Category: NBA

The Warriors return to form, blow out the Orlando Magic by thirty points

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by Jerry Feitelberg

Oakland- The Golden State Warriors played like the Warriors prior to the injury of Kevin Durant as they rolled over the Orlando Magic 122-92. The Warriors, in the first quarter, played well on both ends of the court. Klay Thompson led the offense with 21 points in the first 8 1/2 minutes of the game and the Dubs defense held the Magic to just 20 points as they raced to a 14-point lead 34-20 after the first 12 minutes of play. The Warriors and fans held their collective breaths as Steph Curry left the game when he stepped on Evan Fournier’s foot and came up limping. Steph went to the locker room for treatment and was able to return to action.

Steph started the second quarter with the second unit. The Dubs were leading 58-33 but they started to play sloppy and the Magic was able to cut the deficit to 67-50 at the end of the first half. Klay Thompson led the Dubs with 27. Steph had 9, Draymond,5, Zaza 6. Elfrid Payton and Evan Fournier each had 9 to lead the Magic scorers.

The Warriors iced the game in the third period. They scored 36 points and held the Magic to just 21 and led 103-71 heading into the fourth quarter. Steph and Andre Iguodala played extremely well in the period as the Warriors were able to put the game out of reach. Head coach Steve Kerr removed the regulars after just a few minutes of play and the reserves finished the game. Final score 122-92.

Game notes and stats. The Warriors had five players in double figures. Klay Thompson finished the night with 27. Steph had 25 points and 9 assists. Iguodala knocked down 14 points and he had 6 rebounds. Draymond Green scored 9 and he had 6 assists and 11 boards. Zaza Pachulia had a double-double:10 points and 10 rebounds. Ian Clark added 12.

Elfrid Payton and Jeff Green led the Magic with 13 points each. Evan Fournier had 12 and big Nikola Vusevich scored 10.

After the game, Steve Kerr was asked about the great start the team had in the game and he said this:”that was the focus. Let’s carry over our defensive effort and get off to a good start.” “tonight we broke through with a great offense. (It) always starts with great defense. He had this to say about Andre Iguodala’s performance”we get a different dimension when Andre plays this way.He is just playing great basketball.”

One humorous note- Zaza Pachulia and one of the trainers had a bet. The bet was this; Zaza would have to make a dunk, which he did. Zaza would have to have a double-double with points and rebounds, which he did. What did the trainer lose? The trainer has to shave his beard and Zaza was seen on the bench making gestures as if he were using a pair of scissors.

The Warriors improved to 54-14 and Orlando drops to 24-45.  The Warriors face a young and talented Milwaukee Bucks team Saturday night at Oracle Arena at 7:30 pm.

 

Kentucky Wildcats players dominate the Kings-Suns game – SAC wins 107-101

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by Charlie O. Mallonee

Los Angeles Kings v Phoenix Suns
Chriss and Labissiere go at it in Kings-Suns game Photo NBAE

An NBA game was played on Wednesday night in Phoenix and a Kentucky men’s basketball scrimmage broke out. The Kings featured their Wildcats – Willie Cauley-Stein and Skal Labissiere. The Suns put the spotlight on their former Kentucky players Devin Booker and Tyler Ulis. Phoenix gave former Wildcat Eric Bledsoe the night off even though he dressed for the game.

The future of these two franchises has been tied together since draft night in June of 2016. Phoenix and Sacramento agreed to a draft night trade that may effect the direction of the two organizations for years to come.

The Kings used their lottery pick to select Marquese Chriss out of the University of Washington and then sent him to Phoenix. In exchange, the Suns sent the Kings two first-round picks and the rights to Bogdan Bogdanovic.

With those draft picks, the Kings selected center Georgios Papagiannis out of Greece and forward Skal Labissiere out of Kentucky. Sacramento knew that Papagiannis was going to be a development project and figured Labissiere would be as well. “Papa G” is developing while Skal is growing by leaps and bounds in every game he plays in for the Kings.

The Suns have also been pleased with the growth of Chriss. He has looked like a 19-year old rookie at times, but Chriss has also had moments of brilliance during the season. Phoenix has every reason to be excited about having him on their roster.

On Wednesday, the game belonged to the Kings and their young big men. Sacramento downed the Suns 107-101 in the “Valley of the Sun” winning their second consecutive game. The Kings were led by the incredible play of rookie forward Skal Labissiere who scored a game-high 32 points and made it a double-double by adding 11 rebounds. He shot a very respectable 11-for-15 from the floor including a 3-point basket.

