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Don’t look now, but things might finally be coming together for the Los Angeles Clippers.
Los Angeles won its second consecutive game with a 124-99 victory over the San Antonio Spurs on Monday at Frost Bank Center. The Clippers improved to 5-7 on the season and seem to have put their recent six-game losing streak in the rearview mirror.
San Antonio cannot say the same and fell to 3-11 overall with a ninth straight loss.
Paul George went on a scoring burst in the fourth quarter and finished with 28 points, six assists and five rebounds, while Kawhi Leonard added 21 points. James Harden notched a double-double of 13 points and 10 assists, and Daniel Theis provided a spark off the bench with 19 points and seven boards.
Social media was impressed with the overall performance from the Clippers:
These are teams in opposite modes, as the Spurs are focused on the future with No. 1 overall pick Victor Wembanyama while the Clippers are one of the league’s championship-or-bust squads. The latter is attempting to figure things out since acquiring Harden, and a matchup with a rebuilding team after a win over the Houston Rockets seemed like an ideal get-right scenario.
And it was right out of the gates as the visitors jumped out to an 11-point halftime lead during a stretch that saw Harden blow past Wembanyama on a switch and the big man swat one of his shots on two different plays.
Los Angeles extended its lead to 20 in the third quarter with Harden facilitating, Leonard scoring in the lane and George doing a bit of everything before he took over in the fourth quarter as a scorer.
It was a balanced attack for the victors with six players scoring in double figures, including Theis, Norman Powell and Russell Westbrook off the bench.
Westbrook anchoring the secondary unit seems to be working, and Harden is setting up others even when he struggles with his own shot. Throw in the potential of Leonard and George to still be two of the best two-way players in the league, and the vision is fairly clear for the Clippers.
The veterans have to stay healthy at this stage of their respective careers to fully live up to expectations, but at least things seem to be headed in the right direction.
Los Angeles will look to keep things moving in that direction with a second straight game in San Antonio on Wednesday.