Category: NBA

Kings clip Hawks wings to win fourth straight

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by Michael Martinez

Photo by Steve Yeater/ AP Photo

SACRAMENTO – No Rudy Gay tonight, no problem. The Kings found a way to close out a game, even though they were up by 17 at one point. The team played well together, at least the starters did. The team shot poorly, but showed toughness and tenacity. With a half game lead over the Utah Jazz, the Kings looked to win a fourth straight over the Atlanta Hawks at Sleep Train Arena.

The first quarter was a back and forth contest but once again the Kings dominated the paint, helping them maintain a lead for most of the quarter. DeMarcus Cousins got off to a great start as he totaled 11 points and crashed the glass hard with eight rebounds. The Kings passed the ball well throughout the quarter by using the extra pass to find the best shot. Every starter scored in the quarter.

The Kings finished the quarter with nine assists, five of those assists coming from the smooth hands of Rajon Rondo. The team played much better defense as well causing four turnovers, but left Kyle Korver open on a couple occasions for two three point field goals. Willie Cauley-Stein’s presence was felt as he limited Paul Millsap to two points. Cauley-Stein’s tremendous athleticism has improved the team’s overall defense quite a bit. Sacramento totaled 16 boards to Atlanta’s six and finished the quarter ahead of the Hawks, 27-20.

In the second quarter, the Kings struggled mightily, shooting the ball at 30.4% and got off to a slow start. Luckily, the Hawks did not shoot that well either as both teams had very little offense. Cauley-Stein scored six in the quarter and finished with eight points in the quarter adding seven rebounds. Cousins finished the quarter with a double double, 13 points and 10 boards.

The Kings offense was disappointing in the quarter due to little ball movement. After doing a great job in the first, the ball stopped moving and the Kings players seemed to play a little too much one on one. As the Kings hit the glass hard, their dominance on the boards gave them nine second chance points in the first half. Boogie had a game high of 13 points in the half but nine turnovers helped the Hawks cut down the Kings lead to 3 at the half. Heading into the locker room, Sacramento led Atlanta 47-44. Millsap had a team high for the Hawks with nine points.

Out of the break, the Kings struck first but the Hawks answered quickly going up 50-49. The Kings then got some fire under their belts, going on a 18-0 run. The run started with a free throw by Boogie to tie up the game and the team kept going from there. Sacramento ran the court extremely well with nine fast break points.

The crowd went nuts when Ben McLemore hit a three pointer and took a bump, completing a four point play and putting up a 9-0 run. Casspi then hit a three pointer, followed by a Rondo lay up. The Hawks tried to end the run when Dennis Schröder had a fast break lay up, but DMC blocked him. The run was capped off with an awesome alley-oop pass from Rondo to McLemore that caused a thunderous roar throughout the arena.

The Hawks called a timeout and the Kings momentum dwindled. The Hawks ended the quarter on a 13-5 run after the time out, giving the Kings a 72-63 lead. The Kings ball movement was once again terrific, totaling seven team assists. Both teams still did not shoot well, the Hawks shot a miserable 35% in the quarter and the Kings defense helped them break out. The team caused seven turnovers for 14 of their 25 quarter points.

Up by nine to start the fourth quarter, the Kings needed a gritty, gutsy performance to hold on to the eight seed in the Western Conference. Sacramento did show guts, but the second unit allowed the Hawks to hang around and make the game really close. The second unit had little ball movement and the team shot an awful 25% for the quarter. The Hawks were able to kick off the quarter with a 10-2 run and Cousins stopped the bleeding with a lay up.

As the quarter moved along, Kent Bazemore tied the game up at 80 with a little under six minutes remaining, but Omri Casspi answered with a three pointer. The Kings ball movement faded once again. Korver hit a three pointer to take the lead down to 1, 86-85. With 41.3 seconds remaining, Cauley-Stein was fouled and made two big free throws to go up 88-85.

“Y’all’s guess is as good [as] mine” Cauley-Stein said when asked about the last time he made back to back free throws.

