2024 Western Conference 9/10 Play-In Tournament Game: (10) Golden State @ (9) Sacramento, Tuesday, April 16 (10pm ET/TNT) Spoiler Keep your eyes on: How the Kings get stops A year ago, spread out across the final two weeks of April, these teams battled through seven games before Golden State advanced, riding Steph Curry’s 50-point outburst in the finale. Now they’re back on the same court for another “Game 7,” win-or-go-home experience, just without the preliminaries. In fact, not only haven’t these teams faced each other six times in recent days, they haven’t played since Jan. 25. And that – a 134-133 Kings victory in Sacramento – was their lone meeting after November. So while they’re familiar with each other in broad strokes, there have been personnel changes and tweaks to playbooks that each team will need to react to quickly. The most significant change lately in their overall play has been Sacramento’s tightened defense. Since March 1, the Kings have improved from 20th in the league (116.4 points per 100 possessions) to third, their defensive rating at 109.5. It was hard work driven by necessity, with their attack sagging after injuries to Kevin Huerter and Malik Monk. So some of the gaudy numbers put up by the Warriors in the season series – 120 points per game, 43.3% on 3s – might take a hit in this one. Key matchup: Domantas Sabonis vs. Golden State’s committee in the middle Sacramento’s big man just wrapped a likely second straight All-NBA season, notching 77 double-doubles and 26 triple-doubles. His numbers were off only a bit against Golden State, but “a bit” might be enough in single elimination. The Warriors can throw different matchup looks at Sabonis, from rookie starter Trayce Jackson-Davis to veterans Draymond Green and Kevon Looney. Last year in the first round, Golden State’s preference was that Sabonis shoot more and pass less. But he reportedly has become more comfortable taking the shots the Warriors give him – and he still averaged 9.5 assists against them in four games. Golden State doesn’t look to its bigs for much scoring, so they can focus on containing Sabonis. Keeping him busy defensively can provide an energy sink, too, whether it means finding Jackson-Davis on the perimeter or coping with Curry’s or other Warriors’ attacks on the rim. Prediction: Warriors This might come down to pedigree vs. desperation. Home or road, that hasn’t meant much in the teams’ recent history. Sacramento sputtered to the regular season’s finish line, losing five of seven. Not having Huerter or Monk – who combined to average 23.5 points in the season series – is a tangible blow, forcing the Kings into an eight-man rotation recently. Golden State is hitting this game on a roll, apart from the bus ride up I-80, having won 10 of its last 12. Momentum, an experienced core of vets and Curry’s demonstrated knack for rising to occasions should decide this.
Keep your eyes on: How the Kings get stops A year ago, spread out across the final two weeks of April, these teams battled through seven games before Golden State advanced, riding Steph Curry’s 50-point outburst in the finale. Now they’re back on the same court for another “Game 7,” win-or-go-home experience, just without the preliminaries. In fact, not only haven’t these teams faced each other six times in recent days, they haven’t played since Jan. 25. And that – a 134-133 Kings victory in Sacramento – was their lone meeting after November. So while they’re familiar with each other in broad strokes, there have been personnel changes and tweaks to playbooks that each team will need to react to quickly. The most significant change lately in their overall play has been Sacramento’s tightened defense. Since March 1, the Kings have improved from 20th in the league (116.4 points per 100 possessions) to third, their defensive rating at 109.5. It was hard work driven by necessity, with their attack sagging after injuries to Kevin Huerter and Malik Monk. So some of the gaudy numbers put up by the Warriors in the season series – 120 points per game, 43.3% on 3s – might take a hit in this one. Key matchup: Domantas Sabonis vs. Golden State’s committee in the middle Sacramento’s big man just wrapped a likely second straight All-NBA season, notching 77 double-doubles and 26 triple-doubles. His numbers were off only a bit against Golden State, but “a bit” might be enough in single elimination. The Warriors can throw different matchup looks at Sabonis, from rookie starter Trayce Jackson-Davis to veterans Draymond Green and Kevon Looney. Last year in the first round, Golden State’s preference was that Sabonis shoot more and pass less. But he reportedly has become more comfortable taking the shots the Warriors give him – and he still averaged 9.5 assists against them in four games. Golden State doesn’t look to its bigs for much scoring, so they can focus on containing Sabonis. Keeping him busy defensively can provide an energy sink, too, whether it means finding Jackson-Davis on the perimeter or coping with Curry’s or other Warriors’ attacks on the rim. Prediction: Warriors This might come down to pedigree vs. desperation. Home or road, that hasn’t meant much in the teams’ recent history. Sacramento sputtered to the regular season’s finish line, losing five of seven. Not having Huerter or Monk – who combined to average 23.5 points in the season series – is a tangible blow, forcing the Kings into an eight-man rotation recently. Golden State is hitting this game on a roll, apart from the bus ride up I-80, having won 10 of its last 12. Momentum, an experienced core of vets and Curry’s demonstrated knack for rising to occasions should decide this.
