Category: NBA

Rudy Gay’s Achilles is torn, needs surgery and changes everything for Kings

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment

 

gay-injured
Rudy Gay unable to walk after going down in the Pacers game

by Charlie O. Mallonee

Rudy Gay fell to the floor at the Golden 1 Center on Wednesday night with 14.3-seconds to go in the third quarter of the game with the Indiana Pacers. When that happened, everything about the Kings current campaign changed and what will happen with the team’s personnel in 2017-18 may also have been affected as well.

The diagnosis is as bad as it gets

A full MRI on Thursday revealed that Gay suffered a full rupture of the left Achilles tendon. The tendon will require surgery to repair. The surgery has not yet been scheduled.

symptoms-of-achilles-tendon-rupture

Rehabilitation is tough and recovery is not assured

Dr. Steven M. Raikin wrote in Sports Illustrated back in April 2015 about the recovery issues associated with an Achilles tendon and his notes are sobering:

  • The Achilles is the largest and strongest tendon in the body so when it is injured it is always serious
  • 70-percent of Achilles ruptures are sports related and nearly one-half happen while playing basketball
  • It tends to be a “weekend warrior” type injury but pro athletes are not exempt: see Kobe Bryant
  • Following a rupture the tendon almost never returns to 100-percent and 36-percent of NFL and NBA players are never able to return to pro sports following the injury
  • The recovery/rehab period is usually about a year in order to return to competition
  • Players returning after an Achilles surgery experience up to a 50-percent decrease in power and will usually play 3-4 seasons after they return to competition

Rudy’s plans for next season have probably just changed

gay-smiling

Gay had notified the Kings that he intended to opt-out of the final year of his three-year contract to test the free agent market at the end of the 2016-17 season. A player with Gay’s skills and experience under the new salary cap and CBA should be able to upgrade their salary package considerably in “the Association’s” current market conditions. The Kings were expected to bid for Gay’s services but in the open market there were certainly no guarantees that he would be back in purple and white in 2017-18.

Given the sudden turn of events and the one-year rehab process that Gay is facing, a $14,263,566 contract for next season may look much more attractive than it did 48-hours ago. No team is going to be willing to invest big money in a player until they know what his abilities are going to be on the floor following recovery and rehab. Gay has to protect his family and himself by staying under contract to Sacramento while recovers and then hopefully has the chance to show NBA teams he is ready to play in the second-half of next season.

This changes things for the Kings personnel decision makers

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NBA observers had been calling on the Kings to trade Gay ever since the forward had declared he intended to opt-out of the final year of his contract. The experts said the team could not afford to just let a talent like Gay walk away for nothing in return.

The problem for the Sacramento management has been their team’s flirtation with the number eight spot in the Western Conference and the chance to make the playoffs. Portland, Denver and Sacramento have all been battling for that final playoff position and the Kings believe they needed Gay’s 18.7 points and 6.3 rebounds per game to make the playoffs a reality for their team. It is difficult to argue with their point of view.

Now, the dream of making the playoffs continues but it does so without Rudy Gay’s considerable talents in the lineup. The fact that Gay will probably be on their roster and unavailable until at least mid-January 2018 also changes how the Kings have to plan their player personnel acquisitions and revenue for next season.

There is a little light at the end of the tunnel

The Kings have played 11 games this season without Rudy Gay in the starting lineup when he was sidelined with a hip flexor injury. Sacramento had a record of 5-6 in those games without Gay in the lineup.

The Kings have to hope that their production without Gay in the starting lineup was not a fluke and that they can pick up the slack in quick order.

Kings drop homestand finale to the Pacers, and lose Rudy Gay to injury

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ap17019267846731
Sacramento Kings forward Rudy Gay, center, is carried off the court after suffering what the team reported to be a torn left achilles tendon, during the third quarter of an NBA basketball game against the Indiana Pacers, Wednesday, Jan. 18, 2017, in Sacramento, Calif. The Pacers won 106-100. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)

By Morris Phillips

SACRAMENTO–For a year, and maybe longer, the Kings have contemplated life without Rudy Gay.  Now that the reality has arrived that the Kings will play the second half of their season without the high risk, high reward forward, the reality that this moment couldn’t have come in a more devastating manner has arrived as well.

