Tag: New Orleans Pelicans

Sacramento Kings podcast with David Zizmor: Kings battle Pelicans in Play In game Friday at Smoothie King Center

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The Sacramento Kings guard DeAaron Fox (5) has a little better reach to throw down on the Golden State Warriors guard Draymond Green (23) and Klay Thompson (11) at Golden 1 Arena in Sacramento on Wed Apr 17, 2024 (AP News photo)

On the Sacramento Kings podcast with David Zizmor:

#1 David how surprised were you that the Sacramento Kings were able to defeat the Golden State Warriors in a one game Play In and short handed missing Malik Monk and Kevin Hureter.

#2 On defense the Kings were able to shut down Klay Thompson and shut him out how key was that for the Kings victory.

#3 The New Orleans Pelicans are no push overs their next on the Kings docket in the one and done play in. The Kings were 0-5 during the regular season against the Pelicans. With Zion Williamson out how important is it for the Kings to shut down CJ McCollum, Trey Murphy and Brandon Ingram to have a chance to win on Friday night?

Join David Zizmor for NBA Playoff analysis at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Golden State Warriors Play In wrap up: Kings demolish Warriors 118-94 end Warriors’ season

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Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson (11) takes an off balance shot against the Sacramento Kings forward Harrison Barnes (right) in the second half at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Tue Apr 16, 2024 (AP News photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Golden State Warriors, the tenth seed in the Western Conference, had to play the ninth seed, the Sacramento Kings, at the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento. The winner of the game would play the loser of the game between the Los Angeles Lakers and New Orleans Pelicans.

The Warriors played well on the road and were 16-4 in the last 20 games away from the Chase Center. The Kings were seeking revenge as the Warriors beat them in the first round of the 2023 playoffs.

That loss to the Warriors left a bad taste in the mouths of the Kings’ players. The Kings got their revenge as they blew away the Warriors to earn the right to play the Pelicans on Friday night in New Orleans. The final score was 118-94. 

The Warriors had one of their worst games in the 2023-2024 season. The Warriors committed too many turnovers in the first half. Their defense was non-existent. The offense went to sleep. Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson put five points on the board in the first half. Curry made the five points. Thompson was scoreless.

Warriors fans counted on Thompson and Curry to lead the charge in the second half. That did not happen. Curry finished with 22 points. Curry did not make a basket and finished the game scoreless. I don’t remember Thompson being held to zero points in a game. The margin of victory over the Warriors was the largest since 2006. 

The Warriors led 8-6 early in the first quarter. The Kings went ahead 11-8 and never relinquished the lead. Sacramento finished the first quarter leading 31-22. The Kings led by 14, 48-34. The Warrior’s offense began to click, and they closed the deficit to four points at the end of the first half. The Kings led 54-50.

The Warriors made a run early in the second half to trail by one, 56-55. The Kings’ fans were starting to squirm. The Warriors, famous for owning the third quarter, had the tables turned on them. The Kings’ offense came to life. Keegan Murray continued to make shots. Murray had 14 points in the first quarter and four threes in the first half and continued hitting shots from downtown. Sabonis continued to clog the middle and block shots. Sabonis finished with 16 points and 12 rebounds. 

The Kings won the third quarter 37-26 to lead by 15, 91-76.

The rout was on. Sacramento continued to stop the Warrior offense. Domantas Sabonis, Harrison Barnes, Murray, and D’Aaron Fox made key buckets. The Warriors’ offense went to sleep. The game was over when the Kings led 105-86 with 5:29 left to play.

Game Notes: The Warriors’ season is over. Many people are now speculating about the team’s future. Thompson will be a free agent. Thompson had expressed interest in finishing his Hall of Fame career with Golden State. Hopefully, the Warriors’ management and Thompson can agree soon.

Other players may be elsewhere next year, including Andrew Wiggins, Chris Paul, Dario Saric, and Kevon Looney. Wiggins’s scoring went down this year. Wiggins is owed a bundle of money, and the Warriors may trade him to reduce payroll.

The veteran playmaker Chris Paul is 38 years old. Letting Paul seek employment elsewhere will also reduce payroll significantly. Saric was relegated to the bench due to Trayce Jackson-Davis’s improvement at the center position.

