Photo credit: nba.com/warriors
On the Golden State Warriors podcast with David Zizmor:
#1 The Phoenix Suns really gave the Golden State Warriors fits Friday night. It was a game that went into the fourth quarter and the Warriors finally broke away for the 117-107 win.
#2 The Warriors hosted the Miami Heat on Sunday night. Give us a look into what happened in that game.
David does the Warriors podcasts each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com
by Jerry Feitelberg
Oakland- It appeared to be deja vu all over as the Warriors, as they did in Phoenix Friday night, got off to a slow start and trailed the visiting Heat until late in the third quarter. The Warriors could do nothing right in the early going, and the Heat did everything right as the visitors raced out to an early 34-24 lead after twelve minutes of play. The Heat have two players on their roster that have killed the W’s in the past. They are the big center Hassan Whiteside and guard Dion Waiters. It seems these two mark the calendar as to when they will be playing Golden State and salivate knowing they do well against the World Champions. The Warriors outscored the Heat 30-25 n the second quarter and finished the half trailing 59-54.
The Warriors made the necessary adjustments at halftime and scorched the Heat 36-23 in the third quarter. The W’s led 90-82 and the Big Three of Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson, and Steph Curry led the team in scoring. The W’s started the fourth quarter with an 8-point lead but any team in the NBA can easily make up that deficit, and that is what the Heat did. The Warriors had a slim one-point lead 115-114, but the W’s turned the ball over twice in a row. Josh Richardson and Dwayne Wade had back-to-back steals, and that gave the Heat the lead 118-115. Kevin Durant connected on a three to tie the game. Durant recorded 11 straight points down the stretch for the Warriors. He missed a three-pointer that would have put the W’s in the lead. However, DeMarcus Cousins was able to snag the rebound. Cousins was fouled on the play, and he was able to make both free throws with just 5.4 seconds left to play. The Heat tried but failed to score, and the Warriors won the game.
Game Notes and Stats- The Warriors are now 15-1 in their 16 games and improved to 40-15 for the year. Miami drops to 25-29. Kevin Durant led the W’s with 39 points, 6 boards, and 4 assists. Draymond Green put 5 points on the board, but he corraled 7 rebounds and dished out 14 assists. Klay Thompson had 29, and he connected on six 3s. Curry added 25, and he made five 3s. The Warrior bench added just 15 points. Cousins had 7 points but his two free throws late in the fourth quarter won it for the Warriors. “I was really happy that he was out there at the end of the game,” coach Steve Kerr said of Cousins, playing his 10th game for Golden State. “It’s good experiences for him because he hasn’t been out there much since he’s come back to close games.”
Josh Richardson led the Heat Heat with 37. He made eight three-pointers. Dion Water had 24, and he made six three. Justisce Winslow had 24 including 4 threes, Hassan Whiteside finished the night with a double-double. He had 13 points and 14 rebounds. Dwayne Wade, who may have made his last visit to Oracle Arena as a player, ended the night with 10 points. The Warriors gave a nice tribute to Wade as they showed highlights of his career on the big screen and the fans gave him a nice round of applause.
Andre Iguodala was not able to play Sunday night as he tweaked hi left hamstring Friday night against the Suns in Phoenix. The Warriors resume play Tuesday night against the Utah Jazz at Oracle Arena. Game time is at 7:30 pm.
Photo credit: @SacramentoKings
By: Jeremiah Salmonson
SACRAMENTO — The last time the Phoenix Suns and Sacramento Kings faced off it was not a pretty ending for the Kings. The Kings went from having a double-digit lead to losing the game to the worst team in the NBA this season. The Kings who were playing a rare day game in Sacramento were looking to flip the script from last time.
