In accordance with what has been standard operating procedure since Kawhi Leonard came back, the Clippers did not play his All-Star forward in the fourth quarter Sunday night against the Lakers.
Even when the Clippers’ 26-point third-quarter lead was cut to 15 at the end of the quarter and 11 at the start of the fourth, Leonard sat on the bench.
But in the 24 minutes and 17 seconds that Leonard played — the most he’s played this season — he was the sharpest he’s been in his five games this season.
He was efficient in scoring all 19 of his points, going nine of 13 from the field.
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“I’m happy with the progress,” Leonard said after the Clippers win 116-102 at the Intuit Dome. “For me it’s just about how I feel and I come out of matches in great shape. But I still have work to do and we will continue to take each step forward.
Leonard missed the first 34 games of the season with right knee inflammation. Sunday night gave him another opportunity to build.
When Leonard got around Gabe Vincent toward the baseline and scored on a layup in the second quarter, it was another sign he was taking a step in the right direction.
“Like I said, I liked Kawhi’s rhythm, to get to a place,” Tyronn Lue, Clippers coach said. “We just have to keep building and keep stacking days.”
Lue said Leonard would not play Monday night against the Chicago Bulls. Leonard also did not play Thursday in Portland after the Clippers played the day before.
The Clippers have four games left this week, including a back-to-back Wednesday against Boston and Thursday against Washington, which likely means Leonard won’t play in either of those games. The Clippers wrap up their five-game homestand Saturday against Milwaukee.
They will play an additional game this week after the NBA changed its schedule following postponements caused by wildfires in the Los Angeles area.
“We take it day by day,” said Clippers center Ivica Zubacwho was one rebound away from another 20-20 game with 21 points and 19 rebounds. “You try to win game by game. We were focused on tonight. We weren’t looking to the future. So, tomorrow is a new day, forget everything that happened tonight and try to go find another one. Then let’s rest, recover the day off and prepare again. You can’t do anything. There’s nothing you can change.”
Despite his injury-marred career, Leonard surpassed the 14,000-point mark on Sunday. He hopes he can do even more as he continues his return from injury.
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“I’m happy I was able to play enough to get here,” said Leonard, who has 14,005 career points. “But for me, I don’t see it as a big step. I’m more of a team guy and I want to get the win, go down, be the last team standing and that’s what I played for. But thank God I can have this opportunity, and most people don’t. So, I would like to take advantage of every opportunity and blessing and not take them for granted.
In the middle of the Clippers who are rolling on the Lakers, James Harden takes a new step. He moved into 14th place on the NBA’s all-time scoring list with 26,721 points, passing Hall of Famer Oscar Robertson.
Harden had 21 points and 12 assists against the Lakers.
This story was originally published in Los Angeles Times.