Saric earned a little, but he probably did better elsewhere. Kevon Looney was the starter at the center spot early in the season. The Warriors’ head coach adjusted his rotation later in the season. Looney became a fixture on the second unit. Looney never complained and stayed ready even though his minutes on the court were diminished. 

Murray led his team to the Friday night game against the Pelicans. Murray finished the game with 32 points and connected on nine threes. Former Warriors Harrison Barnes added 17. Keon Ellis, an undrafted rookie from Alabama, had 15 points and made three threes. Fox added 24. Malik Monk, who torched the Warriors, was unavailable due to an injury. The Kings’ Kevin Huerter was also unavailable.

The Warriors will now watch the playoffs from their homes.Curry will play for the United States at the Olympics in Paris, France, this summer.

It was a remarkable season. The Warriors needed help finding their rhythm early in the season. They lost games when they had big leads heading into the fourth quarter. They got into gear when Kerr put Jackson-Davis into the second unit.

Thompson, a starter for his entire career, was sent to the bench. Thompson responded by getting back to the player of old. Jonathan Kuminga raised his game to a higher level. Brandin Podziemski, picked 19th in the first round, exceeded expectations. Podziemski played well on both ends of the court. Moses Moody, fighting for playing time, will be someone the Warriors will play more next year. Moody gave the Warriors a spark in the third quarter. 

The Warriors played better on the road this season. They won two more games than they did last year. The competition in the Western Conference has caught up with the Warriors. The OKC Thunder finished as the one seed in the Conference.

The Denver Nuggets, with Nikola Jokic, are preparing to repeat as NBA Champions. The Minnesota Timberwolves are right behind those two teams in talent. The Wolves are built around Anthony Edwards, Rudy Gobert, and Karl-Anthony Towns. The Houston Rockets are on the rise. 

The Kings beat the Pelicans on Friday to become the eighth seed. If they win, they will face the number one seed, the OKC Thunder. 

That’s it for the season. It was very interesting to watch the Warriors in 2023-2024. Let’s hope they draft some players to return them to the top.

Adios

Warriors Fall Short to Pelicans 114-109; Turnovers Spell the Difference

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The New Orleans Pelicans PJ McCollum (3) drives on the Golden State Warriors Klay Thompson (11) in first half action at the Chase Center in San Francisco on Fri Apr 12, 2024 (AP News photo)

By Barbara Mason

The ultimate closer in the NBA did his best to weave his magic yet his team fell to the New Orleans Pelicans (49-32) Friday night in a real barn burner. Stephen Curry finished with 33 points in the loss. Klay Thompson finished with 19. Golden State (45-36) had 16 turnovers which spelled the difference in the 114-109 loss.

Over the past few months the Western Conference showed signs of having a wild finish to the season. The Golden State Warriors now find themselves in a three-way tie for eighth place with the Los Angeles Lakers and the Sacramento Kings.

The Lakers have lost their two last games, the last one against the Warriors, and the Kings are just plain self-destructing. They take significant leads in the first half of games only to fall apart in the second half.

The Warriors are playing terrific right now winning their last three games in a row. The Warriors need to win out, the Lakers beat the Grizzlies earlier Friday night with their last game against the Pelicans.

The Kings lost the Suns and have the Trail Blazers up next. All three will be faced with play-in games. The Warriors have had 25 road wins this season and the Pelicans have had 27 road wins and will looking for number 28 tonight.

Friday night the Warriors welcomed the Pelicans to Chase Center. The Pelicans are one game ahead of the Phoenix Suns so both of these teams have a lot at stake. New Orleans wants to avoid the play-in game.

Golden State set the pace in this game from the start leading 26-17 after the first 12 minutes. Seven minutes into the second quarter, however, it all went south and the Warriors 11 point lead had dissolved.

This game was tied at 38 and the tide in this game had done a complete reversal. With three minutes left in the half, the Pelicans really started rolling taking a 53-42 lead. The Warriors had nine turnovers in the second quarter alone.

