Warriors vs Lakers Preview: Trying Again To Clinch A Playoff Spot In Role-Reversed Los Angeles (Photo: AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
Golden State Warriors (48-30) vs Los Angeles Lakers(25-53)
Tip-off: Friday, April 11th, 2014 – 7:30PM PDT
Location: STAPLES Center, Los Angeles, CA
Spread: Golden State (-10) meaning Warriors are 10-point favorites
TV: CSN Bay Area / NBA TV | Radio: KNBR 680 AM
Livetweet: @LetsGoWarriors (by @BeeRyry)
Last Game / Streak:
LAL – Lost 145-130 vs HOU in Los Angeles, Lost 5 games in a row
GSW – Lost 100-99 vs DEN in Oakland, Lost 1 game in a row
Probable Starting Lineups:
Warriors:
PG: Stephen Curry (23.5 PPG, 8.5 APG, 4.2 RPG)
SG: Klay Thompson (18.4 PPG, 2.2 APG, 3.1 RPG)
SF: Harrison Barnes (9.3 PPG, 1.4 APG, 3.9 RPG)
PF: David Lee (18.5 PPG, 2.2 APG, 9.4 RPG)
C: Andrew Bogut (7.5 PPG, 1.6 APG, 10.0 RPG)
HEAD COACH: Mark Jackson (226-118)
Lakers:
PG: Kendall Marshall (7.9 PPG, 8.8 APG, 2.9 RPG)
SG: Jodie Meeks (15.6 PPG, 1.8 APG, 2.6 RPG)
SF: Wesley Johnson (8.9 PPG, 1.5 APG, 4.1 RPG)
PF:Ryan Kelly (7.9 PPG, 1.5 APG, 3.5 RPG)
C: Jordan Hill (9.3 PPG, 0.7 APG, 7.3 RPG)
HEAD COACH:Mike D’Antoni (877-453)
Andre Iguodala will rest tonight and Jermaine O’Neal is out after suffering a left knee injury against the Nuggets last night:
Jermaine O'Neal out with left knee injury, Andre Iguodala out to rest.
— Diamond Leung (@diamond83) April 12, 2014
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Lee will give it a go tonight, so we are assuming he gets the start but plays limited minutes:
David Lee (right leg nerve inflammation) said he's going to give it a go tonight. He's missed the past seven games.
— Rusty Simmons (@Rusty_SFChron) April 12, 2014
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Once again, the Warriors with a win tonight can clinch a playoff berth, this time in Los Angeles, where on November 22nd, Iguodala first strained his hamstring.
Ironically, in years’ past, it would be the tanking Warriors trying to be spoilers to any given rising Laker team. Although the roles have reversed this season, one fact remains:
At STAPLES Center, the #Lakers are 27-2 all-time against the #Warriors :-/
— LetsGoWarriors (@LetsGoWarriors) April 11, 2014
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Kent Bazemore, who was traded to the Lakers along with MarShon Brooks in exchange for Steve Blake, is out for the season with a torn tendon in his right foot. Brooks is healthy and will come off the bench for Los Angeles.
Along with Kobe Bryant among the headlining Laker injury woes, Pau Gasol is also out with a case of vertigo, while Steve Nash is out dealing with nerve issues and may consider retirement after this season.
Monte Poole of CSN Bay Area:
As thin as Denver was on Thursday, the Lakers (25-53) may be even thinner – not that it should matter to the Warriors, who have proven capable of bungling custom-built victories on a whim, no matter how much is at stake.
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“We’ve had a bunch of losses like this,” center Andrew Bogut said after being defeated by the Nuggets. “It’s obviously something we need to work on.”
Taylor Bechtold of STATS:
‘We’ve got to be better,” Warriors coach Mark Jackson said. “There’s no ands, ifs or buts about it. We’ve got to be better, and we’ve got to do a better job of taking care of business and closing out possessions and putting teams away. We can’t hide from that.”
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Golden State played its seventh straight game without Lee, who averages 18.5 points and 9.4 rebounds. The co-captain is trying to rehabilitate nerve damage that extends from his back to the upper part of his right hamstring.
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He isn’t expected to play against the Lakers, but hopes to return for the playoffs – if not sooner. Draymond Green, who has averaged 8.4 points while filling in the last five games, will continue to start in Lee’s place.
From LakerNation.com:
The only positive from last game was PG Steve Nash passing Warriors Head Coach Mark Jackson for 3rd place on the all-time assist leaderboard. However, Nash will most likely miss the rest of this season as he has another relapse with his nerve issues and might consider retirement following this season.
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With firepower a like Curry, SG Klay Thompson, and SF Andre Igudola, it will most likely be too much talent disadvantage for the Lakers to overcome even if they play with a lot of energy tonight. More importantly for the Lakers players tonight, it will be one of their last few auditions to determine whether they are worthy of staying on this roster next season or signing on with another team. PG Kendall Marshall and C Robert Sacre will be the only 2 players who will not be free agents following this season.
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