With the Kings leading the Pacers by 10 points in the third quarter on Wednesday, Gay put his head down and attempted to attack the rim from the left wing. But in an instant, and immediately following his first step, the 30-year old was felled by what would be diagnosed as a season-ending, leg injury, most likely a torn Achilles, pending a thorough inspection.

Unable to put any weight on his foot, Gay was carried to the locker room by teammates.  That moment was just one of many during a second half collapse that saw the Kings squander a 19-point halftime lead, allowing the Pacers to escape with a 106-100 win.

The loss capped a 1-7 homestand that has Sacramento looking in from the outside of the playoff race, with an eight-game road trip starting Friday in Memphis.  But the playoffs weren’t on the mind of the players after the game.

“That’s a tough thing to watch, man.  I hate it for him,” DeMarcus Cousins said. “I spoke to him and told him I’ll keep you in my prayers.”

Gay missed eight games in December, and the first two games this month, as the Kings struggled to find a rhythm without then with their high-scoring forward.  With him, the Kings dropped five of their last six games–all at Golden 1 Arena–despite Gay scoring in double figures in all six.

But that pattern was familiar with Gay in the lineup.  Despite his solid offensive numbers, the Kings often struggled with him as ball movement and shot making lagged, while the team also struggled defensively.   That prompted the constant trade rumors as the Kings reportedly listened, but never found a suitable deal.  Now, with Gay’s absence, GM Vlade Divac will have to consider another trade chip to shake up his club, and bring valuable shooting and defense to a team that’s dropped eight of ten.

On Wednesday, the Pacers did the Kings no favors with their rollover act in the first half, in which they trailed by as many as 22 points and looked lifeless.  Starting guard Jeff Teague got into early, foul trouble, and the Pacers were embarassed on the glass, getting out-rebounded 24-11 in the first half.

But in the second half, Teague returned, and the Pacers roared, outscoring the Kings 65-40 in the final, two quarters.  When Gay went down late in the third quarter, the Kings were still in control, but the injury was in the midsts of a 9-0 run for Indiana that had things much closer just minutes into the fourth.

Indiana took the lead for good with 1:55 remaining on a pair of made free throws by Teague.  Cousins missed two of his four free throw attempts down the stretch, as the Pacers scored nine of the game’s final 11 points to win it.

The Kings fell 1 1/2 games behind Denver with the loss, with the Nuggets currently occupying the eighth and final playoff spot.  The Kings also trail the Blazers, and are percentage points behind the Pelicans as their skid has tightened the standings. 

On Friday, the Kings open their road trip in Memphis against the Grizzlies at 5pm.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kevin Durant leads the Warriors to victory over his former team, the Oklahoma City Thunder

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by Jerry Feitelberg

The Golden State Warriors faced the OKC Thunder Wednesday night at Oracle Arena. The Warriors, fresh off a smashing victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers, had a tough time getting their game going as OKC took advantage of the Warriors eleven turnovers in the first half. The Thunder’s defense held the Dubs to just eight three-point shots. The game was tied at 56 at the half. The Warriors, behind Kevin Durant’s 40 points, broke the game open in the third quarter as they were able to beat the Thunder 121-100.

The Thunder’s Russell Westbrook, Victor Oladipo, and Enes Kanter led the Thunder’s offense. They played well on defense. The Thunder led 31-30 after the first quarter. The Thunder went on a 9-3 run to start the second quarter. The Warriors came back and took the lead 44-42. The Dubs’ David West scored six and KD made a trey to tie the game at 42. The Dubs were up by four 56-52 near the end of the quarter. Russell Westbrook scored the last 4 points, and the game was tied at 56 to end the first half. Kevin Durant knocked down 20, and Steph had 13 to lead Golden State in scoring.

