaukee. The Bucks, one of the best teams in the NBA, blew out the Warriors 138-99. Draymond Green did not play due to a sore foot. Golden State hopes he will play in Chicago on Sunday.

The Warriors have been blown out in their first two games of the season. Their start has been similar to an ice cream flavor, a very Rocky Road. 

The Warriors were no match for the Bucks on Friday. They lost the first quarter 33-25. Steph Curry could not get anything going. He scored seven points. Five were free throws, and he had one two-point bucket. Andrew Wiggins scored a bucket, but Kelly Oubre did not score. 

The Warriors played better in the second period. They played the Bucks evenly and lost the period 33-31. The rookie center, James Wiseman, played well. He finished the first half with fourteen points, four rebounds, and two blocked shots. Wiggins had six in the quarter, and Steph finished the half with fifteen. Milwaukee owns a ten-point advantage 66-56.

During the Warriors’ great five-year run, they owned the second half, especially the third quarter. The Warrior mojo disappeared Friday afternoon. The Bucks put on an offensive display as they crushed the Warriors in the second half. They outscored the Warriors 73-43 in the final 24 minutes of the game. The Warriors did not quit. They played hard, but their offense was non-existent. Milwaukee won by 39 points 138-99.

Game Notes and Stats: Even though the Bucks blew out the Dubs, there were some bright spots. James Wiseman continued to impress. He tallied 18 points, eight rebounds in 25 minutes of action.

James was 5-11 from the floor and made three threes. He also blocked three shots. Curry kicked in with nineteen. It was not Steph’s night. He was six-for-16 from the floor and made two threes in ten tries. Andrew Wiggins played better than he did against Brooklyn. He ended with twelve points and six rebounds. Kelly Oubre tried but did not have success. He put three points on the board. He was one-for-10 from the floor and 0-for four from three-point range. 

Bench players Brad Wanamaker, Jordan Poole, and Damion Lee tallied 11, 11, and 9, respectively.

Kris Middleton led the Bucks with 31. Two-time NBA MVP Giannis Antetokoumpo scored fifteen. He had thirteen rebounds. Donte DiVincenzo had thirteen, Jrue Holiday twelve, Bobby Portis ten, and D.J. Augustin thirteen.

The Warriors shot just 34% from the floor. The Bucks shot 54%. Teams that shoot 34% will not win many games in the NBA. The Warriors made ten threes. Milwaukee had twenty threes. The Bucks won the boards 69-49.

The Warriors move onto Chicago to face the Bulls Sunday night. The game will start at 5:00 pm.

In Memoriam- The NBA announced that Boston Celtic legend K.C.Jones, who was 88, passed away. Jones, who is in the NBA’s Hall of Fame, won eight championships with the Boston Celtics as a player and two more as a coach.

Sacramento Kings game wrap: Kings pull off overtime win in Denver 124-122

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The Sacramento Kings Buddy Hield (24) drives to the basket against the Denver Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr (left) and center Nikola Jokic (right) in overtime Wed Dec 23, 2020 in Denver (AP News photo)

By Jeremiah Salmonson

The 2021 NBA season has arrived. The Sacramento Kings took on their first opponent of the season on Wednesday night. It is a tough assignment for the Kings as they took on the Denver Nuggets in Denver and pulled off a 124-122 win. However, before we get into the game, let’s chat preseason.

The Kings had many positive signs in this camp. Tyrese Haliburton looks like the real deal. He can shoot, defend and has already been seen dropping dimes to his teammates for easy buckets. The future looks bright for this one.

The Kings core looks to be healthy (Knock on wood) entering the season. De’Aaron Fox, Marvin Bagley III, and Tyrese Haliburton look like they will all contribute major roles this season.

The game was a wild one. The Kings fell to an early deficit against the Nuggets in the first half. The Kings weren’t playing their best in the first half as the Nuggets outscored them 60-53. The Kings needed to make adjustments on defense and get stops if they had any chance of winning the game.

In the second half, the script flipped for the Kings. They managed to outscore the Nuggets 36-24 in the third quarter, thanks largely to ten points from De’Aaron Fox. Fox was clearly leading the team back into the game, where they took the lead 89-84 heading into the final quarter.

