All eyes will be on the availability report when the Los Angeles Clippers play the Golden State Warriors on Friday in Inglewood, Calif.
As the Clippers approach Kawhi Leonard’s first game of the season, the Warriors are pondering Stephen Curry’s day off on the first night of a back-to-back that includes a home game against the Phoenix Suns on Saturday.
Leonard has not played this season because of a lingering knee problem, but he returned to contact routines before the Clippers went on a three-game road trip last week. Coach Tyronn Lue said that Leonard needs to practice in full before the team can consider the star’s return.
The Clippers have won three of their last four games to mark another high point in an up-and-down season. One of their most impressive wins came on Monday, 114-110 on the road against the Memphis Grizzlies.
Norman Powell continues to look comfortable in the leading scorer role with 29 points, while going 4 of 8 from 3-point range. James Harden had 21 points, nine assists and eight rebounds in his career. Ivica Zubac was in control inside with 20 points and 19 rebounds and added four steals.
“Everyone is affected,” said Lue. “It’s not the coaches and the players. We’re all on the same team and that’s how we treat each other. It’s not one side or the other. We’re together. We win together, we lose together, we make mistakes together. That’s who we are.”
Staying as a team helped the Clippers excel on defense and that came in the lead by holding the Grizzlies to 20 points in the fourth quarter. Memphis was averaging an NBA-best 122.7 points per game.
“To hold them to 110 at home says a lot about what we do to defend ourselves,” Lue said.
Curry nearly pulled off an improbable comeback against the Warriors on Christmas Day when he scored eight points in the final 25.7 seconds and made 3-pointers in the final 12.9 seconds. But Golden State could not overcome the score of 109-100 with 1:30 to play even though Curry tied the game with a 3-pointer with 7.6 seconds left.
Curry scored 38 points in what head coach Steve Kerr called a “tough” 36 minutes. Andrew Wiggins scored 21 points with 12 rebounds.
Before the game, Curry held a player-initiated meeting that emphasized the urgency needed for the upcoming half of the schedule. Even in defeat, the message seemed to be received, with Curry leading by example.
“We are in that window where we can still regain momentum in the future but many weeks before the break (of the All-Star game),” said Curry. “Or we’re in a situation where we’re chasing the stretch and nobody wants to be there.”
While Golden State put forth a winning effort on Wednesday, the reality is that the team has dropped five of its last six games.
“We had a good start to the season and we’re dealing with it right now, but I love our guys,” Kerr said. “High-class guys. They care.”
–Field Level Media
Source link