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NBA · SAC

Nique Clifford

G · 6′5″ · Current team: Sacramento Kings

Regular season · Apr 3, 2026 · NOP 113 @ SAC 117 · Final

Nique Clifford 23 points vs Pelicans (Apr 3, 2026): 3rd-best of 71 games

ANSWER

23 PTS · 9-of-16 FG · 4-of-6 3P · 1-of-2 FT · 38:42 MIN

Usual before this game: 7.8 PTS · 7.5 FGA · 24.2 MIN, from 70 regular-season games

3rd-best Game Score of 71 games this season: 17.7 against a usual 5.5 (+12.2)

SURPRISE SCORE
95Unusual
above usual

No more than 5 in 100 games by players at this level finish this far above their usual.

For a player who plays every game, a game this far above the usual comes about 2 to 4 times a season.

How the score works

Why did Nique Clifford score 23 points?

Nique Clifford scored 23 points against the Pelicans on Apr 3, 2026 in 38:42: 9-of-16 from the field (56.3%), 4-of-6 from three (66.7%), 1-of-2 on free throws. Before this game, Clifford averaged 7.8 points on 7.5 shots in 24.2 minutes across 70 regular-season games. This game had the 3rd-best Game Score of 71 games this season. Shot attempts: 16, against a usual 7.5. The rate from the field was 56.3%, against a usual 40.7%. Points by shot type, against the usual: threes 12 (2.9), two-pointers 10 (4.1). Playing time was 38:42, against a usual 24.2 minutes; per 36 minutes, the Game Score was 16.5, against a usual 8.2. Assists: 6, against a usual 2.2. The Kings won 117-113 at home against the Pelicans. The box score records what changed, not why: it holds no injury, matchup or coaching information.

Generated from the box score and this season's game log. How the score works

01

What changed

Clifford in this game against the usual line

This game against the usual line
StatThis gameUsual (70 games)Change
Minutes38:4224.2+14.5
Points237.8+15.2
Shots (FGA) · FG%16 · 56.3%7.5 · 40.7%+8.5 · +15.6
3PA · 3P%6 · 66.7%3.0 · 32.9%+3.0 · +33.8
FTA · FT%1-of-21.1 · 69.2%+0.9
Rebounds53.6+1.4
Assists62.2+3.8
Turnovers41.4+2.6
UsageUsual: minutes-weighted average of per-game usage, 69 games23.016.5+6.5
Game Score per 36 minutes16.58.2+8.3
02

Points by shot type

Twos, threes and free throws: the changes add up to the points change

Points by shot type against the usual line
Shot typeThis gameUsual (70 games)Change
Threes12 (4-of-6)2.9 (1.0-of-3.0)+9.1
Twos10 (5-of-10)4.1 (2.1-of-4.5)+5.9
Free throws1 (1-of-2)0.8 (0.8-of-1.1)+0.2
Total237.8+15.2
03

Game Score

One measure of the whole box score line

17.7 against a usual 5.5 (+12.2)

Its five parts
The change in Game Score, by part
PartChange
Scoring, net of shot attempts+11.3
Rebounds+0.1
Assists+2.6
Steals and blocks-0.1
Turnovers and fouls-1.7
Total+12.2
04

Season so far

Regular season, in date order

Game Score in each of this season's 71 games, oldest first, this game last: 5.4, 0.5, 4.8, 9.8, -0.9, 9.7, 3.1, 4.3, -0.8, -1.2, -1.8, 9.2, 1.5, 5.5, -1.4, 0.2, 2.1, -0.6, 12.2, 2.9, -6.4, -1.1, 3.4, 9.7, 6.5, 8.4, 7, 8.5, 11.6, 1.9, -1.5, 6.2, 0.2, 2.3, 3.1, -1.6, -2.3, 9.2, 0.3, 6.3, 4.5, 1.1, 9, 6.6, -0.2, 8.8, 9, 10.1, 11.3, 25.7, 3.7, 2.9, -2.6, 8.2, 17.3, 11, 10.3, 20.6, 8.7, 4.8, 9.9, 6.5, 16.9, 7.5, 5.3, 14.6, 8.6, -0.9, 9.1, 3.4, 17.7

3rd-best Game Score of 71 games this season.

05

Context

From the rows this page already reads

  • The Kings won 117-113 at home against the Pelicans.
  • Previous appearance: Apr 1, 2026, 2 days earlier.
  • Earlier regular-season meetings with the Pelicans this season: 10 points (Feb 9, 2026), 7 points (Mar 5, 2026).
06

What this page cannot tell you

The same on every performance page

Limits

Box scores record what happened, not why: no injuries or health, defensive assignments, matchups, coaching decisions or play-by-play.

METHOD

Game Score against the player's own usual line. How rare a gap is comes from NBA regular-season games of 2023-24 and 2024-25, checked on 2025-26.