The Warriors, as they have done so many times this year, owned the third quarter. Draymond Green scored six points to start the quarter. Kevin Durant, Steph Curry, and Klay Thompson all came alive in the period. The Warriors stopped making turnovers, and they played superb defense. They outscored OKC 37-22 to take a 15 point lead after three periods of play. They did not let up in the fourth quarter. They increased the lead to 19 with 7:41 left to play. With the score 117-94, coach Steve Kerr removed his starters from the game. JaVale McGee, Ian Clark, Kevon Looney, Patrick McCaw and Shaun Livingston finished the game, and the Warriors won the game by a final score of 121-100

Game Notes and Stats- The Warriors improved their record to 36-6 and OKC fell to 25-19. OKC’s big man, Steve Adams, was not able to play as he is recovering from a concussion. Klay Thompson was in Portland due to an illness in the family, but he flew back in time to be in the lineup.

Kevin Durant had another double-double. He recorded 40 points, 4 assists, 12 rebounds, and 3 blocked shots. Steph Curry pitched in with 24 points, 8 assists, and 4 boards. Klay scored 14. Draymond Green also had a double-double. Draymond pitched in with 12 points, 5 assists, ten rebounds and 3 blocked shots. Shaun Livingston(8), David West(8), and Andre Iguodala(6) all made contributions in helping the Dubs win. The scoring leader for OKC was Russell Westbrook. Westbrook had a quadruple-double. He scored 27 to go along with 13 assists, 15 rebounds, and 10 turnovers. Victor Oladipo had 20, and Enes Kanter picked up 22 coming off the bench.

The Warriors outrebounded the Thunder 46-36. The Dubs recorded another game with over 30 assists. They had 35 assists on 48 field goals. They were great on defense as they had 8 blocks and ten steals.They outscored the Thunder 56-48 in points in the paint, and they had 29 fast break points compared to 19 for the Thunder. The one negative was turnovers. The Warriors committed 18 turnovers, and that cost them 29 points. They made 11 turnovers in the first half but had better ball control in the second as they were able to pull away and record the win.

The Warriors start a four-game road trip Friday Night in Houston. Game time is at 5 pm. The Rockets beat the Warriors in double overtime earlier in the season at Oracle Arena. The Rockets are 33-12, and Jame Harden’s play has him in the running for the NBA’s MVP.The Warriors then go to Orlando, Miami, and Charlotte before returning home to face the LA Clippers on January 28th.

 

 

That’s Amaury’s Podcast, News, & Commentary: Warriors run away with huge win from LeBron and Cavs, World Baseball Classic; Matt Williams to be inducted into the Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame

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Topps Baseball card photo: Former San Francisco Giant third baseman Matt Williams will be honored into the Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame

On the podcast with Amaury:

The Warriors won in a wipeout over the Cleveland Cavaliers 126-91 on Monday at Oracle Arena in Oakland. Was this game a matter of the Cavs taking the night off? Too many injuries? The Warriors double teaming LeBron? One thing for sure the W’s had Stephen Curry going with the hot hand who ended up scoring 35 points which made a lot up for the difference.

Our international baseball correspondent Lewis Rubman is covering the 2017 World Baseball Classic and Amaury goes over what impresses the most about this international tournament of MLB stars.

Former San Francisco Giant third baseman Matt Williams will be returning to the Bay Area to be honored at the Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame. Williams who also played for the Arizona Diamondbacks then later managed for the Diamondbacks and announced for them and then managed for the Washington Nationals will be remembered for his slugging ability on the 1987 Giants team that won the west that year.

Plus more commentary with Amaury just listen to the podcast below at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Sacramento Kings podcast with Charlie O: Kings are only a half game out in ninth spot from a playoff position

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Sacramento Kings forward Rudy Gay, right, hangs on the rim after stuffing over Oklahoma City Thunder forward Andre Roberson during the second half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, Jan. 15, 2017, in Sacramento, Calif. The Thunder won 122-118. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)

It’s very interesting right now as the Sacramento Kings have a record of 16-24 normally you would look at that and say 16-24 in the Western Conference their out of it. Dump players that you could dump, move on and write the season off. The situation this year especially for that number eight spot in the playoffs is very much like it would be in the eastern conference. Right now the Kings are in the tenth spot in the Western Conference.

