2023 Playoffs: West First Round | Kings (3) vs. Warriors (6)

5 takeaways from Kings' Game 1 win against the Warriors

Breaking down 5 key moments and storylines to know from Sacramento's triumphant return to the postseason.

Brian Martin, for NBA.com

De'Aaron Fox scores 15 of his 38 points in the 4th quarter to lead Sacramento.

Recapping the action from a wild Game 1 between the Golden State Warriors and Sacramento Kings.

1. Playoff basketball is back in Sacramento on emotional night

Kings fans waited a long time to cheer for their team in the playoffs. They showed their passion Saturday.

It had been 6,189 days since an NBA playoff game had been played in Sacramento. Over the nearly 17-year gap between the Kings’ last playoff game and their Game 1 win on Saturday, Kings fans have experienced a wealth of emotions.

Frustration over 16 straight losing seasons, setting the mark for the longest playoff drought in the history of the NBA.

This season brought plenty of joy to Kings fans as the team they’ve supported through thick, thin, and really thin finally broke through, established themselves as a team to be reckoned with, and shined on the court with the brightness of the beam lit after each victory.

On Saturday night, all of those emotions poured out both inside and outside of Golden 1 Center. For the 18,253 inside the building, their collective cheers were deafening from the moment the Kings took the court for warmups and continued throughout the game.

When the Kings closed the third quarter on a 15-4 run to overcome a 10-point deficit and take a one-point lead heading into the fourth, the decibel levels reached dangerous levels.

The emotions of the night weren’t just felt by the fans in attendance, but also by the players on the court, particularly players like Harrison Barnes (acquired at the 2018-19 trade deadline) and De’Aaron Fox (selected fifth in the 2017 draft) that have been in Sacramento the longest.

Even the opposing players from 90 miles and four championships away had to appreciate the atmosphere in Game 1.

2. Kentucky Kings outduel the Splash Brothers

The connection between De’Aaron Fox and Malik Monk, college teammates and close friends, helps power the beam in Sacramento.

De’Aaron Fox and Malik Monk each made their playoff debuts on Saturday and combined for 70 points to lead the Kings to a 126-123 Game 1 win.

Fox scored 15 of his game-high 38 points in the fourth quarter as he posted the second-most points ever in a playoff debut, falling four points shy of Luka Doncic’s record 42 points back in 2020.

After scoring just nine points in the first half, Fox had 10 points in the first five minutes of the third quarter. Kings fans are used to seeing Fox take over games like this in the fourth quarter, but in Game 1, the fourth quarter Fox got activated a bit early.

Monk scored 15 of his 32 points in the second quarter to keep the Kings in striking distance, as they trailed by only six points at halftime. During the regular season, Monk split his shots evenly between 2s and 3s, but in Game 1, he constantly attacked the basket. He not only converted six shots in the paint, but he also drew five shooting fouls on drives and shot a perfect 14-of-14 from the free throw line.

This was the third time this season that Fox and Monk have each scored 30 or more in the same game. The Kings are 3-0 in those games, all of which came against playoff opponents: Game 1 vs. Golden State, Feb. 24 at LA Clippers in the second-high scoring game in league history, and Dec. 28 against the top-seeded Denver Nuggets.

The Kentucky Wildcat teammates have enjoyed their first season together in Sacramento after Monk joined the Kings as a free agent – one of a series of roster moves made during the offseason to build out a roster to complement the skills of All-Stars Domantas Sabonis and Fox.

While Fox and Monk were making their playoff debuts, the opposing guard duo of Stephen Curry (135 playoff games) and Klay Thompson (146 playoff games) brought a combined 279 games of playoff experience into Game 1. The Splash Brothers combined for 51 points and 11 3-pointers made with Curry posting a team-high 30 points and a team-high plus-11 in his 37 minutes.

Fox and Curry each finished with eight clutch points on the night. Curry had a chance for 11, but his game-tying 3-pointer at the buzzer did not drop, sealing the win for the Kings.

