Kings Eliminate Warriors, Face Pelicans For Eighth Seed

The No. 9 seed Sacramento Kings defeated the No. 10 seed Golden State Warriors in the NBA Play-In Tournament on Tuesday night, 118-94. The win advances the Kings to a win-or-go-home game against the Pelicans for the No. 8 seed. Meanwhile, the loss for Golden State starts the offseason in San Francisco much earlier than many expected.

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Keon Ellis and Keegan Murray Step Up

With the absence of Malik Monk and Kevin Huerter, second-year guard Keon Ellis was inserted into the starting lineup.

Ellis played lights-out, contributing 15 points on 5-8 from the field and 3-4 from beyond the arc. He also added four rebounds and five assists.

However, his defense is what was most impactful. Ellis finished with three steals and three blocks, helping the Kings shut down the Warriors offense.

Keon Ellis was a DIFFERENCE-MAKER in the Kings' #SoFiPlayIn W!

15 PTS
5 AST
3 STL
3 BLK
3-4 3PM

SAC seeks the 8th seed Friday in NOLA. pic.twitter.com/ZEAz7bAlzm

— NBA (@NBA) April 17, 2024

In a game that featured four future-Hall of Famers in Chris Paul, Steph Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green, Kings forward Keegan Murray had the best performance.

The second-year player out of Iowa scored 32 points and added nine rebounds. He also hit eight three-pointers, which is a Play-In Tournament game record. After scoring 14 alone in the first quarter, Murray kept the hot hand, leading Sacramento to victory.

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Warriors’ Uncertain Future

After defeating the Kings last year in the first round, the Warriors could not get it done Tuesday night.

It was a rather quiet game for Steph Curry, who scored 22 points. However, he did not get much help from his teammates, as the rest of the Warriors starters combined for only 26 points. This included a poor performance from former All-Star Klay Thompson, who went scoreless shooting 0-10 from the field.

After winning the Finals in 2022, the Warriors find themselves with plenty of questions entering the offseason. After this loss, many fans are left wondering if this is the last we will see of the Warriors trio of Curry, Green and Thompson.

Thompson will be a free agent this summer.

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What’s Next

The Sacramento Kings will travel to New Orleans on Friday to take on the Pelicans to claim the eighth seed in the West. The winner will face the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder in the first round. Tip-off is at 9:30 p.m.