Warriors ‘mentally fried’; seek All-Star break respite – Kerr

Stephen Curry #30 of the Golden State Warriors stands on the court during their game against the New York Knicks at ORACLE Arena on January 23, 2018 in Oakland, California. AFP

LOS ANGELES, United States — The Golden State Warriors own the best record in the NBA, but coach Steve Kerr says the reigning champions are feeling the effects of the fight to stay at the top.

Kerr said after the Warriors’ sloppy win over the Sacramento Kings on Friday that his players are “mentally fried”.

“Our guys are dying to get to the All-Star break,” Kerr told reporters. “We’re limping to the finish line to the All-Star break.”

But that respite won’t come until February 16, and the Warriors had six games to go before then, starting with a clash with the Denver Nuggets on Saturday.

The Warriors at 41-11 are just two games ahead of the Houston Rockets for first place in the Western Conference.

On Friday in Sacramento they coughed up 25 turnovers — one short of their season-worst — and didn’t put the lowly 16-35 Kings away until the fourth quarter.

On Saturday they were trying to wrap up a three-game road trip with a winning record, after opening it with a blowout loss to the Utah Jazz. /cbb