The Pelicans were 10 of 13 from downtown in the second quarter leading 59-43 and had turned this game completely around in their favor. At the half New Orleans had taken a 62-48 lead. The Pelicans had outscored the Warriors in the second quarter 42-22 and Golden State had a lot of work to do in the second half with New Orleans totally dominating the game.

The Warriors would need some serious adjustments in the second half. A good place to start would be putting the skids on the turnovers. They had 9 turnovers in the second quarter and only 2 in the opening quarter.

The Pelicans had shot beautifully from beyond the arc finishing the half with 11 scored to the Warriors five. Golden State needed to protect the ball in the second half and get their three-ball going.

The Warriors got a better start in the third quarter but the Pelicans continued to hang onto a double digit lead. The third quarter began to feel more like the first when Golden State had the advantage. As this game went deeper into the third quarter, the Warriors had trimmed the Pelicans 14 point lead to five points 71-66.

Golden State was playing some outstanding defense doing their best to contain Zion Williamson and they were doing a great job. They were also guarding the three ball better putting the stops on New Orleans shooting. There would be no room for error heading into the fourth quarter with New Orleans leading 88-75.

The Warriors really needed their three ball, but the Pelicans are one of the top teams in the NBA when it comes to guarding the three so it would not be easy. The Warriors continued to play hard which started to pay off when the Pelicans made some rare mistakes and started missing those three’s while Golden State started to make shots from beyond the arc.

With eight minutes left in the game the Warriors were within three points of a tie 92-89 in a huge turnaround. This game was going down to the wire. With 1:02 left in the game, New Orleans had taken a 112-106 lead. Curry hit a three with 40 seconds left on the clock drawing to within three points 112-109 in this barn burner. Golden State came up just short losing 114-109.

Sunday afternoon the Golden State Warriors wrap up the 2023-24 regular season. They will take on the Utah Jazz at Chase with tipoff scheduled for 12:30 PM.

Sacramento Kings podcast with Jeremiah Salmonson: Kings struggling face Suns tonight in the second of back to back nights

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New Orleans guard Herbert Jones (5) goes up against the Sacramento Kings Harrison Barnes (40) in the first half at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Thu Apr 11, 2024 (AP News photo)

On the Sacramento Kings podcast with Jeremiah:

#1 The New Orleans Pelicans CJ McCollum and Zion Williamson both scored 31 a piece in the Pelicans 135-123 win over the struggling Sacramento Kings.

#2 Williamson went back to the New Orleans locker room to get his wrist worked on in the second quarter but the Kings couldn’t hold him back when he returned as Williamson scored 23 points in the second half.

#3 The Kings defense had a tough time shutting McCollum down who scored a season high of nine three pointers in 12 shots. McCollum also had seven assists and the Pelicans improved their post season chances in avoiding a play in.

#4 The Kings in the meantime are hanging onto eighth place they have now lost two straight and lost six of their last ten games what are the Kings chances in avoiding a play in?

#5 Kings get no rest they host the Phoenix Suns (47-33) tonight at Golden 1. The Suns are seventh place in the Western Conference and have won six out of their last ten games. How do you see this match up tonight?

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

Warriors grind out win over Blazers 100-92 at Moda Center

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Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) goes up against the Portland Trailblazers forward Justin Minaya (left) in the first half at the Moda Center in Portland on Thu Apr 11, 2024 (AP News photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Golden State Warriors defeated Portland Trailblazers on Thursday night at the Moda Center 100-92. Both teams were grappling with significant player absences. Portland’s head coach, Chauncy Billips, a recent inductee into Basketball’s Hall of Fame, had to contend with several key players on the injured list. The Warriors were in a similar predicament, with Draymond Green, Klay Thompson, and Gary Payton II unable to take the court on Thursday night. 

The Warriors have won 16 of the last 20 games on the road and eight of the last nine. The Warriors, Los Angeles Lakers, and Sacramento Kings are in a dogfight for the last three playoff spots. The Lakers did not play on Thursday. The Kings played the New Orleans Pelicans, and a Kings loss and Warriors win meant the three teams would be tied with identical records.

