Right before their game on Monday night, James Harden was ruled out due to a shoulder injury, pushing rookie guard Kobe Sanders into the starting lineup. The Los Angeles Clippers had their six-game winning streak ended by the Boston Celtics, but there was still plenty of momentum riding for them as they headed into the last game of their homestand against the Golden State Warriors.

Despite Steph Curry and Jimmy Butler combining for 51 points, Golden State's inability to convert shots was enough for the Clippers to overcome 20 turnovers and 15 fewer shots, leading to a 103-102 win at the Intuit Dome. Kawhi Leonard continued his strong play with 24 points and 12 rebounds, but Sanders was a difference maker with his performance.

Sanders finished the game with 20 points and seven rebounds, converting 9-of-16 shots from the field. Sanders has flashed at times this season, but Monday marked a career-high for him in scoring and tied his career-high in rebounding.

After the game, head coach Ty Lue was asked about Sanders, prompting a response about how he's exceeded his expectations from before the season.

"Yeah, I mean, I didn't imagine that," Lue said regarding whether he'd think a rookie would come through for the Clippers this season. "I knew he was a good player. But just his poise, his ability to understand what we are doing defensively and offensively, and just get more and more confident."

Lue went on to praise how far Sanders has come, even from the start of the season, where he was seeing action in the middle of November consistently. Additionally, even though the team finished with 20 turnovers, he praised Sanders for stepping up as a ball-handler along with Kris Dunn.

This recent stretch of play has the Clippers up to the 11th seed in the Western Conference, ending Monday two games back of the Memphis Grizzlies for the 10th seed and the final seed in the play-in tournament. There's still a lot of basketball to be played this season, but the Clippers are positioning themselves well.

The Warriors haven't been consistent this season, but the Clippers defeating them without James Harden is still an accomplishment worth noting. Now with Ivica Zubac back in the lineup, the Clippers have a chance to continue stacking wins as the trade deadline is under a month away.

It seems unlikely the Clippers will clean house at this point, but that doesn't mean they couldn't get involved in adding a player or two to the mix to improve the roster.