Fellow Kentucky alum Willie Cauley-Stein came up big again for the Kings versus the Suns as well. He posted a double-double game with 14 points and 11 rebounds. WCS also had five assists, four steals and four blocks.

Rookie shooting guard Buddy Hield had a quiet night as he spent much of his playing time playing defense against the very tough Devin Booker. Booker scored 19 points but he had to take 26 shots to make those points. Hield and Garrett Temple defended Booker well in the game.

Other Kings who contributed: Afflalo 14 points, Koufos 13 points/six rebounds, Ty Lawson 11 points/six assists, Garrett Temple eight points and Langston Galloway played again putting up eight points.

TJ Warren led the Suns scoring attack with 24 points. Booker had 19. Chriss had a big night putting up 17 which is just over twice his season average. Alan Williams had a double-double game with 14 points and 11 rebounds. Tyler Ulis also had a double-double with 13 points and 13 assists.

The Kings are off until Saturday when they will face the Thunder in Oklahoma City.

Golden State Warriors podcast with David Zizmor: Durant absence impact has hampered W’s to measure up with other teams

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One of the things we realize through this Kevin Durant injury is the Golden State Warriors bench is thin. Last year they had players like Leandro Barbosa or Marreese Speights those guys are great but the Warriors wanted a veteran presence and head coach Steve Kerr trusted they could come in and make things work and even with a guy like Andrew Bogot they had slightly more experience on the bench. It’s not quite the case especially in the front court where Durant played where they were counting on really young guys.

The bench: Patrick McCaw plays in the two and three, Kevon Looney he’s shown flashes but he hasn’t been consistent they just don’t have a ton of depth up front and some of the things like we said Durant he’s a singular talent you just can’t lose a guy like that and expect things to go smoothly. He’s an amazing basketball player whose having a great season and you talk with guys whose in the running with him for MVP certainly for first team All NBA on both ends of the floor on offense and defense nobody can compare with him.

David Zizmor does the Warriors podcasts each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

The Warriors get back on the winning track as they defeat the Philadelphia 76ers in a thriller 106-104

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By Jerry Feitelberg

Oakland- The Golden state Warriors, behind the stellar play of Draymond Green, rallied from a 16-point deficit late in the third quarter to defeat the Sixers 106-104. The game was a thriller from start to finish. The Warriors won the first quarter 35-34 but trailed by one-point at the end of the first half 59-58. Klay Thompson led the Dubs with 19 and Steph Curry added 14. The lead changed hands several times in the half and the Sixers were able to score points in the paint easily. The Dubs made 7 three-pointers and made 17 free throws to keep the game close as the shot just 39% from the floor. The Sixers, on the other hand, shot 47% from the floor and made 7 more field goals than the Dubs.

In the third quarter, one that is usually owned by Golden State, saw the wheels come off the Dubs’ express. The Sixers held the Dubs scoreless for over 3 1/2 minutes and led 84-69 late in the quarter. The Dubs rallied and closed the game to minus 12 after 3 periods of play trailing 90-78. The Sixers were playing with a lot of confidence heading into the final 12 minutes of play. The Warriors, especially Draymond Green and Steph Curry, had other thoughts. The Dubs went on a 15-1 run to take a one-point lead 92-91. The Sixers pushed back and regained the lead 96-95. Steph hit a three to propel the Dubs ahead 98-96 but Philly knocked down a three and led 99-98. That would be the last time the Sixers would be ahead. Steph made another three and Matt Barnes hit a three from the right corner to increase the lead to five 104-99. The Sixers closed the deficit to one but Draymond made two big free throws. Matt Barnes had a chance to ice the game but he missed a dunk after the Dubs intercepted an inbound pass. Draymond Green made a smart play as he intentionally fouled Dario Saric with just 2.6 seconds left. Saric made the first free throw. He missed the second hoping to get a rebound out to a teammate but the Ball ended up in Steph’s hands as the Dubs held on to win 106-104.

Game Notes and Stats- The star of the game, without question, was Draymond Green. He was a force on defense as he had 8 rebounds, 4 steals, and a career-high 6 blocks in the game. He scored 20 points and had 8 assists as he literally willed his team to victory. Earlier in the game, Draymond told his teammates that “you have to dig your way out.” Steve Kerr remarked that “everybody stepped it up” on defense. He also said that with “more defensive pressure, there are more made shots” on offense. He also said that the win will give the Dubs “more momentum.”  The Warriors outscored the Sixers 28-14 in the fourth quarter.The Warriors snapped a 3-game losing streak and improved to 53-14. Steph found his game in the fourth quarter and ended up with 29 points. He made 5 3-point shots in 13 tries. Klay Thompson added 28. Matt Barnes led the bench with 10 and Andre Iguodala added 7. Leading scorers for the Sixers were Dario Saric, who is a candidate for Rooke of the Year, knocked down 25. Jhalil Okafor had 22,  Richaun Holmes,14 and Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot 10.The Sixers fall to 24-43.

