You do not frequently see the No. 6 seed as an amazing favourite to overcome No. 3, however welcome to the wild and wacky Western Conference playoffs! Sacramento Kings lovers will spit malevolent venom, deservedly so, at the ones selecting the protecting champions to win their first-round sequence, however, as we all know, the Warriors are not any bizarre six-seed.
Armed with the celebrity energy of Steph Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green, at the side of the attempted and true playoff enjoy of Kevon Looney, Andrew Wiggins and Gary Payton II, the Warriors will glance to position an underwhelming common season at the back of them and get again to the type of basketball that made them unbeatable in final 12 months’s postseason.
Meanwhile the Kings, led by means of All-Stars Domantas Sabonis and De’Aaron Fox, now not simplest lit the beam all season, however in addition they lit the NBA on fireplace whilst finishing a 16-year playoff drought, previously the biggest energetic streak in American skilled sports activities. It must be a captivating sequence, with a bit additional juice added by means of the truth that Sacramento is coached by means of Mike Brown, a former Warriors assistant and one in every of Golden State trainer Steve Kerr’s very best pals.
Below is the sequence agenda, at the side of some main storylines and a sequence select.
(3) Sacramento Kings vs. (6) Golden State Warriors
All occasions Eastern
- Game 1 (at SAC): Saturday, April 15 | 8:30 p.m. | TV: TNT
- Game 2 (at SAC): Monday, April 17 | 10 p.m. | TV: TNT
- Game 3 (at GSW): Thursday, April 20 | 10 p.m. | TV: TNT
- Game 4 (at GSW): Saturday, April 23 | 3:30 p.m. | TV: ABC
- Game 5* (at SAC): Wednesday, April 26 | TBD | TV: TBD
- Game 6* (at GSW): Friday, April 28 | TBD | TV: TBD
- Game 7* (at SAC): Sunday, April 30 | TBD | TV: TBD
*If vital
Top Storylines
1. Are the Kings for actual?
The Kings have been one of the vital very best tales of the NBA common season, however there are quite a lot of doubts about how they will translate to the postseason — specifically confronted with the daunting protecting champions as a first-round opponent. The first Sacramento query mark is the suspect protection, which completed twenty sixth general within the common season and second-to-last in half-court potency, in keeping with Synergy Sports. That final mark is particularly relating to, for the reason that the Warriors run a quick-hitting, fast-passing half-court assault in contrast to any within the league.
On the opposite facet, the Kings boasted the perfect offensive score within the historical past of the NBA, however the relative playoff inexperience from their major solid of characters raises questions on how they will fare against a Warriors protection that has been via completely the entirety you’ll be able to consider in a postseason atmosphere. Fox hasn’t ever been to the playoffs, whilst Sabonis has simply 13 video games underneath his belt.
Sacramento additionally thrived within the seize this season, in large part because of Fox’s brilliance, however it is honest to wonder if they will be capable of handle such talent against an skilled Warriors roster when the lighting (or beams) are the brightest.
2. The Andrew Wiggins wrinkle
Talk in regards to the X-factor of all X-factors. Wiggins will reportedly play 20-25 mins off the bench in Game 1, together with his enjoying time probably expanding because the sequence is going on if issues pass smartly. It’s arduous to overestimate the significance of Wiggins to the Warriors on each ends, however specifically defensively, the place he is taking at the different staff’s very best perimeter participant (on this case, perhaps De’Aaron Fox). Golden State used to be a lot better defensively with Wiggins at the ground this season, and he completes the beginning unit (Curry, Thompson, Wiggins, Green, Looney) that used to be the most productive in all of the NBA when to be had.
If Wiggins can regain the offensive shape he displayed final postseason, it could be the top for the Kings. During the 2022 championship run, the Warriors’ offensive score stepped forward by means of 12 issues in keeping with 100 possessions with Wiggins at the ground — much more than with Curry. Before leaving the staff for private causes, Wiggins used to be capturing a career-high 40 p.c from 3-point vary, bolstering the league’s maximum prolific barrage from deep.
3. Road Woe-rriors
Already a hard staff to play in Sacramento, the Kings’ home-crowd power can be became as much as 17 in its first style of postseason motion in over a decade and a 1/2. This would spell hassle for any staff, however particularly the Warriors, who inexplicably sputtered to the league’s fourth-worst street document this season at 11-30. Golden State will level to its well-known streak of successful a minimum of one street recreation in all 27 playoff sequence with Curry, Thompson and Green at the ground, however it is inconceivable to forget about simply how deficient the Warriors have been at the street this season, specifically on protection, the place they allowed 118.3 issues in keeping with 100 possessions, in comparison to 108.4 at domestic.
If it used to be a query of focus or fatigue, one would be expecting that the playoff atmosphere will get rid of the ones from the equation, most likely resulting in a extra targeted Warriors unit clear of domestic. But the Kings simplest must win their domestic video games to win the sequence and, given how spectacular they have been offensively this season, it could be so much to invite for the Warriors to grow to be an absolutely other street staff than what we’ve got noticed all 12 months.
Series select
Call me cowardly, however I generally tend to accept as true with the typical line of concept. I rode the Warriors’ enjoy and picked them in each and every sequence final season, so why stray now? Ultimately Wiggins’ go back makes an excessive amount of of a distinction on each ends of the ground, and the Kings protection simply is not cohesive sufficient to stay alongside of Golden State. Pick: Warriors in six.