In the fourth quarter, the Kings faltered on defense. Marvin Bagley III fouled out with Rachaun Holmes. This led to some bad matchups on defense that allowed the Nuggets to tie the game and send it to overtime.

In overtime, the Kings miraculously came out with the win. As time was winding down in OT, Nikola Jokic lost control of the ball, and it was gathered up by Harrison Barnes. Barnes then proceeded to drive to the hoop but was blocked from behind. As time was expiring, Buddy Hield got the put back off the rim and got the bucket to win at the buzzer 124-122.

Next Up: The Kings come home to play the Phoenix Suns on Saturday at 7 PM PST.

Brooklyn Nets blow out Warriors to start 2020-2021 season 125-99

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The Brooklyn Nets Kevin Durant (7) goes for the throw down against the Golden State Warriors Kelly Oubre (12) as Eric Paschall (7) watches at Barclay Center in Brooklyn on Tue Dec 22, 2020 (AP News photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Golden State Warriors opened the 2020-2021 season on a sour note Tuesday night against the Brooklyn Nets at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. The Nets blew the game open in the first quarter, and the Warriors could never catch up as they lost by a score of 125-99.

It was a tale of two teams. The host team, the Brooklyn Nets, under the tutelage of new head coach Steve Nash, presented themselves as legitimate contenders for the Eastern Conference crown. They added two superstar players, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant.

Irving joined the club after a turbulent history when he was with the Boston Celtics. He didn’t play much last season as he suffered a shoulder injury. Durant, the former Warrior, also did not play last year due to an Achilles heel injury.

Durant entered the game hoping to show everyone that he was back and that he could return to his status as one of the best players in the NBA. D’Andre Jordan holds down the center position for Brooklyn.

Spencer Dinwiddie, who averaged 20 points a game last year, was the other guard. Forward Joe Harris adds punch to the lineup as he is an excellent three-point shooter. The Nets’ second unit has two players that could be starters elsewhere. Caris LeVert is one of the best sixth men in the league. Jarrett Allen is very tall and is a rim protector.

On the other hand, the Warriors were hoping to show the NBA that they were on the road back to respectability. They had the worst record in the NBA last year. Steph Curry played in five games before being injured.

Klay Thomson also missed the entire year with an ACL injury. Klay will miss this year with an Achilles heel injury. Draymond Green did not play Tuesday night due to a sore foot. He is expected back soon.

The Warriors’ first-round draft pick, nineteen-year-old James Wiseman, was making his debut in the NBA. He did not play in any preseason games and just three games in college. His excitement level must have been very high.

Kelly Oubre, Jr and Andrew Wiggins were playing with Curry for the first time. Questions abound about how they would fare against a team like the Nets. The answer Tuesday was not favorable. Neither one had a good game.

The Warriors offense seemed to be out of whack. One game does not make a season. The Warriors coaching staff know that it takes time for a team to gel. The Warriors have so many new players. Most of them are young and haven’t played together as a team for any time. 

The Warriors took the lead when Steph Curry tallied the first bucket of the night. The Nets, behind Durant and Irving, overwhelmed them in the first quarter. Durant and Irving scored 20 of the Nets’ first 21 points.

The Nets finished the first quarter with a 40-25 lead. The Warriors could not find a way to stop the Net’s offense. James Wiseman, a rookie, has a lot to learn about playing in the NBA.

The Warriors did play somewhat better in the second period. The Nets outscored them 23-20 to finish the first half of play with an 18-point advantage. Irving scored 24 for Brooklyn. Durant and LeVert each had 12. Curry led the Warriors with sixteen. Wiggins had eight. Wiseman kicked in with seven.

The Warriors were looking to turn things around in the third quarter. That didn’t happen as the Nets continued to hammer them. The Nets outscored them by ten points to increase the lead to 28, 99-77. The Nets’ head coach Steve Nash did not have to play Durant or Irving in the fourth quarter. The Warriors did win the quarter 28-26. It was too little, too late. The Nets win 125-99.

Game Notes and stats: Steph Curry led the Warriors with 20 points and ten assists. James Wiseman finished his debut with 19 points and six rebounds in 24 minutes of playing time.

Many of his points came in the fourth quarter when the game was out of reach. Kelly Oubre had a tough night. He did make two sensational dunks, but nothing else worked as he finished with just six points and seven rebounds. It was not for lack of effort. Andrew Wiggins had thirteen. 

