What we learned as Murray aggressive in Kings’ loss to Warriors

What we learned as Murray aggressive in Kings’ loss to Warriors originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

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SAN FRANCISCO – The Kings had a specific goal in mind entering Friday’s preseason game against the Golden State Warriors – and they accomplished it.

No, not a win.

The result was a 109-106 Kings loss at Chase Center, but preseason is about more than wins and losses. It’s about adjustments, and Sacramento adjusted.

Sacramento’s 3-point defense Wednesday would’ve put the team on the wrong side of history if it wasn’t a preseason game. But after a slow start in that department Friday, the Kings cleaned that up early.

On the other end of the ball, though, the Kings’ shooting didn’t look great. They shot just 38.7 percent from the field, a lowly 28.3 percent from 3-point range and 63.6 percent from the charity stripe.

Meanwhile, the Warriors shot 48.5 percent from the field and 38.2 percent from 3-point range, also shooting an efficient 86.5 percent from the free-throw line.

But the Kings’ starting five looked sharp, and each player finished with double digits. Boogie Ellis led Sacramento’s bench players with 11 points on 4-of-7 shooting from the field and 3 of 5 from downtown.

While there were improvements throughout, there still are areas to work on. The Kings have three more preseason games to do so before their 2024-25 season opener on Oct. 24 at Golden 1 Center.

Here are the takeaways from Friday’s loss:

Aggressive Keegan a welcome sight

Mike Brown wants Murray, entering his third season, to be more aggressive with the ball. The Kings’ coach also wants all his players to be more aggressive on the other end of the floor.

Friday night, Murray did both.

Within the first two-and-a-half minutes of the game, Murray scored on all three levels. Layup, 3-pointer, then a drive to the basket which resulted in two free throws.

Murray finished with 17 points on 5-of-11 shooting from the field and 1 of 5 from 3-point range, with one rebound and two assists in 26 minutes.

He also had five of Sacramento’s 13 steals. The Warriors, as a team, had two takeaways.

Murray created shots for himself and others – unlocking new…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/learned-murray-aggressive-kings-loss-050825546.html

Author : NBC Sports BayArea

Publish date : 2024-10-12 05:08:25

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