Warriors lose battle to Kings, may have won the development war
DNHQ After Dark emerges from the mist on the late night tip to give you what you need: documenting the rise of the young guns in the loss to the Sacramento Kings.
I sometimes have a really hard time critiquing athletes. Like, I’ve spent a lotta years being like “HE MISSED THE FREE THROW WHAAAA” and talking a lotta crap, but at the end of the day these guys are living their dreams under immense psychological, spiritual, emotional, and physical pressure. Let them who haven’t missed a free throw cast the first boo, or something like that.
Other times, I’m like wtfffff GET IT TOGETHER! HOW COULD YOU SHOOT A FADEAWAY AFTER YOU HAD ALREADY KNOCKED OVER DEMAR DEROZAN AND YOU COULDA STEPPED THROUGH FOR A LAYUP!
Yes, that’s referring to Jonathan Kuminga who had a chance to keep the game in the balance last night, but shot an off balance fadeaway after his man had already been discarded to the floor.
Lmao ain’t that a kick in the head? That sealed the Warriors going down 121-116 to the Sacramento Kings led by powerful professional NBA hoopers like German Olympic legend and former Warrior Dennis Schroeder, Future Toronto Raptor Ring of Honor Member Demar DeRozan, and former MVP aka “Mr. Triple Double” Russell Westbrook.
But Steph Curry, Jimmy Butler, and Draymond Green all missed this game with varying ailments which meant the resurrection of the Two-Timeline Warriors. The youth movement was on full display, and I gotta tell ya…I liked what I saw.
Brandin Podziemski: The Basketball Savant
When the Warriors drafted Podziemski 19th overall in 2023, they envisioned a high-IQ connector who understood spacing, timing, and how to make everyone better. Against Sacramento, that’s precisely what materialized: 14 points, nine assists, nine rebounds, and a plus-14 in a five-point loss.
Podz was the de facto quarterback of the night for the Dubs, and still knocked down 50% of his shots. This guy is turning into something of a cagy li’l vet ain’t he? Out there orchestrating the offense with Curry and Green sitting, making the reads that transform good possessions into great ones. Nine assists in a chaotic road environment suggests the vision is materializing exactly on schedule.
Nine rebounds for a 6-foot-4 guard is rather WESTBROOKIAN if I might say so myself! IDK if he coulda been the next Ohtani, but he can definitely be the next guard after Steph if he keeps this up.
Jonathan Kuminga: The Two-Way Ceiling
Twenty-four points, nine rebounds, and extended stretches where Kuminga looked like the best player on the floor. This wasn’t empty-calorie scoring against Sacramento. Kuminga attacked from all three levels, finished through contact, and made simple plays when help arrived.
What stands out isn’t just production. It’s consistency. Don’t look now but Kuminga has grabbed at least five rebounds in every single game he’s played this season. That kind of reliability speaks to maturation, to understanding his value transcends just scoring buckets.
The challenge I see for JK right now is sometimes (like that possession against DeRozan at the end of the game) is that he’ll make up his mind that he’s gonna bully his way into something, but then if he can’t get all the way there, hasn’t quite figured out what the smart move is depending on the action around him.
But if Kuminga can harness this version of himself consistently, the Warriors have something legitimately special: a physical terror who can carry offensive possessions without Curry on the floor while making his presence felt on the glass.
Moses Moody: Shades of Klay?
What separates good shooters from great ones? It’s not just the makes. It’s knowing which shots to take.
Moses Moody is learning that lesson in real time, and the results are becoming impossible to ignore. Twenty-eight points against Sacramento, including six threes that tied his career high. Back-to-back 20-point games for the first time in his young career, and the efficiency tells you everything about how he’s getting there.
The shot chart data reveals a player discovering his identity. When Moody catches and shoots with zero dribbles, he’s converting at 52.8% from three-point range across seven games (19-of-36). When he releases within two seconds of catching, he’s hitting 52.5% (21-of-40).These aren’t flukes. This is a player understanding exactly what makes him dangerous.
This is the Klay Thompson blueprint. Not the volume, not yet the consistency, but the fundamental understanding that elite shooting is about discipline as much as skill. Thompson built a Hall of Fame career on knowing when to shoot and when to swing. Moody is 23 years old and already grasping what took others years to learn.
Steve Kerr noted that Moody has “found his conditioning” after missing two weeks of training camp. Translation: he’s finally healthy enough to play his game. And his game, increasingly, is about being ready when the ball finds him. His shooting stroke is looking fantastic, and his defensive awareness is skyrocketing. He had 2 steals and 4 blocks last night, looking positively Iguodalian.
The evolution is happening in real time. Moody isn’t trying to be Curry or Durant or even the primary option. He’s becoming the outlet valve, the pressure release, the guy who makes defenses pay for over-helping. He’s becoming the defensive stalwart that can rip the dribble away or swat the shot on the helpside. That’s championship-level role acceptance, and it’s exactly what the Warriors need from him.
Btw here’s his shot chart on the season, 47% from the field, 51% from beyond the arc, 85% of them assisted.
Will Richard: The Instant Stabilizer
The 56th pick isn’t supposed to drop 30 points in his first career start. But Richard did exactly that: 30 points on 10-of-15 shooting, including 5-of-8 from three, tied for the second-most by a Warriors rookie making their first start in franchise history.
Listen to what Kerr said afterward: “I can draw a play out of a timeout and put Will in any one of the five positions.”That’s not hyperbole. That’s the exact quality Golden State values most in complementary players.
Richard isn’t going to create his own shot consistently. What he provides is what every championship team needs: stability, spacing, execution, and the basketball IQ to be in the right place at the right moment. Kerr compared him to Andre Iguodala, Shaun Livingston, and David West as a “stabilizer.” One game doesn’t make him that yet, but as a national champion with Florida and a 4-year collegiate athlete, he’s showing veteran-like tendencies that go beyond his rookie status.
And theres a relaxedness in his shot form that makes me feel like every time he shoots it he’s going in.
For everyone worried that the Dubs team was too old to compete, you got a glimpse of what the next wave of dudes after the Big-3 are up to. And lemme tell ya somethin’ buddy, this wave is looking really splashtastic.
But they gotta go for layups and not fadeaways with the lane open!!!!