The Pelican beat the Kings, and the teams are tied in the standing with a record of 45-45. The Warriors own the tiebreaker over the Lakers and split the season series with the Kings. The Warriors have two games left to play. They face the Pelicans at the Chase Center on Friday night and end the regular season against the Utah Jazz on Sunday.

The understaffed Blazers gave the Warriors a run for their money for three and a half quarters. The Blazers took an early lead in the first quarter, going up 17-10. The Warriors struggled to find their rhythm, with the offense sputtering for the first six minutes of the game.

However, back-to-back threes by Jonathan Kuminga and Stephen Curry turned the tide, bringing the score to 19-18 in the Warriors’ favor. The quarter ended with the Warriors holding a slim two-point lead, 24-22.

The Warriors and Blazers refused to let their opponent get a big lead. The lead changed hands several times. The Warriors won the quarter by two points to lead 49-46 at the end of the first half. Curry and Kuminga paced the Warriors’ offense with 11.

Andrew Wiggins added ten. The Blazers’ big man, Deandre Ayton, had 15. Rookie guard Scoot Henderson added 12. The Warriors committed ten turnovers in the half. The Blazers scored ten points off the turnovers. The Blazers outshot the Dubs 53-38 in the half. The Warrior defense held the Blazers to 32% from the floor. 

The battle continued in the third period. Neither team would give an inch. The Blazers won the quarter by two points to trail by one, 75-74, heading into the fourth quarter. The first six minutes of the fourth and final period was a dogfight.

The Blazers looked to have the upper hand as they led by six 85-79. The Warriors got their offense working, and their defense was terrific. The Warriors went on a 21-7 run to win the game 100-92. The Warriors were ahead 92-86 after Kevon Looney made a key bucket.

There was 3:23 left to play. Looney then made a steal. He got the ball to Curry, and Curry made a superb pass to Brandin Podziemski. Podziemski made the bucket, and the Warriors went on to win 100-92. 

Game Notes: With the win, The Warriors are 45-35. The Blazers fell to 21-59.

The Warriors had four starters in double figures. Curry led the offense with 22 points, seven boards, and eight assists. Curry made five threes. Kuminga had 19, Andrew Wiggins 15, and Trayce Jackson-Davis had 10 points, eight rebounds, four assists, and four blocked shots.

Podziemski and Kevon Looney each had nine points. Looney pulled down eleven rebounds. Moses Moody finished the night with eight points. The Blazers took 20 more shots than the Warriors. The Warriors scored 36 field goals in 77 tries, which was good for 46.8% from the floor. The Warriors’ defense held the Blazers to 36% from the floor. The defense also made eight steals and blocked 13 shots. 

The Warriors host the New Orleans Pelicans at the Chase Center on Friday night. The game will start at 7 p.m.

Kings can’t stop Pelicans who sweep season series in five games; New Orleans McCollum and Williams make themselves at home at Golden 1

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New Orleans Pelicans guard CJ McCollum (3) goes airborne to pass off the basketball as the Sacramento Kings Domantas Sabonis (10) tries to put a stop to the Pelicans offense under the basket in the first half at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Thu Apr 11, 2024 (AP News photo)

By Jeremiah Salmonson

SACRAMENTO–The Sacramento Kings were back in action on Thursday night in Sacramento. It was the Kings first game back home after a brutal road trip. The Kings lost games in New York, Boston, and Oklahoma City on a 1-3 trip. The Kings returned home a half game up on the Lakers for the 8th seed in the Western Conference.

The Kings were set to take on the New Orleans Pelicans on Thursday night. The Kings had not beaten the Pelicans all season at 0-4 up to that point. The Kings and Pelicans tipped off at 7 PM PST. The Kings lost 135-123 to the Pelicans on Thursday night.

In the first quarter, the Kings played about as bad as they have all season. The Kings couldn’t buy a bucket and had no answer on defense. The lead would balloon to 33-11 with 2:55 in the quarter. It was an embarrassing show from the Kings up to that point in the game. However, the Kings were able to go on a brief run to end the quarter to get the game to 34-23. De’Aaron Fox would need a career-high to have a chance in this game.

