Kevin Knox excels in Summer League semifinal loss – NBC Sports Bay Area & California

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The Warriors won the inaugural Mitch Richmond Trophy with a perfect 3-0 record at the California Classic, but fell just short of an NBA Summer League championship, losing 102-99 to the Miami Heat on Sunday at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas.

Golden State was 7-0 between the Cali Classic and Las Vegas before their loss to Miami. Additionally, the Warriors defeated the Heat by 39 points two weeks ago.

Former first-round pick, now a professional Kevin Knox, did everything he could to lead Golden State to the championship in Sin City. Knox scored a game-high 31 points in 30 minutes off the bench on 12 of 17 shooting and was 5 of 10 from behind the 3-point line. Knox also grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds.

The fourth quarter was pure chaos and frustration as the Warriors were outscored 37-29 after leading by five points at the end of the final quarter.

A combination of giving up the ball twice as often as the Heat – 16 to 8 – and shooting 23.5 percent on 8 of 34 three-pointers led to a crushing defeat for the Warriors. Pat Spencer scored 14 points for Golden State, but was a team-low minus-11. Quinten Post, in his second Summer League game, scored 10 points in 15 minutes.

Here are three takeaways from the Warriors’ final summer league game:

Knox is getting warmer

Summer League is all about getting rookies to see NBA games for the first time, but the exhibition circuit is even more for players like Knox. It’s a chance for seasoned players to prove they still belong. Even former No. 9 overall draft picks who turn 25 in August.

Knox’s biggest setback has always been his lack of shooting. In the first half Sunday, however, Knox was by far the best hand on the court. With the Warriors up by two points, Knox scored 15 points off the bench in 15 minutes, shooting 6 of 8 from the floor and was 3 of 5 on 3-point attempts.

The Warriors opened the second quarter on a 10-0 run with Knox scoring the first five points.

And the second half continued to be the Know Show. Know went 6 out of 9 overall and 2 out of 5 out of three. The final score was hard to swallow. Knox’s show was an eye-opener.

Message 2.0

Quinten Post’s long-awaited debut finally came to fruition on Friday night, with the second-round pick impressing by scoring 10 points in 14 minutes off the bench. That earned Post a spot in the starting lineup on Sunday, and the big man started quietly. Post played just seven minutes in the first half and didn’t take a single shot.

The 7-foot-1 player then shot his first three times in the second half, including this big dunk.

His first missed shot was an airball of a 3-pointer in the fourth quarter, when the Warriors trailed by two. He made all four of his free throws and was a minus-6 overall in the loss.

Bad timing for Plowden

This summer couldn’t have gone much better for Plowden, who earned a two-way contract with the Warriors for his performances between Las Vegas and the California Classic. But the worst game came at the worst time.

Plowden went as cold as can be when he shot the ball. The summer star took seven shots. He missed them all.

None of his five 3-pointers missed, nor did Plowden’s two 2-point shots. Plowden then got a chance to be the hero when he was fouled on a 3-point attempt with the Warriors trailing by four. Plowden made his first free throw but missed his second. He missed his third on purpose, but the Warriors couldn’t get a rebound and the score was clear.

When Plowden comes home from Las Vegas, he should be holding his head up high with pride. He is now more motivated after a tough last game.

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