Category: NBA

Warriors second-half rally falls short lose to Nuggets 128-123

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Denver Nuggets guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, right, passes the ball while defended by Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green (23) in first half action at Chase Center in San Francisco on Fri Oct 21, 2022 (AP News photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Golden State Warriors hosted the Denver Nuggets at the Chase Center Friday night. The Warriors opened the season with a win of the Los Angeles Lakers on Wednesday night. Denver lost its opener against the Utah Jazz Wednesday night. The Warriors just couldn’t hold on Friday night and were defeated by the Nuggets 128-123.

The Nuggets’ coach, Mike Malone, wanted his team to get on track by beating the Warriors. With two-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic pacing the attack, the Nuggets had the firepower to upset the Warriors apple cart. The Warriors have one of the top defenses in the NBA.

Would they be able to stop the Nuggets’ firepower? The Nuggets answered the question in the first half of the game. After a high-scoring and hotly-contested first period, the Nuggets poured in 40 points in the first 12 minutes of the game to lead 40-34.

Denver led 30-29 when they went on a 10-5 run to finish the quarter leading by six. The Nuggets, not known for great defense, held the Warriors to 18 points in the second period to finish the first half leading 70-52.

Jokic paced the Nuggets attack with 14 points. Michael Porter, Jr. had 11. Stephen Curry had 13, and Andrew Wiggins ten for Golden State. The Warriors knew they had to catch fire in the second half if they were to get the win. They played hard. They won the second half 71-58 but could not catch Denver as they lost their first game of the season 128-123.

The game was decided in the second quarter. The Warriors second unit was not effective on defense, and the offense was nothing there. The Nuggets bottled up Jordan Poole. Poole scored two points in the first half. Warriors coach Steve Kerr could not insert Klay Thompson into the game as he is limited to about 20 minutes of playing time.

The other bench players added just 15 points. Denver’s bench tallied 26. Denver shot 59% from the floor and made eight threes in 14 tries. The Warriors shot 47% from the floor but made five threes in 22 attempts. 

The Warriors knew they would have to be at the top of their game in the third quarter. Denver increased the lead to twenty before the Warriors started their comeback. They clawed back to a seven-point deficit 86-79. The Warriors started making threes.

Klay Thompson made two, and Wiggins and Draymond Green each had one. Denver refused to wilt. They finished the third quarter leading 98-88. With the first unit on the floor, the Warriors made shots. Unfortunately for them, Denver made them, too.

Curry knocked down a three, and JaMychal Green followed with a two-point bucket to close within six points, 111-105, with more than four minutes left to play. Jokic kept attacking the Warrior defense.

The big guy made a bucket and was fouled. He converted the free throw, and Denver led 116-108. Curry answered with a three. Denver scored the next five points to lead by ten, 121-111. Curry hit another three, and Poole scored two to trail by five. Denver scored to lead 123-116. The Warriors trailed 124-121 after Draymond Green made a basket.

There was hope. Was there enough time? Poole made a huge play by stealing an inbound pass and scoring to bring the Warriors within a single point, 124-123. Denver went ahead 126-123 with 13 seconds left. Denver scored the last four points of the night to win 128-123. 

Game Notes and Stats: With the loss, the Warriors are 1-1. Denver is also 1-1. 

The Warriors won the second half 71-58. Their offense came alive, but Denver had just enough offense in the second half to get the win. 

The Warriors had five players in double figures Friday night. Curry led the team with 34. Curry made five three. Wiggins had 23, Thompson 16, Draymond Green 13, and James Wiseman 11. Poole was held to seven points. Poole did record seven assists. The team shot 47% from the floor. The Warriors made ten threes in 22 tries in the second half. They were 15 for 44 for the night. 

The Nuggets’ Nikola Jokic had a triple-trouble. Jokic had 26 points, 12 rebounds, and ten assists. Bruce Brown had 20, Kentavius Caldwell-Pope and Michael Porter, Jr. each had 17 points. Pope made three threes, and Porter connected five times. Bones Hyland had 14, Aaron Gordon ten, and Jeff Gordon ten.

The Warriors have 123 points in both games played so far. One game they one, one game they lost.

The Warriors host the Sacramento Kings Sunday night at the Chase Center. The game starts at 5:30 pm.