After the free throws, the Hawks got down the court and Schröder made a big shot beyond the arc to tie the game up at 88 with 28.5 seconds left. The Kings took a time out and it appeared that Coach George Karl drew up the perfect play. Rondo pushed the ball inside to Cous, who dumped it off and set a pick to give Rondo a wide open lay up for a 90-88 lead with 12.9 seconds to go. Out of Atlanta’s time out, Millsap lost the ball straight into Casspi’s hands who called a time out with 3.3 left.

Darren Collison got the ball in the back court from Rondo and was fouled with 1.9 left. Collison missed the first free throw, but made the second. Atlanta took another time out and on the in bound pass it appeared Cauley-Stein tipped the ball to cause another turn over to end the game. Cauley-Stein’s length and defense helped end the game and all those turn overs caught up to the Hawks. The Kings won, 91-88, and heard loud cheers from the fans who brought a lot of enthusiasm and energy. The crowd played a huge role in helping the Kings pull through and close out an important game.

19 turnovers and a 35.4 shooting percentage should have resulted in a loss for the Kings, but they showed heart and found a way to pull through. Cauley-Stein finished with his second consecutive and career double double, 12 points and 11 boards. Cousins totaled 24 points and 15 rebounds for a ninth game in a row.

“Just playing hard,” Cauley-Stein said when asked about his second double double.

WCS also preached about playing for his teammates giving him the motivation to play at such a high level and with such intensity.

Rondo notched his fifth triple double on the season with 11 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds. Rondo tied Chris Webber for the most triple doubles in a season by a Kings player in the Sacramento era and we are not even at the All Star break.

“Man, he got the triple double because of me,” Cousins said with a laugh.

“The impact he has on games is incredible, I’m glad I can go to war with him” Boogie said.

Without one of their big three, Rondo and Cousins pulled out all the stops and meshed well together. Cauley-Stein was also a huge factor and McLemore stepped up to finish with 14 points. The Kings hit the glass hard and played big over a small Atlanta team with 56 rebounds to Atlanta’s 42. The Hawks only led by two at the beginning of the game and Sacramento proved why they deserve to be in the playoff hunt. The Kings now hold a game lead over the Jazz for the eighth seed and are two back of the Houston Rockets for the seventh spot.

This Saturday, the Kings will take on the Indiana Pacers and All Star starter Paul George at home to go for a fifth straight win.

Golden State Warriors podcast with David Zizmor: After Detroit did W’s get good and mad; Kerr travels with club but is he ready to come back?

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On the Warriors podcast the Warriors after loosing to Detroit last week picked up wins in Cleveland and Chicago. Was it a matter of the W’s being a tired ball club in Detroit and just keying in against the Cavs and the Bulls or did the Warriors just get outright mad and demolished Chicago and Cleveland after losing in Detroit.

Warriors head coach Steve Kerr has been traveling with the Warriors. He does get light headed when he sits down. How important is it to have Kerr on this current road trip and how concerned are the team about Kerr’s health?

Dave’s got it all take a listen to the Warriors podcast below at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

Kings pull away from Lakers behind Cousins’ 36

Published on by Eric HeLeave a comment

By: Eric He

LOS ANGELES–DeMarcus Cousins scored 36 points as the Sacramento Kings pulled away from the Lakers 112-93 at Staples Center on Wednesday night.

Up 86-77 heading into the fourth quarter, the Kings put the game away in the fourth. After Lakers cut the deficit to just four, the Kings responded with a 13-0 run to take a 104-87 advantage midway through the quarter. Cousins scored six quick points during that spurt, including a jump shot to give the Kings the 17-point lead.

Despite the big win, the Kings only led by five at halftime at 57-52 in game that the Lakers kept close until the final stanza. Brandon Bass and 18 points off the bench to lead the Lakers in scoring, while Kobe Bryant and Lou Williams had 15 points each.

Sacramento led 28-18 after the first quarter. Cousins was joined by four other Kings in double figures, while Omri Casspi had nine points.

Winners of three in a throw, the Kings sit at 18-23 and tenth in the Western Conference. They will face the Hawks at home on Thursday.

 

Warriors Stay Dominant, Down Bulls 125-94

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By Shawn Whelchel

CHICAGO–The Warriors continued their domination of the Eastern Conference’s best teams, as Golden State followed up Monday’s impressive victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers with a blowout 125-94 victory against the Chicago Bulls at the United Center on Wednesday.