Kevin Durant played 24 minutes and looked like the Durant of old. He knocked 22  points to go along with five rebounds and three assists. Kyrie Irving tallied 26. He connected on four three in 24 minutes of action. Caris LeVert had 20. Jarrett Allen’s line was eight points and seven rebounds. 

The Warriors travel to Milwaukee to play the Bucks on Christmas Day. It will be Game Two of the four-game road trip. The schedule has not been kind to the Warriors as the Bucks are among the best teams in the Eastern Conference. The game will start at 11:30 am.

Golden State Warriors game wrap: Warriors look sharp as they beat Kings 113-107

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Golden State Warrior Stephen Curry (30) makes it look all too easy, Curry led Golden State with scoring with 29 points in the Warriors win over the Sacramento Kings at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento (Mercury News/Bay Area News Group photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Warriors finished the short three-game preseason with a win over the Kings in Sacramento Thursday night by 113-107. The regular season starts Tuesday night, December 22nd, when the Warriors meet the Brooklyn Nets in New York City.

The Nets will feature former Warrior Kevin Durant and former Cleveland Cavalier and Boston Celtic star Kyrie Irving. Steve Nash is the new Nets’ coach, and former Houston Rocket coach Mike D’Antoni will be his right-hand man on the Nets’ bench.

Warriors’ head coach Steve Kerr had to be pleased with his team’s performance Thursday night. Andrew Wiggins and Kelly Oubre, Jr showed they could fit in with the Warriors’ up-tempo game.

In the first half, the Warriors outscored the Kings 65-62. Wiggins made his first five shots and tallied sixteen points in the half. Oubre had fifteen. Curry was 3-for-13 from the field in the first half. However, Stephen Curry made three threes in three tries. He finished the first 24 minutes of the game with 13 points. Marquese Chriss, coming off the bench, had five. Reserve guard Brad Wanamaker had nine.

The Warriors moved the ball well and were very good defensively. Andrew Wiggins impressed the coaching staff with his aggressive moves to the hoop.

During the five-year run when the Warriors went to the NBA five consecutive seasons, one of the keys to their success was their domination in the third quarter. This year’s team showed they are ready to be a playoff team.

They outscored the Kings 27-19.  Curry was on fire as he knocked down 16 points. Kelly Oubre and Marquese Chriss performed also did well. The Warriors led 92-81 after three quarters. The Warriors did not use Curry or Oubre in the fourth quarter.

Wiggins was on the floor until he fouled out with about six minutes left in the game. Kerr inserted Damion Lee, Nico Mannion, Mychal Mulder, Juan Toscano-Anderson, and Kevon Looney to finish the game. The Warriors win it 113-107.

Game Notes and Stats: Neither James Wiseman nor Draymond Green was in the lineup Thursday night. They have been practicing with the team and should be ready to play next Tuesday against Brooklyn.

Wiseman, the number two pick in this year’s NBA draft, is expected to be a rim protector. He is nineteen years old and does not have much experience under his belt. Had he played against the Kings, it would have been interesting to see how he would handle Hassan Whiteside. Whiteside is a seven-footer who has given the smaller Warrior centers fits over the years. Whiteside will get his chance to show what he can do Tuesday night. Draymond Green will be back, too. 

 Curry led the team with 29 points, six rebounds, and three assists. He saw 28 minutes of action. Oubre had 22, Wiggins 19. Marquese Chriss tallied nine and had 12 boards. Jordan Poole had eleven, Brad Wanamaker nine.

Former Warrior Harrison Barnes paced the Kings with nineteen. The Warrior defense held the Kings Buddy Hield to eleven and De’Aaroin Fox to eight. Hassan Whiteside had twelve. 

As mentioned above, the season starts next Tuesday night in Brooklyn at Barclay Center with a 4 pm tip.

 

Kings drop preseason game to Warriors 113-109

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Photo credit: sactownroyalty.com

By Ana Kieu

SACRAMENTO — The Sacramento Kings played their second straight preseason game against the Golden State Warriors on Thursday night at the Golden 1 Center. In case you missed it, Sacramento edged Golden State 114-113 on Tuesday night.

