April 22 (UPI) — Kawhi Leonard pushed his history of hobbling injuries into the rear-view mirror, dominating the Denver Nuggets with 39 points to fuel a Los Angeles Clippers victory and tie their first-round playoff series at 1-1.
Leonard scored 21 points in the first half and netted another dozen in the fourth quarter of the 105-102 victory Monday in Denver. Clippers guard James Harden chipped in 18 points and seven assists. Center Ivica Zubac totaled 16 points, 12 rebounds and four assists.
“Luck hasn’t been on his side or whatever case you might call it,” Harden told reporters, when asked about Leonard’s battles with injuries.
“But he loves to hoop. And as you see, when he’s on the court, he’s a killer. So I’m glad he’s in a good space right now.”
Knee issues severely limited the 33-year-old forward over the last several seasons. He played in just 37 games during the 2024-25 regular season. He also missed the Clippers’ final three games last postseason because of knee inflammation.
“I sat and watched these playoff games and series the past two years,” Leonard said. “So being able to be frontline out there, it just feels good for me no matter which way the game goes.”
The Clippers outscored the Nuggets 46-38 in the paint and 18-14 off fast breaks. They also outshot the Nuggets 48.2% to 46.8%. The Nuggets out-rebounded the Clippers 50-32, but totaled 20 turnovers, compared to just 11 from the visitors.
Game 2 of the best-of-seven series featured 18 lead changes and was tied 12 times. Nuggets center Nikola Jokic logged a 26-point, 12-rebound, 10-assist triple-double in the loss.
The lead changed hands three times early on, but the Nuggets outscored the Clippers 9-4 over the final 8:29 of the first quarter to take a 31-25 lead into the second. Leonard made all five of his first-quarter shot attempts and scored 12 points over the first 12 minutes.
The Clippers scored the first six points of the second quarter, tying the score at 31-31. They later went on an 8-0 run to take the lead and held a 55-52 edge at halftime.
Jokic scored 10 points in the third quarter, when the Nuggets outscored the Clippers 24-23. They snatched another lead on a Jokic 3-pointer eight seconds into the fourth. The Clippers responded with a 9-2 run for an 87-81 lead with 9:58 remaining, but the game would once again turn tight.
Nuggets guard Jamal Murray hit a 3-pointer to tie the score at 100-100 with 2:07 remaining. Guard Norman Powell answered with another trey 37 seconds later and the Clippers never trailed again.
Jokic hit two free throws on the next possession. Leonard proceeded to ice the lead with a pull-up jump shot with 54 seconds remaining. Jokic and the fourth-seeded Nuggets then failed to find the net on several possessions down the stretch.
Game 3 of the series will tip off at 10 p.m. EDT Thursday in Los Angeles. The fifth-seeded Clippers will host Game 4 at 6 p.m. Saturday at Intuit Dome.
The winner of the series will meet the No. 1 Oklahoma City Thunder or No. 8 Memphis Grizzlies in the Western Conference semifinals. The Thunder, who lead the Grizzlies 1-0 in that first-round series, will host Game 2 at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday at Paycom Center.
