Charles Bassey's latest performance on Thursday will give the Golden State Warriors a good but difficult problem to have with their center rotation ahead of next week's Play-In Tournament.
Coming off a 14-point, 12-rebound performance against the Sacramento Kings on Tuesday, Bassey was again one of the only positives for the Warriors in a 119-113 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers at Chase Center.
Warriors have a problem to solve with their center rotation
Bassey got extended playing time again in the absence of center trio Kristaps Porzingis, Al Horford and Quinten Post, finishing with 12 points, 13 rebounds and two blocks in his nearly 30 minutes off the bench.
Horford and Post could return to the Golden State rotation on Friday against the Kings, setting up an interesting problem for Steve Kerr when it comes to managing minutes between the veteran pair and Bassey who couldn't have been more impressive after signing a 10-day contract on Sunday.
There was very little else that could be taken from a game bereft of star power, with Stephen Curry, Jimmy Butler, Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves all on the sidelines, while Golden State were missing no less than eight key players overall.
LeBron James was left as the lone star and he put on a show for the Chase Center crowd, recording a game-high 26 points to go with eight rebounds and 11 assists in less than 32 minutes.
Brandin Podziemski led the Warrors through the first three-quarters with 17 points, but with all eyes on Friday's game and the regular season finale on Sunday against the L.A. Clippers, Steve Kerr made sure to rest he and Draymond Green who only played 24 and 22 minutes respectively.
Nate Williams joined Podziemski with 17 points on 7-of-13 shooting from the floor and 3-of-6 from 3-point range, while also adding four rebounds and three assists in nearly 35 minutes as a starter.
Pat Spencer, Malevy Leons, Seth Curry and Gary Payton II all reached double figures in scoring, but the Warriors committed 19 turnovers and allowed the Lakers to shoot an extraordinary 61.3% from the floor and 55.2% from 3-point range.
The good news is that the result has no bearing on the season as Golden State are locked into the 10th-seed in the Western Conference, while a host of key players should return on Friday headlined by Curry who was managed on the first night of a back-to-back.