Getty Image / Loren Elliott
The incredible atmosphere at the Golden 1 Center, the home of the Sacramento Kings, has been the talk of the NBA in the early stages of the NBA playoffs. the playoff-starved Kings fans had been without playoff basketball since 2006, and that was the longest streak in major American sports without a playoff experience. But, the team had a fantastic season this year, going 48-34 and earning the third seed in the Western Conference.
And, through two games, they’re up 2-0 on the defending champion Golden State Warriors. A great young core led by Domantas Sabonis and DeAaron Fox, with great role players like Malik Monk, Keegan Murray, Kevin Huerter, and Harrison Barnes, led the NBA in scoring this year at just over 120 points a game. And, that high-flying style has excited fans who have seen terrible basketball for nearly 20 years.
The scenes inside the arena have been electric.
Can confirm…Golden 1 Center is the loudest place on earth.#SacramentoProud pic.twitter.com/Oc0pgPqjZc
— Kevin John (@heykevinjohn) April 18, 2023
Golden 1 Center is LIT … One quarter left to bring it on home! pic.twitter.com/1Reb3SNRgN
— Trysta Krick🐺 (@Trysta_Krick) April 18, 2023
Golden 1 Center is coming alive pic.twitter.com/3S0PxDkG9F
— Cameron Salerno (@cameronsalerno1) April 18, 2023
And, a signature feature of these great Sacramento Kings crowds are cowbells.
Kings fan behind Warriors general manager Bob Myers 😂 pic.twitter.com/NSRzGJHnVT
— Daily Loud (@DailyLoud) April 18, 2023
The cowbells are out in Sacramento before Kings host Warriors in Game 1 pic.twitter.com/BRszA3jmXR
— Ben Golliver (@BenGolliver) April 15, 2023
But, the Golden State Warriors are saying not-so-fast, and are banning cowbells from the Chase Center.
🚨 𝐊𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐟𝐚𝐧𝐬 𝐠𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐂𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫:
Cowbells will not be permitted at Chase Center. Any fan carrying a cowbell will be directed to the outdoor bag check location, where they can check their cowbell and retrieve at the conclusion of the game.
— Sacramento Kings (@SacramentoKings) April 19, 2023
It could have something to do with the aforementioned incident where a fan was ringing the cowbell in the ear of Warriors Executive Bob Myers.
And, normally a tweet like this wouldn’t be necessary for a road playoff game. But, this series is unique in the fact that the two cities are less than 90 miles apart, and many Sacramento Kings fans will be in attendance on Thursday.
The Warriors need all the help they can get, as they are already without star forward Draymond Green, who is suspended one game for bad behavior.