Sacramento Kings podcast with Jeremiah Salmonson: Not the way the Kings wanted to open the season

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First quarter action Portland Trailblazers guard Anfernee Simons (1) takes a shot over the Sacramento Kings Harrison Barnes (40) at the Golden One Center in Sacramento Wed Oct 19, 2022 (AP News photo)

On the Sacramento Kings podcast with Jeremiah:

#1 The Sacramento Kings who dropped their first game of 2022-23 to the Portland Trailblazers on Wednesday night at Golden One in Sacramento the Blazers Jerami Grant hit a three point with 50.4 seconds left in the game and Portland never looked back.

#2 Jeremiah, the loss spoiled Kings head coach Mike Brown’s debut 113-108 lots of planning went into this game and Brown really wanted to get a victory in his first Kings game and hopes Wednesday’s loss won’t set the tone.

#3 Grant led the Blazers with 23 points and he was followed Anfernee Simons added 22. Blazers star Damian Lillard scored 20 on his first game back since January from having an abdominal injury.

#4 The Kings had hired Brown with the hopes of ending their 16 year playoff drought. Brown is the second former assistant coach from the Golden State Warriors to become head coach with Luke Walton previously. Can Brown pull it off?

#5 The Los Angeles Clippers tip off with the Kings at Golden One this Sat Oct 22. The Clippers lost their first two games and the Kings are looking to win their first game of the season how do you see this match up with the Clippers and Kings.

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

Golden State Warriors podcast with Jerry Feitelberg: NBA superstars grab mic before games asking for Brittney Griner’s release

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WNBA/Phoenix Mercury Brittney Griner is lead by Moscow prison guards on Aug 4, 2022, NBA players Stephen Curry, Kyrie Irving, and Adonis Haslem all took the mic in their respective arenas pleading with the US Government to help step up and “release our sister” (AP photo file)

On the Warriors podcast with Jerry F:

#1 Jerry, the Golden State Warriors Stephen Curry Tuesday night stood in front of the Chase Arena crowd in San Francisco using his superstar status to reach out those who have the decision to make the release of WNBA/Phoenix Mercury star Brittney Griner possible.

#2 Griner who was sentenced in a Russian prison for nine years for having hashish oil in her suitcase as she tried to leave Moscow. Curry said that he wanted to use the platform to shout out to the basketball community about a very special member who should be released.

#3 Curry said it’s been long over due that Griner has been in prison now for over 243 days since she was wrongfully incarcerated and that everyone is doing their part to see that she gets home.

#4 Jerry, the Brooklyn Nets Kyrie Irving, the Miami Heat’s Udonis Haslem made a speeches pleading for the US President Joe Biden to work things out with the Russian government to “let our sister go free.”

#5 Jerry, the Warriors host the Denver Nuggets Fri Oct 21 for the Nuggets second game of the season at Chase Center a 7:00pm tip. The Warriors faced the Nuggets in their last pre season game which they lost 119-112. Then in the opener the Utah Jazz crushed the Nuggets on Wednesday night. How do you see this one Friday?

Join Jerry for the Warriors podcasts each Thursday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Last Two Minute Retort: Blazers surge late, beat Kings 115-108 on opening night

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By Morris Phillips

SACRAMENTO–The Kings came out flying, recovered at half, and appeared ready to close late when De’Aaron Fox forced Damian Lillard into a bad pass with the Kings leading 106-105 with 1:55 remaining.

Then disaster struck.

Consecutive turnovers by Fox and Domantas Sabonis, followed by Jerami Grant’s basket and ensuing, made free throw ceded momentum to the Blazers in their 115-108 win at Golden 1 Center.

In losing the Kings failed to retain the enthusiasm of a new season, a new coach and renewed hopes to end their playoff drought dating back to 2006. That left an unsatisfied coach Mike Brown.

“I know this group should play a lot better on both ends of the floor,” Brown said. “I know this group can play a whole heck of a lot better on both ends of the floor.”

Individually, the Kings were superior. Fox led the Kings with 33 points, and Kevin Huerter delivered 23 in his Sacramento debut. The starting guards combined for 11 made 3-pointers.

But the visitors countered with six, double-figure scorers that masked an off-night for Lillard, who missed 13 of his 18 shots. Defensively, the Blazers quickly adopted a different approach after Huerter and Fox came out hot.

“Going small and switching everything hurt their rhythm,” Portland coach Chauncey Billups said. “But I thought most of the night we did a pretty fair job defensively. They put a lot of pressure on you.”

