Kings seek 3-0 series lead over Warriors as action shifts to Chase Center

In a series with plenty of entertainment value (as well as some good ‘ole NBA Playoff controversy), this first-round matchup between the Sacramento Kings and Golden State Warriors has reached a crossroads.

With a win over the Warriors on Thursday, the Kings can take a 3-0 series lead that would put the defending champion Warriors on the cusp of being swept in the playoffs for the first time since the 1993-94 season.

Of course, Golden State has to like its chances of making this a series upon returning to the friendly confines of Chase Center, a setting that saw the Warriors win 33 of its 44 wins this season.

Sacramento enters Game 3 with the best road record in the Western Conference (25-16), although they have struggled to beat Golden State at its new home in San Francisco Bay.

Teams that go up 2-0 in a best-of-seven series are 222-21 (.914) all-time in the NBA Playoffs, meaning that the Kings are in the driver’s seat–from a historical perspective, that is. If Sacramento wants to further distance itself from the Warriors, a win in Game 3 would all but ensure a first-round victory.

No team has ever come back from a 3-0 series deficit during the NBA Playoffs.

The Kings have the Warriors on the ropes. Time to see if this surprise team can deliver a knockout punch in front of a packed house full of fired-up Golden State fans.

DAVION MITCHELL FOR 3.

KINGS CLOSING ON A 10-2 RUN.

📺: TNT | Game 2 | SAC Leads 1-0#NBAPlayoffs presented by Google Pixel pic.twitter.com/5jsqFt1H7t

— NBA (@NBA) April 18, 2023

Sacramento Kings @ Golden State Warriors Game Info

Series: Kings lead 2-0

When: 7:00 PM PST

Where: Chase Center – San Francisco, CA

TV: NBC Sports California, TNT

Radio: Sactown Sports 1140 AM – Pregame coverage starts at 5:30 PM PST on Game Night

Line: Warriors -6.0, O/U: 239

Will the shots start to fall for Sacramento?

The Kings have taken a 2-0 series lead–but their three-point shooting has had little to do with the success.

While Sacramento finished the season having made the fifth-most three-point field goals in the league on 37 percent shooting (eighth in the NBA), the shots from beyond the arc have not been falling during the first two games of this series.

The Kings are shooting 30 percent from deep through two games of NBA Playoff action. Game 1 wasn’t so bad in the end for Sacramento after the team went eight-for-16 from deep during the second half. Without the late push, a sub-30-percent finish was in the cards.

Sacramento missed its first 11 three-point attempts during the start of Game 2 before finishing the game nine-of-38 (23%) from beyond the arc.

FOURTH QUARTER FOX 🦊

KINGS LEAD 107-101 WITH 1:52 TO PLAY.

📺: TNT | Game 2 | SAC Leads 1-0 pic.twitter.com/t1iGiX9144

— NBA (@NBA) April 18, 2023

The Kings went 1-7 this season when shooting 25 percent or less from three-point range. In other words, winning games the way they did in Game 2 is not a viable blueprint for success.

Keegan Murray (0-of-3), Kevin Huerter (2-of-14), and Harrison Barnes (1-of-7) have struggled to convert from three-point range thus far. With the Warriors returning home, Sacramento needs its three-point arsenal at the top of its game.

When the Kings have shot 37 percent or better from three-point range this season, they have posted a record of 30-9.

Will Game 3 bring some success from beyond the arc? We’re about to find out.

Can the Kings contain Curry (again)?

A massive key to Monday night’s Game 2 win was the job that Sacramento’s defense did on Stephen Curry.

After scoring 30 points on six made three-point field goals in Game 1, Curry struggled to knock down looks from the perimeter in Game 2 as the sharpshooter finished the night three-of-13 (23%) from deep during Golden State’s 114-106 loss at Golden 1 Center.

Kings guard Davion Mitchell did a great job taking scoring opportunities away from Curry down the stretch, with Mitchell holding the two-time MVP to four points on two-of-five shooting (0-of-two from three-point land) during seven total minutes of head-to-head defense.