In the first quarter, the Kings were off to a good start offensively putting up 33 points in the first. Leading the Kings were Nemanja Bjelica with 8 points, Marvin Bagley with 8 points, and De’Aaron Fox with 5 points. The Suns, on the other hand, managed to score 23 points in the first. Leading the Suns in scoring at this point was Devin Booker with 8 points. The new Kings also were able to get time in the game in the first. Harrison Barnes played just over 9 minutes and Alec Burks played almost 3 minutes. After the first, the Kings led the Suns 33-23.
In the second quarter, the Kings continued the scoring narrative that put them up in the first. By the end of the second, the Kings would have three players in double-digit scoring. Buddy Hield and De’Aaron Fox had 10 points while Marvin Bagley led the Kings with 12 first-half points. The Suns’ leading scorer was Devin Booker who had 15 first-half points. Along with the Kings’ double-digit lead, they had a pair of flashy plays in the first half. De’Aaron Fox drove down the lane and slammed it home in the second quarter. Not to mention Marvin Bagley’s impressive alley-oop that he put down with authority. Going into the second half, the Kings were beating the Suns 63-44.
In the third quarter, the Kings didn’t seem to be firing on all cylinders. They were outscored by the Suns while putting up 24 points in the third. The Suns managed to put up 28 points in the third to inch closer to the Kings. In the third, the game began developing the feeling of slight deja vu from the game earlier this year against the Suns. We all remembered what happened in that game when the Kings blew a huge lead and lost. So going into the fourth with the Kings leading 72-87 they looked to stop that narrative.
In the fourth quarter, they stopped that narrative emphatically. They Kings scored 30 points in the fourth to secure their 30th victory of the season. For the Kings, the leading scorers were Marvin Bagley who scored 32 points, Buddy Hield with 18 points, and De’Aaron Fox with 17 points.
The Suns’ leading scorer was Devin Booker, who managed to drop 27 points in defeat. The final in the game was the Kings’ 117 and the Suns’ 104.
The Kings head to the Mile High City Wednesday to take on the Denver Nuggets. Tipoff set for 6:00 pm PT.
by Charlie O. Mallonee
Kings head coach Dave Joerger summarized the game on Friday night with one word — discombobulated! With two new players in the rotation and two key players traded to other teams, getting into sync was difficult for the Kings on Friday night.
Sacramento took their first lead of the contest with 1:21 to go in the game. Buddy Hield converted the second of two free throw opportunities to give his team a 97-96 lead. The Kings scored the final six points of the game to make the final score 102-96 to give them their 29th victory of the season.
Both teams had shooting and turnover problems
The Kings struggled early in the with their shooting. In the first period, they shot just 24.0-percent (6/25) overall and hit just 2-of-7 (28.6%) of their 3-point field goals. Sacramento also turned the ball over five times.
The Kings’ shooting percentage improved from there. Although it never was spectacular– 41.1–percent for the game. They cut down on the turnovers, finishing with 14 that resulted in 11 Miami points.
Miami’s poorest shooting streak came in the fourth quarter. The Heat shot just 25-percent (6/24) from the floor and hit just 1-of-9 (11.1%) from downtown. They turned the ball over six times in the final period that became nine Sacramento points.
The Heat shot 43.2-percent for the game and recorded 20 turnovers (22 SAC points). Those turnovers led to their demise.
Dave Joerger was happy to come away with a win
Harrison Barnes who just joined the Kings made his first start on Friday night
Barnes who was traded to the Kings from the Dallas Mavericks started in his first game in a Sacramento uniform. The veteran forward scored 12 points, grabbed seven rebounds, and dished out two assists in just over 36 minutes of playing time. Barnes went 2-for-4 from 3-point distance and was a perfect 4-for-4 at the free throw line.
Buddy Hield had an important night on the floor and in the huddles
Buddy Hield posted a game-high 23 points in the Kings winning effort. He hit 8-of-16 shots overall and went 4-for-9 from behind the 3-point arc. Hield converted 3-of-4 opportunities at the free throw line.
