The Los Angeles Clippers were a team that many people were down on heading into the 2024 NBA Playoffs. Their regular season was a roller coaster with several ups and downs, with the team being on a bit of a down at the end of the regular season.
Los Angeles won seven out of their last nine games, building some positive momentum. But the injury bug struck again, with their star Kawhi Leonard being sidelined by a knee injury. There is a lot of uncertainty surrounding the injury as well, as the team has been saying he is dealing with knee inflammation.
Leonard has not played since March 31st, but head coach Tyronn Lue expressed confidence that he would be able to get into the lineup during the team’s first-round series against the Dallas Mavericks. Given the circumstances, Dallas had to like their chances in this matchup, but they quickly learned this is a Clippers squad that is still dangerous even with Leonard sidelined.
In Game 1 of their 2024 NBA Playoffs matchup, Los Angeles handled business with relative ease. The Clippers won 109-97, leading by as many as 29 points in the game and not trailing for even a second.
A major factor in the dominance was James Harden. With Leonard sidelined, he stepped up his aggressiveness on the offensive side, scoring 20 out of his 28 points in the first half to stake his team to an early lead.
Harden added eight assists, two rebounds and two blocks to his stat line. He knocked down six 3-pointers as well. After the game, he made some comments about his performance, saying that he has still got it despite some naysayers popping up during the season.
“I can score with the best of ’em,” Harden said. “Still can score with the best of ’em. My role for this team is just generating really good shots and making guys’ jobs easier. And then when my number to score is called, then you score the basketball. Obviously, Kawhi is out, so my playmaking and my volume is going to go up a little bit more, and took advantage of it.”
Being without Leonard in NBA Playoff games is unfortunately nothing new for the Clippers. He has missed a lot of games during his tenure in Los Angeles, so they have experience overcoming his loss. Now, they have another high-caliber player in Harden who is capable of carrying the load along with Paul George.
Spirited efforts like the one from Sunday will help the Clippers advance deep in the 2024 NBA Playoffs. If the supporting cast can continue playing at this level when Leonard gets back in the fold, they are as dangerous as any team in the Western Conference.
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