Charles Bassey has wasted no time turning heads at the Golden State Warriors, with the franchise's latest signing delivering a massive double-double performance against the Sacramento Kings at Chase Center on Tuesday night.
Bassey's 14 points, 12 rebounds, two steals and two blocks helped the Warriors survive a scare against their lowly pacific rival, having emerged with a 110-105 victory after previously trailing in the fourth-quarter.
Charles Bassey impresses again in second game with Warriors
The 25-year-old impressed in his less than 10 minutes during his debut for Golden State on Sunday, but the absence of all three of Kristaps Porzingis, Al Horford and Quinten Post gifted him even more opportunity against the Kings.
Bassey shot 7-of-12 from the floor and four of his rebounds came on the offensive end, while the 6'11" big man also finished as a +9 in his 27 minutes which ranked second only behind Warrior superstar Stephen Curry.
Curry once again came off the bench and played 25 minutes in his second game back from a knee injury, finishing with 17 points, five rebounds and two assists on 4-of-11 shooting from beyond the arc.
The 2x MVP had a pair of thrilling four-point plays in the first-half, helping the hosts to a 13-point half-time lead. Yet Golden State's offensive fell off in the second-half, allowing Sacramento back into the game and with the game tied at 104 with less than two minutes remaining.
Brandin Podziemski broke the tie with his fourth 3-pointer of the night, having impressed again with 20 points and three assists in just under 30 minutes. Fellow starting guard De'Anthony Melton found some rhythm after a rough recent stretch, also going 4-of-6 from 3-point range to finish with a team-high 21 points to go with four rebounds and five assists.
Pat Spencer had 14 points in nearly 41 minutes, while Gary Payton II continued his consistent offensive production in recent months with 12 points, four assists, three rebounds and three steals in just under 25 minutes off the bench.
Bassey might be the biggest talking point from the five-point victory though. Tuesday's performance clearly shows he's worthy of genuine rotation minutes, but what does that exactly look like when Porzingis and Horford, in particular, return to the lineup?
The win breaks Golden State's four-game losing streak, with the final home game of the season set for Thursday against the equally injury-hit Los Angeles Lakers.