The Kings are 18.5 games behind Golden State now you say “Wow” but that’s a whole different story the fact is the Kings are only a half game out of the number eight spot which would put them in the playoffs behind Denver and Portland who are tied right now with 18 games back of Golden State. The Kings are only a half game out from making the playoffs right now even though things have going horribly their 2-5 for the month thus far.

Charlie O has it all complete Kings coverage on this week’s podcast at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

The Warriors blow out the Cavs, send them down to defeat

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by Jerry Feitelberg

The Golden State Warriors, having lost their last four games against the Cleveland Cavaliers, were on a mission  Monday night at Oracle Arena. The Warriors still smarting from losing the NBA Finals to the Cavs last year and a one-point loss on Christmas Day in Cleveland sent a message to the Cavs by beating them by 35 points. The final score was 126-91. The Warriors Big Four played extremely well. The Warriors excelled on offense as they shot 50.5% from the floor. They made fifteen three-point shots. The Cavs had a miserable night as the best they could do was shoot just 35% from the floor. The Warriors had more rebounds 58-35, assists 37-11, steals 10-7 and blocked shots 11-4.The Warriors scored 37 fast break points and had 46 points in the paint.

The Warriors started fast. They had an early 9-2 lead. Cleveland trailed by four 18-14, but that was as close as they would get. The Warriors poured in on as they led 37-22 at the end of the quarter. They then scored 41 points in the second quarter and held the Cavs to 27. They led 78-49 at the end of the half. The 78 points were the most the Dubs scored in a half this season. The onslaught was led by Kevin Durant, Steph Curry, Andre Iguodala and Klay Thompson.

In the third quarter, the Warriors did not play well. The Cavaliers held the Dubs to just 17 while they scored 22. Cleveland held the Dubs without a field goal in the last 5 minutes of play in the period. The Cavs went on a 13-1 run to end the quarter. The Dubs were ice cold as they missed 12 shots in a row.The Warriors still led by 24 but the fans were getting nervous as they remembered the Cavalier comeback on Christmas day. The Warriors, behind Klay Thompson’s fantastic performance in the quarter, upped the lead to 38 with 4:41 left in the game. Coach Steve Kerr pulled his starters, and the bench finished the game.

Game Notes and Stats. Steph Curry had a double-double in the game. Steph scored 20 points and had 11 assists and 2 rebounds. Draymond Green notched his third triple-double of the season. Green was all over the court. He had 11 points,11 assists,13 rebounds and 5 blocked shots. Zaza Pachulia tied Draymond with 13 rebounds. The fans loved his play as they gave him a standing ovation when he left the game in the fourth quarter. Kevin Durant pitched in with 21 points, 5 assists, 6 boards, and 2 blocked shots. Andre Iguodala continued to play well. Iguodala had a slow start earlier in the season, but his production has gone up lately. Klay Thompson led the Dubs with 26. Klay had 18 in the second half and many of them came in the fourth quarter.  Andre knocked down 14, had 5 assists, 3 rebounds, and one blocked shot. Shaun Livingstone, David West, and JaVale McGee all were productive off the bench.

The Warriors held LeBron James to just 20 points. Kevin Love was not a factor as he scored just 3. Kyrie Irving had 17, Tristan Thompson,6,  and Imam Shumpert 15. Kyle Korver, who the Cavs obtained from Atlanta for his 3-point shooting, was held to 11. Richard Jefferson scored twenty, but most of his points came in garbage time.

The Warriors record improved to 35-6 while Cleveland dropped to 29-11. The Warriors face the Oklahoma City Thunder Wednesday night at Oracle Arena. Game time is at 7:30 pm. They then travel to Houston to face the Rockets Friday night.

Kings battle hard again but come up short against the Thunder 122-118

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment
okc-west
Westbrook en route to 20th triple-double Photo: Kelley L Cox USA Today Sports

by Charlie O. Mallonee

Sacramento — Stop me if you have heard this before. “Tough night. Tough game to watch. The guys (Kings) are playing as hard as they can,” Sacramento head coach Dave Joerger after watching his team lose to the Oklahoma City Thunder 122-118. The Kings actually cut the Thunder lead to just two points with 11-seconds to go in the game, but there was not enough time left to finish the potential comeback.