Other Kings contributors
More Sacramento Team Stats
The best performances by the Heat
Up next
The Kings (29-26) will have Saturday off – no practice. They will return to action on Sunday afternoon when the Phoenix “Tankers” — I mean Suns — come to Sacramento to wrap up the longest homestand of the season.
The Heat (25-28) have a date with Golden State Warriors on Sunday.
by Jerry Feitelberg
It was the kind of game that the Warriors make their fans crazy. They were playing the lowly Phoenix Suns in Phoenix Friday night. Everyone thought the Warriors would walk right over the Suns as they had the best scorer, Devon Booker, unavailable. T.J.Warren and De’Anthony Melton did not play either. Someone forget to tell the Suns that they could not compete against the World Champions. The Warriors had their hands full with the Suns and finally put the game out of reach late in the fourth quarter as they won 117-107.
The Suns took it the Warriors in the first 12 minutes of the game. The Warriors were making shots, and committing turnovers and shooting poorly. The Suns led 26-9 before Kevin Durant helped lead the W’s comeback. The Warriors finished the quarter trailing 31-26. In the second quarter, the Warriors outscored the Suns 34-22 and finished the first half with a seven-point lead 60-53.
The Suns entered the third quarter knowing that the Warriors usually have their way against their opponent. The Warriors were outscored 32-22 and Phoenix finished the third period leading 85-82. Steph Curry was having a tough night. He was 2 for 12 and was 1 for 8 in three-point attempts. Warrior fans were hoping Steph would snap out of his slump and he did just that in the fourth quarter. Steph was 4 for 5 from the floor, and he made two-three pointers in three attempts. The Warriors went on a 13-0 to start the quarter. The Suns cut the lead to 101-98. Steph came back with a three, and the Warriors were on their way to another victory.
Game Notes and stats- The Warriors are now 39-15 for the season. The Suns fall to 11-46. Draymond Green was ejected from the game after he picked up his second technical foul between the third and fourth quarters.
Klay Thompson led the W’s with 25 points. Durant had 21, Steph 20, DeMarcus Cousins 18, and Draymond Green 13. The Warriors’ bench added 20 points. The Suns had four players in double figures: Kelly Oubre, Jr. knocked down 25, and the number one pick of the 2018 NBA Draft, Deandre Ayton tallied 23. Josh Jackson and Mikal Bridges each had 19.
“They totally outplayed us all night,” Golden State coach Steve Kerr said. “The only reason we won is because we have a lot more talent, obviously.”
The Warriors shot 50.6% from the floor and held Phoenix to 38.6 %. The Warriors recorded 30 assists and were able to move the ball well. On Defense, the W’s had 5 steals and 9 blocks.
The W’s return home to Oracle Arena to face the Miami Heat Sunday. Game time is at 5:30 pm.
Photo credit: @NBA
On the NBA podcast with Jerry Feitelberg:
#1 The Indiana Pacers (36-19) got a 119-92 win past the LA Clippers (30-26). Bojan Bogdanovic led the Pacers with 29 points.
#2 The Orlando Magic (23-32) got a win over the Minnesota Timberwolves (25-29) 122-112. The Magic’s Terrence Ross got 32 points.
#3 The Toronto Raptors (40-16) over the Atlanta Hawks (18-36). The Raptors Pascal Siakam got 33 points to lead all scorers.
#4 The LA Lakers (28-27) got a 129-128 win over the Boston Celtics (35-20). It was just like an old rivalry between these two NBA teams. The Lakers’ LeBron James led with 28 points and the Celtics’ Kyrie Irving had 24.
Jerry does the NBA podcast each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com
By Charlie O. Mallonee
Updated with interviews and trade information: Sacramento — It was a wild and crazy Wednesday night for the Sacramento Kings. Two hours before game time, the Kings completed a three-team with the Houston Rockets and the Cleveland Cavaliers that sent Iman Shumpert to the Rockets. The Kings will receive shooting Alex Burks from the Cavaliers.
