Kings fight back, but leave Golden State with loss

The Sacramento Kings fought to make it close, but came up short Tuesday night in Golden State.

Apr 7, 2026, 9:33 PM Updated: 9:34 pm

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Despite recovering from a 16-point deficit to have a chance late, the Sacramento Kings came up short-handed Tuesday night in Chase Center.

Second-chance points and converting off opponent turnovers were the story of the night as both sides put up a messy showing with 31 total turnovers between them.

Killian Hayes led the Kings with a season-high 18 points on 6/13 shooting, along with four assists and four rebounds. He was one of six Sacramento players to record double-digits and a large contributor to their 46 bench points.

But the Warriors had 52 from their reserves, which unfairly included Stephen Curry dropping 17 points. Brandin Podziemski (20) and De’Anthony Melton (21) combined for 41 points as they shot 19/24 from the line as a group.

But the two sides will match up later this week as the Warriors come to Golden 1 Center on Friday, the 81st game of the 2025-26 regular season.

Sacramento Kings @ Golden State Warriors Game Notes

With three games remaining in the 2025-26 season, neither team was playing for much in terms of standings implications on Tuesday night in San Francisco.

It was an extensive injury report, with 15 players combined sidelined. Kings head coach Doug Christie was without DeMar DeRozan (hamstring), Drew Eubanks (thumb), De’Andre Hunter (eye), Zach LaVine (finger), Keegan Murray (ankle), Domantas Sabonis (knee), and Russell Westbrook (toe).

That left a starting unit of Devin Carter, Nique Clifford, Daeqwon Plowden, Precious Achiuwa, and Maxime Raynaud. That frontcourt, along with reserves Killian Hayes and Malik Monk, was going to be crucial with a lack of traditional point guard depth.

Meanwhile, the Warriors were without Jimmy Butler III (ACL), Al Horford (soleus), Moses Moody (patellar tendon), Kristaps Porzingis (right knee), Quinten Post (foot), Will Richard (back), and Gui Santos (pelvic contusion).

Golden State head coach Steve Kerr started Brandin Podziemski, De’Anthony Melton, Will Richard, Malevy Leons, and Draymond Green. In just his second game back from an extended absence, Stephen Curry came off the bench.

The first few possessions for Sacramento featured Raynaud in a pick-and-roll with Clifford often functioning as the initiator. Those are important repetitions for their most recent draft picks.

Max gets an and-1 for his 23rd birthday present 🎂 pic.twitter.com/lu65kbForb

— Kings on NBCS (@NBCSKings) April 8, 2026

On the other side, they were facing an aggressive Spencer and Podziemski, who grew comfortable with larger roles without Curry.

In fact, the first Curry to enter the game was former King Seth Curry. Led by Raynaud’s around-the-rim game, the score was nearly even as both teams had a somewhat sloppy start.

Steph Curry entered as his side held a 13-12 lead with 6:24 remaining in the first, Carter was assigned the task of chasing the former MVP through countless off-ball screens.

Plowden made his second triple on as many attempts before Curry’s first look came after an offensive rebound. A weakness of Kerr’s movement offense has always been turnovers.

finders keepers 💪 pic.twitter.com/K2AvSGJ9eq

— Sacramento Kings (@SacramentoKings) April 8, 2026

Sacramento may have come into the night with that in mind, because they were notably active in creating deflections and attempting to force turnovers.

At the end of one, Plowden (6) and Raynaud (7) had combined for 13 points as the Kings led 26-25. Sixteen of their points had come from within the paint, with their bench supplying a solid punch as well.

Yet, things began to fall apart in the second. While turnovers have been a Warriors’ weakness, scoring off opponents’ mistakes has always been a strength.

After the second unit traded buckets for a bit, the Kings began committing live-ball turnovers that seemed to turn into triples on the other end more often than not.

Perhaps the only more efficient three-point attempt in the modern NBA is after offensive rebounds, which was also hurting Sacramento.

The Chase Center crowd began to come alive as the home team put together a comfortable lead thanks to a 22-7 run.

Five turnovers led to 10 Warriors points, while three offensive rebounds were converted into six more. The Kings actually managed an efficient 10/17 (from the field and 5/9 from three in the frame — veteran sharpshooter Doug McDermott added a pair — but notably lost the possession battle.

6️⃣ pts off the bench for Dougie pic.twitter.com/UYxBfaNTdn

— Sacramento Kings (@SacramentoKings) April 8, 2026

They attempted five fewer field goals and six fewer free throws en route to being outscored by 14 in the frame, now facing a 66-53 deficit at the halfway point.

Four Warriors were in double-digits as S. Curry led the way with 14 on 4/7 shooting. Sacramento’s scoring was spread across its thin roster, with no player surpassing 10.

As has often been the case this season, they would need to win the second half to have a close finish.

Messy play was on display as they returned to action. Getting back to forcing turnovers should have been a recipe for the Kings to fight their way back, but it only allowed them to slowly chip away.

Sacramento forced five turnovers in the first six minutes of the third, but never overtook the home team. Every time the Warriors tried to further their lead, the Kings would find a putback or timely trip to the line.

Luckily for them, the only available “traditional point guard” — as Christie regularly compliments — Hayes appeared to be in rhythm.

After nine points and three assists on 4/5 first-half shooting, the former lottery pick showed why he was one of the G League’s top scorers. In fact, he and DaQuan Jeffries were named to All-NBA G League teams earlier that day.

While never fully recovering, he helped Sacramento do just enough to maintain a puncher’s chance. Shaking Spencer with a crossover into a stepback triple added his 17th points of the night, a season-high for the late addition.

3 dropping 3️⃣s

Killian currently has 17 PTS, 3 for 5 from beyond the arc. pic.twitter.com/sGPpfHz5pQ

— Sacramento Kings (@SacramentoKings) April 8, 2026

A 17-3 run to close the quarter had cut the Warriors’ lead to four (85-81) after trailing by as much as 16.

McDermott knocked down a triple to give the Kings their first lead (89-87) since early in the night.

But Achiuwa felt like the primary focus on both ends of the floor. Going against a smaller Golden State lineup, he was powering through defenders to finish around the basket. That also left him tasked with defending quicker players on the perimeter, which he did well.

Both he and Cardwell finally made their presence felt on the offensive glass as well. Once out of it, the fourth quarter became back-and-forth action.

With just under six minutes left, both Currys entered the action as members of the closing lineup alongisde Podziemski, Green, and Bassey. Christie elected to roll with Hayes, Clifford, Achiuwa, McDermott, and Cardwell.

After a few more traded buckets, a S. Curry triple tied the game at 104 with more than two minutes. Dancing on Clifford in the following possession, he missed the look but found his own rebound before dining Podziemski from beyond the arc, 107-104 Warriors.

Attempting to secure a Hayes missed corner three, Cardwell picked up his sixth foul of the night. Raynaud re-entered the action.

That gifted Golden State two more free throws. Add one more turnover from the Kings, and they were down five with a minute to recover.

Unable to score when it mattered, they ended up suffering a 105-110 loss to their geographical rivals.

Second-chance points and converting off opponent turnovers were the story of the night as both sides put up a messy showing with 31 total turnovers between them.

But the two sides will match up later this week as the Warriors come to Golden 1 Center on Friday, the 81st game of the 2025-26 regular season.

The Kings (21-59) remain tied for the fourth-best lottery odds with the Utah Jazz, who allowed the Pelicans to score 95 second-half points in their loss.