Golden State revives rivalry in tight win
As far as potential rivalries go, Kings-Warriors boasts shockingly few highlights. Perhaps the most memorable one — Klay Thompson’s 37point quarter in January 2015 — hardly reflects well on Sacramento.
That soon might change, though. Thanks to a promising young nucleus and an uptempo playing style, the Kings have emerged as one of the NBA’s intriguing story lines, competing for a playoff seed years earlier than many anticipated.
In escaping Oracle Arena on Thursday night with a 125-123 win over Sacramento, Golden State emboldened those eager for a Northern California basketball rivalry. The Kings led much of the second half before the Warriors wore down Sacramento in the fourth quarter.
“A win is a win for us coming out of the break,” Warriors guard Stephen Curry said. “It was a good feeling, but we know that we can play better.”
When DeMarcus Cousins hit a layup less than a minute into the fourth period, Golden State took its first lead since early in the second quarter. The two teams traded blows until Buddy Hield drained a 3-pointer with 10.3 seconds left to cut Sacramento’s deficit to 125-123.
After Andre Iguodala missed both of his free-throw tries with 7.4 seconds remaining, Hield got one final shot, only to airball his 12-foot jumper as the final buzzer sounded.
The Warriors, in their first game back from the All-Star break, won for the 17th time in their past 19 games.
“This is the fourth game that we deserved to lose against this team,” Warriors forward Kevin Durant said.
To eke out a victory over its neighbors 88 miles to the northeast, Golden State needed dazzling performances from Durant (28 points, nine rebounds, seven blocks) and Curry (36 points, seven assists). In his first game against Sacramento — the team for which he played his first 6½ NBA seasons — since joining the Warriors last summer, Cousins oscillated between flashes of dominance and rage, posting 17 points, 10 rebounds and five fouls (including a Flagrant 1) in 27 minutes.
Golden State committed only four turnovers in the second half after piling up 11 in the first. The difference came beyond the arc, where the Warriors shot 19-for-46 to the Kings’ 10-for-33.
Along the way, a capacity crowd dotted with yellow, blue and purple offered a peek at a possible playoff environment. Golden State sits 2½ games ahead of Denver for the Western Conference’s top seed. Meanwhile, Sacramento is just 1½ games behind the Clippers for the West’s eighth seed.
A potential first-round matchup surely would help jolt a long-dormant rivalry out of its slumber. Since the Kings moved to Sacramento in 1985, they have not faced Golden State in the playoffs.
“Every time we play them, it’s high-energy, beautiful basketball,” Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said. “They’re tough to guard. They put a lot of pressure on you. Who knows what’s going to happen down the stretch? A lot of really good teams battling for the playoffs, but they’re really good.”
When Sacramento was challenging the Lakers for supremacy in the West, the Warriors were mired in a 12-year playoff drought. Over the past half-decade, as Golden State blossomed into a dynasty, the Kings slogged through a lengthy rebuild. When Sacramento played the Warriors at Oracle Arena on Nov. 24, it was the first meeting in which both teams had winning records.
That has been quite a waste of a promising rivalry.
There are also the personal ties. Sacramento principal owner Vivek Ranadive is a former Warriors minority owner who has tried to follow Golden State’s championship blueprint since taking over the Kings in 2013.
Cousins, perhaps the best player in the league to have yet to play in the postseason, left a polarizing legacy in Sacramento when he was traded to New Orleans two years ago. Sacramento forward Harrison Barnes was essentially replaced by Durant after an ugly showing with the Warriors in the 2016 NBA Finals.
In its four meetings this season with Golden State, Sacramento has lost by a combined 12 points. Testing the Warriors in the first round might exorcise those memories.
“I like how fast they play, and they shoot a lot of threes,” Durant said. “They’re just lacking experience, in my opinion. They’ll be a team to be reckoned with pretty soon.”