4 Winners and 3 Losers from Warriors Preseason Victory vs. Kings

Losers

1. Gary Payton II

After being part of the second unit in Saturday's game against the Clippers, Gary Payton II was demoted to the 11th man in Sacramento. It felt inevitable to a degree, such was the impression Moses Moody left with 12 points, four rebounds and as a game-high +14 in the preseason opener.

Payton played the 12th most minutes of any Warrior on Wednesday, finishing with one point, one rebound and two assists in his 12 minutes. Based on the first two games and with Andrew Wiggins still to come back, it's hard to envisage Payton being part of the rotation.

The 31-year-old may be more of a 'break glass in case of emergency' option for Steve Kerr -- someone he can turn to when an opposing guard has broken loose and the Warriors need their best perimeter defender.

2. Kevon Looney

Many would have thought the Draymond Green-Kevon Looney starting front-court pairing was dead and buried following last season, yet Kerr dusted it off the shelf and went back to the veteran duo against the Kings.

Looney knocked down a mid-range jump-shot on the game's very first possession, but otherwise didn't leave the impression he may have liked. The veteran center had two points, two rebounds and two assists in 17 minutes, and while it's never about the raw box score numbers for Looney, there's little doubt the Warriors looked better on Wednesday when Trayce Jackson-Davis was on the floor with the second-year big finishing as a game-high +22.

3. Lindy Waters III

With nine points in 13 minutes on 3-of-5 shooting from three, there was nothing to be disappointed about in terms of what Lindy Waters III provided. However, the fact the 27-year-old couldn't crack the first-half rotation would probably leave him a little dispirited after his incredible heroics on Saturday.

If there's an award for 13th Man of the Year, Waters would probably be the favorite. Yet while it's easy to state that he should be getting more opportunity, those minutes also have to come from somewhere else. The Warriors have too much depth, leaving Waters on the outside of the rotation when he's probably capable of playing 15-20 minutes a game for a number of teams around the league.