Then just as the game was getting underway, everyone’s Twitter feeds on press row went crazy as word leaked out that the Kings had just completed another trade that sent Justin Jackson and Zach Randolph to the Mavericks for former Golden State Warriors forward Harrison Barnes.
Charlie O picks the story up from there:
Buddy Hield on the trades and his view of things going forward
De’Aaron Fox is ready to carry on following the trades
The trades
The big deal of the night happened just as the game began on Wednesday night and the Mavericks game was in progress with Harrison Barnes on the floor. The Kings sent forward Justin Jackson and Zach Randolph to Dallas in exchange for the former Golden State forward.
Barnes will become an Unrestricted Free Agent in 2020. He is slated to make just over $25-million in 2019-20 but that is a player option contract which means Barnes could be a rental or an important piece for next season.
The Mavericks get a developing small forward in Justin Jackson who has seen a great deal of playing against the “best of the west” because the Kings needed his talents on the floor quickly. He will be a fine second-unit player for Dallas.
Zach Randolph is a part of the deal to make the money work under NBA guidelines and because he is an expiring contract. Randolph is not likely to wear a Dallas uniform.
The trade that brings Alec Burks to Sacramento is more complicated than the Barnes trade. It is a three-team trade involving the Kings, Rockets, and Cavaliers.
The irony is that it was a walk across the arena to the other locker room deal as Iman Shumpert was traded by the Kings to the Houston Rockets who Sacramento hosted last night. That really did not happen because of NBA rules that require trades be “blessed” by the league office before they can be finalized. Shumpert actually said goodbye to his teammates and left the Golden 1 Center before the game began Wednesday night.
The Kings received Burks who is an eight-year veteran of “the Association”. He has averaged 11.6 points, 5.5 points, and 2.9 assists per game in 34 contests for the Cavs this season. Burks also played for the Utah Jazz. Sacramento received a 2020 second-round draft pick as a part of the trade package.
Cleveland receives guard Brandon Knight, “local product” and former Kings draft pick Marquese Chriss, and a 2019 lottery protected first-round draft pick from Houston.
Cleveland sent guards Nik Stauskas (a former King) and Wade Baldwin who they acquired from Portland for Rodney Hood to the Rockets to complete the deal.
Trades in the NBA are never easy.
Up next
All of the players involved in the trades have 48 hours to report to their new teams. The Kings host the Miami Heat on Friday night when Dwyane Wade will make his final visit to Sacramento as a player. There is a chance that Burks and Barnes could play in that game, but it is more likely they will be playing on Sunday when Phoenix comes to town.
The Rockets returned to Houston after the game on Wednesday. They will play the OKC Thunder on Saturday night on national television. That should be enough for all of the new Rockets to report and be available to play in that game.
Photo credit: @warriors
By Jerry Feitelberg
The Golden State Warriors, returning to action after having three days off, blew out the San Antonio Spurs Wednesday night 141-102 at Oracle Arena. The Spurs gave their two leading scorers LaMarcus Aldridge and DeMar DeRozan the night off. Another star Spur player, DeJounte Murray was out with a knee injury and not available. Nonetheless, any Greg Popovich San Antonio Spur team cannot be taken lightly, and for the first 22 minutes of the first half the Spurs gave the Warriors quite a tussle.
The first quarter was quite competitive as both teams were making shots. The Warriors attack was led by Kevin Durant’s 15 points. The Warriors finished the quarter with a slim two-point advantage 33-31. In the second quarter, the Warriors made some adjustments. Head coach Steve Kerr had the Warriors play better on defense, and the Warriors had DeMarcus Cousins position himself closer to the basket. The Spurs’ defensive strategy was to run Steph Curry and Klay Thompson off the three-point line. The Warriors started the second quarter with a 9-0 run. The Spurs fought back and trailed by three points 53-50, but the Warriors went on a 13-2 run to close out the first half leading 64-52. Kevin Durant led the Warriors with 17, Klay Thompson 16, and Steph Curry had 9. DeMarcus Cousins had 5, and Andre Iguodala added 8. Rudy Gay led the Spurs with 13.