By the conclusion of the first quarter, Golden State’s lead would never drop beneath a double-digit advantage, as a strong night from the Splash Brothers helped to keep a comfortable lead. But Curry- who had 25 points, 11 assists and seven rebounds- and Thompson weren’t alone in their aptitude for scoring. Harrison Barnes followed close behind with 19 points of his own, while the bench scored an additional 49 points for Golden State, led by Leandro Barbosa and Marreese Speights with 12 points each.

Meanwhile, the Bulls couldn’t buy a bucket on their home court, as they finished the game with a dismal 37-percent shooting from the field. Compounding this was an atrocious 1-for-20 shooting from beyond the arc, as the team sunk their chances of staying competitive by their reliance on the long-ball. Some of Chicago’s poor shooting could be attributed to solid Golden State defense, while other open shots just refused to fall for the Bulls on a night in which they suffered their worst loss of the season at 31-points.

What offense Chicago could muster came from stars Derrick Rose-who finished with a game high 29 points but only two assists from the point guard position- and Jimmy Butler, who added 23 of his own points. Chicago’s starting unit would go on to score just seven points on 3-of-22 points, with center Pau Gasol putting up a donut in eight attempts due to solid defense from Andrew Bogut.

The lopsided scoring totals were indicative of what ultimately sunk Chicago’s efforts. While Rose and Butler may have got their points, the contest looked hardly like a team effort from Chicago’s standpoint, as they notched just 14 assists throughout the game, as compared to Golden State’s 38.

The Warriors were also able to force Chicago to run their game, as they broke away for 21 fast-break points on the night as compared to Chicago’s eight.  The loss gave Chicago a three game losing streak at home, as well as leading them to drop the last five out of seven games.

Golden State will return home from their three game road trip to take on the Indiana Pacers on Friday at Oracle Arena.

49ers Sign CFL All-Star Rogers

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By: Joe Lami

SANTA CLARA, Calif.—On the day the 49ers introduced Chip Kelly as the new head coach, news came out that San Francisco made their first signing under his regime. Canadian Football League Wide Receiver, Eric Rogers was signed to a reported two-year deal on Wednesday afternoon.

The Calgary Stampeders standout from this past season reportedly worked out for the 49ers in December and for Kelly when he was still at Philadelphia. The 6-3 wide out led the league in receiving yards with 1,448 on 87 catches and ten touchdowns.

Rogers was a huge impact on the Stampeders 2014 Grey Cup victory, as he caught two touchdowns and tacked on 60 yards in the 2014 Western Conference Finals. Calgary was eliminated in the Western Conference Finals by the eventual Grey Cup Champion Edmonton Eskimos in 2015.

With it evident that Anquan Boldin’s tenure as a 49er is done, Rogers become a cheap replacement to fill the position and can pay off huge if he’s able to produce at the NFL level. He was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Dallas Cowboys in 2013 before being demoted to the Arena Football League. 

Sacramento Kings podcast with Charlie O: Kings need to start winning at home while road has less distractions

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by Charlie O Mallonee

photo credit: bigstory.ap.com Sacramento Kings Rudy Gay

SACRAMENTO–On the Kings podcast we talk about the Kings terrible loss at home and how they won two on the road. The Kings are more focused on the road with less distractions then when they are at home. How important is it to win on the road for the Kings as they play the Lakers at Staples on Wednesday night.

Also will the Kings deal Rudy Gay and why he’s on the trade block. Also a look into the Kings upcoming games.

That’s all happening here on the Sacramento Kings podcast with Charlie O at http://www.sportsradioservice.com listen to the podcast below

 

Sacramento Kings Saturday game recap: Kings Clip 10 game win streak of Clippers with 110-103 victory

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by Jessica Kwong

photo credit: LA Times–Sac Kings Rajon Rondo feeds pass while being defended by the LA Clips Chris Paul on Saturday at Staples Center

LOS ANGELES — The Sacramento Kings snapped the Los Angeles Clippers’ 10-game winning streak – the longest active in the NBA tied with the San Antonio Spurs – with a 110-103 victory Saturday night at Staples Center that they made look pretty easy.