The Kings’ starting lineup featured De’Aaron Fox, Buddy Hield, Harrison Barnes, Marvin Bagley III, and Richaun Holmes.

Andrew Wiggins made it rain early with three-pointers, but there was effort on both ends of the court. The game was tied at 29-29 at the end of the first quarter,

Just like the Kings, the Warriors were on the move in the second quarter. Yet, Golden State had a slight advantage. Four Warriors players contributed to a solid rebound that was thrown out to Kelly Oubre, who knew exactly what to do–and that was to tip in a shot for a noteworthy highlight. The Kings trailed by three, 65-62, at the end of the first half.

The Kings were unable to contain Steph Curry in the third quarter. Curry jump started the scoring with a two-pointer. The Kings tried to outscore the Warriors, but ended up trailing 91-82 after three quarters of play.

The Kings’ offense was a little rusty in the fourth quarter. The Kings should’ve made more shots to slow down the new-look Warriors. The Kings lost to the Warriors by a final score of 113-109.

The Kings fall to 2-2, while the Warriors improve to 2-1. Harrison Barnes led the Kings with 30 points. De’Aaron Fox and Buddy Hield combined to go 6-of-30 from the field and 3-of-16 from the three-point range.

Notes: Former Kings coach Jerry Reynolds lost a sister to COVID-19. Reynolds clings to hope as his son Jay battles Stage 4 cancer.

Kings guard Buddy Hield turned 28 on Thursday.

Sports Illustrated listed the Kings’ Harrison Barnes, Buddy Hield, and De’Aaron Fox in its rankings for Top Players of 2021.

Les Schwab and Slamson the Lion teamed up to deliver toys to Volunteers of America as part of the Les Schwab Toy Drive, You can donate a toy to any Les Schwab location by December 24th and enter to win Kings prizes. Check out lesschwab.com/toydrive for more information.

Up Next: The Kings take on the Denver Nuggets in the Pepsi Center on Wednesday, December 23 at 6 pm PT.

Headline Sports podcast with London Marq: Kings improved offense and defense could be the big difference for 2020-21 season

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The new and improved Sacramento Kings led by De’Aaron Fox (5) seen in this Fri Dec 11 photo in Portland have the personnel that could push for post season. From all indications in pre season the Kings look like an improved team (AP News photo)

Headline Sports podcast with London Marq:

#1 It’s only the second exhibition season but after the Sacramento Kings split two games with the Portland Trailblazer in Portland and the Kings dominated for most of Tuesday night’s game against the Golden State Warriors at Golden One in Sacramento is the take away from that the Kings have improved and will be competitive?

#2 Bogdan Bogdanovic was dealt to the Atlanta Hawks after the Kings tried to deal him to the New Orleans Pelicans. Was it in the Kings plans not to hold onto Bogdanovic because he basically walked and the Kings really didn’t get anything for him.

#3 Last Sunday night the Kings after losing the first game of two to the Trailblazers handled the Blazers 121-106 and on Tuesday night the Kings dominated on offense and held the Warriors back on defense it’s exhibition but it could be a sign that they team is on the right path going into the season. The Kings De’Aaron Fox and Buddy Heild but lead the way in scoring.

#4 The Kings play the Warriors again on Thursday night at Golden One for the second game meeting. The Warriors have been focusing on their younger players to see what they can do, Warriors top shooters Kelly Oubre, Stephen Curry, and Andrew Wiggins provided some key offense.

#5 On Fox and Hield they both have a sense on scoring and getting that extra push for a win. They certainly got a drop on the Warriors early in Tuesday’s game.

Join London Marq for Headline Sports each Wednesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Sacramento Kings post game wrap: Kings just get by Warriors in first of two game exhibition at Golden 1 Center

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The Sacramento Kings defense has improved as they held the Golden State Warriors in check for most of the game and ended up getting a one point win in the end at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Tue Dec 15, 2020 (warriorswire.com photo)

By Jeremiah Salmonson

The Sacramento Kings had a rough start to the NBA preseason. They lost the first game of two to the Portland Trailblazers in Portland and won the second game on Sunday to start the preseason schedule. The Kings were looking for a better showing as they returned home to Golden One Center on Tuesday night. They did when they had a good leads against the Warriors and in the end wound up with a one point win 114-113.