“To win on the road you’ve got to be willing to deal with some storms, some adversity,” Lillard said.

The Kings trailed 39-26 midway through the second quarter when a closing kick gave them a 55-51 lead at halftime. Terence Davis had eight of his 14 points in the spurt including an off-balance 3-pointer with 55 seconds remaining.

Grant led the Blazers with 23 points, Anfernee Simon’s added 22 and Lillard had 20.

Sabonis carried the Kings in the paint, with 13 points, five assists and four rebounds in 33 minutes on the floor.

The Kings host the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday at 7:05pm.

OPENING NIGHT: Bill Russell was honored in the pre-game ceremonies with a video tribute. Russell coached the Kings for the first 58 games in the 1987-88 season. Home run king Barry Bonds, Metta Sandiford-Artest and Brad Miller were among the team’s honored guests.

Rookie Keegan Murray was held out for precautionary reasons following his absence due to COVID protocols.

The Warriors start the new season with a win over the Los Angeles Lakers 123-109

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Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James, left defends against the Golden State Warriors guard Donte DiVincenzo, right on Tue Oct 18, 2022 at the Chase Center in San Francisco (AP News photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Golden State Warriors started the season with a resounding win over the Los Angeles Lakers Tuesday night at the Chase Center. The final score was 123-109. The Warriors want to win their fifth championship in nine years. They lost four or five key players after the season ended. The Warriors added Donte DiVincenzo and JaMychal Green to go along with James Wiseman, Jonathan Kuminga, and Moses Moody. 

The Warriors gave out their championship rings to the players before the start of the game. NBA commissioner Adam Silver was in the house to congratulate the players. The game was on TNT, and TNT had Shaquille O’Neal, Charles Barkley, and Ernie Johnson doing commentary.

The Warriors had guard Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, Andrew Wiggins, and Kevon Looney on the court to start the contest. The Lakers started LeBron James James, Anthony Davis, Russell Westbrook, Patrick Beverly, and Lonnie Walker.

The first quarter started slowly. As it was the first game of the year, both teams were slow to get things going. The Warriors finished the quarter leading 25-22. Things heated up in the second period. The Warriors outscored the Lakers 34-30 to finish the first half with a 59-52 lead.

The Warriors were up by 11, but LeBron James made two buckets to cut the deficit to seven. Curry paced the Warriors with 16 points. Jordan Poole, leading the second unit, added ten. Anthony Davis had 15 for LA. LeBron added 14 and Westbrook 11.

As they have done so many times in the past, the Warriors dominated the third quarter. Thompson led the way as he tallied nine points early in the period. With the score 66-58, the Warriors went on a 25-4 run to lead 91-64. The Lakers fought back and made it a 91-71 game at the end of three. The Warriors outscored the Lakers 32-19

Los Angeles went on a 22-9 run in the fourth quarter. They trailed by 13 100-87. Warriors head coach Steve Kerr called a timeout so that the Warriors could regroup. Curry and Wiggins led the offensive surge to put the game out of reach.

Wiggins made three threes, and Curry had a three, a deuce, and a four-point play to put the game away. The score was 121-104 with 1:52 left to play. Kerr allowed the bench players to finish out the game.

The Warriors played well on both ends of the court. They continued to shine on defense. They showed the NBA that they have a powerful offensive juggernaut. The fans went home happy, but was Kerr satisfied with his team’s effort? Coaches always say players have to improve.

Game Notes and Stats: The Warriors’ offensive stars were Curry, Wiggins,Thompson, and Poole. Curry finished with 33 points. Curry knocked down four three in 13 attempts. A couple of the threes came in the fourth quarter when the Lakers made a comeback.

Thompson, playing just 19 minutes, finished with a18 points. Thompson knocked down two threes. Wiggins had 20, and Poole had 12. Warrior bench players contributed too James Wiseman, JaMychal Green, and Donte DiVincenzo each had eight points. JaMychal Green and Wiseman each pulled down seven boards.

The Lakers had four players in double figures. LeBron paced the Lakers’ attack with 31 points and 14 rebounds. Davis had 27 points and six boards. Russell Westbrook had a double-double with 19 points and 11 rebounds. Kendrick Nunn added 13. The Lakers’ bench did not produce much Tuesday night.

The Warriors play Friday night again when they host the Denver Nuggets. The game will start at 7 pm at the Chase Center.

