Feb 21, 2025; Sacramento, California, USA; Sacramento Kings forward DeMar DeRozan (10) scores a basket during the first quarter Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green (23) during the first quarter at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images
The Kings and Warriors face off tonight in the final game of their regular season series, and one that could decide playoff status for both teams.
Let’s talk Kings basketball!
**When:** Thursday, March 13th, 7:00 PM PT
**Where:** Chase Center, San Francisco, CA
**TV:** ESPN, NBC Sports California
**Radio****:** Sactown Sports 1140 AM
Luka Doncic to the Lakers dominated headlines during the trade deadline, but the Warriors acquiring Jimmy Butler without really having to give up too much might have been the most impactful. Golden State has lost just one game in which Jimmy Butler has played, and just two overall since acquiring Butler. Golden State has the NBA’s 3rd best defensive rating and 5th best offensive rating during that stretch, with the 2nd best net rating only to the Cleveland Cavaliers (currently on a 15 game win streak). Butler has fit in like a glove, giving the Warriors a supercharged version of what they had from Andrew Wiggins, and they’ve been doing all of this without Jonathan Kuminga as well, who just so happens to be coming back from injury tonight against the Kings. And that’s to say nothing of how rejuvenated Stephen Curry looks, as he’s been averaging 29.5 points a game over the last 10 games, including a 56 point performance on the road against Orlando.
The Kings faced the Warriors once so far without Butler, and it was one of the roughest games of the season, as the Kings were blown out 132-108 on their home floor with the Warriors winning every single quarter. Golden State shot 53.8% from the field in that game, including 20-43 from distance. The Kings got 34 points from DeMar DeRozan, but the game was so bad DeRozan was visibly frustrated during the game and Doug Christie held a meeting with his starters after the game, demanding more from them. The Kings responded by winning four straight, but their last few games have been rough. The games against the Nuggets and Clippers both came down to the wire, and both times saw the Kings end up on the short end of the stick. Then the Knicks came into Sacramento and handed the Kings another brutal home loss, 133-104.
This recent stretch has seen the Kings go from being within a hands grabs of the 6th seed to 3.5 games back with not much runway left. The Kings have one of the most difficult stretches remaining. If the Kings want any hope of getting to that 6th seed, a win tonight against the Warriors is almost mandatory, as it would give the Kings the season series and also narrow the gap to a manageable 2.5. It’d still be a long shot but a loss tonight would basically evaporate all hope of the Kings getting into the playoffs without having to navigate the Play-In.
There’s no word from the Kings as of yet on Domantas Sabonis’ status for tonight’s game. Sabonis has missed the last five games (and basically 6 since he got injured so early against Houston), and while Jonas Valanciunas has filled in admirably, he’s not on Sabonis’ level offensively and the Kings have clearly missed having such a key cog of their offense. Getting Sabonis back tonight would be a boon, but hamstrings can be fickle so I wouldn’t be surprised to see the Kings continue to play this cautiously. We’ll see if Jake LaRavia is able to play as well as he missed Monday’s game with a sore knee.
Hopefully the Kings head into Golden State with some fire and energy, wanting to get both the bad taste of the Knicks game and the last time they faced the Warriors out of their mouth. Golden State is playing about as well as anyone in the league right now and once again looks like a potential contender. The Kings will need to bring their A-game and then some to come out on top.
Prediction
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It’s another Kings-Warriors thriller on national TV.
Kings 141, Warriors 139 2OT