“It’s a big win for us – they’ve been on a winning streak and are probably one of the top teams in the league right now. To come into their house and get a win like this is good for us,” said DeMarcus Cousins, who lead Sacramento in scoring with 19 points.

Kings coach George Karl noted that the Clippers were without their star forward Blake Griffin, out with a partially torn tendon in his left quadriceps, but still called his team’s win “one of the more satisfying” ones of the season.

The Clippers, who were also without DeAndre Jordan recovering from pneumonia, took an early lead, but the Kings overtook them and closed the half 64-60. Sacramento maintained a steady lead over Los Angeles and finished the third quarter up 82-79.

“We felt that we had the advantage going into the game, especially with their big men (Griffin and Jordan) out,” Kings guard Rajon Rondo said. “We wanted to take advantage of that and get the ball into the paint.”

The Kings led the Clippers by as many as 9 points in the fourth quarter, but Los Angeles rallied at the end of the fourth quarter, coming within 2 points when Cole Aldrich made a layup with 13.1 seconds remaining.

Darren Collison, fouled by J.J. Redick, made both at the free throw line to bump the Kings’ lead to 107-103. Rondo, fouled by Chris Paul who picked up his fifth personal, also made both.

“We knew J.J. and Chris Paul were their go-to guys and we let J.J. get loose, but I thought we did a pretty good job on Chris by getting him into foul trouble,” Rondo said.

Willie Cauley-Stein, fouled by Jamal Crawford, went one-for-two from the line to give Sacramento the 110-103 win.

Karl said his team “got big contributions in a balanced way” with six players in the double figures. Cousins passed the ball well and Ben McLemore had his moments offensively and defensively, the coach said.

“I thought we competed very physically and I just think it’s one of our better team wins and one of our better defensive wins of the year,” Karl said.

Nine victories of the Clippers’ 10-game winning streak came without Griffin, but nine of the games were also against teams below .500.

The Kings, who improved to 17-23, play their next game on Wednesday at Staples Center against the Los Angeles Lakers, who are 9-33 after Saturday night’s loss to the Utah Jazz.

 

    

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Warriors Start Road Trip Off With Sluggish Loss To Pistons.

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By Shawn Whelchel

AP photo: Golden State’s Klay Thompson couldn’t encourage the Warriors enough to get over the hump with the Pistons on Saturday night

The Golden State Warriors continued to look less and less like the once dominant offensive NBA team that they were at the beginning of the season, as a cold shooting night handed them their second loss in the last three games.

After posting an impressive 30-point first quarter, the Detroit Pistons defense hunkered down on the reigning NBA champions, holding them to just 95 total points on 38 percent shooting on the night, handing them just their fourth loss of the season in a 113-95 loss for the visitors.

The Warriors night was filled with unremarkable moments from the usually solid team. From anyone not named Steph Curry or Klay Thompson struggling to find the basket, to frustrations spilling over in the form of multiple technical fouls called on Golden State, Saturday night’s effort was a forgettable affair amidst a historic season.

Curry did his part to keep his team in the game, netting 38 points on 13-of-26 shooting from the field, including seven makes from beyond the arc. Thompson trailed behind him with 24 of his own points in 32 minutes.

But beyond the splash brothers, no other Golden State starter cracked double digits in points, with the rest of the starting squad-including a healthy Harrison Barnes- combining for just 16 points on the night. Curry and Thompson dominated the touches, taking 44 of the total 67 shots from the starting unit. Festus Ezeli saved a sluggish bench performance as well, being the only other Warrior aside from Curry and Thompson to score in double digits with 10 points.

Golden State lost in nearly every major statistical category, going on to yield less rebounds, steals, blocks, assists, points in the paint and giving up more turnovers than the Pistons did on the night, effectively sinking their chances to gain momentum at the start of their road trip.

Meanwhile, the normally solid Warriors defensive effort was just as absent as their scoring, with all five starters scoring in double-digits for Detroit. Reggie Jackson and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope led the Pistons with 20 points a piece. Aron Baynes had a solid night for Detroit down low, as the center put in 12 points on a perfect 6-of-6 shooting to lead the Pistons’ reserves.