Golden State Warriors podcast with Barbara Mason: Warriors prepared for home opener Tuesday night against Lakers

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Los Angeles Lakers LeBron James drives on the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wed Oct 12, 2022 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. The Lakers come calling Tue Oct 18, 2022 for the Warriors home opener at the Chase Center (AP News photo)

On the Warriors podcast with Barbara:

#1 Barbara, the Warriors concluded their last pre season game against the Denver Nuggets on Friday night with a 119-112 loss at the Chase Center it was more of a game of taking a look at who they have on their bench coming into the season.

#2 Also some of the veteran starters played in this one Stephen Curry led the Warriors with 23 points talk about what expectations he’ll have once the season starts.

#3 Draymond Green who did not practice or play with the team for seven days after punching teammate Jordan Poole in practice was back Friday night and scored four points and had two rebounds.

#4 Klay Thompson returned after having mental block from have two major injuries that benched him for two seasons was on the floor on Friday and scored 14 points with one rebound.

#5 The Warriors open up the season against the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday night at Chase Center. They’ll be facing a loaded Lakers team of LeBron, Anthony Davis, Russell Westbrook, and former Warrior Juan Toscano-Anderson.

Join Barbara for the Warriors podcasts Mondays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Warriors lose final preseason game to Denver Nuggets 119-112

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The Golden State Warriors Patrick Baldwin Jr (7) takes aim against the Denver Nuggets at the Chase Center in San Francisco Fri Oct 14, 2022 (@warriors photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Golden State Warriors hosted the Denver Nuggets at the Chase Center Friday night and ended their pre season with a 119-112 loss to the Nuggets.

The Warriors were playing the fifth and final preseason game before the start of the 2022-2023 season. The Warriors, who won their fourth NBA title in the last eight seasons, will face the Los Angeles Lakers Tuesday night as they seek to win another crown.

Both teams had their projected starters on the floor to start the game. Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, Kevon Looney, and Andrew Wiggins did not play last Monday night against Portland.

The starting five had to go against Denver’s big man Nikola Jokic, a two-time NBA MVP, Aaron Gordon, Bruce Brown, Michael Porter, Jr., and Kentavius Caldwell-Pope. Jamal Murray, who missed most of last season with an injury, was not scheduled to play Friday night.

The Warriors did not play Moses Moody or JaMychal Green. Thompson did not play in the first four preseason games and was penciled in to play the first half.

The Warrior’s coaching staff wanted to see how Thompson, James Wiseman, and Jonathan Kuminga would do against the first string of the Denver Nuggets.

Both teams played well in the first quarter. Denver finished with a four-point lead, 32-28, after the first 12 minutes. Thompson knew he would shoot whenever he had his hands on the ball. The Warrior’s tried to get him open so he could take the shots. Thompson finished the first half with 17 points and made four threes.

The Warrior’s won the second quarter 36 -24 to finish the first half leading 64-56. The team played well. Kuminga and Wiseman did the bulk of the scoring for the Warriors. Curry, Jordan Poole, and Wiggins let Klay, Kuminga, and Wiseman carry the load. The Warriors led 64-56 after 24 minutes of play.

The third quarter was a different story. The Warrior’s increased the lead to 11. Denver, behind the play of Nikola Jokic, went on a 24-9 run to lead 83-78. The Warrior’s narrowed the gap to two, 86-84. Denver then went on a 10-0 run to lead 98-84. The Nuggets outscored the Warrior’s 42-20 in the third.

The Warriors let players fighting for a job on the team play the fourth quarter. The Warrior’s had Patrick Balwin, Jr, Ryan Rollins, Pat Spencer, Jerome Robinson, and Kuninga try to get the Warrior’s back in the game. The young players fought back and went on a 15-3 run to make it a seven-point deficit. The Nuggets did not fold as they cruised to the win.

Thompson, Kuminga, Wiseman, and Curry were all in double-figures. Jokic paced the Denver attack. The two teams meet again next Friday. This time the game will count. The Nuggets want to beat the Warrior’s as they lost to Golden State in the playoffs.

The Warriors will raise their championship banner before the start of the game with the Lakers Tuesday night. The players will receive their championship rings, too. The game will start at 7 pm.

