Well, well, well, the Golden State Warriors are in a bit of a pickle after losing to the Kings on Monday, marking the first time they’ve been in a playoff series since 2007. Brace yourselves for some juicy details, folks.
During the game, the King’s forward, Domantas Sabonis, grabbed Warriors’ forward, Draymond Green’s leg, leading to a technical foul. But that’s not all, Green was later assessed with a Flagrant 2 foul after he stepped on Sabonis, leading to his ejection from the game. The Golden 1 Center went wild with excitement when this went down.
Luckily, X-rays on Sabonis’ ribs and lungs were negative, so he’s undergoing additional testing on Tuesday. Phew.
Golden State’s star, Stephen Curry, scored 28 points, moving into 18th all-time in NBA playoff scoring. Unfortunately, he made only 3 of 13 shots from deep. The Sacramento King’s Sabonis, and De’Aaron Fox, led the team with 24 points each, while Malik Monk poured in 18 points off the bench.
The Athletic’s instant analysis suggests that Green might not be out of the woods yet. They suspect that Green might face further discipline following his ejection from the game. Green has scored eight points on 3-of-6 shooting in 31 minutes before the ejection. He gave himself two flagrant points, meaning he will be suspended for one game if he reaches four points. Ouch.
To make matters worse, the Warriors’ offense was thwarted by the Kings, who aren’t best known for their defense. Golden State has now made only 29 out of 90 shots from behind the arc in two games, and the Kings are overplaying diligently on the perimeter – throwing two bodies at Curry, or running a box-and-one at him – and forcing others to create offense. The physicality and aggression of the Kings worked against the Warriors.
Despite the above, the Kings’ Davion Mitchell played a critical role in their win. Although he scored 14 points and had three assists, his biggest impact was defensively. Mitchell played for 28 minutes, making life difficult for Curry and the rest of the Warriors. De’Aaron Fox was even complimentary of Mitchell’s defensive effort during practice: “He’s made me better since being here.”
Green refuted claims that he stomped too hard on Sabonis, stating that his leg got grabbed: “My leg got grabbed. Second time in two nights. … My leg has to land somewhere.” Kings coach Mike Brown, on the other hand, felt Green’s stomp deserved a Flagrant 2.
In particular, things did not go well for the Warriors, given that they had 22 turnovers and 26 fouls. In the final 2:54 of the game, they were outscored 12-5. The Warriors will now have to work doubly hard if they hope to turn the series around.
Serious News: nytimes