In the second quarter, the Kings flipped the script. The Kings outscored the Pelicans in the second quarter 35-30. It wasn’t enough for the Kings to take the lead, but it was a start. The Kings would go into halftime trailing the Pelicans 64-58. The Kings would need to continue to push the pace in the second half to have a chance. De’Aaron Fox had 17 points in the first half. Trey Murphy III had 20 first-half points.

In the third quarter, the Kings would fight. However, they couldn’t make up any ground on the Pelicans. The Kings would go on small runs that were countered by a run by the Pelicans. The Kings were outscored by the Pelicans 34-31 in the third quarter of the game. The Kings would trail 98-89 going into the final quarter of play.

In the fourth quarter, the Pelicans would extend the lead to 20 points. However, the Kings would fight back to make it more of a game. The Kings would cut the lead to 10 points, but it was too little and too late. The Pelicans would defeat the Kings 135-123.

The Kings were outscored by the Pelicans in the fourth quarter 37-34. The Kings were led by De’Aaron Fox, who scored 33 points. The Pelicans were led by Zion Williamson, who scored 31 points. The Kings would try to get back on track in one of their last two games before the postseason.

Up Next: The Kings stay home to take on the Phoenix Suns on Friday at 7 PM PST.

Trouble Looms As Warriors Fall To Pelicans 141-105

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By Barbara Mason

Wednesday night the Golden State Warriors got slammed by the New Orleans Pelicans 141-105. The Pelicans took an early lead outscoring the Warriors 46-27. Golden State won the second quarter but New Orleans came back in the third and fourth quarters to beat the Warriors. Offensively and defensively it was all Pelicans all night. Once again the crowd booed their team out of sheer frustration.

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It has been tough going for the Golden State Warriors (17-20) lately falling to the Toronto Raptors last Sunday night losing that game 133-118. Tonight the Warriors took on the New Orleans Pelicans (23-15), a very tough assignment. The Pelicans currently sit in sixth place in the Western Conference. The Warriors would need to pull out all the stops as they face the likes of Zion Williamson, Brandon Ingram, CJ McCollum and Jonas Valanciunas.

The Pelicans got on top of the Warriors from the get-go leading after one quarter 46-27. This was the second time that Golden State fell behind early and had to play catch up. The Warriors are going through a tough stretch right now lacking confidence and belief in the system.

Golden State did win the second quarter by six points 33-27 but were trailing by nineteen points after the first quarter. They had some ground to make up but we have seen them come from behind in the past. They were down 73-60 at the half, only down by thirteen points and very much in the game.

The third and fourth quarters were both won by the Pelicans which sealed the win. New Orleans won the third 32-23 and the final quarter 36-22 handing the Warriors a second loss in a row 141-105. It was a heart-wrenching loss for the team. Every time they made a run, the Pelicans answered. They outplayed the Warriors offensively and defensively.

The New Orleans starting lineup all had double digits with Jonas Valanciunas the high with 21 points. The Pelicans got some great work from their bench matching the Golden State bench.

It was a tough loss for the Warriors and leaves the team searching for answers. This was a terrible loss for Head Coach Steve Kerr, among one of the worst in his coaching tenure. Both Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson were lackluster at best. Curry with 15 points and Thompson with 13. The Warriors bench outscored the starting lineup. It is tough to fault the fans for reacting the way they did, booing and exiting the building before game’s end. This team is in trouble and has just experienced one of the lowest points in their season.

The team is looking to the return of Draymond Green and this cannot come soon enough for the Warriors. This could be the shot in the arm that the Warriors desperately need to get back on track. They are missing Chris Paul and the fact that this game was televised on national TV was downright embarrassing. This is about as awful as it can get although the Warriors are looking at yet another challenging matchup Friday night as they take on the Chicago Bulls on the road. Tipoff for that game Friday will be 5:00 PM.      

Kings Polish Off Pistons 131-110

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The Detroit Pistons center Jalen Duren (0) is guarded by the Sacramento Kings forward Domantas Sabonis (10) in the first half at Little Caesar’s Arena in Detroit on Tue Jan 9, 2024 (AP News photo)

By Barbara Mason

After a horrible first quarter, the Sacramento Kings (22-14) pulled it all together in the following quarters to take a 68-65 lead at the half. They had trailed by 20 points in the opening quarter only to take the halftime lead. They fought through a tie game in the fourth quarter to seal the win 131-110 over the Detroit Pistons (3-34).

