Los Angeles Clippers guard James Harden completed a four-point game to secure his first victory with the franchise, a 104-100 victory over the Houston Rockets (6-4) Friday night at Crypto.com Arena, ending a five-game streak since joining the team.
Harden, 34, would have equalized Kawhi Leonard for the game-high 24 points if not for two late free throws that had no further impact on the score. His winning 3-pointer, plus the And-1, sealed the victory.
Chris Broussard insults James Harden and quickly apologizes
The Clippers had gone 0-5 since acquiring Harden from Philadelphia 76ers earlier in the month. It was the first time that Russell Westbrook was no longer a starter since his arrival.
Westbrook, 35, reportedly volunteered to come off the bench and it did wonders for the starters.
Leonard, 32, led all scorers with 26 points, while Paul Georges set up 23 and Ivica Zubac I managed a dozen.
Russell Westbrook is the ultimate team player
If Westbrook’s sacrifice allowed the team to shine, he only scored eight points in 17 minutes of play, including six in the fourth quarter.
Westbrook shot 2 of 9 from the field, 2 of 6 from deep and added three rebounds and two assists. Each starter had more than six boards each.
Harden, however, led the team with seven assists and a game-high nine rebounds. The challenge now is to be consistent.
Clippers (4-7) managed to win their first victory of the NBA tournament during the 2023 seasonbut are most likely eliminated since there is only one group stage match left to play.
