Kevin Durant scored 25 points in the win (Getty)
Final Score
Kings 96
Warriors 105
The process of integrating Kevin Durant into their offensive system is one of the Golden State Warriors’ main tasks during the preseason, and in each of their three games thus far the new acquisition has appeared to get increasingly more comfortable. Thursday night Durant scored 25 points, making eight of his eleven field goal attempts on the night, to lead the Warriors to a 105-96 victory over the Sacramento Kings in San Jose.
Durant shot 4-for-6 from three and made all five of his free throws while also grabbing five rebounds and blocking two shots. He was one of four Warriors to score in double figures, with Ian Clark adding 16 off the bench and starters Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson scoring 13 and 11 points, respectively. Clark made two three-pointers in a stretch just under a minute late in the fourth quarter that turned a 96-91 deficit into a 97-96 lead with 2:13 remaining.
Golden State closed the game on a 14-0 run, with Patrick McCaw and James Michael McAdoo also hitting key three pointers, to move to 2-1 in preseason play while the Kings are now 1-2.
Kings center DeMarcus Cousins led all scorers with 20 points to go along with six rebounds and four steals, with Garrett Temple adding 13 points, Matt Barnes 12 and Ben McLemore ten. Barnes, who signed with the Kings as a free agent this summer, also accounted for eight rebounds, four assists and four steals on the night.
Also of note for Sacramento is the competition at the point guard spot, with projected starter Darren Collison being suspended for the first eight games of the regular season. Ty Lawson finished with seven points and three assists, with Jordan Farmar posting a stat line of four points and two assists and rookie Isaiah Cousins played just over four minutes on the night. Below are highlights and important tweets from the game.
.@KDTrey5 goes baseline at @SAPCenter!
Warriors vs. Kings first quarter box score:
Kevin Durant #SPLASH
Halftime 📊
3️⃣5️⃣ – 16p (5/8 FG, 3/5 3PT)/4r
3️⃣0️⃣ – 9p/2r/2a
1️⃣1️⃣ – 8p/2r
2️⃣7️⃣ – 4p/5r/2a
2️⃣3️⃣ – 4p/3r/4a
Curry feeds Klay #SPLASH t.co/psBWutsC8p
Handles, a dish, and a dunk courtesy of @stephencurry30 and @KDTrey5
Warriors vs. Kings third quarter box score:
