TICKETS & PROMOTIONS
Don't miss this season's first Bay Area appearance of Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday. A limited number of tickets are still available for the Pacific Division Showdown, and fans can guarantee the best remaining seats by purchasing a Lakers Four-Pack Mini-Plan. But act now, as another sellout crowd is expected at Oracle Arena. BUY TICKETS NOW
LAST TIME OUT
Charles Jenkins exploded for a career-high 27 points, but it wasn’t enough as the Warriors dropped a 90-87 thriller in Portland Sunday night. With both Stephen Curry and Nate Robinson nursing injuries, Jenkins got the start and put up the highest single-game total for a 2011 second round pick this year. David Lee scored (16 points, 16 rebounds) and Brandon Rush (10 points, 11 rebounds) tallied double-doubles and Klay Thompson added 16 points in the defeat. FULL GAME RECAP
WARRIORS VS. LAKERS
Tuesday's contest will mark the second of four Warriors-Lakers matchups this season and the first in Oakland. The Lakers took the first meeting of the season series, 97-90, after holding off a fourth-quarter Warriors rally on January 6. Golden State will be opening a stretch of three home games in four nights, and they'll start it off against a division rival that currently sports the third-best record in the Western Conference. Finding a way to slow down Kobe Bryant, who had 39 points in the team's first head-to-head matchup, will be a tough assignment, but the team has risen to the challenge in the past and they'll look to do so again on Tuesday.
ROOKIE PRODUCTION
Injuries and roster transactions have certainly taken their toll on the Warriors this season, but they are also allowing the rookies to gain some valuable playing time that could prove to be beneficial in the near future. As mentioned above, Charles Jenkins' 27-point night on Sunday was the highest scoring output of the season by a 2011 second round draft pick. Furthermore, Klay Thompson's 31 points on Saturday was the second-highest total by any rookie this season. The continued development of the Warriors' rookies will be one of the team's major storylines for the remainder of the season.
GET TO KNOW THE NEW GUYS
With the recent additions of Mickell Gladness and Keith Benson, the Warriors now have six rookies under contract (Thompson, Jenkins, Tyler, Chris Wright, Gladness and Tyler). Gladness has come off the bench in each of the last three games after signing a 10-day contract with the team on Thursday. Benson, meanwhile, signed a 10-day contract with the club on Saturday and played in that evening’s game against the Kings. Both players stand 6-foot-11, giving the Warriors some depth in the middle with starting center Andris Biedrins recovering from a strained right groin.
Injuries:Warriors - Nate Robinson (strained right hamstring) is a game-time decision. Andris Biedrins (strained right groin), Stephen Curry (mild sprain, right ankle) and Andrew Bogut (left ankle fracture) are out. Lakers - Jordan Hill (sprained MCL, right knee) is questionable.
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