The Kings were down by 12 points with 2-minutes remaining in the game and it felt like things were over at that point. Three 3-point baskets by Tolliver, Collison and Gay along with three Oklahoma City turnovers allowed Sacramento to work their way back into the game. Literally, the Kings waited 60-seconds to long to start their comeback and have enough time to finish it with a positive outcome.

The Kings are playing hard. They are not giving up. They just do not have enough “____________” (fill in the blank with your own opinion because there are so many and no one idea seems to be the right one at this moment). There can be no doubt that something is missing. Be assured the Kings want to fix it. At this point, it must not be that easy to fix or the organization would do it immediately.

No team wants to be in playoff contention – and the Kings are still in ninth place one-game back of Portland even after this loss – with a record of 1-5 on a seven-game homestand. The Kings management, coaching staff and players want to fix whatever is wrong. At this point, they just have not been able to do so successfully.

What will the Kings do next? They have a multitude of options so predicting the next move is very difficult despite whatever anyone is saying. The one thing that is known at this point is the Kings want that eighth spot in the Western Conference Playoffs.

Oklahoma City Thunder v Sacramento Kings
Dave Joerger draws up a play for the Kings versus the Thunder Photo: NBAE

It was a long game on Sunday night

Early in his postgame comments, Kings head coach Dave Joerger talked about what a long game it was on Sunday night. In fact, Joerger said it felt like game went on for hours.

  • There were 57 personal fouls committed by both teams
  • A total of 81 free throws were attempted
  • Four technical fouls were assessed

Add in timeouts, arguments by coaches and players plus video reviews and it was a long night for everyone

Stars of the game

Oklahoma City Thunder v Sacramento Kings
Cousins goes to the basket against the Thunder Photo: NBAE
  • Russell Westbrook – it did not look like the triple-double machine would pull off another impressive stat night early in the game. The OKC star guard had just 11 points, four rebounds and six assists at the half. By the time game ended, Westbrook had posted his 20th triple-double of the season by scoring 36 points, grabbing 11 rebounds and dishing out 10 assists. The man is truly a phenomena.
  • DeMarcus Cousins – the Kings center had a big night as he scored 31 points for his team and made it a double-double game by hauling in 11 rebounds (6 offensive). He also had seven assists. It was not a great shooting night as he went 8-for-20 from the floor but Cousins made up for it from the free throw line by hitting 14-of-17 from the stripe.

Co-stars

  • Darren Collison – the point guard had just two points in the first half of the game and finished the game with 21 points. He shot 7-for-9 from the floor including going 2-for-3 from 3-point range. Collison also took advantage of the charity stripe going 5-for-6 from the free throw line. He also posted two assists and two steals.
  • Enes Kanter – he is an easy selection for the Thunder. When Steven Adams went down due to injury, Kanter picked up the slack. Kanter scored a season-high 29 against the Kings hitting 10-of-18 shots. He also recorded a double-double by pulling down 12 rebounds.

Other featured players

Oklahoma City Thunder v Sacramento Kings
Rudy Gay brings the ball up the floor versus the Thunder Photo: NBAE
  • Kings – Rudy Gay 21 points and 10 rebounds, Anthony Tolliver 10 points, Garrett Temple 8, Matt Barnes 7 points and 8 rebounds, Arron Afflalo 7 points
  • Thunder – Victor Oladipo 23 points shooting 7-for-14, Alex Abrines 13 points and Steven Adams 6 points and 4 rebounds in just 19-minutes before being injured

Spotlight on stats

  • Points in the Paint: Thunder 56 Kings 46
  • 2nd chance points: Kings 17 Thunder 14
  • Fast break points: Thunder 25 Kings 9
  • Turnovers: Kings 22 (23 pts for OKC) Thunder 19 (28 pts for SAC)
  • Rebounds: Kings 44 (14 offensive) Thunder 44 (17 offensive)

Injury update

  • Steven Adams, OKC Thunder – Adams went down after battling for a rebound at the 10:48 mark of the third quarter. He left the court and did not return to the game. Adams hit his head on the floor and was experiencing concussion-like symptoms. He will be evaluated on Monday to determine if he must enter the NBA concussion protocol program.