Mitchell and the Kings held Curry in check, and they’ll have to hope for a similar outcome in Game 3–especially as the series shifts to Chase Center.

Davion Mitchell has played great on-ball defense against Steph Curry. pic.twitter.com/IIazw2Zzgd

— Brenden Nunes (@BrendenNunesNBA) April 18, 2023

Curry has been a lights-out shooter in any setting. Home, road, it doesn’t matter. But some signs point to Curry preferring the comfort of playing on his home floor, and his three-point percentages confirm that notion:

Home: 45% on 287 attempts

Road: 40% on 352 attempts

It’s rare for Curry to post back-to-back poor shooting performances, as the 35-year-old has only shot 30 percent or less from deep in back-to-back games three times this season.

Sacramento should use a similar plan of attack on Thursday by playing Mitchell on Curry during crunch time, which worked well during the second half of the Game 2 win.

Golden State is 12-15 this season when Curry scores less than 30 points. After holding Curry to 28 points on Monday, the Kings will hope for a similar outcome this time around.

How will the Warriors adapt to the loss of Draymond Green?

Draymond Green will not play on Thursday after being suspended by the NBA for his actions during the end of Monday’s Game 2 action at Golden 1 Center.

The NBA announced the suspension on Tuesday night, citing that the suspension “was based in part on Green’s history of unsportsmanlike acts.” ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski spoke with NBA executive vice president Joe Dumars, who added it came down to “Excessive and over-the-top actions, conduct detrimental and a repeat offender. That’s what separates this where you end up with a suspension.”

That feels like something Draymond Green will be ejected and possibly even suspended moving forward… pic.twitter.com/HaAzrHXhkT

— Brenden Nunes (@BrendenNunesNBA) April 18, 2023

Green, a former Defensive Player of the Year award winner, is a defensive anchor for a Warriors team with little depth at the forward-center positions. With Green sitting out, Golden State will rely on center Kevon Looney to combat Domantas Sabonis in the paint.

If Looney, who finished Game 2 with five fouls, finds himself in foul trouble again, the Warriors will have some decisions regarding who will take those minutes in the post.

Expect Sabonis to attack Looney often in the paint, with players like Harrison Barnes, De’Aaron Fox, and Malik Monk being threats to seek points in the paint consistently.

The Warriors are 3-6 this season in games that Green has been inactive.

House of Horrors

The Warriors are very hard to beat at Chase Center. Golden State’s home record of 33-8 was the third-best in the NBA.

Sacramento has struggled to beat the Warriors on the road, as they have lost six-straight games at Chase Center dating back to the start of the 2020-21 regular season.

The Kings’ last win at Chase Center came on February 25, 2020.

Injury Report

Sacramento

• Domantas Sabonis – QUESTIONABLE (sternum contusion)

Head coach Mike Brown told the media on Wednesday that Sabonis will play in Game 3.

• Matthew Dellavedova – OUT (right index finger surgery)

Golden State

• Jordan Poole – QUESTIONABLE (left ankle sprain)
• Andrew Wiggins – QUESTIONABLE (right shoulder soreness)
• Gary Payton II – QUESTIONABLE (general illness)
• Draymond Green – OUT (league suspension)
• Andre Iguodala – OUT (left wrist surgery)
• Ryan Rollins – OUT (right foot surgery)

Upcoming Sacramento Kings Schedule

NBA Western Conference Playoffs – First Round

• Thursday, April 20th – Game 3: Sacramento Kings @ Golden State Warriors – 7:00 PM PST
• Sunday, April 23rd – Game 4: Sacramento Kings @ Golden State Warriors – 12:30 PM PST
• Wednesday, April 26th – Game 5**: Sacramento Kings vs. Golden State Warriors – TBD
• Friday, April 28th – Game 6**: Sacramento Kings @ Golden State Warriors – TBD
• Sunday, April 30th – Game 7**: Sacramento Kings vs. Golden State Warriors – TBD

**If necessary

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