The Warriors moved up the standings, but the Kings stumbled Friday night in the close and ever-changing Western Conference playoffs.
Early in the game, the low-strength Warriors defeated the Charlotte Hornets 115-97 at Spectrum Center with Stephen Curry's 23 points, Andrew Wiggins' 20 points, and rookie Trayce Jackson-Davis' 18 points.
Golden State, which holds the last spot in the play-in tournament, improved to 39-34 with the win, closing the gap on the ninth-place Los Angeles Lakers to 1.5 games. The Warriors maintained a one-game lead against the onslaught of the Houston Rockets, who defeated the Utah Jazz 101-100.
Later that night at Golden 1 Center, the Kings blew a 15-point lead and suffered their second straight loss to the Dallas Mavericks, 107-103. All five of Sacramento's starters scored in double figures, but Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic couldn't handle it down the stretch.
The loss dropped the Kings from seventh to eighth place in the Western Conference, a half-game behind the Phoenix Suns, who lost to the Oklahoma City Thunder earlier in the night.
Here are the Western Conference standings as updated through Friday's NBA action.
- Minnesota Timberwolves: 51-22
- Oklahoma City Thunder: 51 wins, 22 losses
- Denver Nuggets: 51-23
- Los Angeles Clippers: 46-27
- New Orleans Pelicans: 45 wins, 28 losses
- Dallas Mavericks: 44-29
Play-in tournament spot
- Phoenix Suns: 43 wins, 31 losses
- Sacramento Kings: 42-31
- Los Angeles Lakers: 41-33
- Golden State Warriors: 39-34
under discussion
- Houston Rockets: 38-35
eliminated
- Utah Jazz: 29 wins, 45 losses
- Memphis Grizzlies: 24-49
- Portland Trail Blazers: 19-55
- San Antonio Spurs: 18-56
Both the Warriors and Kings will have Saturday off and return to action Sunday. Golden State concludes its road trip against San Antonio at 4 p.m. PT, and Sacramento opens up against Utah State at 6 p.m. PT.