Up next on the schedule

Kings – Sacramento closes out the seven-game homestand versus the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday night at the Golden 1 Center. Sacramento is just 1-5 on the current homestand and would like to close it out on a positive note before heading out on a brutal road trip. The Kings will play eight games over 13 days on the road and will not be back in Sacramento until February.

Thunder – Oklahoma City has the second game of a back-to-back set on Monday night in Los Angeles against the Clippers. The Thunder will then head back to the Bay Area on Wednesday night to take on Kevin Durant and the Golden State Warriors in a nationally televised game.

Kings play the Cavs tough but come up short 120-108

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment
Cleveland Cavaliers v Sacramento Kings
Kings Ty Lawson scored 17 points against the Cavaliers Photo: NBAE

by Charlie O. Mallonee

Sacramento — The Kings had the unenviable task of taking on LeBron James and the defending NBA Champion Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday night on their homecourt. The Cavs came into the game losers of two consecutive games and they were not looking to make it a three game losing streak. Cleveland did win the game 120-108 but after making look like they would just runaway with it in the first half, the Cavs found out the Kings have some fight in them this season as they made a battle of it in the second half.

The Kings (16-23) ran into trouble early as DeMarcus Cousins picked up two personal fouls in the first quarter and had to go to the bench with 4:18 remaining the period . The Cavaliers took advantage of the Kings big man being off the floor and ripped off 10 quick points to take a 32-15 lead into the second quarter.

In the second quarter, Kings head coach Dave Joerger took a big chance when he returned Cousins to the floor with 9:52 remaining because the Cavaliers were threatening to run away with the game. The move had the desired affect as Cleveland outscored the Kings just 29-28 in the period behind Cousins’ 11 points. Even more importantly, the Kings center did not pick up another foul in the quarter. At the half, Cleveland led Sacramento 61-43 but there appeared to be a pivot in the game. Frankly, the Cavs seemed to lose focus and possibly interest in the game late in the second quarter.

Cleveland Cavaliers v Sacramento Kings
Cousins had a big night versus Cleveland despite early foul trouble Photo: NBAE

After halftime, the Kings picked up where they left off in the first half. In the third quarter, it was Rudy Gay who picked up the offense scoring 11 points (4-for-6 shooting, 1 3-pointer, 2-of-3 free throws). Cousins had only three points in the quarter but had four assists as the team ran the ball through him on the high-post. Sacramento outscored the Cavaliers 31-23 in the third. The Kings shot 70.6-percent (12-for-17) from the field and hit 4-of-5 (80-percent) 3-pointers in the period. After three quarters, the Cavaliers led the Kings 84-74.

What the Kings needed in the fourth quarter was a run of 10 to 12 unanswered points. It looked like that was going to happen early in the quarter when Sacramento went on a 6-0 run and cut the Cleveland (29-10) lead to just six points. But, that was as close as the Kings would come to regaining the lead. Ty Lawson scored 13 in period for the Kings while Kyle Korver led the Cavs with eight points. When the final buzzer sounded, the Cavaliers had won the game 120-108.

The Kings Dave Joerger was a proud coach

“Good game – proud of our guys. We got off to a slow start. We didn’t make a lot of shots in the first half and we turned the basketball over 14 times, so they were able to get out and run. I had them for 24 fast break points in the first half. They ended up with 24. We cut it down in the second half a little bit. I’m happy about how we battled. We got three stops in a row 11 times which we haven’t done for a long time. And, we fought like crazy. They’re a good team. They present a plethora of problems to solve and that was a good experience for our guys and I was happy that we kept battling.