Kings Wallop Lakers For a Second Time 133-86

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Sacramento Kings Davion Mitchell (15) and De’Aaron Fox (5) share a high five as the Kings remain undefeated in pre season defeating the Los Angeles Lakers at Golden One Center in Sacramento (@SacramentoKings photo)

Kings Wallop Lakers For a Second Time 133-86

By Barbara Mason

Friday night, the Sacramento Kings (4-0) took on the Los Angeles Lakers (1-5) for the second time in this pre-season and picked up their second straight in pre season over the Lakers 133-86. In their first meeting Mon Oct 3, the Kings beat the Lakers soundly 105-75.

Sacramento repeated the task of defeating the Lakers in Friday’s game. While this is only the pre-season what we have seen from the Kings so far has been very encouraging in regards to the upcoming regular season.

Friday game recap: The Kings got off to a quick start and led at the end of the first quarter 36-23. The Lakers took the court without Anthony Davis who was out with a low back issue. Both teams were hoping to treat the final games of the pre-season as a sort of rehearsal to the start of the regular season. The loss of Davis made this much tougher for Los Angeles.

At the half the Kings had a healthy lead over the Lakers. They had nearly doubled their lead after the first quarter taking a 65-44 lead into the locker room. De’Aaron Fox had 14 points in the half playing 14 minutes. LeBron James had 11 points in the first half. Russell Westbrook missed the second quarter limping off the court with a hamstring injury near the end of the first quarter.

The Kings continued to extend their lead, ahead 95-62 after three quarters and Sacramento was well on their way to an undefeated pre-season.

The Kings came away in a blow-out. De’Aaron Fox finished with 19 points and the high for the Lakers was LeBron James with 12 points.

As the regular season kicks off, the Kings will take on the Portland Trailblazers at Golden 1 Center on Wed Oct 19th. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:00 PM.

Sacramento Kings podcast with Jeremiah Salmonson: Lakers without AD tonight; Kings pushing post season for 2022-23

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Sacramento Kings head coach Mike Brown addresses the media Thu Oct 6, 2022 during the Kings training camp at Golden One Center in Sacramento (AP News photo)

On Sacramento Kings podcast with Jeremiah:

#1 Jeremiah, the Los Angeles Lakers come calling tonight at Golden One Center in Sacramento tonight but without one of their top stars Anthony Davis who is suffering from a lower back soreness.

#2 Davis said he didn’t have any soreness after Wednesday’s game but over the last two days and the Lakers medical staff decided that it would be best that Davis stay back in LA.

#3 Last pre season game tonight Jeremiah and Kings head coach Mike Brown is hoping that he can get the Kings into the post season for the first time in 16 years which is the longest period without a playoff appearance in NBA history.

#4 One of the things that coach Brown is looking for is the cohesiveness saying that he likes the spirit and energy that he feels from the players. The Kings have shown some success in pre season games.

#5 Kings general manager Monte McNair said “We are going to need guys across the roster to step up, but we think we have the pieces here.”

Join Jeremiah for Kings podcasts Friday nights at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Golden State Warriors podcast with Jerry Feitelberg: Green trying to make practice perfect; Green makes first appearance since last week

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Draymond Green addresses the media on Sat Oct 8, 2022 at the Chase Center in San Francisco. Green made a his first appearance at a team practice Thu Oct 13, 2022 and will be in the line up against the Denver Nuggets Fri Oct 14, 2022 for a pre season game (AP News photo)

On the Warrior podcast with Jerry:

#1 Golden State Warrior Draymond Green appeared in today’s practice his first appearance since he punched teammate Jordan Poole. Green had not been suspended and this was just a cooling off period and he is expected to be in the line up on Friday night against the Denver Nuggets.

#2 Jerry, was this a matter of Green getting a slap on the wrist and getting off lightly or is this a matter of Green coming back business as usual and things have pretty much calmed down.

#3 Warrior head coach said that this is the biggest crisis he’s had since he’s been coaching the team and he emphasized the team was not perfect.

#4 Green agreed to spend some time away from the club and Green and the Warriors agreed that one week was good enough. If Green was suspended he would have possibly not returned and if he voiced his disapproval on his podcasts the Warriors may not have wanted him back.

#5 The Warriors host the Denver Nuggets Friday night at Chase Center can the Warriors focus and will they be better for it with Green’s return or will they’ll be a certain amount of dissension between Green and his teammates over what happened?

Join Jerry for the Warrior podcasts at http://www.sportsradioservice.com Thursdays