5
21
Jan
Preview: Kings at Warriors
by Mike
Sacramento
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Golden State
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Oracle Arena
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| 2010-11 Meetings | ||
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| December 21, 2010 • Recap | ||
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Warriors | 117 |
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Kings | 109 |
| January 21, 2011 • Recap | ||
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Kings | 112 |
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Warriors | 119 |
| March 14, 2011 • Recap | ||
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Warriors | 119 |
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Kings | 129 |
| April 10, 2011 • Recap | ||
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Kings | 104 |
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Warriors | 103 |
The Warriors kick off the second half of the season tonight against the visiting Kings, losers of 6 of their last 7 and the hosts to perhaps the Warriors biggest win so far this season (at least, biggest given what it would have meant to lose that game). Once again, the Warriors face a must-win if they hope to return to respectability before they head back out on the road for an extended stretch (related, good to see that Lacob is also targeting an 11-4 record in their next 15 to break into positive territory.) What to watch for tonight:
- Play like the better team — this time, for reals. Perhaps it was a bit much to expect a blowout on Wednesday against a well-coached Pacers squad, but tonight there really are no excuses. Sacramento is on a slide, and with a game tomorrow night in LA against the Clippers it would be great to give the starters a bit of rest.
- More of the Wright stuff. Brandon Wright was the surprise contributor against Indiana, with 6 points and 12 big minutes. Let’s see if he’s the first big off the bench, or at the very least gets some run in the second quarter. I’d still be shocked if he ever becomes a consistent contributor for the dubs, but at the very least I’d love to see him build his trade value up from its current negative value.
- 5 vs. 6. I don’t expect Udoh to get much in terms of minutes, but when he’s in there I hope to see him guard Cousins. Could be a good matchup for Udoh, as Cousins’ relative rawness means he won’t be pulling any crafty veteran moves on Udoh. A solid block or two could go a long way toward easing the pain of last season’s late “run” that gave the Warriors the 6th pick instead of the 5th.
Tags: brandan wright, demarcus cousins, ekpe udoh, kings, warriors
