Playoff intrigue with Kings, Rockets
The Warriors’ stretch drive will be a study in contrasts, a place where comfort meets desperation.
Nobody’s more comfortable than Golden State, concerned mostly with keeping players healthy and determining the ideal rotation spot for DeMarcus Cousins. The “desperate” factor applies to everyone else, starting with a two-game homestand against Sacramento on Thursday night and Houston on Saturday night.
If you’re eager for the playoffs to arrive, this is a good place to start. There couldn’t be a more attractive first-round matchup than Kings-Warriors, and everyone wants to see whether the Houston Hardens are really anything more than a one-man show.
The Warriors have set a powerful standard for uptempo basketball through their dynastic run, but they’ve been caught by Sacramento, at least on paper. The Kings lead the league in transition frequency and points per game off the fast break (21.6, with the Warriors second at 19.5). And as nice as that sounds, it’s an immensely pleasing style to witness in person.
Point guard De’Aaron Fox declares himself the league’s fastest man with the ball in his hands, and there’s not much debate, especially with Washington’s John Wall lost to heel surgery. Fox was drafted behind Lonzo Ball in 2017 but has proved to be a far more effective star in the NBA galaxy,
leading the break, dunking on people, tossing up floaters and improving his outside shot. There’s little to be learned from the Rising Stars portion of All-Star weekend, but Fox spent most of that game trying to make other people look good, dishing off 16 assists to the likes of Jayson Tatum, Donovan Mitchell and Kyle Kuzma.
Fox’s backcourt partner is Buddy Hield, who treats every Golden State game as a chance to outdo Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson from long range. Struggling as a rookie with New Orleans two years ago, Hield seemed little more than an afterthought in the blockbuster deal that sent Cousins to the Pelicans. But his brazen confidence has not wavered, and now his 3-point shooting percentage (44.9) is a tick above Curry’s (44.4).
“We play to our strengths,” Hield told SI.com during AllStar weekend. “Fox is so quick with the ball, and with us two running in space, you gotta pick your poison. Who you gonna take? Leave me wide open or him going to the rack.” Kyrie Irving raved about Fox in that piece, calling him “an awesome player, man. I was happy I got a chance to be in the locker room with those young guys, but especially De’Aaron.”
The Kings also feature what might be the league’s best twoman transition team among big men when 6-foot-11 Marvin Bagley Jr. and 6-10 Harry Giles share the floor. Bagley admits to playing angry, and it goes beyond his natural competitiveness, Bagley having been taken No. 2 overall in last year’s draft, ahead of (among others) Luka Doncic, who’s thriving with Dallas. Bagley has started only one game (in January), yet has averaged 15.7 points and 8.7 rebounds per game this month, coming off the bench with the equally explosive Giles, who had to sit out all of last season (he has had ACL surgery in both knees) but is approaching the form that made him the nation’s most talked-about high school player in 2016.
Sacramento (30-27) hit the All-Star break as the No. 9 team in the Western Conference standings, one game behind the Clippers and two ahead of the Lakers. There’s an undeniable coolness to the Kings and their story, so let’s see them end their 12-year playoff drought (longest in the league) and draw Golden State in a stellar 1-vs.-8 matchup. And don’t forget sharpshooter Bogdan Bogdanovic or ex Warriors forward Harrison Barnes, now part of the Kings’ starting lineup after being acquired from Dallas at the trade deadline.
For Houston, the playoff picture is simply a matter of positioning. The focus is strictly on Harden, who has scored at least 30 points in 31 consecutive games and went completely off the charts (52.2 points per game) over one five-game stretch. Harden’s ball-dominant approach requires a lot of work, and some wonder whether he can retain his stamina through the postseason. Meanwhile, he’s fending off potshots from all directions, including retired NBA players in recent ESPN interviews. Kobe Bryant said the Rockets’ style “will never win a championship,” and Scottie Pippen proclaimed that “it’s not playoff basketball. It’s not even attractive basketball to me, not fun to watch a guy dribble the ball for 20 seconds.”
Then there was the conversation during All-Star weekend, captured on Twitter and YouTube, with Curry speaking to Milwaukee head coach Mike Budenholzer. Curry is overheard mentioning a conversation with Harden in which the Rockets’ guard said he wasn’t necessarily comfortable with the team’s isolation heavy style and would prefer a more free-flowing system. (If that’s the case, good for Harden. He has exquisite passing skills and would flourish in a team-oriented attack.)
In any case, keep an eye out for Houston general manager Daryl Morey, the man who admits to a Golden State obsession, if he appears at Oracle Arena on Saturday night. Morey recently decided to grow a beard, and he says he won’t shave it off until Harden’s streak ends. Morey could be closing in on Rip Van Winkle before it’s over.