Who is Nique Clifford? Get to know wing from Thunder-Kings trade | Mussatto's Minutes

At some point in the night, Nique Clifford ditched his Thunder cap for a Kings one. Officially drafted by the Thunder with the 24th pick in the 2025 NBA Draft , OKC swapped Clifford’s rights to Sacramento for a 2027 first-round pick via the Spurs (top-16 protected).  Clifford needs to get that hat back.  The Thunder reacquired Clifford on Sunday, sending two second-round picks (2028 Jazz, 2030 Timberwolves) to the Kings.  So the Thunder traded Clifford for a back-end first-round pick, then got him back a year later for a pair of second-round picks. A savvy piece of business even if Clifford doesn’t become a contributor in OKC.  Let’s start this week’s edition of Minutes with five things to know about Clifford.  More: Aday Mara went from 'almost disappearing' to OKC Thunder's rising big He’d fallen out of favor in Sacramento . Which, the Kings have no clue what they’re doing, so that’s not necessarily a red flag. If I’m the Kings and Sam Presti calls about Clifford, I hang up immediately and start giving Clifford more minutes because he must be worth a deeper look if Presti is interested. Seriously, what were the Kings doing by already giving up on a former first-round pick? The 6-foot-5 wing started 28 games as a rookie, averaging 25 minutes per game. And it’s not like he was a disaster. But Clifford was out of the rotation this season, averaging 6.3 minutes per game. I guess the 1-9 Kings had way too many good players to give Clifford a chance.  Clifford is Colorado through and through. He grew up in Colorado Springs. He was the Colorado Gatorade Player of the Year his senior year at The Vanguard School in Colorado Springs. He spent three seasons at Colorado before transferring to Colorado State for his final two seasons.  Clifford averaged 18.9 points, 9.6 rebounds and 4.4 assists as a fifth-year player at Colorado State . He was named to the All-Mountain West first team. Colorado State, a No. 12 seed, upset No. 5 seed Memphis in the first round of the NCAA Tournament that year.  Clifford is an “old” second-year player . He played five years in college, after all. He turns 25 on Feb. 9. He’s three months older than Chet Holmgren, who was drafted three years before Clifford.  He’s named after Dominique Wilkins . One of his dad’s favorite players. Dominique is Clifford’s full first name, but he goes by Nique. His middle name is Akai, which is his dad’s first name.  MUSSATTO: How OKC Thunder proved its 'winning culture' vs Cavaliers amid injury crisis College basketball tip-ins  ∎ Morgan State, the HBCU in Baltimore, played a pair of women’s basketball games in Stillwater and Norman on Friday and Sunday. OSU won 92-38, and OU won 95-38. Morgan State also scored 38 points in its game before those at Colorado.  ∎ OU’s LeeLeeBell had 20 points and 12 rebounds against Morgan State. She became the first Sooner freshman since Taylor Robertson (2018-19) to begin her career with back-to-back 20-point games. Bell had 25 points in OU’s (2-0) season opener against North Carolina. Bell leads the Sooners and ranks seventh in the SEC in points per game (22.5).  ∎ The OSU Cowgirls beat Northwestern State 94-56 on Monday. OSU (3-0) has won 30 consecutive non-conference games.  ∎ Former Cowgirl Lena Girardi leads the Big 12 in scoring (22.5 points per game). Girardi transferred to Utah after her freshman season at OSU.  ∎ The OU and OSU women are ranked 14th and tied for 19th in the AP Poll. OSU is the second-highest ranked Big 12 team behind No. 15 TCU. There are five SEC teams (South Carolina, Texas, Vanderbilt, LSU, Kentucky) ranked ahead of the Sooners.  ∎ It’s only two games, but the Oklahoma State men (2-0) are averaging 104.5 points per game — tied for seventh nationally. The Cowboys are shooting 47.4% from 3-point range. OSU plays at Texas A&M (2-0) on Thursday in what will be the first test for either team. Texas A&M is ranked 24th in KenPom. OSU is 36th.  More: Why Audi Crooks left her Iowa State home for Oklahoma State women's basketball OU and Arizona State football share company  OU football (5-4, 3-3 SEC) has been an every-other-week team, following every win with a loss and every loss with a win.  vs. UTEP: win  at Michigan: loss vs. New Mexico: win at Georgia: loss  vs. Texas: win  vs. Kentucky: loss  at Mississippi State: win vs. South Carolina: loss  at Florida: win The Sooners aren’t alone. Arizona State (5-4, 3-3 Big 12) is on the exact same schedule.  vs. Morgan State: win at Texas A&M: loss vs. Kansas: win vs. Baylor: loss vs. Hawaii: win at Texas Tech: loss  vs. Kansas State: win at BYU: loss vs. Colorado: win So, following the pattern, OU will finish the season with a loss to Ole Miss, a win against Texas A&M and a loss at Missouri. Seems quite realistic.  And Arizona State will lose at UCF, beat Oklahoma State and lose at Arizona. Bad news for the Cowboys.  More: How OU football QB John Mateer overcame emotional week to lead Sooners in The Swamp NFL Sooner of the Week  Trent Williams, OT, 49ers: The 38-year-old is still playing at an elite level. Williams has graded out as the second-best tackle in the NFL this season, according to Pro Football Focus. He’s first among tackles in pass blocking. The 49ers (7-1) blew out the Raiders.  NFL Cowboy of the Week  Justice Hill, RB, Ravens: Former OSU running backs Chuba Hubbard, Jaylen Warren and Ollie Gordon II have gotten all the love. Let’s show some to seven-year veteran Justice Hill. He rushed for a season-high 85 yards and scored his first touchdown of the season in a loss to the Jaguars.  CARLSON: Why Mike Leach and a children's book get credit for Oklahoma State football win vs K-State Bedlam bets  Last week was a good one. I picked the Sooners straight up as an underdog at Florida and picked the Cowboys to cover the spread against Kansas State, which they did easily.  Here are my OU and OSU picks for this week.  OU vs. Ole Miss Line : Rebels by 1.5  Pick : Ole Miss 27, OU 23  The Rebels have an elite quarterback in Trinidad Chambliss and the Sooners have struggled at home. But we don’t need to overanalyze this one. The Sooners are due for a loss because their schedule says so.  Picking the Sooners this season: 6-3 straight up, 7-2 against the spread OSU vs. Texas Tech Line : Cowboys by 3.5 Pick : OSU 41, Texas Tech 26 I was hoping the Red Raiders might be favored, but I’m picking the Cowboys anyway. To not only win, but win big. Of the four units that will be on the field Saturday in Stillwater, OSU’s offense is by far the best.  Picking the Cowboys this season: 6-3 straight up, 6-3 against the spread Joe Mussatto is a sports columnist for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Joe? Email him at  jmussatto@oklahoman.com . Support Joe's work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a  digital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com .