The Sacramento Kings welcomed their NorCal rival Golden State Warriors for their third preseason game. The Kings showed grit that had been missing in the first game. They managed to play defense when they had to and score when they had to.

The Kings played their best defense in the first two quarters limiting  Golden State to 47 points at halftime. The Kings managed to put up 62 points in the first half and had a nice pace going to enter the middle portion of the game.

Unfortunately for the Kings and their third-quarter woes, which had been well documented in past seasons came back to bite them just a little bit. Golden State outscored the Kings 34 to 26 in the third quarter. The Kings were able to hold on through in the final quarter, even being out paced by Golden State again. They were outscored 32 to 26 in the fourth quarter but still manage to win the game miraculously. The Kings Kyle Guy hit a game-winning buzzer-beater to give the Kings the win.

Guy finished the night leading the Kings in scoring with 20 points. It was an excellent showing for a second-year player who had been flying under the radar for Sacramento. The Kings hope he can continue this good play into the regular season.

Stephen Curry led the Warriors with 29 points.

Up next: the Kings take on the same Warriors on Thursday night at Golden One Center.

Kings nip Warriors at the buzzer win 114-113

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Despite leading Golden State with 29 points on  Tues Dec 15, 2020 at Golden 1 Center Stephen Curry and the Warriors finished just a point short in their loss to the Sacramento Kings (AP News photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Golden State Warriors met the Sacramento Kings Tuesday at the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento. The Kings’ Kyle Guy knocked down a three-point shot as the buzzer sounded to give the Kings the win 114-113.

The Warriors were without Draymond Green, rookie James Wiseman, and second-year player Eric Paschall. Warriors head coach, Steve Kerr, selected Juan Toscano-Anderson to start at strong forward in place of Draymond Green.

Other players in the starting lineup were Kelly Oubre, Jr, Andrew Wiggins, Kevon Looney, and Steph Curry. The Kings lineup included Marvin Bagley III, former Warrior Harrison Barnes, Richaun Holmes at the center position, Buddy Hield, and De’Aaron Fox in the backcourt.

The Kings, coached by former Warriors assistant Luke Walton and Warriors head coach Steve Kerr wanted to see how the players would perform as the season starts in just a week. The starters would play in the first and third quarters, and the backups would see action in the second and fourth quarters. 

As for the game,  Curry scored eleven of the team’s first fifteen points in the first quarter. Curry looked to be in mid-season form. The Warriors finished the quarter leading 27-25. The Kings won the second quarter as they outscored the Warriors 37-20 to finish the first half with a 62-47 lead. Curry led the club with 16 points in 16 minutes of action.

The Kings went up by nineteen early in the third quarter. The Warriors rallied to cut the deficit to seven at the end of the third quarter. Curry continued to play well. Kevon Looney and Marquese Chriss played well. Wiggins and Oubre made clutch buckets to help the Warriors climb back into the game. Sacramento led 88-81 at the end of three.

In the fourth quarter, Curry, Wiggins, Oubre, and Looney were on the bench. Kent Bazemore, Brad Wanamaker, Chriss, and Damion Lee led the W’s comeback. The Dubs led 113-111 with six seconds left to play. The Kings’ Kyle Guy, who was hot coming off the bench, connected with his sixth three-pointer as the buzzer sounded to win it for Sacramento.

Game Notes and Stats: Curry led the Warriors with 29 points in 29 minutes of play. Oubre and Wiggins each had 12. Chriss finished the night with 17 points, nine rebounds, and he made three threes. Bazemore and Lee each had seven. Rookie Nico Mannion saw action for the first time in his career. Brad Wanamaker finished with ten points, five rebounds, and three assists.

Buddy Hield finished with 18, De’Aaron Fox 17. Hassan Whiteside, always tough on the Warriors, had eleven points and nine boards. Kyle Guy finished with twenty points. He made six threes in ten tries.

The two teams meet Thursday night again in Sacramento. The game will tip off at 6 pm. 

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: Cleveland Indians to Change Name – Who cares?

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The University of Richmond’s logo the Spiders. One of the very few teams in college or pro sports to use the name. (photo richmond.com)

That’s Amaury News and Commentary

By Amaury Pi-González

Sometimes professional sports loses focus and gets silly in many ways. The NBA looks the other way about China, because that represents a huge money market for them, yet they speak about justice. Last year China’s Tech-Giant Tencent reached a deal of $1.5 billion to remain the league’s exclusive digital partner and the US largest partnership outside the US.

