The Kings and their fans head West on I-80 for Game 3 to try and take a commanding lead in the series. Sacramento did what they were supposed to do by defending their home-court, and now will look to try and steal a game at the Chase Center.
The story line coming into this one, for better or worse, is Draymond Green, so let’s start there. In the 9 games they played without Green this year, the Warriors have gone 3-6. Draymond is a huge part of the Warriors offense, with his 6.8 Assists in the Regular Season and 8.0 per game in the first 2 games of the series. That along with his defensive activity (he had 3 Drawn Charges in game 2) will create a huge whole for Golden State to try and fill.
The other main story line is moving over to Chase Center. Especially in the Playoffs, everyone always says the ‘Others’ play better at home. Donte DiVincenzo, Gary Payton II, and Jordan Poole all have better FG%’s and 3P%’s at home compared to on the road.
Conversely, Kevin Huerter, Harrison Barnes, Keegan Murray, and Trey Lyles all see dips in their 3P%’s on the road compared to at home. Malik Monk though shoots 39.7% from 3 on the road compared to 30.5% at home. Both Monk and Fox are experiencing the playoffs for the first time, but they have that look and feel that there is no moment that is too big for either of them. Going in the road to a hostile environment will be the next test to see how they respond.
The Kings have done a tremendous job chasing Steph and the Warriors around the multitude of screens that Golden State sets. It should come as no surprise that the Kings and Warriors are running the most of any teams in the Playoffs. The Kings run 18.81 Miles per game and the Warriors are right behind at 18.28. The individual number that stands out to me is when you key in on Steph. Curry ran an average of 2.52 Miles per game in the regular season. In the playoffs, that number has jumped to 3.01.
What is so key on that number is that Curry is working harder and getting worse looks than he got all season. In the regular season, Steph was averaging 5.9 Open 3’s and 3.2 Wide-Open 3’s per game. In the playoffs, the Open number jumps to 8.5, but the Wide-Open number plummets to 0.5. In 78 minutes of play, Stephen Curry has taken one single ‘Wide-Open’ 3-Point Attempt.
It is a testimony to the Kings defense and the coaching staff’s scheme. Yes, Davion has been getting a lot of the credit, but Monk, Fox, and Barnes have everyone on the roster has been chasing him around all game and making life extremely difficult for the MVP.
The other great thing that the Kings are doing is dominating the Points in the Paint battle. They have outscored Golden State 114-84 in the paint during the first two games, thanks in large part to the work they have done in the Floater Area.
My take after the first 2 games is that the Kings can win this series without making more 3’s than the Warriors in a single game. We said it coming into the series and it’s shown to be true again, the Kings don’t need to make 3’s to win games. They are winning with defense, driving to the basket, getting to the Free Throw line, and a multitude of other small things. As long as the Warriors are focused on taking those 3’s away with top-blocking the line, continue to take what they give you and feast in other areas.