The Dubs meet the Orlando Magic Thursday night at Oracle Arena. Game time will be at 7:30 pm.

Sacramento Kings podcast with Charlie O: Joerger says discussion wasn’t on the 8 game loss streak but how well the team was playing

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Sacramento Kings forward Anthony Tolliver, left, shoots over Orlando Magic guard Mario Hezonja during the second half of an NBA basketball game Monday, March 13, 2017, in Sacramento, Calif. The Kings won 120-115. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli

The Sacramento Kings had a tremendous losing streak of eight games up until Monday March 18th and it’s not that they hadn’t played well because they had played well on some of those games. The tendency was for the Kings to get out, get leads then lose those leads down in San Antonio which they had a 20 point plus lead and watch that bleed away in the fourth quarter. The Kings are somewhat demoralized it was interesting on Saturday against Denver after the game as head coach Dave Joerger said that everyone seems to be worried about the losing streak “except me and the team.”

The media is talking about it, some of the fans are talking about it and he kind of spoke out against the media on this and said, “that’s because the media is talking about it” every coach is going to give you the red hot poker once in awhile if your in the media, Joerger said “were not talking about it, were talking about how well were playing and how well were learning” and he wasn’t saying how well they didn’t want to win.

Charlie O does the Sacramento Kings podcast each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

 

Sacramento Kings Monday game wrap: Kings use 3-ball to snap skid 120-115 over Orlando

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Sacramento Kings forward Anthony Tolliver, left, goes to the basket against Orlando Magic center Bismack Biyombo during the second half of an NBA basketball game Monday, March 13, 2017, in Sacramento, Calif. The Kings won 120-115. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)

By Jeremy Harness

SACRAMENTO – There is a new kind of feel to this Kings team these days, and that was on full display Monday night.

The Kings have not been a very good 3-point-shooting team, but they found the long ball to be quite an effective weapon for them, making 16 of their 30 shots from 3-point territory, which is good for 53 percent and propelled them to a 120-115 win over the Orlando Magic in front a fully-energized crowd at the Golden 1 Center.

Sacramento also shot 54 percent from the field overall, often finding easy layups and, in Willie Cauley-Stein’s case, going to a jump hook in the lane from about 10 feet out.

That victory could not have come at a much better time, as it broke a debilitating eight-game losing skid.

The Kings rested four of their regulars in Kosta Koufos, Ty Lawson, Arron Afflalo and Tyreke Evans on Monday, and not having to worry about being subbed out seemed to really help guys like Willie Cauley-Stein and Darren Collison.

With Koufos out of the lineup, Cauley-Stein settled in and found the aforementioned short jump hook to be a great shot for him, using that to the tune of 18 points on 9-of-16 shooting to go along with seven rebounds.

Collison certainly benefited without having to look over his shoulder, Collison showed his entire skill set against the Magic. He scored 19 points and also handed out a season-high 13 assists and only turned the ball over three times, and he was especially big down the stretch.

His four-point play gave the Kings a 75-73 lead with about 5:30 left in the third quarter, a lead that Sacramento would never relinquish.

He also had a big hand in the Kings keeping that lead. After Orlando erased a one-time 10-point lead to tie the game with 4:50 remaining, he came back down the floor and fed Cauley-Stein for an alley oop to give the lead right back to Sacramento.

Collison was also a perfect 7-for-7 from the free-throw line, including key free throws in the final minute when Orlando was forced to play the foul game.

Anthony Tolliver also came up huge down the stretch for the Kings, hitting a gigantic 3-pointer with 43.3 seconds left to give the Kings a 116-112 lead, en route to a 19-point, six-board night. He was particularly feeling himself from behind the 3-point line on Monday, making five of his seven 3-pointers.

The Kings entered Monday’s game with an eight-game losing skid, and they fought back gallantly at the end of the first half to tie the game at 58-58 at the break.