Stars of the game

  • Kings – While there were others with bigger numbers, no player had any more important stats than guard Ty Lawson. Lawson scored 17 points in the game and shot an impressive 7-for-10 from the floor. But what was really impressive about his scoring was that 13 of those 17 points were scored in the fourth quarter. Lawson shot 5-for-6 in final period. He played like a man possessed. A man who wanted to win the game.
  • Cavaliers – Again there were other players with larger numbers but Kyle Korver and his 18 points really stood out in the game. Korver was playing in just his third game for Cleveland since being traded from Atlanta. He had not even been able to have a full practice with the team before beginning to play for them. Kover did have the opportunity to participate in a shootaround on Friday morning and it looked like it paid off. Korver shot 7-for-10 from the field while hitting 4-of-6 from “downtown”. He also recorded five rebounds (1 offensive), two assists and two steals in the game.
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Kyle Korver had his best game for his new team in Sacramento on Friday night Photo: NBAE

Co-stars

  • Kings – DeMarcus Cousins posted maybe his most impressive double-double of the season. The big man scored 26 points and dished out 11 assists. The Kings made a nice adjustment against the Cleveland defense and started running the ball through Cousins on the high-post. When his teammates were moving to open space, Cousins was finding them and setting them up to score. Former Kings head coach George Karl who we know was not a big Cousins fan on many levels, called the center the best passer on the Kings multiple times last season. It seems Karl got at least one thing right.
  • Cavaliers – Iman Shumpert finished the game with 16 points for Cleveland, but he did his real damage in the first quarter. The talented guard went a perfect 3-for-3 (all 3-pointers) from the floor in the opening period. Those nine points helped to propel the Cavs out to a 32-15 lead that ultimately the Kings would never be able to overcome in the game.
cavs-shumpert
Iman Shumpert’s first quarter scoring influenced the entire game for Cleveland Photo: NBAE

Other key players

  • Kings – Rudy Gay 23 points and 10 rebounds (5 offensive); Darren Collison 13 points and four assists; Matt Barnes eight points and five rebounds in 17-minutes on the floor (his coach said in retrospect he should have probably played Barnes more).
  • Cavaliers – Kyrie Irving 26 points (10-for-22 shooting); LeBron James 16 points and 15 assists ( how’s that for a double-double?); Kevin Love 15 points and 18 rebounds.

The numbers game

  • Both teams shot over 50-percent from the floor: Cleveland 50.6-percent (44-for-87) Sacramento 52.5-percent (42-for-80)
  • There were 24 3-point baskets made in the game. The Kings shot a very nice 9-for-25 (36-percent) from beyond the arc. The Cavs made it rain as they hit 15-of-37 (40.5-percent) from downtown as teams continue to burn the Kings from beyond the 3-point line
  • The Kings out-rebounded the Cavaliers 42-39. They also were slightly better on the offensive glass grabbing 11 to the Cavs 10
  • Turnovers were a big problem for Sacramento in the first half as they committed 14 of their 21 miscues in the first 24 minutes. The Kings turned the ball over 21 times which resulted in 26 points for the Cavaliers. Cleveland took better care of the ball turning itover just 12 times but the TOVs did turn into 20 points for Sacramento.

Up next on the schedule

The Kings will be back on the floor on Sunday when they host Russell Westbrook and the Oklahoma City Thunder at the Golden 1 Center. The Kings beat the Thunder in Sacramento back in November 116-101 behind a 36 point effort from DeMarcus Cousins. Westbrook scored 31 for the Thunder in that contest. The game on Sunday night tips off at 6 p.m.

The Cavaliers are off until Monday when they will play their archrivals the Golden State Warriors in Oakland in a nationally televised game.

The Warriors send the Pistons down to defeat 127-107

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by Jerry Feitelberg

The Golden State Warriors, after a very close first half, outscored the Detroit Pistons 41-19 in the third quarter to defeat the Pistons 127-107. The Warriors and Pistons played a very highly contested first half that was featured by 21 lead changes. The Dubs finished the first half leading 60-58

The third quarter belonged to the Warriors. They scored 41 points to put the game out of reach. The Warriors Big Three, Kevin Durant, Steph Curry, and Klay Thompson all scored more than 20 points in a game for the 13th time this season, and they have won all the games when that happens. With the win, the Dubs improve to 34-6 while Detroit drops to 18-23.