3. Kings win the battle of the benches

During the regular season, both the Warriors (37.9 ppg, 7th) and Kings (37.3 ppg, 9th) ranked in the top third in the league in bench scoring. Both benches outperformed their season averages of Saturday, with the Kings finishing with a 55-50 edge.

TEAM PTS FGM FGA FG% 3PM 3PA 3P% FTM FTA FT%
Kings 55 17 26 65.4 7 12 58.3 14 14 100
Warriors 50 18 39 46.2 3 17 17.6 11 15 73.3

Sacramento’s bench was led by Monk’s brilliant 32-point performance, but also saw key contributions from Trey Lyles, Alex Len and Davion Mitchell. Lyles finished with 16 points in 18 minutes as he shot 6-of-8 from the field and 4-of-6 from 3-point range.

Len played only 13 minutes, but posted four points, seven boards (two offensive) and a highlight reel-worthy block of a Draymond Green layup attempt to spark the Kings. Mitchell finished with just three points and four assists, but was used in the rotation of defenders trying to slow down Curry.

The Kings needed their bench to come through because the majority of the starting lineup struggled to get going in Game 1. Domantas Sabonis finished with 12 points, 16 rebounds (five offensive), two assists, three steals and four turnovers on the night. He shot just 5-of-17 from the field as Green and Kevon Looney made life miserable for him trying to finish in the paint.

Huerter finished with just six points on 3-of-12 shooting while missing all five of his 3-point attempts. Rookie Keegan Murray got the start in his playoff debut, but logged only 16 minutes as he finished with two points on a putback and missed all three of his 3-point attempts. Those three starters combined for just 20 points on 9-of-34 (26.5%) shooting from the field and 0-of-9 from deep.

Huerter and Murray were part of a major struggle for the Kings from 3-point range as they made just four of their first 22 attempts (18.2%) from beyond the arc. However, the Kings found their shot just in time as they made eight of their last 10 (80%) to close out the game, including all four from Fox, two from Lyles and one each from Monk and Barnes.

Looney and Green bottled up Sabonis in the paint and not only limited his scoring, but his playmaking as well. Sabonis also finished with just two assists – he only had three games during the regular season with two assists or less.

4. Welcome back Wiggins

Andrew Wiggins made his return Saturday and made an impact for the Warriors.

Andrew Wiggins didn’t look like a player that hadn’t played in two months last night. He finished with 17 points on 7-of-16 shooting, three rebounds and four blocks in 28 minutes off the bench in his first action since Feb 13.

Wiggins shot 6-of-8 on 2s, but just 1-of-8 on 3s, including a potential go-ahead 3 from the corner with 10 seconds left that would have put the Warriors up by two.

While Wiggins may be replaying that wide-open miss in his head over the next 48 hours before these teams meet again in Game 2, his teammates are confident that he’ll knock down those shots moving forward.

“He was super aggressive, and the fact that he was aggressive you live with that; he missed some shots that we know he’ll make and that comes with getting your legs back underneath you,” said Green. “But to enter into a playoff game after 2 ½ months of not playing in an NBA game was big and he’ll continue to get better for us.”

5. Saved the best for last

The Kings and Warriors provided a brilliant finale for Saturday’s playoff action.

This NorCal matchup was the final game of the opening day of 2023 playoff action and delivered an instant classic. After a pair of blowout wins to start the day – Philadelphia over Brooklyn and Boston over Atlanta – things got interesting as New York held on for a four-point win over Cleveland on the road.

But none of those games provided the drama and the swings featured in the nightcap between the Kings and Warriors. This game saw 12 ties and 24 lead changes; neither team led by more than 10 points. The previous three games had 13 ties and eight lead changes combined.

  • Kings/Warriors: 12 ties, 24 lead changes
  • Knicks/Cavaliers: 8 ties, 6 lead changes
  • Celtics/Hawks: 3 ties, 2 lead changes
  • Sixers/Nets: 2 ties, 0 lead changes

Monday can’t come soon enough. Be sure to catch Game 2 at 10 p.m. ET on TNT.

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