Those who entered Golden 1 Center on Wednesday night expecting to see a star-studded matchup between the Sacramento Kings and Golden State Warriors may have been disappointed to see a stacked injury report–but they weren’t cheated out of an entertaining evening.
Although Sacramento was without Domantas Sabonis (rib contusion), Zach LaVine (back soreness), and Keegan Murray (left thumb, UCL injury recovery), and Golden State was missing Stephen Curry (illness), Jimmy Butler (back strain), and Draymond Green (rib contusion), both of these Northern California foes played a hard-fought contest in front of a packed house.
Russell Westbrook put on a vintage performance in what was his first start at home, Malik Monk returned from a two-game absence with authority, and the Kings handed the Warriors a 121-116 loss to begin a five-game homestand.
Sacramento (3-5) brushed off a 1-3 road trip in style by handing Golden State a loss at home, a showing they will look to build on in the coming days against the likes of Oklahoma City, Minnesota, Denver, and Atlanta.
Do your thing, Russ 😮💨 pic.twitter.com/kLXsB1vrrY
— Kings on NBCS (@NBCSKings) November 6, 2025
Kings vs. Warriors recap & takeaways
As has been the case often for Sacramento during the early stages of this season, the Kings fell behind by double-digits early on Wednesday night.
While Sacramento entered play with the third-best turnover rate in the NBA (13.4 per game), they gave the ball away to Golden State eight times during the first quarter, resulting in seven points for the Warriors in transition.
The Kings trailed by as many as 13 points during the first half as forward Jonathan Kuminga, a player whom Sacramento was interested in acquiring during the offseason, took on an increased role in the Golden State offense with Steph Curry, Jimmy Butler, and Draymond Green all sidelined.
Kuminga poured in 17 points (six-of-nine shooting from the field) during the first half to lead the Warriors, but the Kings made a final push before the break to bring themselves within reach of Golden State.
Russell Westbrook continued his strong start to his Kings tenure by leading all Sacramento scorers with 13 first-half points–also grabbing four boards and handing out five assists in the process–with eight of those points coming in the second period.
Westbrook and Malik Monk (12 first-half points) helped pace a 13-7 run that trimmed an 11-point deficit to five heading into the third quarter.
Brodie heat check 🔥 pic.twitter.com/MXniMwn2nM
— Kings on NBCS (@NBCSKings) November 6, 2025
When the page turned to the second half, Westbrook and Monk turned the heat up on the Warriors by leading a 22-14 opening run that put the Kings back in front for the first time since the opening minutes of regulation.
By the time the third quarter ended, Westbrook was just two assists away from his first triple-double with Sacramento, while Monk (seven points in the period) and DeMar DeRozan (ten points in the quarter) flipped the script and seized the momentum away from Golden State.
The Sacramento Kings forced eight Warriors turnovers in the third quarter while going to the line 17 times in the period, going 14-of-18 (77%) in the process.
Once the dust settled, Sacramento had outscored Golden State 35-23 in the third while holding the Warriors to just 30 percent shooting from the field to take a 92-85 lead into the fourth.
It seemed as if the Kings were well on their way to coasting to a win as they held an eight-point lead with less than eight minutes to go, but Golden State went on a run of their own to let the air out of an amped up Golden 1 Center.
Moses Moody flipped the switch in crunch time, scoring 12 points in the fourth quarter to help ignite a 12-2 run that put the Warriors back in front with six minutes remaining.
With the game slipping away, Westbrook turned back the clock in crunch time by leading a 5-0 run on his own to put Sacramento back in control for good. In three straight possessions, Westbrook scored or assisted on the Kings made baskets–two of those being assists that led to triples, while his basket came on a put-back attempt.
Russ is everywhere 😤 pic.twitter.com/rqCOadFUcT
— Kings on NBCS (@NBCSKings) November 6, 2025
On a night where both teams were severely shorthanded, Westbrook stole the show and put on a show that led Sacramento to a much-needed win.
The future Hall of Fame guard finished the night with 23 points (nine-of-13 shooting from the field), 16 rebounds, and ten assists, becoming the first Kings player outside of Domantas Sabonis to post a triple-double since the start of the 2018-19 season (De’Aaron Fox, 11/1/18).
Westbrook was the star of Wednesday’s win, but he got some help from Monk, who scored 21 points in his return, DeMar DeRozan, who scored 25 points, and Dennis Schroder’s clutch performance in the fourth quarter (scored 13 of his 18 points).
Sacramento nearly bested Golden State across the board in this one, most notably in the paint (54-40) and beyond the arc (47% vs. 38%).
During his postgame press conference, Westbrook said that the Kings’ game plan was to attack the paint, and Sacramento did just that by taking advantage of a Draymond Green-less Warriors defense on Wednesday night.
After turning the ball over eight times during the first quarter, the Kings committed only eight more turnovers during the final three periods, while forcing the Warriors into 18 miscues.
This story is currently being updated.
Precious Makes His Debut
Recently-signed center Precious Achiuwa made his Sacramento Kings debut on Wednesday night, scoring four points and grabbing three boards over just nine minutes of action.
The Kings have been in desperate need of help in the front-court as they await Keegan Murray’s return, and Achiuwa provides Sacramento with a 6’8, 243-pound presence that can hit the glass and be physical in the post.
Stats & Notes
Malik Monk has scored 15+ points in five of his six appearances thus far.
Russell Westbrook became just the fourth player in the Sacramento-era (1985-present) to post a 20-15-10 statline, joining Domantas Sabonis (seven times), Chris Webber (four times), and DeMarcus Cousins (twice).
Sacramento Kings Injury Report
Domantas Sabonis (rib contusion) underwent an X-ray that came back negative after suffering an injury during Monday’s loss in Denver. Sabonis, who missed Wednesday’s game vs. Golden State, is considered day-to-day.
Zach LaVine (low back soreness) missed his first game of the season on Wednesday and is considered day-to-day.
Keegan Murray (left thumb, UCL injury recovery) is due to be re-evaluated in 2-3 weeks.
When is the next Sacramento Kings game?
Sacramento will continue a five-game homestand on Friday night when it faces the reigning NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder at Golden 1 Center.
On October 28th, the Kings dropped a close 107-101 contest in Oklahoma City, one that saw Sacramento lead for 39 of the 48 regulation minutes before the Thunder pulled away late.
Be sure to catch all of the Kings vs. Thunder action right here on Sactown Sports 1140 AM, with pregame coverage beginning at 2:00 PM PT on The Drive Guys before a 7:00 pm PT tip-off from downtown Sacramento.
Upcoming Sacramento Kings schedule for the 2025-26 season
Friday, November 7th – vs. Oklahoma City Thunder – 7:00 PM PT
Sunday, November 9th – vs. Minnesota Timberwolves – 6:00 PM PT
Tuesday, November 11th – vs. Denver Nuggets – 8:00 PM PT
Wednesday, November 12th – vs. Atlanta Hawks – 7:00 PM PT
Friday, November 14th – @ Minnesota Timberwolves – 1:00 PM PT
Sunday, November 16th – @ San Antonio Spurs – 1:00 PM PT
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