Tuesday night the Sacramento Kings (22-14) were back in action taking on the Pistons (3-34) in Detroit. The Kings come into this game after getting peppered by the New Orleans Pelicans trailing at one time in that game by 50 points. 

The Pelicans won the game 133-100 and the Kings are looking forward to get back on the winning track against Detroit. The Pistons also lost their last game. The Denver Nuggets handed Detroit their 33rd loss of the season outlasting them 131-114.

The first quarter of this game was a shocker with the Pistons all over the Kings and leading after the first twelve minutes of play 47-29 in what would turn out to be a real roller-coaster of a game. Domantas Sabonis was the only starter that was holding this game together for Sacramento. The rest of the team combined misses, fouls and turnovers in the quarter to give the Pistons a huge edge. It was a horrible start for the Kings.

The second quarter saw an entirely different team take the court and at the half, the Kings had taken a 68-65 lead. There had been a 23 point swing in the first half and the rest of the starters came to life in the second quarter. Keegan Murray and De’Aaron Fox had a great second quarter to turn this game completely around. The Kings won that quarter 39-18 in a complete reversal of fortune.

The Pistons refused to back down and the third quarter was a tie with both teams scoring 30 points and the Kings were clinging to a 98-95 lead. The Kings put the finishing touches on this game in the fourth quarter winning it 33-15. The final was 131-110 in favor of Sacramento as they put this game away.

After a horrendous start in this game, the Kings put up some crazy numbers in their starting lineup. Domantas Sabonis had the team high with 37 points, 10 rebounds and 13 assists. Keegan Murray who had a rough start finished with 32 points and 5 rebounds. De’Aaron also had a terrific game after a shaky start with 26 points. Malik Monk had 20 points off the bench in yet another stellar game. The turnovers were concerning with 18 committed in the game.

The Kings had led by 15 points in the third quarter but let the Pistons tie up the game in the fourth quarter. They nailed down the win in the final 9 1/2 minutes of play in this game. Sacramento gave up 47 points in the first quarter and only 45 in the entire second half of the game. After that first quarter the Kings put together a terrific offensive effort.

Post game notes: Tuesday night the Kings were back in action taking on the Pistons in Detroit Tuesday. The Kings came into this game after getting peppered by the New Orleans Pelicans trailing at one time in that game by 50 points on Sunday night. The Pelicans won the game 133-100. The Kings are back in the win column with the win over the Pistons. The Pistons also lost their last game on Sunday to the Denver Nuggets who handed Detroit their 33rd loss of the season outlasting them 131-114.

It is now off to Charlotte to take on the Hornets tomorrow night at Spectrum Center. Tipoff for that game is scheduled for 4:00 PM.

  

 

Warriors Slammed in First Half Lose to Raptors 133-118; Barrett scores season high 37 pts in forth game for Toronto

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The Toronto Raptors forward RJ Barrett (9) defends against the Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson (11) in the first quarter at the Chase Center in San Francisco on Sun Jan 7, 2024 (AP News photo)

By Barbara Mason

The Golden State Warriors (17-19) lost to the Toronto Raptors(15-21) Sunday night at Chase Center 133-118. They were hammered in the first half losing the second quarter 40-21 and trailing at halftime 76-49. 

This team seems to be dealing with a multitude of interior problems as well as problems on the court. It is just not working right now and seems to continue to get even worse instead of better. There are some real problems in Warrior Land right now.

The Warriors took on the Raptors Sunday night at Chase Center. This team has been struggling for awhile now. It has not been a happy locker room lately and this team needs to turn things around before it really affects their season. 

It is getting out of hand. Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson have not been themselves and with the approaching return of Draymond Green, the starting roster may have to eventually deal with more changes. Right now it’s a team in turmoil and and with their fifth loss in their last ten games the Warriors are looking for a way out of this slump.

