How Kings Overcame Injuries to Take Down Warriors

What stands out most is his shooting from deep. After making three of his four attempts tonight, he's now up to 43.2% from beyond the arc with the Kings. Three-point shooting has been his biggest knock, especially later in his career, so him making shots from deep opens up so much for the rest of his game. We likely won't get nightly triple-doubles from Westbrook, but something tells me this won't be the last one we see from him while in a Kings uniform either.

Malik Monk Returns and Shines

Monk returned after missing the last two games due to personal reasons and was brilliant off the bench. He finished with 21 points, 4 rebounds, and 2 assists on 6-of-12, 50%, from the field, 2-of-5, 40%, from three, and 7-of-8, 87.5%, from the free throw line.

Just like how Westbrook had a vintage performance, the same can be said about Monk. He played with high energy and was aggressive off the bench. Especially with the other stars out, the Kings bench was predominantly defense-oriented tonight, with Keon Ellis playing well but not scoring.

Tonight was a reminder that even when this team is fully healthy, an electric Monk off the bench takes them to the next level and can lift them to victory on any given night, no matter the opponent.

Nique Clifford's Best Game Yet

Rookie Nique Clifford didn't play poorly in his first three games, but there was no denying that he didn't have the same look and feel as he did during Summer League and preseason. It's looked like he's still trying to adjust to his role and playing with other stars, but tonight, he looked the most comfortable we've seen during the regular season so far.

He finished with 12 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, and a steal in just under 33 minutes of action, and had an impact all over the court to help secure the win. Doug Christie stuck with the rookie during clutch time instead of bringing Monk back in, which speaks volumes to the level of trust Christie already has in the rookie.

Clifford's development continues to be one of, if not the most, important parts to this season, and him getting to close out games is huge for his early-career development. If he keeps playing like he did tonight on both ends of the court, it will be hard to keep him off the floor even when everyone is healthy.