Rookies eye key roles as Kings host Warriors

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Rookies Tyrese Haliburton and James Wiseman are thrust into the highlight of an NBA playoff chase when the Sacramento Kings host the Golden State Warriors on Thursday night time.

The Kings, winners of two in a row, and the Warriors, who’ve dropped two straight, discover themselves battling a number of groups, together with one another, for bottom-end playoff spots within the Western Convention.

Sacramento took a step in the suitable path when Haliburton broke a tie by sinking two free throws with 36.6 seconds remaining Wednesday night time, lifting the Kings to a 110-108 dwelling win over the Atlanta Hawks.

Haliburton was making his fifth consecutive begin, a stretch by which the Kings have received 4 instances. He scored 17 or extra factors in three of these victories, together with 17 on Wednesday.

In the meantime, Wiseman was instantly promoted right into a beginning position upon getting back from a three-game, COVID-related absence to play Tuesday in Golden State’s 108-98 dwelling loss to the Philadelphia 76ers.

He had 11 factors within the sport, by which he made simply his second begin since Jan. 23.

Warriors coach Steve Kerr introduced earlier than the competition that Wiseman, nonetheless simply 19 years previous, can be his staff’s full-time beginning heart shifting ahead.

“It was good to see him on the market,” Kerr mentioned after the defeat. “He’ll get higher and higher as we go. He had every week off … he wants his rhythm, and that can come.”

Wiseman’s offense figures to be vital in upcoming video games with star level guard Stephen Curry having been dominated out of the following three contests attributable to a bruised tailbone.

Curry, the staff’s main scorer at 29 factors per sport, has missed 5 video games this season, and the Warriors have misplaced 4 of them.

Wiseman, the No. 2 decide of the 2020 draft, is averaging 11.8 factors and 5.9 rebounds. Haliburton, a 21-year-old who was picked 10 spots later, is placing up 12.9 factors and 5.1 assists per sport.

The Iowa State product has been a driving power within the Kings’ latest surge.

Haliburton and his teammates is likely to be somewhat distracted lower than 24 hours after information broke throughout Wednesday’s sport that one of the crucial appreciated Kings, veteran guard Cory Joseph, had been traded to the Detroit Pistons for Delon Wright. Sacramento additionally despatched Detroit two second-round picks.

“I like CoJo,” a tragic Haliburton mentioned after the sport. “Like an enormous brother to me.”

The Warriors can be seeing Haliburton, one of many main contenders for NBA Rookie of the Yr honors, for the primary time. He missed the golf equipment’ first assembly on Jan. 4 with a bruised left wrist.

Curry led the Warriors to a 137-106 win that night time, scoring 30 factors. Golden State outshot Sacramento 52.6 % to 37.8 % and hit 23 of its 43 3-point makes an attempt (53.5 %), in comparison with the Kings’ 10 of 35 (28.6 %).

Sacramento’s De’Aaron Fox and Harrison Barnes shared team-scoring scoring honors within the first assembly with 18 factors apiece.

Fox is coming off his third-best scoring night time of the season. He contributed 37 factors to the win over Atlanta in his head-to-head showdown with Hawks star Trae Younger, who completed with 29.

–Area Degree Media

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