SAN FRANCISCO — Warriors fans kept waiting for the big run, but it never happened. Warriors fans were waiting for the Kings to stop responding, but they kept hitting timely buckets.
Despite all the momentum of three straight victories and the confidence of playing on their home court, the Warriors couldn't close out the series. Sacramento kept its season alive with a gutsy 118-99 win that will bring the series back to the state capital for Game 7 on Sunday.
Golden State simply didn’t deserve to win on Friday night. That championship pedigree was nowhere to be found. Instead, the disjointed nature that plagued Golden State for most of the season reared its ugly head and the untested Kings stepped up to the challenge.
“They came out with more force and more energy and they executed better,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. “So the right team won, that's for sure. They came in and earned the victory. … We always say, we win together, we lose together, and this was a team effort that includes players and coaches, and the Kings outplayed us, out coached us, deserved to win.”
Instead of celebrating another epic Game 6 Klay performance, Dub Nation was subjected to The Malik Monk and De’Aaron Fox Show. No matter that Domantas Sabonis was neutralized once again, the Kings bench outscored the Warriors bench 52-21 and the Warriors went cold from the floor, shooting just 37.6 percent.
There was plenty of blame to go around for Golden State. Offensively, Jordan Poole (7 points, 2-of-11) and Andrew Wiggins (13 points, 5-of-13 shooting) struggled all evening. Defensively, the Warriors couldn’t keep a lid on the Kings, who seemingly had an answer to every big bucket Golden State sank in the fourth quarter.
Monk went back to his explosive ways, going 8-of-14 from the field en route to 28 points. Trey Lyles continued to be a Warriors killer with his 12 points and 10 rebounds off the bench, and Kevin Huerter snapped out of his series-long funk to hit a couple of big 3-pointers late. Kings coach Mike Brown deserves credit for using Lyles over Alex Len to go small and beat the Warriors at their own game.
The Warriors entered Friday’s game with an 11-1 postseason record at Chase Center but they looked like the 2022-23 Road Dubs, fumbling away opportunities (19 turnovers) while forcing tough shots. Not to mention the failed fourth quarter, as the Kings outscored the Dubs 28-19 in the final period.
All series long, the Warriors have discussed how the psychology of the see-saw battle has changed. From an 0-2 hole to what seemed to be a commanding 3-2 lead, the Warriors are now back in the hot seat.
Forget the series, the fate of the dynasty is suddenly back on the line.
If the Warriors lose on Sunday – what’s to come with the future of Draymond Green? Bob Myers? Klay Thompson said he’s not worried about such big-picture questions.
“Nah. That’s not my job to speculate,” Thompson said. “My job is to just get ready, play to the best of my ability and have fun while doing it.”
Since Kerr took over the head-coaching gig of the franchise, the Warriors have never lost a Western Conference playoff series.
All the pressure will be on the Warriors to pull off a road win in Game 7 at what should be an absolutely wild Golden 1 Center. The Kings are back in the playoffs for the first time since 2006 and the cowbells should be louder than ever on Sunday.
“When it's a short turnaround like it is, ain't too much you can do,” Warriors center Kevon Looney said. “We played this team, what, six times already, so we know what they are going to do. We know what to expect. We just have to go out there and execute, and that's it.”
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