The Golden State Warriors lost on Wednesday night, and it’s hard to blame them too much. They were on the road, in the second half of a back-to-back, against a rested team, and were without Steph Curry, Draymond Green, and Jimmy Butler III. Yet at the same time, the 121-116 loss to the Sacramento Kings felt like a missed opportunity, as the Dubs got off to a hot start and an early double-digit lead against a Kings team playing without Domantas Sabonis and Zach LaVine, only to stumble late with a series of sloppy mistakes.

All in all, it was a whatever game. Lots to like, lots to be frustrated by, and no reason to feel too negatively about the defeat. But we must grade the players who took the lead and blew the lead, and as always, grades are based on my expectations for each player. A “B” grade represents that player’s average performance.

Note: True-shooting percentage (TS) is a scoring efficiency metric that accounts for threes and free throws. Entering Wednesday’s games, league-average TS was 58.5%.

35 minutes, 30 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 1 turnover, 3 fouls, 10-for-15 shooting, 5-for-8 threes, 5-for-7 free throws, 83.0% TS, +1

After the first two DNPs of his career, Richard got his first career start … and proceeded to drop 30 points. I don’t really have words for what the rookie did, except to echo one of Bob Fitzgerald’s sentiments: you’re telling me there were 55 players in the draft better than Richard?

He set the tone early in what turned out to be a great first quarter by the Warriors, as he made a pair of quick threes and scored 12 of the team’s first 23 points. But it wasn’t just a scoring explosion for Richard: his defense was tremendous and, despite playing 35 minutes in a fast-paced game — and just his seventh career game — he only turned the ball over one time.

Better than any game Cooper Flagg has had yet. Just sayin’.

Grade: A+++
Post-game bonus: Led the team in points.

36 minutes, 24 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists, 5 turnovers, 5 fouls, 8-for-19 shooting, 2-for-5 threes, 6-for-8 free throws, 53.3% TS, +2

It was fun seeing the offense run through Kuminga with Curry and Butler sidelined, and JK continued to show off how much his game has grown. There were certainly some warts: he had a few very sloppy turnovers, and had to leave the game in crunch time because he was in foul trouble. But those are going to show up from time to time, especially in his first chances leading the team. He got the opening assignment on DeMar DeRozan and defended him well, and helped lead the Warriors to a rebounding advantage despite Russell Westbrook hauling in 16 boards.

We’re seeing the evolution of Kuminga every game, even in the games that aren’t quite as good as the others.

Grade: B
Post-game bonus: Tied for the team lead in rebounds.

16 minutes, 0 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, 2 blocks, 2 fouls, 0-for-5 shooting, 0-for-3 threes, 0.0% TS, +4

Post continues to fluctuate between great games and subpar ones, which shouldn’t be very surprising for a second-year player who gets sporadic minutes. Post couldn’t make a shot in this game, though he didn’t play poorly altogether. Four stocks in just 16 minutes is highly impressive, and that’s exactly what his defensive performance was: highly impressive. He’s learning to impact the game even when he isn’t scoring, and that’s huge.

Grade: B

31 minutes, 14 points, 9 rebounds, 9 assists, 4 turnovers, 3 fouls, 5-for-10 shooting, 2-for-4 threes, 2-for-2 free throws, 64.3% TS, +14

Podz nearly became the unlikely first Warrior to record a triple-double this season! That sure would have been fun.

As is, it was a fantastic all-around performance for Podziemski, who was tasked with being the offensive quarterback for much of the night since Curry and Green weren’t playing. He handled that role brilliantly, getting the offense into action with aplomb and setting his teammates up all night. He was scrappy on defense, and extremely clutch … including making a deep three with just under a minute remaining and the Warriors down six.

Thu turnovers weren’t great, it goes without saying. But all in all, a very strong performance keeping the team afloat with the stars out.

Grade: A
Post-game bonus: Led the team in assists, tied for the team lead in rebounds, best plus/minus on the team.

39 minutes, 28 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, 4 blocks, 3 turnovers, 3 fouls, 9-for-15 shooting, 6-for-11 threes, 4-for-4 free throws, 83.5% TS, +5

A second straight star showing for Moody, who finished the back-to-back with 52 points on 16-for-26 shooting. Add in a few dozen misses and you’ve got my high school career, folks!

This is the Moody that the Warriors were so enamored with in training camp. The Moody who plays excellent point of attack defense while also being a weapon as a help defender, who makes the extra pass and the right cut, who gets out in transition, who drains threes left and right, and who makes clutch plays. He had six stocks in this game, including one of the more impressive defensive plays a Warrior has made this year, when he fought DeRozan over a screen and blocked his elbow jumper. And with the game on the line late, he took over.

Could he have had more rebounds and fewer turnovers? Sure. But that’s picking nits with a game this fantastic.

Grade: A+

27 minutes, 0 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, 1 turnover, 2 fouls, 0-for-8 shooting, 0-for-7 threes, 0.0% TS, -3

There’s no way around it: Horford’s offense just hasn’t yet showed up this season. He’s 5-for-24 on threes, has only taken 13 shots inside the arc, and leads the league in minutes played without attempting a free throw.

But the rest of his game certainly shows that he’s still got it. He functions so well in the offensive system, and just always seems to know where to be, whom to pass to, and when to set a screen. His defense is still quite fantastic, and that was on display in this game.

Honestly, he played pretty well, but I just can’t give a good grade to someone when eight possessions end in them missing a shot and no possessions end in them making one.

Grade: C-

7 minutes, 0 points, 1 rebound, 1 foul, 0-for-2 shooting, 0-for-1 threes, 0.0% TS, -2

Santos didn’t do much in this game, but Kelenna Azubuike pointed out a great play he made, when, in a broken set against an undermanned defense, Santos cut to the rim to draw a defender away from Jonathan Kuminga, which left Kuminga open in the corner. A heady play that served as a strong reminder that Santos is more than just a giant ball of energy.

Grade: C+

14 minutes, 9 points, 1 rebound, 2 assists, 1 steal, 1 turnover, 3 fouls, 3-for-5 shooting, 1-for-3 threes, 2-for-2 free throws, 76.5% TS, -13

Hield played a big part in the first quarter, when he had seven points off the bench. He didn’t do too much after that, though, and didn’t play very much either. Still, a pretty nice game.

Grade: B

17 minutes, 6 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist, 2 turnovers, 2 fouls, 3-for-7 shooting, 42.9% TS, -19

Spencer did some good things in this game, but he looked a bit overmatched. He sees the game so well, but just wasn’t quite able to play at the same level as the Kings in this one.

Grade: C
Post-game bonus: Worst plus/minus on the team.

9 minutes, 2 points, 1 assist, 1 steal, 1 foul, 1-for-2 shooting, 50.0% TS, -2

Always good to see TJD get some run. Nothing much of note for him in this game, for better or for worse. He was active, though it didn’t result in much. A good job diving to the rim and getting out in transition, and he played some solid defense, but his hands weren’t the best and he needs to rebound better.

Grade: C

11 minutes, 3 points, 2 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 1 turnover, 1 foul, 1-for-1 shooting, 1-for-1 threes, 150.0% TS, -12

Payton made his first three of the year, and he had some great passes, but on the whole it wasn’t a very good game for him. He wasn’t as much of a difference-maker on defense as we’ve grown accustomed to, and he had a very bad turnover.

Grade: C

Wednesday’s DNP-CDs: Jackson Rowe
Wednesday’s inactives: Jimmy Butler III, Steph Curry, Draymond Green, De’Anthony Melton, Alex Toohey