Game recap: The Raptors got right to work in the first quarter. They took a 36-28 lead and this was another slow start for Curry and the Warriors. It would not get any better for Golden State in the second quarter losing it 40-21 getting absolutely punched and trailing 76-49 at the half. It had been a disastrous first half for the Warriors and really indicated something going very wrong with this team.

The Warriors did make a nice bid in the third quarter winning it 38-25 but when you are trailing by 27 points at halftime, you had better have a huge fourth quarter. Golden State did not have a huge fourth quarter barely winning it 32-31 and the Warriors came up short in this game losing by the score of 133-118. Golden State got hammered in the first half and just was not able to repair the damage.

Just watching the Warriors bench the team looked angry, frustrated and disgruntled. This was an awful showing from Curry who finished with eight points hitting only two baskets. He was 2 of 14 from the floor and was 0 of 9 from downtown. 

The Raptors were all over Curry from start to finish. Thompson had the high for the Warriors with a nice game of 25 points and was 5 of 7 from beyond the arc. The high from the Golden State bench came from Moses Moody with 21 points. 

Trayce Jackson-Davis continues to impress with 11 rebounds and 16 points. The Warriors could not stop the Raptors RJ Barrett who had a field day finishing with 37 points. Barrett was a huge part of the Toronto win Sunday. Barrett has been with the Raptors for only four games and he led in scoring.

Golden State will get a few days off before taking on the New Orleans Pelicans at Chase Center. They have a lot to address after this loss. The Pelicans are playing some very good basketball right now and are coming off a win against the Sacramento Kings on Sunday. Golden State will have to find their A-game if they want to get back on the winning track. Tipoff for this game is scheduled for 5:30 next Wednesday night.

 

  

Kings Lose to Pelicans 133-100; McCollum leads Pelicans with 30 points in win

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The New Orleans Pelicans Brandon Ingram (14) takes a jump shot over the Sacramento Kings De’Aaron Fox(5) and Chris Duarte (3) during the first quarter at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Sun Jan 7, 2024 (AP News photo)

By Jeremiah Salmonson

SACRAMENTO–The Sacramento Kings had not had a great season against the New Orleans Pelicans. The Kings entered Sunday with a 0-3 record against the Pelicans this year. On Sunday, the Kings looked to get their first win of the season against the Pels.

The Kings were coming off a tough stretch of game, albeit at home. The Pelicans came into town having last played on Friday against the Clippers. The Pelicans lost that game. The Kings last played on Friday night, where they defeated the Toronto Raptors 135-130.

The tip-off on Sunday was set for 3 PM PST in Sacramento. The Kings would lose to the Pelicans by the final 133-100.

In the first quarter, the Kings offense started to get ice cold. The Kings had only managed 12 points at the 4:00 mark left to go in the quarter. On the other hand, the Pelicans found a rhythm early to put together a solid first quarter. The Pelicans outscored the Kings in the first quarter 33-21 to jump out to a quick lead. The Kings would need to take better care of the ball moving forward against a Pelicans team that refuses to lose to the Kings.

As the second quarter opened up, Kings fans were looking for better energy from the Kings. The Kings wouldn’t appear to be turning the page from the first quarter early in the second. The struggles shooting continued as the Pelicans shots were seemingly all falling.

The Kings would get blown off the floor for the rest of the quarter as they were outscored 39-26 in the second quarter. The Kings would take a 72-47 deficit into halftime. It was one of the more ugly halves of basketball this year in Sacramento.

The second half of this game doesn’t even deserve per-quarter breakdowns. This game was just a pathetic showing from the Kings from start to finish. The Kings had no energy on the defensive end, and that translated to the offensive end.

The Kings were outscored 31-14 in the third quarter as the game ballooned to a 50-point deficit for the Kings. Yes, you read that right, 50 points. The Kings would need to do some serious soul-searching after the atrocious performance.

The Kings had three tough losses, all in the last couple of weeks. The Kings losses to Portland, Charlotte, and now New Orleans were tough to swallow, all for their own reasons. In the fourth quarter, the Kings got a bit of life from the bench by outscoring the Pelicans 39-30. The Kings would lose the game 133-100.

Up Next: The Kings will go on the road to take on the Detroit Pistons on Tuesday at 4 PM PST.