Center Nikola Vucevic scored a game-high 23 points for the Magic, including knocking down all three of his 3-point attempts, giving the true definition of a stretch-five. Even Fournier chipped in with 21 points and nailed a series of corner 3-pointers to help erase Sacramento’s double-digit lead in the fourth quarter.

The game was not really secured until the Kings were able to locate Fournier and make sure that he did not get a decent look at long range in the final minute.

If they didn’t out-shoot Orlando, the other stats, which did not favor the Kings, would have made it a difficult game for Sacramento to win. The Kings were out-rebounded 44-40 and turned the ball over twice more. However, the Kings converted Orlando’s 13 turnovers into 18 points while the Magic only got 10 points out of Sacramento’s 15 miscues.

Nuggets down Kings 105-92; here’s your 2:20 game wrap

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by Charlie O. Mallonee

nuggets hield
Buddy Hield scores 2 of his 17 points Photo NBAE

The Sacramento Kings have lost eight consecutive games – head coach Dave Joerger has an interesting reaction and response

This was the final game of the year between the Nuggets and Kings. The season series ends 2-2. Each team won a game on its homecourt and lost a game on the road.

Where the teams stand after the game

  • Denver’s record improves to 31-35
  • The Nuggets have won two games in a row
  • Denver remains in eighth place in the Western Conference two games ahead of ninth place Portland and five games behind seventh place Memphis
  • Sacramento’s season record drops to 25-41
  • The Kings have dropped into 13th place in the Western Conference one game behind 12th place New Orleans and six games behind Denver in the final playoff slot
  • The Kings are three games ahead of 14th place Phoenix
  • Sacramento has 16 games remaining in the regular season

Miss seeing the game? Highlights are here

Click here to see video highlights from Saturday’s game between the Nuggets and the Kings

Top performers

Nuggets

  • Former Michigan State star Gary Harris scored a game-high 24 points shooting 10-for-15 from the field
  • Center Nikoia Jokic recorded a double-double putting up 20 points and grabbing 14 rebounds
  • Forward Danilo Gallinari added 15 points

Kings

  • Rookie Buddy Hield was the Kings leading scorer with 17 points. He shot 6-for-8 from the floor including three 3-point buckets. Hield also had three assists
  • Tyreke Evans made an impact coming off the bench adding 15 points
  • Willie Cauley-Stein added 13 points, five rebounds and five assists for Sacramento. Head coach Dave Joerger wants to see Cauley-Stein have more assist opportunities
nuggets evans
Tyreke Evans was a force off the bench Photo NBAE

Weird stat of the night

The Nuggets committed nine turnovers in the game but the Kings were able to score just four points off those turnovers. Compare that to the Kings who committed 13 turnovers that resulted in 22 points for Denver.

Up next on the schedule

The Kings will be back on their homecourt on Monday night when they host the Orlando Magic. The Magic are also a budding “Draft Lottery” team.

The Nuggets will also be back in action on Monday when they host the Los Angeles Lakers in the Mile High City.

 

The Spurs bench outplays the Warrior bench as the Dubs lose for the fifth time in their last seven games

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Golden State Warriors forward Kevon Looney drives around Warriors center Zaza Pachulia (27), of Georgia, as he is defended by San Antonio Spurs’ Kyle Anderson (1) and Dewayne Dedmon (3) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Saturday, March 11, 2017, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Darren Abate)

by Jerry Feitelberg

San Antonio- The Golden State Warriors finished a very long stretch of eight games in 13 days when they played the San Antonio Spurs on Saturday night in Texas. The Dubs traveled 13,000 miles to play in the East, Midwest, West Coast, and back to the Midwest. Head coach Steve Kerr decided to rest Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, and Andre Iguodala. The move was planned even though the Dubs knew that the game in San Antonio was going to be big. However, Kerr decided to take the long view and did not want his players worn out before the playoffs started. Kevin Durant is still sidelined and the Dubs are hoping that KD  would return in three weeks from his injury.  The Spurs were missing stars too. Kawhi Leonard was sidelined with a concussion. Tony Parker and Dejounte Murray did not play due to injury and LaMarcus Aldridge was ruled out indefinitely with a minor heart arrhythmia.

The only regular in the starting lineup for the Warriors was Zaza Pachulia. Matt Barnes and Kevon Looney started at forward and the guards were Shaun Livingston and Patrick McCaw. The Spurs countered with Patty Mills and Kyle Anderson at the guard position. Former Warrior David Lee and Danny Green were paired at forward and DeWayne Dedmon started at center.

