Saturday's win over the Memphis Grizzlies had already been soured for the Golden State Warriors on Sunday, with news that Jonathan Kuminga will miss at least three weeks due to a significant ankle sprain.
But if that news was nothing short of incredibly disappointing, the weekend turned downright awful as the Warriors suffered a blowout 129-99 loss to the Sacramento Kings at Chase Center.
The Warriors suffered an ugly 30-point loss to their pacific rival
It was almost as if news of Kuminga's injury had sucked some life out of Golden State, having come out incredibly flat on Sunday despite the return of superstar guard Stephen Curry. Sacramento scored on their first three offensive possessions and started on a 7-0 run, signifying a horror first-half for the Warriors on both ends of the floor.
The Kings led 36-21 after the opening period, before a pair of Curry four-point plays briefly cut the lead back to four early in the second. The remainder of the half was a disaster for Golden State, outscored 35-15 over the final 8:35 to fall behind by 24.
Having entered the game as the seventh best defense in the league, Golden State giving up 75 first-half points to a Sacramento team without De'Aaron Fox was particularly concerning and a reflection of the home team's energy (or lack thereof)
Some ‘Light The Beam’ chants in Chase Center.
— Brenden Nunes (@BrendenNunesNBA) January 6, 2025
Kings gonna win their fourth straight in blowout fashion, improving to 17-19. pic.twitter.com/lkP1jknes7
The rest of the game felt like going through the motions, with the Warriors constantly turning the ball over in a manner that meant a comeback effort never even got off the ground. Curry looked fresh after resting on Saturday, finishing with 26 points and seven rebounds on 8-of-12 shooting from the floor.
The 2x MVP was almost a one-man show offensively, something that's certainly worrying given Golden State will be without Kuminga (their second-leading scorer) for at least the next 11 games. Andrew Wiggins had 18 points on 7-of-13 shooting, yet no other Warrior scored more than 13 points as the team finished shooting 45.7% from the floor and 34.3% from beyond the arc. They also committed 22 turnovers on the night, including a combined nine from Curry and Draymond Green.
The Kings, in comparison, hardly missed a beat without Fox. Malik Monk had 26 points, 12 assists and was an extraordinary +41 in 29 minutes, while Domantas Sabonis added 22 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists.
The Warriors are now 18-17 on the season and will look to respond on Tuesday as they host the Miami Heat at Chase Center.