The night was a tough start to a three-game road stretch for the Warriors. In a rematch of the NBA finals, the Warriors will have to defeat the Cleveland Cavaliers at Quicken Loans Arena on Monday in order to avoid their first two-game losing streak of the season. The team will then follow that up with a meeting with the 23-16 Chicago Bulls.

DMC and Gay lead Kings to victory, 103-101, over Jazz

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by Michael Martinez

Photo by Melissa Majchrzak/NBAE via Getty Image

SACRAMENTO- Heading into Thursday night’s game the Sacramento Kings were 2 games back behind their opponent, the Utah Jazz. Sacramento, 5-12 on the road, looked to come back from a bad loss the night before against the Pelicans. The Kings found a way to hold their opponent to a low shooting percentage, at least for three quarters, with tough perimeter defense while getting the ball inside to DeMarcus Cousins who had a tremendous game. The Kings shot the ball well and were able to just hold on to pick up the win against the Jazz, 103-101, at Vivint Smart Home Arena.

As the game got underway the Kings looked like the better team all the way. The team’s defense was tremendous and Utah could not make any shots. Willie Cauley-Stein got off to a great start putting up six quick points while playing tremendous defense. Cauley-Stein’s quickness as a big man has benefitted the Kings and his hustle does not go unnoticed.

Cousins did not do a ton of scoring in the first quarter, six points, but did a good job of moving the ball around for his teammates while picking up eight early rebounds. The Kings shot the ball well, while holding the Jazz to a 16.7% shooting percentage. The Kings did a great job of continuing their run as Utah went about eight minutes without a field goal. Gordon Hayward bricked a lot of shots and found a couple buckets at the charity stripe. Sacramento held the Jazz to 12 points, the lowest of any Kings’ opponent this season, giving them a 1st quarter lead 26-12.

The Jazz looked to have a better second quarter, but the Kings held them in check again. In full, Utah went nine minutes and 19 seconds without a field goal before Trevor Booker got a put back dunk for a field goal. After struggling all season with perimeter defense, the Kings were much improved in the first half, although there were a lot of fouls, 17 in the first two quarters for the Kings. The quarter consisted of a lot of free throws, 12-18 for Sacramento, and 9-13 for the Jazz.

Boogie came out stronger in the second quarter, totaling 18 points and 13 rebounds in the half, his sixth consecutive double-double. With DMC’s scoring ability the Kings were able to hang on to the lead although the Jazz outscored them 33-30 after shooting the ball much better. Trey Lyles and Raul Neto totaled 10 points for a team high as the Kings held the lead 56-45 heading into the locker room on 54.3% shooting. Utah shot 1/16 from 3 point range, much improved for Sacramento’s perimeter defense. The Kings scored a field goal with 1.6 seconds on the clock as Rajon Rondo passed the ball all the way up court to Darren Collison who missed the lay-up but Boogie cleaned it up with a dunk as the red lights lit up the backboard.

After the half time break, Hayward finally made a field goal after going 0-9. Cousins answered right back with his tremendous scoring ability. Rondo kept showing off his vision and passing ability with a pass on a very tight window to Rudy Gay for an alley-oop. Cousins continued his scoring ability with his first three pointer in the ball game in the third quarter. And Rondo once again got Gay the ball for another alley-oop later in the quarter. Both teams shot well and both Gay and Cousins showed off their scoring abilities. Gay scored eight in the quarter while Cousins scored 10, both shooting 3-5 from the field. The Kings got to the line 10 times and converted eight free throws. Hayward had a much better quarter, scoring nine points on 3-6 shooting.

Cousins produced the game high in three quarters with 28 points and Gay had 16 for the second highest point total. The Kings shot the ball well once again with a 54% percentage through three quarters, which is something they have done well all season. Through three quarters the Kings totaled 42 points in the paint and got the ball inside to Boogie a lot. Boogie has scored 15.7 points in the paint per game in the month of January as the Kings continue to dominate their opponents close to the rim. Their dominance allowed them to hang on to the lead although Hayward hit a buzzer beater heading into the fourth. Sacramento led the Jazz 82-71 with 12 minutes remaining.