The Spurs had no trouble piercing the Warriors’ defense. They made several three -point shots and were able to lead 53-37 midway through the second quarter. Steve Kerr said this after the game:”I was disappointed in the defense in the first half.” The Spurs led the rest of the way and sent the Dubs down to defeat 107-85.

The one bright spot for the Warriors was the play of Ian Clark. Clark scored a career-high 36 points coming off the bench. Patrick McCaw, on the other hand, had a terrible night as he went 0-for-12 and scored just two points in the game. Kerr remarked that all players will have a night like McCaw’s at some point in their career but McCaw is a very good player in a league full of great players.

Game Notes and stats- Matt Barnes had 14 points and nine boards. Pachulia recorded a double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds. No one else scored more than 8 points in the game for the Warriors. The Spurs had five players in double figures including Pau Gasol with ten, Kyle Anderson 13, and rookie Davis Bertans, who was just called up from the D-League on March 6th, knocked down 13.

The Dubs played Minnesota Friday night and then arrived in San Antonio at 3 am Saturday morning. There is no doubt that the club was tired and their play showed it Saturday night. However, newcomer Matt Barnes put things into perspective this way:”it’s more about May and June than March.” The Dubs’ are now 52-14 and have 16 games left on the schedule. They still have a half game lead over the Spurs but if the teams are tied at the end of the season, the tie-breaker will go to San Antonio and they will have home-court advantage throughout the playoffs.

The Dubs are off until next Tuesday. They play the Philadelphia 76ers at Oracle Arena. Game time will be at 7:30 pm.

Kings lose 130-122 in OT to the Wizards: here’s your 2:20 game wrap

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by Charlie O. Mallonee

willie vs wiz

The Kings looked like they were going to break out of their six-game losing streak on Friday when they took a 15-point lead into the final quarter versus the Wizards. Washington erased that lead to tie the game at 116-all at the end of regulation.

The Wizards (40-24) outscored the Kings 14-6 in overtime and won the game 130-122.

Here’s your 2:20 game wrap:

wall
John Wall takes it to the hoop Photo NBAE

The Wizards were led by an incredible backcourt performance from Bradley Beal and John Wall who combined for 63 points. The Kings (25-40) were paced by Willie Cauley-Stein who recorded a 20/13 double-double and Buddy Hield who put up 18 points in his first ever NBA start.

Click on this link to see highlights of the game from NBA.com

No time to rest and reflect

The Kings will be back on the court on Saturday night when they host the Denver Nuggets at Golden 1 Center. The Kings lost to the Nuggets 108-96 on Monday night in Denver.

Sportsradioservice.com will have a 2:20 pregame look posted on Twitter @SportsRadioSrvc at approximately 6:30 p.m. PST. There will be twitter updates during the game and the 2:20 game wrap will go up Twitter approximately 30-minutes after the end of the game.

The Warriors woes continue, fourth quarter rally falls short. Dubs lose to the Timberwolves

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Golden State Warriors’ Klay Thompson plays against the Minnesota Timberwolves during the second half of an NBA basketball game Friday, March 10, 2017, in Minneapolis. The Timberwolves won 103-102. (AP Photo/Jim Mone)

Minneapolis- The Warriors fell behind early in the first quarter and trailed by 13 after 3 periods of play. They outscored the Minnesota Timberwolves 26-15 in the fourth quarter but lost103-102 as Steph Curry missed a shot with just a few seconds left in the game.

The Warriors have lost 4 of the seven games played since the injury to Kevin Durant. Their record is now 52-13. They play the San Antonio Spurs Saturday night in San Antonio. The Spurs are 50-14, and if they win, they will have the best record in the NB and win own the tie-breaker if the teams finish with the same record at the end of the season. The Spurs’ Kahwi Leonard will not play as he sustained a head injury in the game against the Sacramento Kings Thursday night.

Klay Thompson led the Dubs with 30 points. Curry followed with 26, but his slump in shooting from 3-point range continued as he made just one three-pointer in 8 attempts. The Timberwolves, coached by Tom Thibideau, have improved dramatically on defense and they have won six of their last eight games.  Andrew Wiggins scored 20 of his 24 points in the second half and made two free throws with just 12.8 seconds left to seal the win. Karl-Anthony Towns scored 23 and point guard Ricky Rubio added 17 and had 13 assists. The T-Wolves trail Denver by 2 1/2 games for the last playoff spot in the Western Conference.

The Dubs face the Spurs Saturday night. Head coach Steve Kerr plans to rest Curry, Thompson, Draymond Green and Andre Iguodala. Should be interesting.