A market of one-and-a-half billion people, they buy many more Lebron jerseys than the rest of the world combined. But Communist China to this date is one of the world’s leading countries when it comes to human rights violations. Amnesty International, a worldwide (non-political organization) whose mission is about human rights, says about one million Muslims ethnic groups Uyghur’s, Kazakhs and others are still missing.

Amnesty International has interviewed more than 100 people outside of China whose relatives in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region (XUAR) are still missing, as well as individuals who said they were tortured while in detention camps there.

There are forced-labor concentration camps in China. They have interviewed these people who are family of those missing and have knowledge of what’s going on. To be fair to the NBA, they are in the business of selling basketball, lawmakers in Washington make policy; but anybody can see that money is over principal many times over Back in July, ESPN investigation finds coaches at NBA China academies complained of player abuse and lack of schooling.

The NBA has a “complicated” relationship with China, and unfortunately that might continue. This covid-19 came from China, but the vaccine was Made in the USA, so there, we definitely look much better. Here in America we feel good when the Cleveland Indians say they are going to change their name.

Nobody should oppose to the Cleveland Baseball Club changing their name. They are a private business and they can do that, just like anybody else who owns a business. They want to look good in the eyes of the public.

The Atlanta Braves (who are still named Braves) had Chief Noc-A-Homa, a fan for two decades who retired before the 1986 season. This was a fan of the Braves, who paid for his admittance to every game, but chose to dress like an Indian Chief and the team basically adopted him, he was not an employee of the team.

Maybe the Cleveland Indians can change to the Cleveland Baseball Club, just like the NFL Washington Redskins a year ago, or the Cleveland Rockers, for the Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Fame in that city. But with all our problems during this 2020 and everything that is going on in this world, does anybody really cares about changing the name of a team?

Who knows what the sports landscape might look 20, 30, 40 or more years from today? Pacifist could eventually revel against team’s names like: Raiders, Pirates, Chiefs, Vikings, Buccaneers and such.

Atheists and Agnostics will do the same against teams that are named: Padres, Angels and Saints. Maybe the National Audubon Society will get upset about the: Cardinals, Orioles, Ravens and Blue Jays or the ACLU about the exploitation of ‘man by man’ with teams names like Athletics, Giants, Twins, Royals and Patriots. I think Houston and NASA will always be happy with the Astros and New York with the Yankees, so they are…Safe!!

Felíz Hanukkah and Felíz Navidad !

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the vice president of the MLB Hispanic Heritage Baseball Hall of Fame Museum  and does News and Commentary at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Sacramento Kings game wrap: Kings turn it around for 121-106 win in Portland

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The Sacramento Kings and Portland Trailblazers played their second pre season game in Portland on Sun Dec 13, 2020 (live over lay photo from nba.com)

By Jeremiah Salmonson

The Sacramento Kings embarked on their tune-up games on Friday night. Things did not go as planned. The Kings defense let them down big time in a loss to the Trail Blazers in Portland 127-102.

The Kings remained in Portland to rematch the Blazers on Sunday.

In the game, the Kings showed much more resilience on the defensive end of the floor. The Kings allowed the Trail Blazers to score 106 points while holding the Blazers to 22 points or less in two quarters.

The Kings didn’t allow a “meltdown quarter” like Friday night when they gave up 40 points in the first. On the offensive side of the ball, the Kings were able to score 121 points. For a 121-106 victory tally on Sunday. Richaun Holmes led the Kings in scoring by putting up 14 points. Buddy Hield led the game in assists with seven. That was an unusual sight for the Kings but something that undoubtedly helped win the game.

The Kings overall looked much better in the second game in Portland than the first. They are looking to get some sort of rhythm down before starting the regular season on December 23rd in Denver.

Keys to success for the Kings this year appear simple in my eyes. The Kings must play with pace and play good defense on the other end. The Kings have the players to knock down shots in the open court; they just need to get themselves the looks.

Next Up: The Kings will travel home to take on the NorCal rival Golden State Warriors at Golden One Center on Tuesday night. The game is set for 7 PM PST.