Game Notes and Stats- The Warriors shot 56.2% from the floor and made 15 3-point shots in 29 tries. They had good ball movement as they recorded 39 assists. It was the 27th game this season that they have scored 30 or more assists in a game. They continued to play defense, They had 14 steals and 4 blocks in the game. They outran the Pistons as they outscored the Detroiters 29-2 on fast break points. Kevin Durant scored 25, Steph Curry 24, and Klay Thompson 23. Detroit had 5 players in double points. Marcus Morris 21, Tobias Harris 18, Andre Drummond 12, Reggie Jackson,14 and the 7 foot 3 inch Boban Marjonavic had 13.

The Warriors are off until Monday. The face the Cleveland Cavaliers at Oracle Arena. Game time is at 5 pm.

Sacramento Kings Tuesday game wrap: Bench sparks Kings’ win 100-94

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Sacramento Kings center DeMarcus Cousins (15) drives to the basket around Detroit Pistons defender Tobias Harris (34) during the second half of an NBA basketball game in Sacramento, Calif., Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2017. The Kings won 100-94. (AP Photo/Steve Yeater)

By Jeremy Harness

SACRAMENTO – A severe rainstorm tore through Northern California Tuesday night, causing flooding in several areas and treacherous driving conditions everywhere.

The Kings had to endure a storm of their own early on that night, as missed opportunities and careless turnovers caused them to fall behind the Detroit Pistons for the majority of the game.

It wasn’t until key reserves and role players, such as Ty Lawson and Kosta Koufos, stepped up in the fourth quarter and propelled Sacramento in the final minutes, surging past the Pistons, 100-94, at Golden 1 Center.

“We can’t keep putting ourselves in these situations where we have to make these dramatic finishes in the end,” DeMarcus Cousins said. “We’ve just got to put a full game together.

“We’re going to continue to work on it, but we’ve got to (come up with) a solution quicker than we’ve been doing right now. We have to realize the constant mistakes that we’re making on a nightly basis.”

After a series of dispiriting wins early on in this current homestand, this win was equally gratifying due to the fact that the Kings (16-22) found themselves behind early but found a way to come back and win a game that they did not appear to have any business winning, particularly after turning the ball over 10 times in the first half alone.

A few things happened to turn things around for Sacramento. First off, the Kings did a much better job of holding on to the ball, as they committed only six turnovers in the second half while forcing Detroit into six of their own.

“There were fundamental, I-can’t-believe-I-just-did-that turnovers,” Kings coach Dave Joerger said. “I think we had three turnovers in the first half in the backcourt, which is very uncharacteristic. (To turn things around,) you just try and refocus.”

They also maintained their edge on the boards, as they outrebounded the Pistons 46-35 as well as grabbing four more offensive rebounds.

One more key was that it wasn’t all about DeMarcus Cousins, either. Cousins did have 24 points on 8-of-14 shooting to go along with 13 rebounds and six assists, a far cry from the nightmare outing he endured Sunday night against the Warriors.

But he got some help, particularly in a fourth quarter that saw the Kings claw their way from an 18-point deficit, a big portion of that coming with Cousins resting on the bench. Koufos, a one-time starter but has been relegated to a reserve role these days, especially sprung to life with 10 fourth-quarter points, finishing strong at the rim and also finishing with eight rebounds.

Although the stats don’t begin to tell the story for Lawson – eight points on 2-of-9 shooting and two assists against four turnovers – he settled down in the fourth quarter and put pressure on the Pistons with his penetration to the basket and presence on the defensive end, particularly when forcing Detroit guard Reggie Jackson to fumble the ball out of bounds midway through the quarter to keep the Kings’ surge going.

After sitting the first half of the fourth, Cousins re-entered the game with 6:39 remaining and Sacramento trailing by six, and the Kings only increased their momentum.

After a pair of Rudy Gay free throws, the Kings tied the game at 89-89 with just more than three minutes to go.

The Kings took their first lead since the first quarter when Garrett Temple, who has pushed his way into the starting lineup with his consistent play, sank a 3-pointer to put Sacramento ahead, 95-92, with 1:50 left.

However, Jackson came right back down and had a chance for a three-point play to tie the game. But Jackson missed the ensuing free throw, and Cousins quickly answered by draining a three to give Sacramento a 98-94 lead, a lead that they would not relinquish.