The Warriors blew open the game in the third quarter. They outscored the Sours 49-31 in the period. The Warriors, at one point in the quarter, were 17 for 18 from the floor. They had 16 assists on 17 made baskets, and that was a record for assists in a quarter. They led 115-83 heading into the fourth quarter.
Steve Kerr had all of his five starters sitting on the bench. Quinn Cook, Jonas Jerebko, Jordan Bell, Kevon Looney, and Shaun Livingston were on the floor for the Warriors. The bench outscored the Spurs 26-19 in the quarter, and the Warriors won by a final of 141-102.
Game Notes- The Warriors improved to 38-15 and are in first place in the Western Conference. The win was the 13th in the last 14 games. San Antonio drops to 32-24.
It was the 14th 40-point quarter of the season for Golden State. The W’s had 50 fast break points. They outrebounded the Spurs 52-30, and they recorded 42 assists on 55 made baskets. The Warriors shot 58% from the floor and held San Antonio to 43.2% On defense, the Warriors had 14 steals and 5 blocks.
Klay Thompson led the team with 26. Kevin Durant had 23, Steph Curry 19, DeMarcus Cousins 15, Andre Iguodala 11, and Kevon Looney 10.
Paddy Mills, who played his college ball at St. Mary’s in Orinda, paced the Spurs with 16. Rudy Gay scored two points in the second half and finished with 15. Dante Cunningham had 11, and Bryn Forbes had 10.
Up Next: The Warriors meet the Phoenix Suns Friday night in Phoenix. Game time will be at 6 pm. The Warriors then face the Miami Heat at Oracle Arena on Sunday at 5:30 pm.
Photo credit: @957thegame
On the Headline Sports podcast with London:
#1 Hall and Oates once penned a hit single called “I can’t go for that” while that old tune is starting to be hummed as San Francisco Mayor London Breed says that the idea of the Oakland Raiders playing in San Francisco is hitting a snafu. The deal looked good for a minute as the San Francisco Giants were prepared to host the wayward Raiders, but all for getting the ok from the San Francisco 49ers, who were mum on Tuesday and the Mayor came out and said the Raiders should play their games in Oakland and not in the City.
#2 Breed said that with the basketball Golden State Warriors with construction at the South of Market Chase Center, UCSF Hospital, a new landing area for ferry boats,1400 units of housing. Essentially, the City may say no to all the traffic congestion with two big league teams all going at the same time.
#3 During Super Bowl LIII in Atlanta, the subject of the Raiders playing in San Diego came up and during a press conference NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell made it clear that the league wants the Raiders to finish up their final season (2019) in the Bay Area.
#4 Other Bay Area options: The Raiders could used the very stadium from the team they need territorial rights from the San Francisco 49ers for use of Oracle if they get denied on that from the City then they might have to share Levis Stadium with the 49ers. This would be done only as a favor to Goodell and the league as this is the Raiders last season, but you can best bet the 49ers will be getting a share of the profits no matter if it’s at Oracle Park or Levis Stadium.
#5 The discussion of using Cal’s Memorial Stadium went off the table because of the lack of parking near the stadium and Stanford Stadium was not discussed and not considered. The subject of the Raiders going back to finish their last season at the Oakland Coliseum is now back on the table and to see if the City of Oakland and the Raiders could iron out some of their issues to make that happen. In the meantime, the NFL is waiting anxiously to make their schedules for next season.
London Marq does Headline Sports for http://www.sportsradioservice.com each Wednesday
Photo credit: @SacramentoKings
On the Sacramento Kings Part 2 podcast with Charlie O:
#4 The Kings have three games left on this home schedule. What are you projecting for them in those games?
Charlie O does Sacramento Kings basketball podcasts each Tuesday at sportsradioservice.com
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