To open up the final quarter, Omri Casspi knocked down a three pointer, something he has done well all season. Down 85-71 the Jazz found a rhythm and went on a 9-0 run in a minute and 50 seconds. The run consisted of a Casspi foul and technical, which gave Utah three easy points as Trey Burke connected on the free throw. Cauley-Stein stopped the bleeding with a put back dunk, but Utah kept hanging around. Gay struggled from three but Cousins was able to hit a big 3 pointer of his own to put the Kings back up by 10. Utah maintained a way to stick around with the Kings who could not find a way to put the Jazz out.

With two minutes and 55 seconds left the Kings held a six point lead over the Jazz and Cauley-Stein helped maintain that lead with a big rejection, showing off his athletic ability. But Gay fouled Rodney Hood behind the arc, which led to three shots from the charity stripe. Hood connected on all three cutting the lead to five. The Kings started to struggle and went three minutes and 16 seconds without a make but Cousins then proceeded to score. Rondo fouled Burke, which set up a three point play as the Jazz kept scrapping.

As time wound down, Hood hit a second chance three pointer to cut the lead to five one again. With 33 seconds left, Gay got to the foul line and made one of the two free throws. In just under four seconds, Hayward took the ball down the court, got fouled and made a circus shot to get the and one. Hayward made the bucket and forced the Kings to called a timeout, up 101-98 with 29.2 seconds remaining.

Out of the time out, Rondo took the shot and missed it, as the Jazz gained possession with 8.5 seconds remaining. Utah’s Joe Ingles took the three point shot and made it to tie the game at 101. Sacramento took a 20 second time out with 4.8 seconds remaining and drew up a play for Gay who scored well all night. Gay got the ball and hit a mid-range jumped that was good with 0.6 seconds left. Utah heaved up a miracle shot that had no chance and the Kings picked up a rare victory on back to back games especially on the road. The final score, 103-101, as the Kings just barely pulled out a W.

Amongst rumors of a proposed trade for Pelican’s forward, Ryan Anderson, Gay played an awesome game. Number eight finished the night with 24 points, 9-17 from the field, adding nine rebounds and three steals while knocking down the game winner.

DMC was once again unstoppable, finished with 36 points, 10-21 shooting, and adding 14 free throws on 21 attempts. Boogie also added 17 boards. Cousins has led the NBA in points in the month of January with 32.3 points per game. Cousins showed off his scoring ability once again with his inside dominance as Utah had no big man to cover him with Derrick Favors out. And Rondo continued to dish the ball out adding 13 assists, while adding 6 points and 6 rebounds.

Overall, Sacramento got careless with the ball, 16 turnovers but still shot well. Their defense looked good for three quarters but really let up towards the end although they were much improved. The team also dominated the rebounding category, 54-38. Cauley-Stein was a great spark for the Kings who looked better tonight as they continued to chase the Jazz for the eight seed.

On Saturday, the Kings will take on the Clippers in Los Angeles and will need Cousins to continue his hot start in the new year. The whole Kings crew is going to have to come together as the team is finally healthy and looks to beat a team in their conference and division. The Kings have struggled against really good teams so Saturday night will be a big test.

Golden State Warriors podcast with David Zizmor: With Green hurt Warriors now getting into the really physical part of the schedule

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by David Zizmor’

photo credit: abc7news.com Golden State’s Draymond Green  is currently sitting out and resting

OAKLAND–The Golden State Warriors loss on Wednesday night to the Denver Nuggets 112-110 was just one of those things it’s the tough part of the schedule. The W’s have a lot of road games between now and the end of February. It’s the really physical part of the schedule.

The Warriors are coming off a road game and are playing back to back with a game at the Oracle Arena on Thursday night against the Lakers. They’re tired just from the altitude in Denver alone and it’s really tough. Not having Draymond Green Wednesday night that was physical too.

The Warriors did a pretty good physical job on defense but the shots weren’t falling. That might be them just getting a little bit tired and a little worn down. It just seems a week or two their shots haven’t been falling quite as much as their offense has been lacking.

David gives you all the latest on the state of the Warriors this week listen to the podcast below at http://www.sportsradioservice.com