Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
Kawhi Leonard stays hot, carries Clippers to win over Timberwolves
Kawhi Leonard is playing out of his mind.
Entering Saturday afternoon's game against the Minnesota Timberwolves, Leonard was in the midst of the best scoring streak of his career, averaging 35.0 points over his last eight games. His chances of extending that streak seemed high, too, given he scored 42 in his last outing against Minnesota back in December.
He nearly accomplished that task in the first half this afternoon, going for 24 points in his first 15 minutes of play and finishing with 31 in 23 in L.A.'s 118-106 win over the Timberwolves.
His nine-game streak of 30+ points is the longest in the NBA this season and the second-longest in franchise history. Only World B. Free, who recorded at least 30 in 11 consecutive games for the San Diego Clippers during the 1979-1980 season, has been better.
Leonard has been playing like an MVP candidate lately, and he's done so largely in the absence of Paul George. Not only has he been scoring the ball, but Leonard has serviced as an excellent facilitator as well. He recorded 10 assists to give him the first triple-double of his career against the Miami Heat on January 24, and he's averaging a career-high 5.2 per game this season.
But as we know, offense isn't all Leonard is good for. He's still playing his usual brand of defense this season, and a spot on one of the league's All-Defensive teams seems all but guaranteed at this point.
Fortunately, Leonard won't have to continue doing it all on his own. George returned to action for Thursday's game against the Sacramento Kings, and he had his minutes restriction bumped up to around 25 for today's meeting with the Wolves. He didn't look like himself against the Kings but posted an impressive line of 21 points, seven rebounds, two assists, two steals and a block against Minnesota.
Together, Leonard and George combined for 52 points, 13 rebounds and six assists. They were among the six Clippers players that scored at least 10 points in the win.
Minnesota kept things interesting throughout, but the Clippers were dominant in the second half en route to their 34th win of the season.
L.A.'s lead rarely climbed above 10 points in the first half, and they had it cut down to just four roughly halfway through the third quarter. But from then on, the Clippers outscored the Wolves 41-33 and led by as many as 19 to close things out.
Surprisingly, it was just the second time this season that the Clippers have had a clean injury report. The first instance was on Christmas Day when they beat the Lakers 111-106.
With that, the team's 10-man rotation appears to be set. Leonard and George will start alongside Patrick Beverley, Moe Harkless and Ivica Zubac, while Lou Williams and Montrezl Harrell stand out from a second unit that also features Landry Shamet, JaMychal Green and Rodney McGruder.
Of course, that's subject to change as the trade deadline approaches, but the Clippers have proven to be an extremely capable team when all of their pieces are available.
L.A. will get Sunday off before hosting the San Antonio Spurs this coming Monday at 7:30 p.m.
