Kings notebook: Bogdan Bogdanovic, Buddy Hield, Marvin Bagley fuel win over Warriors
Sacramento has squandered a few winnable games against struggling teams already this season, but not this one.
The Kings opened up a big lead in the first half and continued to pour it on in the second, rolling to a 100-79 victory over the Golden State Warriors despite committing 29 turnovers Sunday night at Chase Center. Many fans headed for the exits after Bogdan Bogdanovic made back-to-back 3-pointers to put the Kings up 90-65 with 7:33 to play in the fourth quarter.
Bogdanovic came off the bench to score 25 points for the Kings (12-14), who moved into sole possession of seventh place in the Western Conference, a half-game ahead of the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Kings have won four of their last five, but they were coming off an embarrassing loss to the New York Knicks.
Buddy Hield had 19 points for Sacramento. Hield and Bogdanovic combined to make 17 of 22 field-goal attempts.
Marvin Bagley III turned in his best performance yet in his third game since returning from a broken thumb that caused him to miss 22 games. Bagley posted 17 points and six rebounds, making 7 of 13 from the field and 1 of 2 from 3-point range.
“It’s coming back every day, every game,” Bagley said. “I feel pretty normal out there. It’s just about getting back into game flow. It’s kind of hard to emulate game situations when you’re out. You can do all the running you want and all the conditioning you want, but there’s nothing like playing again on the court.”
Willie Cauley-Stein had 14 points and five rebounds for the Warriors (5-23), who have lost eight of nine. It was Cauley-Stein’s first game against Sacramento, where he spent his first four NBA seasons.
“It’s surreal,” Cauley-Stein said. “It was cool to see all my old teammates, and I went to battle with those dudes for four years, so that camaraderie you have with them doesn’t ever change.”
The Kings responded nicely after blowing a 16-point lead against the Knicks on Friday. They led by as many as 16 in the first half, shooting 59.4 percent from the field while holding the Warriors to 43.2-percent shooting.
Sacramento went up 36-20 on a three-point play by Bagley, but Golden State answered with a 14-1 run to cut the deficit to three. The Kings withstood the charge and regained control. They carried a 51-42 advantage into the halftime break despite committing 14 turnovers and making just 2 of 11 from 3-point range.
Sacramento reestablished a double-digit lead early in the third quarter and never relented. The Kings took a 67-49 lead on an alley-oop dunk by Richaun Holmes and they led by 20 going into the fourth quarter. The Kings went up by as many as 25 in the fourth.
Latest on De’Aaron Fox
The Kings upgraded point guard De’Aaron Fox’s status to doubtful before ruling him out for Sunday’s game, but Fox told The Sacramento Bee there is an “80 to 90 percent chance” he will play Tuesday against the Charlotte Hornets.
Fox has missed 17 games since suffering a Grade 3 ankle sprain at practice Nov. 11. He was averaging 18.2 points, 7.0 assists and 4.0 rebounds when he got hurt. The Kings have managed to go 9-8 with Cory Joseph starting in place of Fox, but they have missed his quickness, scoring and dynamic playmaking ability.
“He is the head of our snake and we are missing him on the court,” Kings forward Nemanja Bjelica said. “He’s our most important player, our best player and our leader, so I think everybody can’t wait to play with him.”
Wounded Warriors
The Warriors won three championships in four years and reached the NBA Finals each of the past five seasons, but they have been decimated by injuries this season.
Klay Thompson had surgery to repair a torn ACL in July after going down in Game 6 of the NBA Finals against the Toronto Raptors. Two-time MVP Stephen Curry had surgery in November after suffering a broken left hand.
Curry was expected to miss at least three months. He will be reevaluated Feb. 1. Thompson will be reevaluated at the All-Star break.
Road trip
Sunday’s game marked the start of another four-game road trip for the Kings, who are wrapping up a stretch in which they play 12 of 16 on the road.
The Kings will visit the Hornets on Tuesday, the Indiana Pacers on Friday and the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday. When they return to Golden 1 Center to face the Houston Rockets on Dec. 23, they will begin a stretch in which they will play seven of eight and 10 of 12 at home.
Home teams
According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Sunday marked the first time in more than 50 years that the San Francisco 49ers, Oakland Raiders and Golden State Warriors all played home games on the same day.
The last time it occurred was Oct. 29, 1967, when the Warriors beat the Chicago Bulls 125-105, the Raiders beat the Chargers 51-10 and the 49ers lost to the Detroit Lions 45-3. The Bay Area teams didn’t fare as well this time. The Atlanta Falcons beat the 49ers 29-22, the Jacksonville Jaguars beat the Raiders 20-16 and the Kings beat the Warriors.
Kings upcoming schedule
Dec. 17 at Charlotte Hornets, 4 p.m.
Dec. 20 at Indiana Pacers, 4 p.m.
Dec. 21 at Memphis Grizzlies, 5 p.m.
Dec. 23 vs. Houston Rockets, 7 p.m.
Dec. 26 vs. Minnesota Timberwolves, 7 p.m.
Injury report
Kings: OUT — De’Aaron Fox (ankle).
Warriors: OUT — Stephen Curry (hand), Klay Thompson (Achilles), Eric Paschall (hip).
This story was originally published December 15, 2019 at 7:54 PM.
